Review
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Title: The Parallel Book of Mormon:The 1830, 1837, and 1840 Editions
Author: Curt Bench, intro.
Publisher: Signature Books
Genre: Non-fiction
Year Published: 2008
Number of Pages: 664
Binding: Large Hardcover
ISBN: 978-1-56085-203-2
Price: $75.00
Reviewed by Jeffrey Needle
One must always hold his breath when reviewing a book with such a high price tag. $75.00 is pretty steep for a single volume -- some entire series cost less than that. The question: is this book worth the price?
This is a really hard question. After explaining the merits, and the drawbacks, of the volume, you, the reader, will have to decide for yourselves.
The editions of the Book of Mormon reprinted in this book constitute the three published versions of the Book of Mormon that existed during the Prophet Joseph Smith's lifetime. This, in my mind, is significant. Had he lived longer, would he have made further emendations? And would he have approved of the changes made after his death? Perhaps we'll never know.
Curt Bench, who we all know as the owner of Benchmark Books, pens an introduction that documents the evolution of the Book of Mormon, the circumstances surrounding the changes, etc. It's a rich read, one that I think all will enjoy and benefit from.
Then follows a three-column presentation of the editions of the Book of Mormon, with the columns synchronized so the reader can simply read horizontally across the columns and see how alterations to the text reflect Joseph's progressive understanding of the text. When reading in this fashion, one is struck by how little Joseph actually changed from one edition to the next!
So far, so good. Two comments arise in my mind:
1. What I had hoped to find in the text were markers that indicated where the text had changed from one version to another. The casual reader is not likely to pick up any variation in the text, outside introductions and other peripheral matter. Alterations could have been marked by italics, or some other typographic convention.
2. Given this weakness (in my opinion, of course), this volume will be most useful for those who know exactly what they're looking for: those who want to zero in on a particular text and see how its translation changed from one edition to another.
The book itself is handsomely produced, on high-quality paper and even with a ribbon marker. It's a hefty, heavy volume. The text is sufficiently large and clear to make for easy reading.
I'm not clear that this book will find a wide readership. The target audience is fairly narrow; this may account for the steep price. Is it worth the price? I don't know. To some, indeed, yes it is. But I fear that Signature may not sell as many as they would want, given the price and the limited potential audience.
Jeff Needle
Association for Mormon Letters
jeff.needle@gmail.com<www.aml-online.org>
<www.LDSBookLovers.com/Needle.html>
