Qualities That Count: Heber J. Grant As Businessman, Missionary, and Apostle

by Ronald W. Walker

Book by Walker, Ronald W.

299 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 2003

Reviews

[Lowell · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25 stars.

This collection of essays is a fascinating byproduct of the events conveyed in "Leonard Arrington and the Writing of Mormon History," and is likely the closest we'll get to the monumental Heber J. Grant biography which was approved, researched, started, and then shelved by situations beyond the author's control.

Based on these essays, that tome would be a solid 5.

Ronald W. Walker died in 2016, some forty years after completing his research. My heart weeps to consider his "ten thousand five-by-eight-inch note sheets" collecting dust in some forgotten academic library corner.

Excellent insights and stories. The essay "Grant's Watershed" which discusses Heber J. Grant's experience as a young apostle in the transition between John Taylor and Wilford Woodruff's leadership is easily one of my favorite essays on church history.

[D Crook · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a collection of biographical essays about Heber J. Grant, the seventh president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Given its composition, it does not constitute a traditional biography in the sense that it contains no narrative flow from chapter to chapter, and, at times, it repeats itself. Despite these issues, it was both fascinating and remarkably fluid (except in one or two instances where the author dropped in fascinating essays centered on the Wasatch Literary Association and Grant's wife, Emily Wells Grant). In fact, I found that the organizational structure and the focused detail of the essays made this book more entertaining and gave greater incite into Heber J. Grant's personality than I have found in other biographical depictions.

I really liked this book. My only disappointment was that it did not have any treatment of President Grant's life as the prophet and president of the Church. But, of course, it never claimed to include that information. It is too bad that Ronald Walker passed away before finishing his multi-volume Grant biography. I hope someday that it will be completed by someone with even half of his skill. If it was as good as these essays were, it will be marvelous.

[Jared · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fascinating collection of essays by the late Ron Walker about a prophet in Latter-day Saint history that I did not know particularly much of. My only true complaint is that the book wasn't longer.

[Jacob Lines · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is not a traditional biography, but it covers much the same ground. It is a collection of essays by Professor Walker about Heber J. Grant, the 7th president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. If you ask a Mormon about President Grant, they will probably tell you the stories about his determined self-improvement – how he practiced throwing a baseball, how he worked on his penmanship until he won competitions and made extra money writing invitations, how he tried to learn to sing. This book reveals the depth and breadth of Heber J. Grant’s life. The essays discuss various aspects of his life, including his parents, his upbringing, and his involvement in the Wasatch Front Literary Association. Others detail his career as a businessman and his experiences as a missionary in Japan and Europe. One excellent essay describes the life of his third wife, Emily, as she had to go into exile to avoid prosecution for cohabitation. Other essays cover his time as an apostle and his transition into the presidency of the Church. These essays paint a detailed picture of the man and the times in which he lived. Excellent read for those interested in Mormon history.

[Jenn · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was hoping for a modern day biography but this was just a few essays about the history of Heber J Grant before he became a prophet. I'd like a little more detail about him as a boy and especially how he led the church through the Great Depression and WWII.

[Bryan Summers · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ronald W Walker is not only the most readable Mormon historian. He is the most readable historian full stop. He is so fair to everyone. It is so sad that he only wrote three books.

Please BYU Press, print an edition of all of his historical articles. I know there are a lot.