Good overview of Joseph Smith's biography. Certainly not comprehensive, but a good even telling of the things that matter most. I'm very familiar with Joseph's life story but I still found this interesting as told from a non-Mormon perspective, namely what things Remini told from the believer's perspective and what things he told from a skeptical perspective. Remini is a nationally accomplished Jacksonian historian, so I also really enjoyed the parts where he wove the Mormon story into the context of concurrent events in American history. It helped put into perspective why we had the Second Great Awakening, and how American ideals of the time influenced Mormon teachings. ( )

Remini is a great historian of the Federalist and, especially, Jacksonian eras, and his condensed biography of Andrew Jackson is a great read. This one is too, as are all the entries in the Penguin/Viking's oddly-selected and seemingly, sadly defunct "Penguin Lives" series.

Remini does a fine job in writing a concise biography of Joseph Smith, the founder and prophet of the Mormon religion. Now let me say, this book does nothing to change my opinion of Joseph Smith or Mormonism, however balanced Remini's treatment of the subject. He goes out of his way to treat many things as Joseph Smith described them, and states he is "not out to prove or disprove any of his claims" (p. x). Still, just a bare recounting of the facts makes any thinking person shudder.

Remini goes out of his way to note that Smith was a product of the religious fervor of the time, the Second Great Awakening. Also, he tells the reader that Americans out in the country were well-versed in "folk-magic," dowsing rods, seer-stones, and so on. Thus it comes as no surprise to find out that this son of a middling-farmer who is interested in religion and folk-magic. Smith, well before the Angel Moroni supposedly shows up, used magic rocks to hunt for treasure, water, etc. To me it seems as if it was a good way to shirk work; more importantly, Smith even admitted it was a crock at one point. After Smith eloped with the pretty Emma Hale, her father bemoaned: "You have stolen my daughter.... You spend your time in digging for money--pretend to see in a stone, and thus try to deceive people." Joseph Smith wept and swore he would stop using seer-stones, stating that he could "not see in a stone now, nor never could; and that his former pretensions in that respect were all false." (Those quotes are quotes from Hale and Smith, quoted by Remini, p. 51.) Funny thing that a seer-stones and jeweled-crystal-spectacles (I'm not joking) were later used to "translate" the "Reformed Egyptian" of the golden plates (Moroni took them back) that make up the Book of Mormon.

The Book of Mormon is indeed a a magnificent accomplishment (for an untutored New York farmboy), but Remini's, I think, heavy reliance on LDS apologists and scholars means that he never notes the Book's inherent inconsistencies, a-historicity, anachronisms, magnificent flights of fancy, and apparent plagiarisms and paraphrases. (That great curmudgeon Mark Twain called it "chloroform in print.") Magnificent too that the Book of Mormon (and Smith's later "inspired" translation, or rather emendation, of the King James Bible) "addresses all the great religious questions and controversies that raged" in Smith's life, and answers them unequivocally (p. 73). How nice and tidy! Remini does note the contradictory incident with philologist Charles Anthon and the "Reformed Egyptian" characters of the Golden Plates of Nephi. (What a magnificent dupe/huckster Martin Harris was!).

But, let us turn from the Book of Mormon. I was surprised how much of Mormon doctrine resides/originated outside of the Book of Mormon. I was also surprised (or not surprised, rather) to find out how much of Smith's post Book of Mormon prophetic output relates directly to himself, and how self-serving it was. Oh no, someone doesn't like us! We should move to Ohio. Oh no, our bank failed we should move to Missouri, it was the original location of the Garden of Eden anyway. Et cetera, et cetera, et cetera. Of course the glaring example is polygamy, or "plural marriage." Now maybe in theory, polygamy is okay, but, how convenient he gets his first "prophetic" inklings of it when he's bedding the virgin Fanny Alger. Funny too he used it to wed (change the first letter of the word if you want) the daughters of his closest circle, and let his best pals wed multiple young females too. Most biblical prophets I know, take Jonah or Isaiah, didn't get warm and fuzzy, self-serving pronouncements from the Lord. "Hey Isaiah, take yourself several young women to wife" or "Hey Jonah, it might be tough for you to proselytize in Nineveh, so head on over to Jerusalem and proselytize there instead, it'll be nice and easy." Take the aforementioned bit on polygamy, Smith knew his wife would not take kindly to "God" basically ordering young virgins into her marital bed, so the "revelation" made sure to mention Emma Smith by name: "Let my handmaid, Emma Smith, receive all those that have been given unto my servant Joseph..." (p. 152). If she did not, she was threatened with "destruction." Really, look it up.

Remini tries to be fair, probably to a fault is this so, as is his over-leaning on LDS sources, however contradictory. (Smith miraculously cures someone on p. 142, then he claims he has no such powers on p. 148.) The account of various outrages committed against the Mormons are mostly truthfully related, though a bit one-sided. Would we bemoan the outrages to civil rights if, I don't know, some random Baptist preacher was the "theodemocratic" dictator of some town and he began to stockpile rifles and drill militias? Probably not. At least Remini notes (p. 132) that it was Sidney Rigdon who first announced to the believers that if violence broke out between Mormons and Missourians that "it shall be between us and them a war of extermination.... [until] the last drop of their blood is spilled, or else they will have to exterminate us." Kind of puts Missouri Governor Lilburn Bogg's supposedly infamous and inexcusably violent "extermination order" ("Missouri Executive Order 44" does not sound so propagandistic, does it?) into perspective, does it not? Unfortunately, Remini is not so even-handed when he mentions the Nauvoo Expositor and its ordered smashing by Smith (not very First Amendmenty of a supposed First Amendment martyr, is it?). This "opposition newspaper" just magically shows up in Smith's own private kingdom. How did such a press get started anyway? (Remini does not say it, but the paper was started by breakaway Mormons who accused Smith of trying to seduce their wives in the name of plural marriage.) Another case of whitewashing, from LDS sources, no doubt, is that "Joseph encouraged but apparently did not participate in the activities of a newly formed secret society among Mormons, known as the Sons of Dan, or Danites..." (pp. 128-129). Well, why does that distinction even need mentioning? It makes no sense. (Would such a sentence absolve Charles Manson? Or Hermann Göring? Yes, those examples are heinous, but you get my point.)

But, ahh. I've gone on too long. You can tell I don't like Smith, or Mormonism (I've said nothing of perfection or exaltation, etc.) but I should say that all-told, Remini has written a great short treatment of Joseph Smith, one that is a quick read, informative, and mostly even-handed. His "selected bibliography" is brilliantly executed.

[I will say this too, making a sly reference to South Park and its "All About Mormons" episode. Mormons are wonderful people, though a bit clannish, and they won't kill me for doubting Joseph Smith is a prophet or disparaging them, like many Mohammedans in the world would if I did the same to them and their prophet. So, acres of joyous kudos to them for being, now at least, sensible sober-minded people.] ( )