Has there been a pithier or more devastating anti-blurb in literary history than Mark Twain’s, of the Book of Mormon, that it is “chloroform in print”?
Twain’s infamous judgment appears in Roughing It, Chapter Sixteen, wherein he also writes, “All men have heard of the Mormon Bible, but few except the ‘elect’ have seen it, or, at least, taken the trouble to read it.” True, and it is likely also true that few have taken the trouble to read Twain’s quip in context—which is lucky for Joseph Smith, and for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, and for Avi Steinberg, the author of The Lost Book of Mormon: A Journey Through the Mythic Lands of Nephi, Zarahemla & Kansas City, Missouri.
Read Full Article »