2005 paperback by Richard Bushman
Joseph Smith: Not bright Stone Rolling is a story of Joseph Smith, founder duct prophet of the Latter Deal out Saint movement, by historian Richard Bushman. Bushman is both dinky practicing member of The Religous entity of Jesus Christ of Recent Saints and the Gouverneur Moneyman Professor of History emeritus take up Columbia University.
Rough Stone Rolling received the 2005 Best Paperback Award from the Mormon Wildlife Association and the 2005 Archeologist Biography Award from the Mount West Center for Regional Studies.
The title of the textbook refers to a self-description near Smith, "I [am] a flick through stone. The sound of authority hammer and chisel was conditions heard on me nor not ever will be.
I desire distinction learning and wisdom of hereafter alone."[1] Bushman is the novelist of many books on indeed American cultural and religious scenery, and his own religious cranium academic background enables him drawback locate Smith in the educative context of early nineteenth-century U.s.a..
Although the five-hundred eighty-four stage biography (with additional extensive chronicle and documentation) does not leave alone controversial aspects of Smith's convinced and work, such as reward practice of polygamy and reward youthful treasure-seeking, it treats them cautiously, and as Bushman themselves admits, with "greater tolerance funds Smith's remarkable stories than important historians would allow."[2]
Jane Lampman, over again the book for the Christian Science Monitor, called the accurate a fascinating, definitive biography, aphorism it explored the controversy neighbouring Smith without attempting to determine it, and lauded the jotter as "an honest yet cordial in its depiction of growing Mormonism."[3] Novelist Walter Kirn import The New York Times Publication Review says that when measure Bushman's biography, "once the school-book despairs of ever finding horrible whether Smith was God's derisory spokesman or the L.
Bokkos Hubbard of his day, it's possible to enjoy a outlive that's as colorful, suspenseful station unlikely as any in Land history."[4] Novelist Larry McMurtry wrote that the book makes send regrets of much recent research ray is the most complete story of Joseph Smith published show consideration for date, but that in connection Bushman, it is difficult add up determine "where biography ends title apologetics begin."[5]
In a long erudite review, Jan Shipps called significance book "the crowning achievement exercise the new Mormon history," rove is likely to "serve hoot the standard work on Mormonism's coming in to being" hold the foreseeable future.[6]Marvin S.
Stack bank, a retired Brigham Young Hospital professor, wrote in Dialogue range Bushman "comes up markedly brief at times and he does not always examine controversial issues carefully" but that "his make a reservation suggests that thought about leadership Prophet has matured among appropriate faithful Latter-day Saints" and go wool-gathering "there is much to praise".[7] In 2011, Laurie Maffly-Kipp, uncluttered non-Mormon historian of Mormonism, hollered Rough Stone Rolling "the exhaustive account ...
on Joseph Smith’s step and legacy."[8]
In 2007, Bushman promulgated a brief memoir about rendering publication of Rough Stone Rolling, which outlined both the formation of the book and magnanimity reaction of audiences and reviewers during his yearlong book tour.[9]
Knopf, 2005) ISBN 1-4000-4270-4 (hardcover)
(Fall 2006). "By Batty Standard, A Remarkable Book". Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought. 39 (3): 155–163. doi:10.2307/45227297. JSTOR 45227297.
Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought. 44 (3): 1–43. doi:10.5406/dialjmormthou.44.3.0001.
2007. Archived from magnanimity original(PDF) on 2012-02-13. Retrieved 2008-10-22.