55: Top Ten Books on Mormon History – Joseph Smith: Rough Stone Rolling

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Okay so this one breaks the criteria a little bit, well let’s just say it bends the rules by being on the longer side of things. Rough Stone Rolling is a hefty little history book but it is an important one. Bushman gives a candid yet sympathetic view of Joseph Smith’s life. He is the founder of the Mormon Faith and more than any other one individual has shaped, colored, inspired, and frustrated the minds of Mormons. It is important for all Latter Day Saints to know Joseph better than they did before, Rough Stone Rolling is a great way to accomplish that end.

In this second installment of “Top Ten Books on Mormon History,” Ben and I discuss Richard Bushman’s Joseph Smith: Rough Stone Rolling.

Our “Top Ten Books on Mormon History” list was composed for someone new to Mormon History. The criteria for inclusion are the book’s demonstration of:

• Use of a sophisticated academic approach and emphasis on analysis over merely regurgitating data and documents.
• Coverage of an important person, event, or period in Mormon history
• Quality of writing.
• Length (not too long).

The List

1. Matthew Bowman, The Mormon People: The Making of an American Faith
   Release in March
2. Richard Bushman, Joseph Smith: Rough Stone Rolling
   Release in April
3. Ronald Walker et. al., Massacre at Mountain Meadows
   Release in May
4. Sarah Barringer Gordon, The Mormon Question Polygamy and Constitutional Conflict in Nineteenth-Century America
   Release in June
5. Kathryn Daynes, More Wives Than One: Transformation of the Mormon Marriage System, 1840-1910
   Release in July
6. Paul Reeve, Religion of a Different Color: Race and the Mormon Struggle for Whiteness
   Release in August
7. Kathleen Flake, The Politics of American Religious Identity: The Seating of Senator Reed Smoot, Mormon Apostle
   Release in September
8. Armand Mauss, The Angel and the Beehive: THE MORMON STRUGGLE WITH ASSIMILATION
   Release in October
9. Prince & Wright, David O. McKay and the Rise of Modern Mormonism
   Release in November
10. Martha Bradley, Pedestals and Podiums: Utah Women, Religious Authority, and Equal Rights
    Release in December
    

Music: bensound.com

Brian D.

Brian was born and raised in Northern Utah and is now working as a chemist in Ohio. He has one wife and three children. He currently serves as the ward hall monitor. He likes to eat good food, and build cool things.

All posts by Brian D.