You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.95 AVERAGE
3.95 AVERAGE
informative
reflective
slow-paced
To seek comfort and assurance that there is a purpose to the problem of life. It is fascinating to me how potent faith is to many people, and how at the end of it all, we are consumed with fear of the unknown. Our coping mechanisms range from accepting being pointless to standing in the hands of God, begging for life to have some sort of order.
I really love John Krakauer’s writing style, the quotes at the start of each chapter go well with understanding the content. The chapter about defining psychosis and religion is incredibly interesting, and I found myself thinking about cultural definitions and how flimsy they are in makeup.
Supes interesting, lurved it
I really love John Krakauer’s writing style, the quotes at the start of each chapter go well with understanding the content. The chapter about defining psychosis and religion is incredibly interesting, and I found myself thinking about cultural definitions and how flimsy they are in makeup.
Supes interesting, lurved it
informative
slow-paced
I was of two minds about this one. Krakauer is a great writer, and he tells the various stories--the Lafferty brothers, the history of Mormonism, and the history of fundamentalist Mormon groups--extremely well. But, to my mind, he's too eager to find the roots of the lurid crimes of fundamentalist wackos in mainstream Mormonism. He's not 100% off, but it leads him to make some connections that don't really hold up. Flawed, but worth reading.
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
slow-paced
I read most of this book once before and remembered it as a history of the Mormon church. I was surprised when it was adapted for TV and they called it a true crime book so I reread it and I still wouldn’t call it a true crime book. It’s bookended with a true crime but the majority of the book is about the history of the Mormon church and the different sects that have split off from the main church, and how all of that history lead to bring some influence on the perpetrators of this crime. Anyway, it’s interesting and eye-opening and horrifying and depressing but also drags a bit at some points with too much detail.
I made it about 3/4 of the way through and decided to stop. Not because it isn’t well written, I just couldn’t take anymore of the subject matter.
Stopped reading. Really well written, but made me so sad and angry. Not sure if it eventually turns from a laundry list of abusers into some wisdom.
The start was excellent with the evaluation of how this can happen and such.
The start was excellent with the evaluation of how this can happen and such.
A recounting of how the bloody, violent, and shameful parts of Mormonism's roots sometimes spill into the modern era. It is a book that should be read. 4.8 stars.
It was a rough go for me, to say the least. It was fascinating and terrifying and it broke my heart all over again, even though by this point I am more fully aware (in a way that I was not for the first 25ish years of my life) of all of the events in Mormon history that Krakauer discussed. I think the few lines dedicated to Helen Mar Kimball were the hardest. Even though I knew the details of the story of Joseph Smith's "proposal" and marriage to Helen, I still had to stop in my tracks, screw up my face, and take some deep breaths to avoid bursting into tears. During the recount of the 1984 murder of the baby girl I just took my earbuds out. I couldn't handle it.
TL:DR (in my opinion); Nephi and Abraham both failed their divine tests. Don't murder people. Don't use your religious beliefs to harm or dominate or abuse other people.
It was a rough go for me, to say the least. It was fascinating and terrifying and it broke my heart all over again, even though by this point I am more fully aware (in a way that I was not for the first 25ish years of my life) of all of the events in Mormon history that Krakauer discussed. I think the few lines dedicated to Helen Mar Kimball were the hardest. Even though I knew the details of the story of Joseph Smith's "proposal" and marriage to Helen, I still had to stop in my tracks, screw up my face, and take some deep breaths to avoid bursting into tears. During the recount of the 1984 murder of the baby girl I just took my earbuds out. I couldn't handle it.
TL:DR (in my opinion); Nephi and Abraham both failed their divine tests. Don't murder people. Don't use your religious beliefs to harm or dominate or abuse other people.
emotional
informative
reflective
slow-paced