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ISBN:	0199731705 (ISBN13: 9780199731701)
Edition Language:	English

Understanding the Book of Mormon: A Reader's Guide

Grant Hardy

Hardcover | Pages: 368 pages

Rating: 4.41 | 451 Users | 110 Reviews

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Title	:	Understanding the Book of Mormon: A Reader's Guide
Author	:	Grant Hardy
Book Format	:	Hardcover
Book Edition	:	Special Edition
Pages	:	Pages: 368 pages
Published	:	April 7th 2010 by Oxford University Press, USA (first published June 2003)
Categories	:	Religion. Nonfiction. Christianity. Lds. Mormonism. Theology. Church. Spirituality

Description Concering Books Understanding the Book of Mormon: A Reader's Guide

Mark Twain once derided the Book of Mormon as "chloroform in print." Long and complicated, written in the language of the King James version of the Bible, it boggles the minds of many. Yet it is unquestionably one of the most influential books ever written. With over 140 million copies in print, it is a central text of one of the largest and fastest-growing faiths in the world. And, Grant Hardy shows, it's far from the coma-inducing doorstop caricatured by Twain.

In Understanding the Book of Mormon, Hardy offers the first comprehensive analysis of the work's narrative structure in its 180 year history. Unlike virtually all other recent world scriptures, the Book of Mormon presents itself as an integrated narrative rather than a series of doctrinal expositions, moral injunctions, or devotional hymns. Hardy takes readers through its characters, events, and ideas, as he explores the story and its messages. He identifies the book's literary techniques, such as characterization, embedded documents, allusions, and parallel narratives. Whether Joseph Smith is regarded as author or translator, it's noteworthy that he never speaks in his own voice; rather, he mediates nearly everything through the narrators Nephi, Mormon, and Moroni. Hardy shows how each has a distinctive voice, and all are woven into an integral whole.

As with any scripture, the contending views of the Book of Mormon can seem irreconcilable. For believers, it is an actual historical document, transmitted from ancient America. For nonbelievers, it is the work of a nineteenth-century farmer from upstate New York. Hardy transcends this intractable conflict by offering a literary approach, one appropriate to both history and fiction. Regardless of whether readers are interested in American history, literature, comparative religion, or even salvation, he writes, the book can best be read if we examine the text on its own terms.

Rating Regarding Books Understanding the Book of Mormon: A Reader's Guide

Ratings: 4.41 From 451 Users | 110 Reviews

Write-Up Regarding Books Understanding the Book of Mormon: A Reader's Guide

Saw Jacob Walley reading this and he recommended it. Initial response (after ~50 pages): my gads, a thoughtful examination of the Book of Mormon that is accessible to believers and nonbelievers alike. Too early to rate, but my mind and my spirit have needed a dose of something like this! I have to buy my own copy and return the public library's copy because I need to scribble in the margins!********Having now finished the book, I can say it lived up to my hopes and expectations. It was

Though the Book of Mormon is didactic with mostly two-dimensional and superficial characters, Hardy shows a way to recognize some of the greater complexities of the text by dipping below the surface of the words to observe the complex narrative structures developed by the internal narrator(s). He shows how the narrative structures, with all the interweavings, complex and convoluted turnings, still pull together into a cohesive text. Hardy brings a lot of new and novel insights to the text

This is a complicated book that examines the Book of Mormon as one would examine a work of literature. Rather than seeing it as a jumble of odd stories,difficult and disjointed, the author offers a detailed guide to the contents that meets the needs of both believers and outsiders. By focusing on the narrative, he shows that there is an organizing principle at work. I read this to try to get some understanding of what Mormons are all about. I am not sure I know yet, but it was fascinating

Grant Hardy's book achieves what it sets out to do: "to demonstrate a mode of literary analysis by which all readers, regardless of their prior religious commitments or lack thereof, can discuss the book in useful and accurate ways." I appreciate his bracketing historical claims and instead focusing on the literary richness that is there. Grant acknowledges the issues the book has (anachronisms, contradictions, failures, and biases) and frames them not as problems to be solved but as part of the

Nearly every week, I think about how much I would like to read the 116 lost pages, mostly because it would be fascinating to get Lehi's perspective on

Such a compelling analysis of the BoM from its structure and literary characteristics to the breakdown of the two major voices who compiled and abridged the plates that later were delivered to Joseph Smith in the early 1800s. Quite a scholarly approach that often went over my head, but was thought provoking throughout.

This book carefully makes connections within the text that are not obvious, and with those connection makes a compelling case that The Book of Mormon is a sophisticated work of scripture, and not just propagandistic ramblings of a country boy. The literary connections, and prospective that Hardy provides is complex and provocative, especially towards the end of the book with his examination of the Book of Ether. However, this book is extremely boring.A traditional, faithful LDS Member will read