The history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Ladder Day Saints has been a violent one for all involved. In Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent Faith, Jon Krakauer explores the history of the Mormon religion, focusing specifically on the rise of Mormon Fundamentalism.
Overview
Under the Banner of Heaven contains two separate, yet related, storylines. The first is the murder committed by Dan Lafferty against his brother’s wife and daughter. Lafferty killed them because he believed that he was commanded by God to do so. This storyline is paralleled by the history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Ladder Day Saints. The history chronicles such men as Joseph Smith, Brigham Young, and Uncle Roy. Additionally, Krakauer delves into the history of fundamentalist issues like plural-marriage and divine revelations.
Strengths
Krakauer does a wonderful job of keeping the reader interested throughout the book. The parallel structure keeps the action moving as the reader is transported back and forth between the two storylines. Also, Krakauer respectfully keeps an objective tone throughout the book, giving a fair and accurate depiction of each event. Finally, the research for this book was impeccable as Krakauer interviewed everyone from a woman who escaped from her polygamist family to Dan Lafferty himself.
Weaknesses
This book is so well written that it is difficult to find any weakness. However, one small thing is that since there are so many people and places that sometimes they begin to run together or are difficult to differentiate between. For example it is easy to mix up Uncle Roulon and Uncle Roy.
Perspective
Under the Banner of Heaven gives readers the opportunity to think about how religion can go bad. A theme throughout the book seems to be the way seemingly rational people behave in the name of their religion. While this is true for almost any religion, it is interesting to see it in a purely American framework. The entire history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Ladder Day Saints has taken place in the United States in recent times. As a result, the history of the church is well known, providing an interesting case study for religion in general.
Author Information
Jon Krakauer is an American writer and was born in Brookline, Massachusetts on April 12, 1954. He is most well-known for his outdoor writing from books such as Into Thin Air, Into the Wild, and Eiger Dreams. He was first known for his writing in Outside magazine and was later published in Smithsonian, National Geographic Magazine, Rolling Stone, and Architectural Digest.
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