Review
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Title: Book of Mormon Insights: Letting God Prevail in Your Life
Editors: Kenneth L. Alford, Krystal V.L. Pierce, Mary Jane Woodger
Publisher: Deseret Book/BYU Religious Studies Center
Genre: Devotional
Year Published: 2023
Number of Pages: 278
Binding: Hardcover
ISBN: 1950304485
Price: 27.99
Reviewed by Ivan Wolfe for the Association of Mormon Letters
The BYU Religious Studies Center clearly aims to fill the niche that exists between the academic and the devotional, and the collection of essays in Book of Mormon Insights: Letting God Prevail in Your Life fills that niche quite well. To my increasingly aged eye, it resembles the old FARMS collections (such as Reexploring the Book of Mormon), but while those volumes could occasionally lose the forest for the leaf on a single branch of a single tree (not that there’s anything wrong with such hyper-focused analysis when it’s called for), these essays aim to illuminate the forest by focusing on specific trees. And, while the original FARMS books often merely pointed out something interesting and left it at that, these essays all aim for both intellectual insight and devotional content.
While clearly aimed at a believing, orthodox, regular Church attending audience, the essays do not merely attempt to confirm the faith or provide defenses for it, but instead drive the audience to greater devotion and scholarship. Those who do not accept (all or even most of) the truth claims of the Church likely won’t get much of interest here as they are not the intended audience, but the intended audience will find themselves pushed and pulled into newer (and sometimes uncomfortable if ultimately faith-affirming) insights and ideas.
The only criticism I could have of this book would be the subtitle (“Letting God Prevail in Your Life”) seems more aimed at marketing than any unified theme unless you want to dilute that phrase to merely mean “anything related to the Gospel.” Some of the essays (for example, one that focuses on “cup” motifs in scripture and ancient literature or another that uses Korihor as a way to discuss religious bullying) would take some strained; sideways squinting to work under the theme – at the same time, however, having worked on volumes of themed collected essays myself, I know how difficult having every essay fit perfectly can become, especially with deadlines, different understandings, and quality (in the sense that, even if the essay doesn’t quite fit the theme, it’s still so good that and editor might want to include it regardless).
For those looking for unique viewpoints and insights on the Book of Mormon text for their personal study, this volume will serve as an invaluable resource and a spur to greater engagement with the text of the Book of Mormon.