Customer Reviews

Latter Days: An Insider's Guide to Mormonism, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

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This is a great book written by a long-time member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (the Mormons). Being a convert, I could appreciate the straightforward way that the history of the Church was presented. Mr. Newell takes us from Joseph Smith's "First Vision," to the death and persecution of early church members, to the pioneer trek led by Brigham Young into the Great Salt Lake Valley and lastly, to the very modern Church of today. The people in these stories were real, and their stories are told to us, very often, in their own words. From a historical standpoint, the book serves as an excellent resource.

Additionally, and more importantly to the eyes of the Church faithful, Mr. Newell makes the events of the past relevant to the Church today by reminding us of prophecies and visions given throughout time. He reminds us that the pioneers struggled across thousands of miles, so that they would have the right to worship their God in what way they chose. He explains clearly and without apology, because there is nothing to apologize for, Mormon beliefs and doctrine.

Finally, Mr. Newell does not seek to convert others to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints through this book. Rather, he presents the events of the past, our hopes for the future, and the tenets of the Gospel to which we prescribe, as set forth by various sources of Scripture. It is for the reader, then, to take from the book what he will and let his increased knowledge take him where he will.

So many books have been written on the history and beliefs of the Latter Day Saints, and so many of them fall into 1 of 2 categories. Ones who are out to attack the "Mormons" and those who are on a crusade to promote. With all of this biased authorship, it was refreshing to see Mr. Newell's book, LATTER DAYS. At first I was put off to the fact that he himself is a Latter Day Saint, but after 2 pages of reading, it was obvious that his intent was simply to inform the reader of the LDS faith, and its history. I was impressed and charmed by his unique and entertaining style. In all of my research and reading on the subject, I have never seen such a well done book.

As a life time member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints I was very encouraged to see a no nonsense description of LDS theology directed toward a general audience.

I must admit that I learned a few things while reading Latter Days. Latter Days does describe the doctrine with a high level of detail. While I believe it to be accurate, a reading of the without further research may leave the reader a bit confused as to which doctrines listed are "core tenants" of the LDS faith and which are lesser known or not emphasized. As a compliment to your reading, I suggest talking to a friend familiar with the LDS faith or spending some time at the Church's website (...) to get a better feel.

That said, I give the book my highest recommend.

I found this book to accurately describe contemporary mormon beliefs (unlike other books that site early mormon sources from the 1850s and then claim that these sources represent what average mormons believe today). I was curious about what mormons thought about such controversial topics as polygamy, for example, and this book addresses the topic. I asked a mormon friend about several points in the book and was pleased that the book seemed to accurately describe my friend's beliefs.

The title of the book is accurate--it is an "insider's" guide in the sense that it is written by a mormon convert. What you get is a concise, clear and accurate representation of mormon beliefs from a sincere mormon believer. It's a good read--I had a hard time putting the book down.

This book is an appealing review of both Latter Day Saint history and doctrines. It is written in a clear and familiar way. It has helped me articulate for others why I chose to join the Mormon church.

This is an excellent read. Coke can paint a picture that draws you in. If you think his writing is good, he can keep you on the edge of your seat as an audience member. The man is gifted.

This is an excellent presentation of what Mormons are taught to believe and what most do indeed still believe, worded in the sacred tone in which Mormons have learned to appreciate and revere it, but this is accomplished by injuring, skating past and ignoring various historical and scientific discoveries that unhappily disengage from important parts of the official story line. To get the most balanced perspective, the reader may want to read this alongside of that of another insider, Grant H. Palmer, whose more recent book, An Insider's View of Mormon Origins, conducts the reader on a backstage tour, explaining how the current extravaganza was put together over time.

This review was done for the hardback edition (and is submitted here due to the fact that Amazon does not transfer reviews of the same title, hardcover to paperback).

This book is clearly a response to Mormon America: The Power and the Promise, by Richard and Joan Ostling. Now I will readily admit that this is a serious accusation, and that I will never be able to ever prove a thing, yet it has the "fingerprints" of the LDS Church public relations department all over the book. Consider the following,

* The author admits both on the dust jacket and in the preface that he works presently (as he has for nearly a decade) for the LDS Church as an "international public relations officer at world headquarters in Salt Lake City."

* The author in the acknowledgments thanks (and I quote) "At the headquarters offices of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saint: Brian D. Garner of the Church Educational System, and Ronald O. ("Omivorous") Barney of the Historical department for their close reading of the manuscript, sought for both to keep me accurate and to keep me employed...". This is clearly an admission that continued employment by the LDS Church requires that he not write anything that would displease his employers.

* At the end of the book is a "Selected Bibliography"; it should be called a "Selective Bibliography". Only two out of the 18 bibliographic references given were to non-Mormon publishers. AND, even at that, one of the two non-Mormon references was to The Encyclopedia of Mormonism published by Macmillan, but produced under the independent editorial control of Mormon apologist Daniel H. Ludlow (i.e. Macmillan gave Ludlow final say on what went to press). While BYU Studies was mentioned, Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought, Journal of Mormon History and Sunstone were omitted from bibliography. What makes the omission of Dialogue and Suntone odd is that the are mentioned in what passes for footnotes in 3-4 spots in the text (for example, Dialogue is cited on page 145n299, and then again on page 160n330; Sunstone is cited on page 165n339).

Yet what most clearly seems to identify this book as a reply to Mormon America is this remark on page xiv. "Those books written by outsiders to the Latter-day Saints' faith and employing a reasonable range of objectivity vary widely in their ability to get it right, to really comprehend LDS thought and doctrine...Those texts written by dissidents, or even by objective outsiders who surrender to some odd compulsion to get their "research" from the mouths of such dissidents, continually end up with the same dirty water, contaminated and dangerously unreliable. (Would you study Catholicism at the knee of a rabbi?)"

Admittedly, the endnotes in Mormon America that go on for 30 pages include "controversial facts and opinion" about LDS Church history and doctrine (included in their "For Further Reading" section, the Ostlings' include many titles about the same by faithful Latter-day Saints; nearly 6 full pages in all). Unlike the author of Latter Days however, the Ostlings' have more faith and trust in the intelligence of their readers.

Additionally, the treatment of two well-known figures from early Mormonism in Latter Days tipped me off to the author's inclination to distort historical fact for partisan religious advantage (and might I add, to the disadvantage of those that can no longer speak for themselves). The first figure is none other than Emma Hale Smith, the wife of Mormon Prophet and Founder, Joseph Smith. Beginning on page 130, the author writes, quoting an early LDS Church leader, "Many people have turned away from the truth because things did not come exactly to suit them...Emma Smith, for example." This is an unalloyed a slur against a woman who, like Hillary Clinton, stood by her man. And Emma was not merely "discomforted" (the adjective the author uses) with the principle of polygamy, she was diametrically opposed to the practice. Indeed, the women's organization (the Relief Society) was disbanded in part because it was being utilized to rally opposition against polygamy. The first president of the Relief Society? Emma Smith. And finally, in one final attempt (and a rather ghoulish one at that) to discredit Emma Smith, the author alleges that in her attempt to make a break from the LDS Church, she attempted to literally take her dead husband with her. And while Mary Fielding Smith, the widow of Hyrum Smith, Josephs' brother that was killed along with him at the same time, was not invited to a private reburial of the their bodies, she did know for a fact of the whereabouts. The primary consideration of Emma here was that the bodies of Joseph and Hyrum not be dug up and desecrated by their enemies.

The other individual that comes in for rough treatment is Oliver Cowdery, the scribe for Smith during the "translation" of the Book of Mormon, the Second Elder and Assistant President of the LDS Church. Starting on page 86, the author writes that "by midsummer, the threats to the church were not only external but internal. Four church officers, including...Oliver Cowdery were found profiting from funds designated for helping the poor incoming settlers, and excommunicated. In his own way, each began to retaliate." Since the author does not state who the other three church officers were, nor does he even so much as leave a citation to this unsubstantiated allegation, we the readers are left to wonder. Nor is the author any more specific about how "each began to retaliate."

Please, if you want to learn more about LDS Church history and doctrine, there are many titles available to choose from, even some by faithful, believing and observant members of the Church. One such book, The Mormon Experience: A History of Latter-Day Saints, by Leonard Arrington (now deceased) and Davis Bitton (and published by the more discriminating University of Illinois Press) available from Amazon, not only cost less (so you can do like I do and buy more books from Amazon), but is a more balanced account of LDS Church history and doctrine.

i think its great that a book was finally written about our gloriuos faith!!!

The truth is revealed!!!

I am sick and tired of all these satanists and "Christians" telling us we are bad when we are so much better than them.
They dishonor the sabath, disgrace their bodies, swear, drink, smoke , and commit fornification so easily and then just "REPENT", No
Its is not a true repentence if you do it again and learn nothing from it!

GOOD JOB BROTHER NEWELL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!