Utah Books

September Dawn by Carole Whang Schutter is in my opinion a Romeo and Juliet type novel, two nineteen year olds fell in love and would let nothing come between them. It is not just a love story mind you, it is about the Mountain Meadow Massacre in the year 1857. Based on some true events, and even turned into a movie, September Dawn is out to show the truth of what may have happened over 150 years ago between two religions.

Jonathan Samuelson was the son of a Mormon Bishop and the girl he was head over heels in love with was the daughter of a Christian Pastor. Now you know back in the day these two religions could not mix without a huge uprising. And the Mountain Meadow Massacre was a huge uprising! With the journals now in hand, the story must be told to all of the family that will listen in hopes that they will uncover and understand what exactly happened in Utah so many years ago.

September Dawn was a book that really gets you thinking, I don't know what I would have done if I were put in some of these positions had I lived back in the year 1857. Love is love and you can't help who you fall in love with. Sometimes the book was a bit slow to keep my attention, although it all came together at the very end. 3.5 Hearts

I rented the movie from Blockbuster & really enjoyed it so I read the book. There were a few minor changes in the movie that I would have preferred to have followed the book more closely; most notably the lead female character. She was much more developed in the book. I suppose time may have been a factor in the movie.
I found the story fascinating & it was very well told. Clearly a lot of research went into this.

To be very honest and to the point, this novel quite haunted me. I found the entire piece of history being covered in the work to be morbidly fascinating. I was drawn to the end like a magnet even though I knew before I opened the first page what the outcome would be.

Did the book have weaknesses? I believe it did. Many times, especially when the narrative is brought into the modern day scenes of the novel, I felt like the book was either written for an evangelical Christian audience or that there was an assumption made from the author's side that all of the readership is coming from this same point of view. Also there are places where I felt that the narrative was pushed along a bit and especially too forced when trying to drive several of the author's points home. For instance, when the final massacre was taking place, the author often gave full names and ages and family relationships which to me seemed quite out of place. It made the narrative seem a bit too unreal for my comfort. I could see what Ms. Schutter was trying to do; to drive home that these were real people who were killed in the book, but at the same time I feel like it actually took away from the flow of the action.

Carole Whang Schutter did not cut the Mormon Church any slack in her vivid portrayal of their history. She told the story from Joseph Smith's childhood up until the Mormons had arrived in Utah in fairly poignant detail. At best, she painted the LDS's followers as simple folk who were looking for acceptance and a place to belong, but as with any cult or fraud religion, these people are misled by charlatans all along the way. The leadership of the Latter Day Saints were tarred and feathered by this book, having been indicted as schemers who would stop at nothing to achieve their selfish and often paranoid demands. They took their followers' property, their wives, fiancées, etc., and had those who dared to speak up or speak out excommunicated, executed and even castrated. Ms. Schutter minced no words here.

And in the midst of it all we have an ill fated love story... These were two innocents who unwittingly but willingly fell into love at first sight - a love that would be doomed as much by their backgrounds as the tragic events yet to unfold. The two young lovers, Jonathan, son of a local Mormon Bishop, and the young Emily, daughter of a minister in the doomed wagon train trying to make their way to California, would be caught in a crossfire of retribution for past wrongs against the Mormons in Missouri and Arkansas as well as the Mormon resistance of Federal authority in their desert regions. Having only read the book and not having seen the film I assume that this is the main story being told, but I believe that with all of the historical background added to the novel, there is actually a dual plot in the book - that of the fate of the two lovers and that of the history of the Mormon Church. In an odd way, the events leading to the actual massacre could be described as a subplot.

The aforementioned weaknesses of the book I believe could be put down as the birth of a novel from a screenplay rather than the other way around, which is more usual, but I believe that the plot is strong enough and the history behind the story is compelling enough that this is still a good, interesting read.

Now that I have read the book I just have to buy the DVD!

What a story! I am so glad that it got to be told. This story confirms the unneccessary evils humans create and the abominations that took place in the name of God. I was drawn into the story from the very first line and clutched at the hem of my dress in the anticipation of knowing what happens next. Not only is "September Dawn" a well-written and well acted story it is a testimony for those silenced that day.

I recommend this book and movie to everyone who has suffered prejudices and oppresion in their life and those who'll love to suppport and understand what it feels like to be hunted down for something you strongly believe in. September Dawn is a powerful, heart-wrenching and beautiful love story between a boy and a girl in the midst of one of the most shameful atrocities humans have ever commited.

Thank you Carole Whang Schutter, for sharing this must-be-told story with the world. You are a truly gifted writer.

Bernice Angoh, Author of Lemonade Street and
Editor-in-Chief, Ladies' Success Magazine.

After reading the book September Dawn, by Carole Whang Schutter I find myself mystified and horrified by the events in the book. Although a work of fiction, many of the events, people, accounts, meetings, and speeches were based on actual events.
The early Mormon religion and its followers slaughtered innocent women, men, and children, all in the name of God. How misled they were. It is eerily haunting how the events of this account happened on September 11th, 1857: a reminder of another horrific act of terrorism in our beloved country that was to occur 144 years later. I find the act of using God, in any form or religion, to further such brutality as this cowardly. It is not in God's name to do such things, and it only brings shame to those who choose to do it. I am ashamed to admit, but readily do, that I knew nothing of the Mountain Meadow Massacre before reading this book.
This was a very well written and researched book. I found the plot flowed well, and was not difficult in any form to follow. The characters, every single one, were believable and relatable. The way the author chose to jump from character story telling to the events was a superb decision and only added to the assault on my emotions. The only fault I can find with this book is the terrible and overwhelming sadness it left me with.

I enjoyed this tale very much. The action was good, the charactor development continued throughout the book, as we watch a wasted soul retrieve by an irrepressible girl, and her ultimatley perceptive and loving sister. A killer is reclaimed by love.

Liked it a lot.

Steve Larsen

I come from the salt-of-the-earth-farmer types, and was reared in a small UTAH town. We all were dedicated church goers, but were unafraid to use the occasional D word or H word...and not one of us will go to hell for it. My great-great-grandmother was a scrappy and ornery young girl who grew up defending herself against eight mean-spirited big brothers. Her journal entries are full of (mispelled) expletives that were hilarious to read,,,considering this was the late 1800's. This book could have been written about her. The story is engaging and the charactors are colorful! If you are uptight and overly pious and can't possibly conceive of a young girl in the 1800's using fairly innocuous swear words, then you never knew my ancestor, or the amazing pioneer she grew up to be...this book may not be for you. But anyone with a sense of humor and who doesn't take themselves too seriously, or impugn those who see the humor in kirby's books, will get a real kick out of this extraordinary and touching portrayal of early Mormondom...

This is absolutely one of my all time favorite books. I read it when it was first published when I was a teenager and I just identified with the main character, Rose. She is a tomboy with a fiesty, irreverant personality and an uncouth sense of humor, but that is a huge part of why I love her. So if you are easily offended then probably pass because you may label it as "trash" but THIS BOOK IS A GEM. The characters are great! I recommend it to friends all the time and I read it over and over. I love it, my husband liked it, my girlfriends loved it and so did my brother- so men and women alike will enjoy it.

I was lucky enough to be given this book by the author himself after finally fessing up to being a big fan of this other writings. I was completely surprised to read this thoughtful and well-plotted book, having first not known about it though being a fan, plus everything I had read by him before was of the humorous slant. Anyway, once I started reading I was hooked and read straight through until finished in practically the same day.

In response to some of the negative reviews here, I do have to share that his dedication included "close your eyes during the bad parts" :)

An excellent work of fiction, though probably not for younger readers. Good lessons learned, despite the sometimes less than flowerful ways that they are portrayed. To label the book as trash, etc. reminds me of self-righteous and blind people like Eldon Bair in the book.

I was so disappointed with this book. I heard an interview with the author on NPR and went directly to check the book out of the library. She was writing about my home town and I couldn't wait to hear her perspective. I was so shocked to see the book full of harsh stereotypes and half-truths. It seemed like she could only see the very worst in everyone, including herself. I kept hoping she could find some happiness, but I don't think she ever did. Maybe her life is better now, hopefully.

I am torn between rushing through this book and slowly savoring every page. I have so many passages marked to read over and try to remember, because they are so meaningful to me. The way she discribes the conflict between the need to belong and the need to be true to one's self is just one of the many things that rang so true for me. In such a sensitive and thoughtful way Ms. Irvine has described issues of gender, conservation, love, preservation, family, and landscape and I am truly grateful for her expression and interpretation.

Amy Irvine tells multiple stories in "Trespass" and weaves them with the skill of the Basketmaker Anasazi whose culture she explores. I am much her elder but what she shares of her life resonates inside me with my own hardfought truths, my mixed bag of insights, and my own convoluted spiritual growth. This is a multifaceted gem. It can't be explained. It has to be experienced by the individual through reading.

Amy Irvine is a gifted writer whose prose kept me reading in spite of feeling offended several times in nearly every chapter about a variety of subjects including the LDS Church, the little town of Monticello I grew up in, cattle ranching and the seemingly inflexible wilderness attitudes. My younger brother enjoys riding what he calls a four wheeler and she calls an ORV to see the incredible sights of the Colorado Plateau she so beautiful describes in her book. It is clear that she and I share a love of the redrock country. As a retired psychiatrist I enjoyed her fearless and at times appropriately veiled exposé of her personal and family dynamics. I thoroughly enjoyed the interweaving of her knowledge of ancient San Juan County cultures into the fabric of her personal story. The ending chapters were unsettling to me and I am not sure I can explain why. Is it because it seems she has given up her passionate quest? Is it because her trespass metaphor became blurred? Is it because she became ill? I don't know. I will let it continue to percolate in my mind and I may read it again. I recommend it. I agree with Terry Tempest Williams, "This is a transformative memoir that dances between shadow and light.

This book is right up there wtih Sides' Blood and Thunder for Western American History writing at its best. Only this is better, because it is told from the point of view of one of America's little known minorities: Mormon women. Amy brings heart and soul of the old West and the new together in a wonderful story in her wonderful style. I loved it.

Susan T.

"Salamander: The Story of the Mormon Forgery Murders" is a very fine analysis of one of the most bizarre stories in Mormon history. It tells the story of the Salt Lake City bombings on 15 and 16 October 1985 that killed Steven F. Christensen and Kathleen B. Sheets and seriously injured Mark W. Hofmann.

One of the scenarios developed during the period immediately following the deaths of Christensen and Sheets on 15 October, associated the bombings with high finance and the crumbling business empire of J. Gary Sheets, husband of Kathleen and former associate of Christensen. Sheets' business, CFS Financial Corporation, was in a well-publicized nose-dive. His investors and creditors were clamoring for repayment and Sheets was considering bankruptcy. Christensen had left CFS a few months earlier unhappy with the direction Sheets had charted for the company. Could Sheets have planted the bombs to collect insurance money on the victims or to keep them from talking about illicit business dealings? Could disgruntled investors have placed the bombs? No one knew.

If this were true, it bore no relationship to the Mormon church. The monkey-wrench in this scenario was what appeared to be the attempted murder of Hofmann on the morning of 16 October. He was not associated with CFS in any way, but he had a business relationship with Christensen revolving around the discovery and sale of Mormon historical documents. Christensen had purchased from Hofmann the so-called "Salamander Letter" of Martin Harris to W.W. Phelps, which had been unveiled in a circus-like meeting of the Mormon History Association in May 1985. After Hofmann's bombing most of the speculation suggested that the murders were linked to that document and the study of Mormon origins.

Dated 23 October 1830, this letter narrated a strikingly different story of Book of Mormon origins than most were familiar with from the standard faith story. It suggested that Joseph Smith was intimately involved in folk magic (one aspect of which involved a white salamander who guarded the gold plates) and money-digging, and that the Book of Mormon was simply one more instance of these practices. Moreover, the messenger who delivered the plates to Joseph bore little resemblance to the benevolent being traditionally associated with the story. Instead, he was a crusty and malicious spirit who jealously guarded the treasure. The document seemed to hold the potential to destroy the underpinnings of faith for many naive believers.

The "Salamander Letter" appeared to be a connecting link between the victims in this scenario for the bombings. Christensen had acquired this document from Hofmann; Kathleen Sheets' husband, who seemed to have been the real target of the bomb in this scenario, had been a business associate of Christensen.

Most Mormon historians dismissed as absurd charges made by police investigators within a few days after the bombings that Hofmann was the primary suspect in the murders and that he had cold-bloodedly murdered Christensen to cover up illegal business dealings and Sheets to make it look like the killings were CFS-related. His own injuries, they thought, coming a day after the first murders were the result of the accidental detonation of a third bomb intended for yet another victim. Mark Hofmann was the closest thing the Mormon historical community had to a genuine celebrity. As the discoverer of several overwhelmingly important Mormon documents, he was both nationally known and invariably well-liked. It seemed impossible that Hofmann was a forger and con-man par excellence who committed two grisly murders to stave off financial ruin and a public unmasking of his illegal business dealings.

As it turned out, the police were right. Authors Sillitoe and Roberts describe how Hofmann had brutally murdered Christensen and Sheets and had injured himself while handling a third bomb in his car. He had committed murder to mask a complex array of white-collar crimes that extended back to his student days in the late 1970s at Utah State University. These crimes demonstrated a pattern of deceit and manipulation that was impressive in its size, scope, and length of time.

The immediate causes of the murders, according to the authors, revolved around a complicated collection of documents worth hundreds of thousands of dollars, the McLellin Collection. William McLellin had been one of the original Twelve Apostles of 1835 but had left the church in 1838. Evidence suggests that he collected considerable material on the development of Mormonism. The McLellin Collection was fabled as a treasure trove of important historical materials, many of them damaging to the church's traditional view of history.

In 1985 Hofmann claimed to have found the collection and borrowed huge sums--a $185,000 signature loan that Hugh Pinnock, a high-Mormon leader, had arranged in one instance--from several different people, each unknown to the other, for the purpose of acquiring it. In effect he sold the same collection to several different people. Hofmann did not produce the collection for any of his investors and during the fall of 1985 increasing pressure was bore on him to repay his creditors or to produce the collection. He staved them off for a time with some very slick tap-dancing and even secured backing for his bank loan by having Pinnock arrange for a wealthy Mormon to buy the collection from Hofmann and donate it to the church. The money obtained from this sale would not only pay back the $185,000 bank note but also provide Hofmann with a tidy profit.

Christensen, who had dealt with Hofmann before, volunteered to serve as a middle man for the movement of the collection from Hofmann to the church. As such he became a key player when Hofmann defaulted on the $185,000 loan and Pinnock asked him to press Hofmann for settlement. Christiansen was persistent and Hofmann was increasingly unable to avoid his probes. The bombing of Christensen would buy him time since his main protagonist would be out the way, Hofmann thought; maybe the church would drop the matter entirely. The bombing of Sheets was a diversion that would make Christensen's murder appear CFS-related.

The authors suggest that the 15 October murders did not dissuade the church from completing the transaction for the McLellin collection. In one of the most satisfying sections in the entire book they describe how Hofmann was informed after the Christensen and Sheets murders, which most people at first thought were CFS-related, that the deal was still on track and Christensen would be replaced by Donald Schmidt, the retired LDS Church Archivist. Desperate action was required, so Hofmann built a third bomb. The victim would be another decoy, this time one associated with Mormon document dealings.

Brent Ashworth, a successful lawyer and businessman who also bought collectible documents, was the ideal target. He and Hofmann had been meeting most Wednesdays in Salt Lake City for years, 16 October was a Wednesday, and he could easily get him to accept a bomb wrapped in a package similar to the first two. Afterward, Hofmann believed, there would be no pressure to proceed with the McLellin deal. This time, theoretically, all of Hofmann's objectives would have been achieved. But Ashworth did not meet him in Salt Lake City on 16 October and the bomb accidentally detonated. Hofmann was seriously injured and the police investigators at the scene quickly found tell-tale clues implicating him in the bombings.

The police pursued the leads discovered at the site of the third bomb to a logical conclusion and built a tremendously convincing circumstantial case against Hofmann. Although it took months, Hofmann was finally charged with the murders and several lesser crimes in February 1986. The evidence presented in the preliminary hearings thoroughly convinced Judge Paul Grant. According to the authors, "At the beginning of the preliminary hearing, Grant had thought perhaps Hofmann was innocent. But by the end, he thought him clearly guilty, a pathological liar with no conscience and no remorse" (p. 454). A plea bargain resulted, with Hofmann pleading guilty to certain of the charges and promising to answer questions about his operations in return for a commitment not to seek the death penalty.

The authors of "Salamander" perform an admirable service by sketching in most of the details of the bombings, the document dealings, and the character of Mark Hofmann. They describe a man who was outwardedly a believing Latter-day Saint but who was motivated in his crimes by a lust for money and an opportunity to embarrass his church. Always gracefully and with a touch of pathos, the authors narrate the complex events leading up to the murders, the peculiar circumstances of the murder investigations, the discovery of the evidence incriminating Hofmann, and the legal fireworks surrounding the case.

A forensic analysis by George J. Throckmorton, the technician who discovered the secret of the Hofmann forgeries, rounds out the volume and conclusively proves the illegitimate origins of 106 documents coming from the dealer, including all of his major finds.

Not remembering the alcohol plant mentioned in the quote in the following paragraph, I asked Allen Roberts, my friend and one of the authors of this book, as to what the reviewer was refering. Allen had no clue as there IS no alcohol plant mentioned anywhere in the book. Allen Roberts and Linda Sillitoe are people of high integrity and spent many, many, many hours doing meticulous research for this book so that an objective account of the events COULD be told. Either the following quote does not refer to this book, or the reviewer needs to read the book again.

Don't believe everything you read!, January 8, 2001 Reviewer: A reader: "My family was involved with the alcohol plant in New Mexico that the authors of the book claimed never existed. I know it actually did exist, I was there. If the authors had done a minimum amount of research, they would have known it too. So this makes me wonder what else they got wrong. I tend to think there was a lot that really didn't fit together, so I'll keep searching for the truth. I hope everyone else does too."

I bought this book for my wife, who is a Romantic Suspense writer. I did a keyword search looking for books on forgeries. This is the best book I have found if you want to learn about an example of this particular type of crime.

When I found myself in Salt Lake City on business in the early '90s with an unexpected free day on my hands, I thought to use it for pleasure reading and was directed to the Deseret Book Store. It looked like a Barnes & Noble. I did not know it was in thrall to the Mormon Church.

There, I asked a female clerk if there happened to have been any books written about a series of bombings I recalled reading about in the New York Times some years earlier. I was interested in knowing if the culprit had ever been captured and, if so, what had happened to him.

She replied there were two books. "One is historical fact and the other is fiction," she said. "The fiction is pretty bad." At this, she actually wrinkled her nose as if the fiction had left a bad smell she could still detect.

So I bought the 'historical' book she recommended. It was "Salamander: The Story of the Mormon Forgery Murders." Despite the turgid prose, jumpy time lines, and bucketfuls of shibboleths and cliches, I managed to wade through the whole thing in half a day. I found it crushingly dull, very poorly written, and at times completely impenetrable to a reader like me with little or no recollection of the actual case.

"Salamander" suffers from many defects of writing, style, organization, sloppy editing, and negligent proof-reading -- but none so severe or nettlesome as the fact that it makes no narrative sense whatsoever. The largest mystery in reading this book became, for me, wondering over the seemingly indeterminable motives of quite a few of the key characters. Most of them abruptly drop in or fade out of the story like indifferent actors at a crowded theater audition where only bit parts are on offer.

The next day, I happened to mention my frustration with the book to two friends who live in SLC. When they heard how I had come to read "Salamander" they howled with laughter.

"That bookstore clerk steered you to the official Mormon Church version," one explained. "You'll never be able to understand what really happened until you read the other book -- the one she called fiction."

They reminded me of the title of the book I should have read. It was "The Mormon Murders," written by Naifeh and Smith. I read it that night. It is superb.

Naifeh and Smith lay out a clear, well-written, and compelling narrative of the murders. Not only do they explain and document all available evidence about the motives of the perpetrator and intentions of his victims, the total environment in which the killings were conducted, and the dramatic preliminary hearing, they also show the reader in detail how and why powerful political and religious forces were at play behind the scenes.

In short, The Mormon Murders by Naifeh and Smith cleared up two mysteries I had encountered on my visit to Salt Lake City: the murder case itself and why the "Salamander" book I had just read was so atrocious.

If you happen to collect books that are so notoriously bad they have become collector's items for that reason (some folk do, you know), go ahead and buy "Salamander: The Story of the Mormon Forgery Murders." But it's a waste of your time if you try to read it.

This is better that Sherlock Holmes and Agatha Christie married and had a child. Pure power to the mind. All crimes must be paid for as this book revealsed. I hate being lied to since this book reveals the truth of all truth.

As wimpy as this sounds, I agree with both the five-star and one-star reviews. As a pronunciation guide and cultural primer, this book rocks. It's clear that the author holds his language in high regard and wants to keep it alive and "pure". This fight for purity (purging words that have become a type of reservation slang) is usually a losing battle - just talk to William Safire or the French Academy. Anyway, the book presents excellent explanations of the meaning of words and the Lakota way of life. What it lacks is completeness and a true under5sanding of language learning. White Hat and some reviewers here seem to think that Lakota is somehow unique and that learning it is different from other languages. Vine Deloria's introduction would have us believe that grammar is the invention of the white man, or some such nonsense. All languages have grammar, and there's precious little grammatical explanation in this book. Often, verbs are presented only in the third person (he, she, it), which means that you have no idea about how to say I X or you X correctly. He never gets to the level of a complete explanation of object pronouns, so I can see IT, but never YOU. I would recommend Buechel's grammar to complement this book. Buechel will never teach you to pronounce correctly, or the cultural significance behind certain words, but he'll give you all the nuts and bolts despite being a white man. This book (with the CD's) is the best guide to actually pronouncing the language correctly. If you're just curious about Lakota, get this book. If you want to learn it, get this book and Buechel's grammar, to get the full picture.

This is easily the best language text I've seen. As Vine Deloria says in the Foreword, "Traditionally, grammar textbooks are about as exciting as military memos... Reading them is laborious to such an extreme that the reader could conclude that the Prussians are responsible for all linguistic studies." Not this book! This is the first language textbook that has made me laugh, made me cry. The stories that illustrate Lakota usage bring the language to life and place the student among a great people. Not many pages into this book and you will realize that this was written by a truly good and wise man. Thanks to the perfectly clear CD and the excellent presentation, I am thrilled by the progress I am making in Lakota Iyapi. (If you are interested in doing your written exercises on the computer, you can find free computer input software for Lakota at http://www.languagegeek.com/siouan/keyboards/si_kbds.html )
Thank you, Albert White Hat, Sr. , for this wonderful book.

Mr. White Hat should be commended for the outstanding job he did combing the inseparable concepts of language and culture. Unfortunately, many of the cultural tidbits were personal anecdotes, which detracted from the flow of language learning. There are hundreds of books on the market he could have studied to format the book in a more approachable manner. The pronunciation of Lakhota phonemes is scattered throughout the chapters, there is no glossary in alphabetical order in the back, the dialogs are barely useful and the list goes on and on. His own orthography is not in Unicode and is overly burdened with diacritical marks. Other books, all be they written for teaching children, such as the Ullrich texts, use a much simpler orthography and attain the same goal of teaching the correct pronunciation. The Ullrich books also use a very useful acute accent on every single word to indicate stress. One of the female voices on the White Hat cd is not a native speaker and her pronunciation is so horrible, I can't believe they used her.
Experienced language learners will be annoyed at the round-about way White Hat describes grammar. He sounds as if he's not really sure of himself and covers with making philosophical remarks.
Despite all I've said, it is of utmost importance that more people learn Native American languages. Lakhota is a real treat for those who are language enthusiasts, people interested in our country's diversity or a Lakhota. Lakhota is no more difficult than many European languages and has many fascinating grammatical concepts and ways of saying things, that will excite the arm-chair linguist. Buy the White Hat textbook, but don't expect to go happily from one lesson to another as one is typically able with, for instance, the British Teach Yourself books.

The book is partially a plagiarism of the Colorado University Lakota textbook by Rood&Taylor (published in early 1970s). But it is contains only a very limited size of vocabulary and grammar. The exercises are not contextual at all. No real methodology, minimal structure. A lot of "folk-etymology" (not proper recognition of word origin).
The worst feature of the book is certainly the orthography - it is extremely confusing and based on English sounds. Only few of the cultural sections are relevant, most are quasi-authentic.

This book provides cultural information in the choice of words and phrases taught, thereby giving greater feeling to the language than just the literal translation. However, the pronunciation guide is a bit difficult to understand to achieve the correct sounds. The casettes of the same title are needed for learning the sounds and intonation. It does procede a bit fast for anyone who has no experience learning other languages, but not unreasonably so. It is harder than Spanish or French, but easier than Russian or Japanese. I recommend getting the book and casettes together.

Unfortunately I don't seem to be able to give this item zero stars.

Sadly, this book lives up to neither its title nor its promise. For anyone who knows anything about J.R.R. Tolkien's invented languages, this book is not a reliable 'Gateway to Sindarin'. Rather, it is an unacknowledged mishmash of Noldorin of the 1930s (fr. 'The Etymologies'), Sindarin of the 1950s (fr. 'The Lord of the Rings'), and numerous inventions of David Salo himself. It is therefore misleading to call this book 'A Gateway to Sindarin'. It would have been more accurate to call it 'An Introduction to David Salo's Synthetic Reinterpretation of Tolkien's Gnomish-Noldorin-Sindarin language'.

(One might charitably suppose that this was in fact Salo's preferred title, but that there simply wasn't room on the stylized Moria Gate on the cover of his book to accommodate such a lengthy phrase. Perhaps the switch from a Beleriandic mode of vowel-representation to one accommodating vowel-pointing tehtar might have saved some room?)

In all seriousness: the unacknowledged, uncredited, and therefore (one presumes) copyright-violating use of Tolkien's 'Moria Gate' drawing on the cover of 'Gateway to Sindarin' is just the tip of the iceberg. While the book does have an "Annotated Bibliography" (pp.416-435), this is no substitute for a proper citation and referencing strategy. One searches in vain for any accreditation of earlier scholars of Tolkien's languages, not least the editors of Vinyar Tengwar and Parma Eldalamberon, whose publications and analyses of much original Tolkien linguistic material this book silently mines for forms without acknowledging any of their theoretical or methodological contributions. If this book isn't already tied up in Court proceedings it very well should be.

There are several reviews of this deeply-flawed and pseudo-scholarly work online; I urge all would-be purchasers to consult them before supporting the publication of this book (and those like it).

The book is what I expected it to be, a reference written by someone who has studied some of Tolkien's writings on language, best used in conjunction with other reference materials if used to learn to compose writings in the language of the elves. Other reviews that have bashed the book sound like sour grapes wallowers. Tolkien was the only expert on the languages of Middle Earth and anyone who claims otherwise is suspect.

This book is amazing, but be certain that you're the right audience. This is a college-level textbook, and make no mistake about that. It is a very academic and thoroughly researched treatment of Sindarin. If you're looking for "Conversational Sindarin for Fun and Profit", this book is not it. Only buy it if you really have a deep interest in Tolkien's constructed languages. Having said that, it's worth every penny. I haven't seen this much detailed information on Sindarin anywhere else.

You need to be either a linguist or an ultra-hard-core fan to appreciate this book. Not being a linguist, some of the technical aspects are beyond me but still, what an amazing work; not only by Salo but by Tolkien. The short section with the "historical" background of Sindarin was fascinating; a nice summary. I had no idea that Tolkien had made his languages so complicated. A fascinating glimpse into Tolkien's mind.

This book is NOT for those who simply want to learn phrases and so on. Being a student of linguistics, and having a professor whose work is used as the official linguistic analysis in an area of Papua New Guinea, I can say with honesty that David Salo's work is the real deal. I showed this to my professor, and he was completely impressed (a feat in and of itself).

Reading Gateway is not casual; it takes some concentration. I suppose that, if one just wanted Elvish texts, it could be used. I was quite pleased to find him using the IPA in words, as I had wished for that since first finding Lord of the Rings.

The historical chart of the emergence of Sindarin better explains some of the material in The Silmarillion, and the overall historical prose explanation of the development of the different phases of Elvish was most helpful.

I would definitely recommend this to any Tolkien fans that happen to be linguists as well. A majority of fans would not understand, but it is a fascinating read nonetheless.

I graduated from BYU in 1992, and I took my senior course on the novels of Charles Dickens from Gail Turley Houston. She was the best professor I had at the university--smart, kind and funny. I almost cannot make it through the chapter about her (Chapter 8 "Dirty Laundry, Dangerous Words") it hurts too much to read about Professor Houston being so persecuted for doing what she felt was right. All I can say is that, regardless of how you feel about the Mormon church or its flagship university BYU, this book speaks the truth and is worth a read, if only to know what evil otherwise good people are capable of doing to those who don't agree with them.

And who said the truth only edifies? Admittedly, truth can be colored by individual bias, but it has no agenda. We apply an agenda to it. This book has an agenda, but then again, so does every book that purports to offer truth. Ultimately, they say that the truth will set you free, and they also say that freedom's just another word for nothing left to lose. Truth hurts as often as it uplifts, and the truth of this book may hurt some, but doesn't change the nature of the book.

This is a very interesting book, with great insight into the making of contemporary Mormon culture. Of particular interest is the influence of Earnest Wilkinson during th 60s and early 70s (and later Presidents) in creating much of what we think of when think of modern BYU, such as "anti-feminism," the standards and honor code, air-brushing out things that "we just don't like," etc. When you consider the preponderance of BYU graduates out there in the world of the LDS church serving in leadership capacities, it is clear that BYU shapes the church.

This book deals with several controversial issues, is probably a little one-sided, but overall a very interesting read. I recommend it highly!

Interesting...

Well. There are two or three ways I could tentatively address Waterman's major preemptive issues here. And I think we can agree that he has a lot of them; some of which could widely be interpreted as being mildly juxtaposed. As are many. Let me open my remarks by presenting some initial thoughts regarding his primary approach:

Approaching the subject matter somewhat selectively, basing my treatise, in part, on a series of lectures given by me at the council on Quantum Higher Fractals at M.I.T. and Cambridge, and also speaking as a NASA theoretical physicist and working with just the raw data, taking into account his historical point of view (post WW II/Cold War) - I personally think that Waterman's whole book was likely meant to be rather a precursor Nietzscheistick reference to how Krechner's [elusive though none too widely used] Theorem is sometimes a good filler idiom when no other tack really - or at least readily, comes to mind. The manner in which Waterman hierarchically quantifies most of his earlier solutions? in relation to Chopra's treatise on the quantum mechanical body is nevertheless acceptable. This is no myth. Most of the Mensa colleagues I have come across (with assistance on my part) could generally see this. The "BYU" couplet [or as is more precisely used, word - noting of course, that most (65 to 85%) autistic genius is generally arrived at by hammering home this very principal] was rather, I think, a Jungian parody on how sometimes, in most Gordian test cases, as the subject approaches nil, the subconscious mind tends towards experiences of childhood (or adulthood) behavior, during which time the renal cropping of the id fuses natally, or rather, the "boomerang effect" comes close to what most experts agree is the process most often times recognized as the catalyst of choice during certain post-operative future tentative salmon angioplasties - normally. This naturally being the standardized subjunctive issue in most broad-based test cases. See Ethics in Government Psychological Operations Act, Title VI, P. L. 95-521, 92 Stat. 1952, as amended).

Now, on the other hand, after reading Waterman's book yet a third time, I am ruthlessly reminded of a story a former associate in the NSA confidentially shared with me several nerve-wracking weeks after the free world was assaulted with the "We will bury you" speech by the late Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev [I had occasion to lunch with the late Premier Khrushchev twice...a phobic yet unreasonable man]. Allow me to briefly elaborate...

One sunny afternoon around 2:00pm, Khu-Chin Wa, the much loved shiny violet humming-bird was chatting with her friend, a 320 lb. wharf rat known in the area as "Froggy" and his brother Petrov - a 30 foot Australian crocodile recently out on prison work-release. When suddenly and without warning, Khu-Chin Wa noticed that Brian was standing nearby behind a telephone pole, drooling and staring lucidly. Realizing the jig was up and that, at this point, her protective coloring was totally useless, Khu-Chin Wa jumped off a nearby cliff, soon succumbing to quickly dying of fatally self-inflicted fall wounds. At which point Froggy, knowing the police would be arriving soon, and stricken with what the voice inside of his head told him was a bewilderingly complex onslaught of uncontrolled dementia, bit himself and then commenced to put the crocodile in a sloppily executed, yet deadly strangle-hold as Brian stood motionless nearby, smiling quietly to himself.

These [categorically speaking] are just some of my initial thoughts regarding Waterman's primarily more selective issues.

? Darba, Why Do Anacondas Cry?, 1969, ibid.

Two BYU alumni, Bryan Waterman and Brian Kagel, have written an interesting summary of controversial firings at BYU in the 1990s. While only Mormons, BYU alumni, or those with an interest in religious universities' battle with academic freedom will read this journalistic narrative, it is nonetheless an important expose of the way the Mormon church operates.

Cecilia Konchar Farr (now at St. Catherine's College in the Twin Cities), David Knowlton (independent writer), and Gail Turley Houston (Univerity of New Mexico) were fired under murky circumstances while the authors were students at BYU, and their unhappiness at the way these firings were organized and carried out prompted them to use the resources at their command to tell the professors' side of the story. They do so convincingly, and the reader gets a scary glimpse of the way the churchmen in Salt Lake City run the university.

Also of interest is the way the BYU administration forced out Brian Evenson (now a successful novelist and on faculty at Brown) of the English department. Professor Steven Epperson and David P. Wright's (now Dept. Chair of Near Eastern Studies at Brandeis) mistreatment also gets a cogent explanation. Waterman and Kagel also give a brief history of feminism at BYU and a careful account of the September Six excommunications in the Mormon church. The book is well written, well documented, and even handed in its treatment of these unhappy events at BYU. The book is too long and repetitive--many characters have their full names mentioned dozens of times in the stories, and some of the main characters are briefly introduced in several chapters. On the flip side, these writers wanted to "state for the record" both sides of the firings so the reader can make her/his own conclusion regarding their fairness.

The unavoidable conclusion is that BYU cannot be considered, at least in the present climate, a true center of higher learning. The General Authorities in Salt Lake City have the final say in what can and cannot be taught or published at BYU, and you risk being fired if you cross them. What is really puzzling after reading this book is why any of the professors mentioned would take a job at such an institution. Perhaps many LDS teachers at the school long to stay in Utah for family, social, or other reasons.

For these professors and others who feel oppressed in their classrooms and writings, why do they stay loyal to the church directed by such leaders? The idea that the church is off course and that being a crusader will somehow be to your benefit is ill advised--they hold all the power, and you will lose every time. Waiting for them to excommunicate or fire you besmirches your name and stains your dignity. Why not leave the church and publicly give your reasons? It will do more to further your quest to encourage independent thinking, and you won't be part of an organization that tramples free thought and objective truth.

BYU, these authors suggest, exists to shield students in their intellectually malleable years from truth in science, critical thinking, and scholarly debate. It will keep the church membership strong, so goes the reasoning. If a university exists that will punish you for declaring humans evolved from lower primates and that there was no universal flood, then it doesn't deserve the title of "university".

This is the biggest piece of bull I have heard in a long time! Why do people want to waste their time reading this crap? If you are looking for the truth, why on earth would you read a book that does nothing, but try to tear down and demean someone or something. This is obvious garbage. If you want to know about something, go to the actual source, don't go to someone who has a vendetta or whose only point is to tear down something. Truth builds you up and edifies you, it doesn't take the time to demean others and strive to prove them wrong.

This book should be read in conjunction with Under the Banner of Heaven : A Story of Violent Faith
by Jon Krakauer. This book is a spell-binding story of an accomplished forger, Mark Hoffman, who turned to murder to cover his crimes. Hoffman even tells exactly how he was technically able to accomplish his feats. Lindsey did excellent reporting on this incredible story. But the bigger story is how the official LDS Church was willing to buy material from Hoffman that they thought to be true for the precise purpose of hiding it from public scrutiny. This willingness of high church officials to buy and hide information perceived to be true that might present a negative image of the LDS Church from both church and non-church members is amazing to me.

Read The Mormon Murders: A True Story of Greed, Forgery, Deceit, and Death, by Naifeh. A well told, thoroughly researched book covering both Mark Hoffman as well as a study of the foundations of Mormonism. When I read reviews of books covering this story that say the treatment of the history or Mormonism is innacurate and to read the Book of Mormon for the truth, I have to laugh. The strange history and early beliefs of the Mormon religion are well known to be at best odd, or at worst cultish. Mark Hoffman, although a horrible murderer, scared the heck out of the LDS church hierarchy by forging documents from their dubious past.

I am a lover of suspense books but I don't read them because when I do, I feel guilty, like it's a waste of time. I also love to study religion. When you mix the 2 together, you have an excellent book.
Have you ever read a book that you speed read because it's so exciting yet at the same time, you try to read it as slow as possible because you don't want the book to end. This is that kind of book.
Have you ever read a book that immediatly after you read it, you know for a fact that you will read it a few more times...this is that kind of book.
Anyone interested in mormonism, or religion in general will love this book. (well maybe not mormons). Anyone who just loves a good page turner, will love this book.
If the author of this book is reading this review, please turn this book intoa movie. I have read probably close to a thousand books, I'm sure. A book has to be real good to get on my top ten list.
religion enthusiasts, this is the most exciting religious lesson you will get. take advantage of it. Oh by the way, another good book about mormonism is housewife to heretic by sonia johnson.

This book is based on the murderous actions of Mark Hoffman, and in this regard is fairly accurate. However, when it comes to the history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (the Mormons), the Church's founding prophet Joseph Smith, and current Church leaders and doctrine, this book is slanted, twisted and just plain wrong. Its inaccuracies cause the book to end up being more fiction than fact. If you are really interested in learning the truth about the Mormon religion you should read The Book of Mormon, visit with some missionaries, and pray to know the truth. Reading this book is not the answer unless you wish to be misinformed.

This book, detailing the history of the Mark Hoffman case is very solidly researched. It does present, I believe, the history of Mormonism and the Hoffman case in a relatively balanced fashion without the sensationalism of the Naifeh book.

To all those who wish to learn more of the "Tales of Hoffman", I can't reccommend this book enough.

First of all, let me say that Fulton can flat-out write. He does an absolutely wonderful job of capturing the nuances of human behavior while portraying a family in crisis. Why, then, didn't I give this book five stars? Because I, too, wanted some sort of redemption for its characters, and Fulton never offered it. The conflict between its characters was not resolved in a way that offered any real hope for its protagonist. As a result, I found this to be a very bleak, unfulfilling novel.

Wow. This is the devastating portrayal of the break-up of a marriage and the collapse of a family. I read this on a flight from NY to LA and was near tears for part of the trip. The author has uncanny insight into human nature and an astonishing ability to translate emotions into words.

This is a lovely first novel which follows a Salt Lake City family as it implodes. My favorite part of the novel is the extended section that takes place over a day, including some hilarious and harrowing forays into a diner and a nursing home. The adolescent protagionist's crack-up is as compelling as Holden Caulfield's--a claim I don't make lightly. I hope this wild and wooly novel finds the wide readership it deserves.

Steven Parker's family moves to Salt Lake City as his father's last chance to improve their lot. They live a rich fantasy life that covers up the harshness of their poverty in the middle of an affluent city until Steven's arm is yanked out of its socket by a boy who objects to his lack of belief in God. Billy, Steven's dad, has not paid the health insurance bills, so Steven has to be driven in the snow clear across town to the local charity hospital. When Billy negotiates a settlement with the family of the boy who beat up Steven, the temporary affluence the money causes pushes the family over the edge.

One day, when Steven's mother witnesses a death at the elder care facilty where she performs menial work so the family will never be without health insurance again, the same day Billy's grades at the school where he is supposed to be training for a second career come in as failures, she gets fed up, and she acts decisively to break the family apart. A single day takes up two-thirds of the book as the scenario is played out, leaving her and her daughter safe and financially secure and Billy and Steven alone together with no prospects.

This book has a lot to say about teenage angst, the paper-thin veneer of many Americans' affluence and the culture shocks that can still affect us in this seemingly homogenous society. Ultimately, some of the reactions, particularly Steven's, seemed a little contrived and overly dramatic, and the reactions to him appeared unrealistic. But Fulton is a superb writer and the Salt Lake he recreates is true to life.

John Fulton explores the breakdown of the dysfunctional family so thoroughly and so intimately in this book that while I was reading I often felt the embarrassment of one who is caught snooping. Steven Parker and his sister Jenny are caught in the downward spiral of their parents hopes and regrets about the lives they've chosen. Living in the, primarily Mormon, society of Salt Lake City is making it difficult for Billy Parker, the father, to pass on his strong disbelief in God to his children. Jenny makes friends with a girl on the cheerleading squad and begins memorizing the Ten Commandments, while Steven deals with the after-effects of being bullied by some rich neighborhood brats. Mary Parker carries the financial burden of her husbands lack of work ethics and swears every time Billy goes a little nuts that she's taking the kids and leaving.

What captivated me about this story is the way that Fulton dissects this falling-out so carefully... taking the length of a book to narrate the couple of months it takes for this family's inevitable disintegration. This kind of information gives birth to gossip in the real world, but here we get the whole, messy, painfully honest story. While the ending did leave me feeling slightly depressed, it is also very realistic and, therefore, leaves that small crack of hope open. This is a wonderful story written by an author who truly knows his characters.

What a GREAT Book! Now I know what I've been missing - and where I'm going NEXT! Thank you -

The guy who gave this a one star was being generous. Too bad I had already bought the book by then.
I am surprised that this book found a publisher; must be nepotism or something.
Also, seems pretty sneaky to give your own book a five star review. Authors should NOT be reviewing their own books!

I own this book and love it.

The cover photo really drew me into the contents. I had intended to thumb through this book one evening, but instead found myself reading the whole thing.

I'm surprised and sorry that a previous reviewer was so negative; it's a shame to be so critical.

I'm happy with the text as well as the images--the author did a wonderful job.

I've only been to Utah for short visits, so I can hardly wait to use this fine resource for a lengthier exploration of this lovely state.

I love this book.
Bought in the Spring, it is a very popular among the house guests. I went on line to buy a few for gifts.

The obviously active author took the photos and drove the roads, rather like an old fashioned "route 66" take on travel. However, the information is approachable and current spiced with a little history.

Enjoy!

This book is excellent! I bought it about 3 weeks ago, and I happened to be meeting some friends in Colorado this past weekend at Dinosaur National Park. So I threw the book into the car almost as a last minute thought. Thank heavens I did because I ended up getting lost and used the maps to get me on the right track. After we were well on our way, and going the right direction I started reading through the book while my husband drove. We decided that because of her great descriptions that we wanted to go see Josie Bassetts cabin. That night around the campfire, I read the section about Vernal, Greenriver and Dinosaur National Monument to my friends from Colorado (one who is blind). It was great because it gave us a sense of history about the place. The part about Josie was very cool and we would have never known all that had I not got the book. For the next couple of nights I ended up reading sections of the book to my friends around the campfire. It made us all want to explore Utah more. In fact we are going to Bear Lake in a couple of weeks and wouldn't leave home with out it.

As for the pictures - they are exquisite! Colorful and clear, the ones of the wildflowers are amazing.

As to the previous person's post - not sure why he thinks any of these roads are not backroads - most of Utah is backroads. I have lived here for over 10 years and I highly recommend this book - it gives you information that you can't find at the monuments, or parks - it gives the history of individuals and so much more.

If you buy one book for your road trips this is the one to buy!