Mountain Meadows Massacre

Review of Massacre at Mountain Meadows, in Church History: Studies in Christianity and Culture, December 2009

akgainer — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 23:07:10 +0000

“Massacre at Mountain Meadows deserves to be the standard account of the massacre for both LDS and non-LDS researchers and readers, updating Juanita Brooks’s fine but now outdated The Mountain Meadows Massacre . . . and surpassing other recent treatments . . . Walker, Turley, and Leonard have provided a tightly written, riveting narrative . . . While its prose is commendable, the real quality of the book rests upon the impressiveness of its research and the soundness of its analysis.”

Review of Massacre at Mountain Meadows, in Overland Journal, Winter 2009

akgainer — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 22:13:42 +0000

“A comprehensive analysis that places the complex event in the midst of such broader historical constructs as the persistence of violence in antebellum America, the liabilities of the militia tradition, and the nature of mass killings in general. . . . The narrative is haunting, tense, and compelling. . . . The scholarship is impeccable.”

Massacre at Mountain Meadows Now Available As an Audio Book

akgainer — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 22:13:31 +0000

After five hardback printings and a book club edition, Massacre at Mountain Meadows is now also available as an audio book that can be downloaded from Audible.com. For more information, click here.

Massacre at Mountain Meadows Wins Westerners International Award for Best Non-Fiction Book of 2008

akgainer — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 21:27:09 +0000

At a Westerners International breakfast held during the Western History Association’s annual conference on October 10, 2009, in Denver, Colorado, Massacre at Mountain Meadows received the “Co-Founders Best Book Award: First Place for Best Non-Fiction Book Published in 2008.” Read more here.

Review of Massacre at Mountain Meadows, in Journal of American History, September 2009

akgainer — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 14:02:18 +0000

“Massacre at Mountain Meadows is arguably the most professional, transparent account of a controversial event in Mormon history produced under church auspices. The work may well mark a major turning point in Latter-day Saint historiography. . . . The deftly and tightly written story is constructed like a Greek tragedy, the timeline contracting as the narrative expands in detail─breaking at the climax.”

Review of Massacre at Mountain Meadows, in Reviews in American History, June 2009

akgainer — Sat, 08 Aug 2009 20:53:54 +0000

“A fascinating study about one of the most controversial events of western history . . . When confronted with disputed or contradictory evidence, the authors deal with it judiciously and fairly. The thoroughness of their research is most impressive . . . Massacre is a significant contribution. It is carefully researched, objective in viewpoint, well organized, and clearly written.”

Review of Massacre at Mountain Meadows, in Western American Literature, Spring 2009

akgainer — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 19:35:32 +0000

“Using new archival research, Walker, Turley, and Leonard strive to accurately represent the historical context surrounding the [Mountain Meadows Massacre]. . . . The book is a must-read for scholars of the Mountain Meadows Massacre and LDS history.” Read more here.

Massacre at Mountain Meadows Wins Best Book Award, Mormon History Association, May 22, 2009

akgainer — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 19:24:51 +0000

“A long-awaited book on the infamous Mountain Meadows Massacre has received the Best Book Award from the Mormon History Association at its 44th annual conference” in Springfield, Illinois. “The book has been heralded as the most thorough treatment to date of the 1857 event.” Read more here.

“Best Sellers: Top Religion Titles,” Christian Century, May 5, 2009

akgainer — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 19:17:34 +0000

The Christian Century magazine of May 5, 2009, has an article titled “Best Sellers” that names top religion titles by publisher. Oxford University Press lists Massacre at Mountain Meadows as its number one bestseller in this field.

Massacre at Mountain Meadows Receives Special Citation from Association for Mormon Letters, February 28, 2009

akgainer — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 19:36:01 +0000

“Ronald W. Walker, Richard E. Turley, Jr., and Glen M. Leonard have produced the most complete, thoughtful, and balanced account of the murders to date. Their painstaking research has allowed them to piece together a timeline of events and a multitude of perspectives from which to explain the unexplainable. The Association admires the skill with which interlocking, parallel narratives have been crafted, a nuanced and balanced tone achieved, genuine compassion for the victims evinced, and no excuses sought or given for the perpetrators.” Read more here.

“Booklist Editors’ Choice: Adult Books 2008,” Booklist Online, January 1, 2009

akgainer — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 22:31:31 +0000

“Coauthors Walker, Richard E. Turley, and Glen M. Leonard provide the richest account yet of the darkest chapter in Mormon history: the massacre of a wagon train of California-bound immigrants passing through Utah in 1857. Essential for western-history collections.” Read more here.

“2008: The Year in Books,” Salt Lake Tribune, December 27, 2008

akgainer — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 22:28:06 +0000

“Local booksellers Ken Sanders and Catherine Weller agree that one of the biggest Utah releases of 2008 was the . . . long-anticipated account of the tragic 1857 slaughter of more than 120 men, women and children, Massacre at Mountain Meadows, … ‘In terms of sales, historic import and splash within the community nothing topped it.’” Read more here.

“The Mountain Meadows Massacre,” Morning News, December 22, 2008

akgainer — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 22:26:06 +0000

“Massacre at Mountain Meadows (Oxford University Press) is . . . a compelling and dramatic piece of historiography.” Read more here.

“Massacre Book ‘A Big Bestseller,’” Mormon Times, November 29, 2008

akgainer — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 01:06:05 +0000

“Anxious booksellers were calling Oxford University Press every other day asking when they could get more copies of the book ‘Massacre at Mountain Meadows.’ . . . ‘We couldn’t print them fast enough,’ said Susan Fensten, a publicist for Oxford University Press. . . . With more than 44,000 books sold over so short a time, it has been Oxford’s fastest-selling book over the last few years.” Read more here.

“Nailing Down the Nightmare of Mountain Meadows Massacre,” Salt Lake Tribune, November 21, 2008

akgainer — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 01:05:17 +0000

“Some seven-plus years in the making, and drawing upon the full resources of the LDS Church (including access to the First Presidency’s Archives), Massacre offers a straightforward, spartan narrative couched in nuanced language more focused on explaining than on blaming.” Read more here.

Book Signing, Seagull Book, Los Angeles, November 8, 2008

akgainer — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 21:46:47 +0000

Seagull Book, 10714 Santa Monica Blvd, Los Angeles, California, 2:00-4:00 p.m., November 8, 2008.

Book Signing, Barnes & Noble, Newport Beach, November 8, 2008

akgainer — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 21:44:14 +0000

Barnes & Noble, Fashion Island Mall, 401 Newport Center Drive, Suite A215, Newport Beach, California, 10:00 a.m.-noon, November 8, 2008.

“Westward Bound,” Washington Post, September 21, 2008

akgainer — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 21:05:53 +0000

“Only recently has anything approaching a comprehensive account of the massacre become possible. But no one has done a more thorough, even-handed job of reconstructing the killing and the complex events that surrounded it than Ronald W. Walker, Richard E. Turley Jr. and Glen M. Leonard in their riveting new book, Massacre at Mountain Meadows . . . The three bring to their subject unusual expertise as well as a sympathy for the Mormon cause that renders their unflinching telling of this awful story all the more persuasive.” Read more here.

Authors of Massacre at Mountain Meadows Tape One-Hour Television Special, Mormon Times, September 19, 2008

akgainer — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 21:16:52 +0000

“BYU television interview at Mountain Meadows to air Sept. 24.” Read more here.

Book Review, Woodbury Bulletin, September 17, 2008

akgainer — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 20:35:31 +0000

Dave Wood, past vice-president of the National Book Critics Circle, writes: “My wishes were recently fulfilled with a new book, ‘Massacre at Mountain Meadows,’ by Ronald W. Walker, Richard E. Turley and Glen M. Leonard . . . It’s a shocking story, well-documented, neither an expose or a cover-up.” Read more here.

Book Signing, Barnes & Noble, St. George, September 17, 2008

akgainer — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 21:45:42 +0000

Barnes & Noble, 1720 East Red Cliffs Drive, St. George, Utah, 6:00-9:00 p.m., September 17, 2008.

“‘Massacre at Mountain Meadows’ Shines Light on Dark Episode,” Mormon Times, September 12, 2008

akgainer — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 21:42:19 +0000

“The pain of the Mountain Meadows Massacre continues to echo across time. It still affects members of the LDS Church, descendants and relatives of the victims, and others. The authors hope their book can provide ‘catharsis’ — a release of deep, emotional healing.” Read more here.

Howard Berkes, “Mormon Historians Shed Light On Sept. 11, 1857,” National Public Radio, September 11, 2008

akgainer — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 21:41:55 +0000

“Turley and fellow Mormon authors Ronald Walker and Glen Leonard spent more than five years collecting diaries, journals, reports and other documents from that period. They had unprecedented access to the archives of the LDS Church, which include documents that other historians had not been permitted to review.” Read more or listen here.

“Writing ‘Massacre at Mountain Meadows,’” Mormon Times, September 11, 2008

akgainer — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 09:39:31 +0000

“In less than a month after its release, Oxford University Press is in its fourth printing of ‘Massacre at Mountain Meadows’ by Mormon authors Ronald W. Walker, Richard E. Turley Jr. and Glen M. Leonard.” Read more here.

“Massacre at Mountain Meadows Authors Hope Readers Ask Questions,” Mormon Times, September 10, 2008

akgainer — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 15:49:01 +0000

“What if you had been a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in southern Utah in 1857? What if you had been asked to participate in what later would be called the Mountain Meadows Massacre? What would you have done? The three authors of a new book, ‘Massacre at Mountain Meadows,’ hope their readers ask themselves these questions.” Read more here.