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Summary: For anyone interested in a factual, well written book
Review: For anyone interested in a factual, well written book... you'll have to look elsewhere I'm afraid. Mr. Krakauer has lost any shred of credibility he may have had and proven himself to be unconcerned with fact, data, truth, integrity and honesty.
It's unfortunate that Jon Krakauer wasted so much precious time bashing a religion he obviously knows nothing about. It would be most interesting to find the true underlying cause for such bitterness.
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Summary: this book is not banned in utah
Review: Despite what a previous reviewer wrote, the book is readily available in Utah. In Salt Lake City, all of the major bookstores are carrying it.
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Summary: incomplete picture of violence and Mormon fundamentalism
Review: A fun read; 3 complaints:One, Krakauer's explanation of the causes of violent religious behavior is limited to a recounting of bloody episodes from Mormon history. In this sense Under the Banner of Heaven is remniscient of previous journalistic forays into Mormon Fundamentalism, such as Bradlee and Van Atta's 'Prophet of Blood' or Anderson's 'The Four O'Clock Murders.' All of these books share the flaw of attributing later violent behavior to a heritage of Mormonism (which happens to have an uncommonly brutal and lawless past--directed toward and from the Church), not taking into account the ways in which the peculiar fundamentalist groups interpret and mediate that Mormon theology and history. Krakauer falls into the common pit. He devotes nearly half of his 340-page book to presenting details about violent actions affecting the 19th century LDS Church, while giving us perhaps a few hundred words in reference to the School of the Prophets, the Fundamentalist organization in which the killers actively participated, where many of the attitudes, perceptions and motivations of the Laffertys were presumably developed. A second complaint is, Krakauer assumes that a common society, culture, and world-view exists in the minds and society of all Mormon Fundamentalists. This is not a substantiated fact. In truth the phenomenon of "Mormon Fundamentalism" is a variegated clustering of peoples, kinship networks, churches, non-churches, study groups, societies, cultures, and power structures. While there are certainly connections between lots of these discrete groups and churches, many are geographically, ideologically/doctrinally and socally isolated and entirely unique. Most claim to represent the purest teachings of Joseph Smith, while some hold him as one among many gurus to be reverenced. Finally, Krakauer makes it clear that he distinguishes between the LDS Church and "Mormon Fundamentalists" with respect to who gets the blame for modern manifestations of violence. However, in every other sphere we consider it wrong to hold up the violent extremist as the prototype of the group he nominally belongs to; why is it okay for Krakauer to indict any fundamentalist church--even more so all of "Mormon Fundamentalism," in light of the diversity it represents--for the actions of two brothers?
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Summary: "They taketh the truth to be hard...."
Review: Of course any true-blue Mormon of today will not like this book. In fact, they have indirectly and/or directly been counseled not to read anything that could be damaging to their faith in the Mormon Church. In reality, Krakauer's book is *much* closer to historical truth than the current white-washed church history presented by the Mormon church. One of the greatest weaknesses of the Mormon church, in my opinion, is its inability to come to terms with its early history. Krakauer is illustrating a simple point: That while Mormons distance themselves from and often try to conceal the unsavory details of early Church history, they cannot hide it or ignore its effects on its members, then and now. Just because he brings history to light doesn't mean that Mormons are bunched into the same group, it just means that its time to acknowledge the Church's roots and learn from them, instead of trying to pretend the unsavory history never happened, and that the Church had nothing to do with it. Wouldn't it be nice, my fellow Mormons, to admit that polygamy was a glaring mistake of early leadership, and just get over it and make some progress? In my opinion, Krakauer's book is worth a read to any inside and outside of the Mormon Church who are interested in a more realistic interpretation of it's early history.
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Summary: Awesome page turner
Review: As always Jon Krakauer is awesome in his reporting! This is a hard to put down book. Understandably when you start probing into matters of faith you're going to rile up individuals. This will only strengthen their resolve. This book should inspire a federal investigation into the fundamentalists who are literally robbing U.S. citizens to support pedophilia and slavery in portions of the southwest. It's always good to look within our own borders for homegrown terrorism before we embark on cleaning up the rest of the world.
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Summary: If you are Mormon, you won't get it....
Review: I very much admire MODERN day LDS (Mormonism)and, unfortunately, also understand how something so good can go so wrong.
Mormonism as it is taugh by the standing prophet: President Hinckley, is a righteous faith, although not very open to reinterpretation. It seems when some very misguided members start reading between the lines of the old revelations (and I mean 100 years old)they twist faith into something quite ugly.
Krakauer is one of the authors that try to explain how something so horrible as the slaying of a good Mormon wife can result by the twisted interpretation of this history by once good-standing Mormons. It is a brave intent into a very controversial topic which has never been very accepted in the LDS community, and unfortunately helps non in upholding the good name of the Church.
I would definitevely recommend it as an interesting read, an insight into the sick minds of those who turn fanatical. By no means should it be read a testament of what Modern Mormonism is or may be. Why do I say Mormons won't get it? Because they usually tend to take any book that criticize their faith (past or present) with prejudice. Keep and open mind.
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Summary: The Book Mormon leaders DO NOT want you to read.
Review: ...Great research and a compelling true story about a church with violent roots that continues to pay for the sins of their fathers!! Thank you John Krakauer. You join the ranks of truly brave and honest historians like Fawn Brodie, Will Bagley and Juanita Brooks. THE TRUTH REFUSES TO DIE!!
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Summary: Loaded with errors
Review: A good read and an interesting "story" however the large number of factual errors casts a shadow over the book's veracity. Some of the errors are so glaring to be comical (i.e. Mark E. Peterson was never the LDS church's president). Dosn't Krakauer have a fact checker?
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Summary: Disappointed
Review: Krakauer uses the same arguments that have existed for decades, only this time around they have been given the spin that it all leads to violence. I was not entertained in the least. I found myself becoming bored, disinterested, and with little motivation to complete the book. Sorry Jon, stick with Everest.
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Summary: Anti-Mormon Non-Sense
Review: Every now and again this type of black journalism shows its ugly head. They go out of their way to attack Maverick Mormons. The writer tries to blame the Smart girl's kidnapping on the Mormons. The guy who did the kidnapping was just a crazy street "Jesus" who had no connections to any Mormon group.
John Singer was gunned down by the police while he was walking to his mail box, this makes him a Mormon terrorist.
To get a book published now days they have to support the Big Lie. This book is trash. Wyatt Kaldenberg
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