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History of the Prophet Joseph Smith: by his Mother  By  cover art

History of the Prophet Joseph Smith: by his Mother

By: C.M. Rick, Legacy LDS Audiobook Foundation
Narrated by: C.M. Rick
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Publisher's summary

Biography of Joseph Smith as written by his mother, Lucy Mack Smith. Shortly following the death of Joseph Smith in 1844, and into 1845, Lucy Mack Smith dictated her recollections and family story to Nauvoo schoolteacher Martha Jane Coray. Coray worked with her husband to compile these books of notes and other sources into a manuscript, which was then copied. Although surrounded by a great deal of controversy when first published by Orson Pratt in 1853, it was later published by the Church under the direction of Joseph F. Smith. It has been called "one of the essential sources for Mormon origins" by Richard L. Anderson, and in the words of Leonard Arrington it "perhaps tells more about Mormon origins than any other single source."

Public Domain (P)2017 Mormon / LDS Audiobook Foundation
  • Unabridged Audiobook
  • Categories: History

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What listeners say about History of the Prophet Joseph Smith: by his Mother

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

very interesting

Very iteresting. I found out a few things I did not know and I needed to look up. It was a good book to bring up topics and feelings which only a mother would know. Narrator, or the recording company, should have asked the LDS church how to pronounce words. If a new word is unfamiliar to you then don't guess! Proper names are not phonetically rooted - was very distracting. However, other than that the narrator did an excellent job and the voice was smooth and easy to listen to.

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Exceptionally bad narrator

The narrator is so bad that she is actually inhibits understanding the story, and the story deserves read and appreciated. I acknowledge the difficulty in reading a narrative written almost 200 years ago, but that is exactly the reason the narrator needs to be quite skilled. C.M. Rick is neither a skilled nor talented narrator. 1) She did not read with a natural flow that encourages understanding and invites the listener to join the journey of the narrative. Instead, she read with a bizarrely unnatural cadence, almost like she was reading some sort of poem (and reading the poem badly). This made her stress unusual words within phrases and separate ideas. Moreover, the level of stress not varied as it would be in natural conversation. I hoped she would improve as she relaxed, but she did not. The whole book follows this pattern. Listening to her voice was excruciating. 2) She read with her throat closed, which made almost every dialogue sounded like a terrified, girly-girl mouse. This was a terrible thing do to the Prophet's voice as well with his brothers and strong women in the story. It made them seem spineless and effeminate. The only exception were Mother Smith's voice and the bad guys', Rick never made their voices weak or effeminate. 3) The greatest pronunciation error was applied to the name Moroni, which this narrator ended like macaroni. Seriously, Moronee? He is so important that he stand on every temple! How could Rick make this mistake EVERY time she said this name?

Honestly, I don't believe anyone should buy the audio book UNLESS it is re-recorded with a skilled narrator who is able to do this story justice. C.M. Rick actually lessens the value. I hoped the issues described above would get better as I progressed through the chapters, but she doggedly continued with ZERO improvement, and the result was great disappointment.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

The love of a mother

I truly enjoyed listening to this book. I thought there would be more about Joseph but I realized I was very impressed by the story of the WHOLE family. I know the point of view of a mother is a bigger picture and so I enjoyed it.

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    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

I wish the narration was better.

The robotic voice and mispronunciations took away from fully enjoying this important story. I was glad to finally hear Mother Smith's story, though and appreciated the explanatory comments before and after.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Loved the history

One day when I get to meet those who came before me I hope to meet the Smith women. What brave and strong women.
The narrator needs to spend some time with Latter-day Saints so she can pronounce the words correctly. Other than that is is a wonderful story. If you can sing Praise to the Man without a tear I dare you to read this book and then try to sing it.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

informative

I enjoyed learning about Joseph Smith's life by his loving and devoted mother's point of view.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Finally read this

I loved hearing the history of Joseph Smith through the eyes, memories and feelings of his mother. I am grateful to Mother Smith for taking the time to share her perspective. Of the many things written about the Prophet Joseph, both good and bad, it is his story as witnessed by his angel mother that has affected me the most.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Hard to get past the multiple and constant mispronunciations.

Bring’em? Nefee!? Moronee? The narration was horrible. The story was good. I especially enjoyed hearing about Lucy’s parents and siblings.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Very well done

Loved it. Wonderful history and insightful. A few words, like Nephi, were mispronounced, but other than that, very well done.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Interesting perspective.

I appreciated hearing Mother Smith’s perspective. The narration, however, was distracting. It was robotic, often lacking proper inflection. The reader seemed to literally read the words without understanding the content.

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