Parley P. Pratt : the Apostle Paul of Mormonism /

*Starred Review* Reflecting on a life of arduous and dangerous missionary journeys, Mormon apostle Pratt consoled himself with an inspiring comparison: It was so with Paul. In this parallel, Givens and Grow find an interpretive overlay giving order to a life brimming with complexities. As the authors chronicle that life, from Pratt's birth to a hardscrabble farmer in upstate New York to his violent death in Arkansas 50 years later, readers see religious conviction impelling Pratt through radical personal change, defiant of persecution and adversity. Already lambent in the young Pratt's zeal for Baptist millennialism, that conviction flames anew after an intense encounter with Book of Mormon converts Pratt to the Latter-Day Saints faith. Never resting in his subsequent proselytizing or in his complicated polygamous family relationships, Pratt lived a life resistant to summary. But Givens and Grow provide clarifying focus by comparing the nineteenth-century Mormon apostle to Paul, the famous tent-making apostle of antiquity. Like Paul, Pratt writes voluminously, so forging creedal clarity. Like Paul, Pratt ventures widely as a missionary, spreading a regional faith globally. Like Paul, Pratt rejoices in suffering for Christ's sake, as he willingly goes to prison and eventually to martyrdom. An illuminating portrait of an indefatigable and controversial evangelist.--Christensen, Bryce Copyright 2010 Booklist

Early Mormonism is filled with colorful and influential characters, from the founding prophet, Joseph Smith, to gunslingers like Porter Rockwell and brilliant organizers like Brigham Young. One of the least studied, and least appreciated, of these figures is the subject of this thoroughly intriguing and satisfying work by two accomplished scholars, who have each written acclaimed works on aspects of Mormonism. The authors offer the first full-length scholarly treatment of one of the most important influences on the development of this distinctively American religion. Pratt is described by the authors as a "missionary, hymnist, explorer, politician, theologian, satirist, editor, and historian," but he is much more than the sum of his parts. Like the apostle Paul, Pratt was a man of many talents and profound contradictions. And like Paul, Pratt traveled, preached, and was imprisoned, finally emerging a hero and exemplar of a growing and maturing faith tradition. The authors have done a remarkable job in presenting the story of this unique and essential character. (Oct.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

Parley P. Pratt (1807-57) was one of the most influential early apostles of the Mormon Church. He baptized several people who would become Mormon Church leaders, and he wrote some of the earliest tracts and books of systematic theology. He also wrote the text for one of the most popular Mormon hymns. Givens (By the Hand of Mormon) and Grow ("Liberty to the Downtrodden": Thomas L. Kane, Romantic Reformer) are believing Mormons whose biography of Pratt is a triumphalist take on what anyone would admit was an extraordinary life. Pratt's missionary journeys from England to Chile to San Francisco led to the foundation of mission strategy for the Latter-day Saints and are the stuff of legend, which Givens and Grow mine to good effect. They have plenty of source material on which to rely, including Pratt's autobiography, a classic of Mormon writing that remains in print to this day. VERDICT This first scholarly biography of Pratt deserves a place in libraries collecting American history, given his importance in the founding years of Mormonism.-David Azzolina, Univ. of Pennsylvania Libs., Philadelphia (c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.