Joseph Smith: A Biography

by Richard Lloyd Dewey

This is the fastest-moving of all biographies on Joseph Smith, and certainly the most readable, written in the inimitable style of the best-selling author of Porter A Biography, which was highly acclaimed by critics and the public alike.

Genres: Biography, Lds Non Fiction, Religion

531 pages, Hardcover

First published October 30, 2005

Reviews

[Carly B · Rating 3 out of 5]

Feeling curious about Mormon beliefs and traditions, I asked chatGPT for a non-fiction book that would help me understand them. This was its top recommendation--and it failed to fulfill that purpose. Its main focus is on the content of Smith's countless "revelations," all of which it takes to be thoroughly true and meaningful.

Well, Bushman is a believing LDS church member.

This brings up an interesting issue for me: does in-group membership of an author make his non-fiction exploration of a topic more or less trustworthy? I am non-Japanese but have published plenty of research about Japanese culture, and I've always felt that people have mistrusted my takeaways because despite a PhD in EALC, I am not **truly** Japanese. Extrapolate that to Mormonism, and a non-Mormon author would be, as I have been, not **truly** understanding of his topic. And yet, the fact that Bushman is Mormon made me trust him **less** in the end, because he so struggles to toe the line of "hey, that's ridiculous isn't it?!" and "this is what happened."

Not to say that Mormon beliefs are more ridiculous than other religious beliefs. People who roll their eyes at the content of Smith's revelations but happily go to church or temple to hear prophesies of Ezekiel or miracles performed by Jesus need to check themselves; just because Smith wrote his stuff down 200 instead of 2000 years ago, that shouldn't make them any less believable.

What I really wanted, though, was a history of the LDS church firmly set in its historical context—an explanation of why outsiders feared, distrusted, and often persecuted Mormon communities. This book, while thoughtful in its own way, was not that.

[Irene · Rating 5 out of 5]

Joseph Smith, the Mormon prophet was one of the most colorful and controversial
American figures of the nineteenth century, so controversial, in fact, that to this day it is nearly impossible to find an unbiased account of his career.
He founded The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints so naturally his virtues were accentuated and his faults were glossed over.
Detractors selectively present facts that are calculated to cast the man's character in the most unfavorable light. And many academics, operating from the assumption that all religion is but a figment of man's imagination, simply don't know what to make of this seemingly inexplicable man.
This book is an honest attempt to give a full picture of the man behind all the controversy; to acquaint the reader with the man who was and continues to be hailed as prophet or dismissed. Joseph never claimed to be more than a man. He had his strengths and his weaknesses
The writing is brisk and entertaining, yet the author manages to answer all the questions that naturally come to the mind except the biggest one of all: Was he truly a prophet of God?

[Heidi · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading this version of the Prophet Joseph Smith's life. Heartbreaking to again hear all that he and the early Saints went through just to defend their lives and their beliefs. Inspiring read, but so sad.

[Jeri · Rating 3 out of 5]

A general overview of the Prophet's life and good to read if you're just beginning to study Mormon history. However, it was not the most well-written book on the shelf. I didn't like the author's writing style; he has an annoying habit of taking a cliche term and then using it wrong (example- "this was the event that broke the final straw"). He is really wordy and has a cumbersome way of stringing really long and confusing sentences together. He also interchangeably uses "Polly" and "Dolly" for Martin Harris' wife, which got pretty confusing.

A nice book that could have used the services of a good copy editor.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

So far I really like it. My only complaint is that Dewy also wrote a biography on Porter Rockwell and he kind of gives random references to him throughout. But overall I think he's very objective and paints a picture of Joseph Smith as he really was.

[Janna]

I loved the book and learned a lot of history and information I did not know before.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

love, love, love this book so far
so i'm done and couldn't put this book down. really good

[Albert · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book helped me see the outside influences of the time period and added details of Joseph Smith's life and mission. An edifying book.