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A review by realadhdoug
Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent Faith by Jon Krakauer
3.75
This was a fascinating, thoroughly researched, and mostly critical history of the Mormon church. Since I knew next to nothing about the LDS church, I learned a lot about its formation and structure. The writing was compelling and it felt as much like “true crime” as it did religious history. It was as riveting as it was disturbing. Lots of graphic stories of brutality suffered both by and at the hands of Mormons as they tried to establish themselves in various parts of the country.
As someone who is familiar with other sects of Christianity, it struck me how remarkably similar the LDS church is to just about every other group that goes to such great lengths to keep up the appearance of integrity while burying the uncomfortable truths, unwelcome questions, and historical realities that don’t age well. I appreciated how the author made the point that extremism occurs in every religion and this book was written, in part, as a counter to the narrative especially strong at the time that Islam is uniquely fundamentalist.
I’d recommend this book to anyone interested in religious history or true crime, as it seems to fall squarely in that intersection. Word of caution: there are lots of graphic retellings of brutal murder and countless examples of rape. This book certainly is not for the faint of heart. Brace yourself for some heavy stuff.
As someone who is familiar with other sects of Christianity, it struck me how remarkably similar the LDS church is to just about every other group that goes to such great lengths to keep up the appearance of integrity while burying the uncomfortable truths, unwelcome questions, and historical realities that don’t age well. I appreciated how the author made the point that extremism occurs in every religion and this book was written, in part, as a counter to the narrative especially strong at the time that Islam is uniquely fundamentalist.
I’d recommend this book to anyone interested in religious history or true crime, as it seems to fall squarely in that intersection. Word of caution: there are lots of graphic retellings of brutal murder and countless examples of rape. This book certainly is not for the faint of heart. Brace yourself for some heavy stuff.