Brigham Young

Pioneer Prophet

De: John G. Turner

Narrado por: Stephen Hoye

Brigham Young was a rough-hewn craftsman from New York whose impoverished and obscure life was electrified by the Mormon faith. He trudged around the United States and England to gain converts for Mormonism, spoke in spiritual tongues, married more than 50 women, and eventually transformed a barren desert into his vision of the Kingdom of God. While previous accounts of his life have been distorted by hagiography or polemical exposé, John Turner provides a fully realized portrait of a colossal figure in American religion, politics, and westward expansion.

After the 1844 murder of Mormon founder Joseph Smith, Young gathered those Latter-day Saints who would follow him and led them over the Rocky Mountains. In Utah, he styled himself after the patriarchs, judges, and prophets of ancient Israel. As charismatic as he was autocratic, he was viewed by his followers as an indispensable protector and by his opponents as a theocratic, treasonous heretic.

Under his fiery tutelage, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints defended plural marriage, restricted the place of African Americans within the church, fought the U.S. Army in 1857, and obstructed federal efforts to prosecute perpetrators of the Mountain Meadows Massacre. At the same time, Young's tenacity and faith brought tens of thousands of Mormons to the American West, imbued their everyday lives with sacred purpose, and sustained his church against adversity. Turner reveals the complexity of this spiritual prophet, whose commitment made a deep imprint on his church and the American Mountain West.

©2012 the President and Fellows of Harvard College (P)2012 Tantor

Reseñas de la Crítica

"An impressively detailed portrait of a controversial giant." ( Booklist)

Many original sources

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes, It is fast-paced, interesting and seems non-biased (although it spends a seemingly disproportionate amount of time on the Mountain Meadow Massacre). The author also compares Brigham Young to his contemporaries to better understand the historical setting. Great book.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Brigham Young?

The account of the "Utah war."

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

Brigham Young, a man who loved his religion.

More like a textbook

Felt like listening to a textbook, though not as dry. The narrator should have looked up pronunciations beforehand as he botches some repeatedly. Overall, not bad, but not great.

Juliana

Very nice book , This bring up so much different types of emotions, during my reading I was crying, laughing, hated . I really enjoy it.

This is the very best general biography of Brigham

If you could sum up Brigham Young in three words, what would they be?

Thorough/Balanced/Well-Documented

Would you listen to another book narrated by Stephen Hoye?

The narration was competant, but the reader consistently mispronounced names, concepts, and place names that could have been avoided with a little research, or an inquiry.

Any additional comments?

This is the most thorough, balanced and carfully constructed biography of Brigham Young available. There are Mormon sources that are quite good, but fatally flawed by underlying bias. This avoided insider and outsider bias. The source material is considerably superior to any other popular treatment. There isn't even a close second. The narrator did mispronounce many names and place names. That is really innexcusable and I blame the producers for this, as much as the narrator. This could have been easily avoided. Still, this was a great listen and well worth consideration. Brigham Young was a remarkable figure and the history of this period is fascinating.

Good content, narration not so much!

I read reviews about this book before I bought it and they said the narration was poor. it is! he doesn't pronounce stuff correctly!