Wednesday, August 3, 2016

New Book: Joseph Smith's Seer Stones

Michael Hubbard MacKay and Nicholas J. Frederick's book, Joseph Smith's Seer Stones, has just been released by Deseret Book. This seems to be a rather promising volume; here is the product description:

When the Church released photos of the brown seer stone that was owned and used by Joseph Smith, the news ignited a firestorm of curiosity and controversy. People wanted more information and wondered why they hadn't been aware of the stone's existence.

This book discusses the origins of Joseph Smith's seer stones and explores how Joseph used them throughout his life in a way that goes beyond translating the Book of Mormon. It also traces the provenance of his stones once they left his possession. The authors examine how the Book of Mormon itself provides a storyline about the history of seer stones and how this helped Joseph Smith learn about his own prophetic gifts.

One should also check out Michael Hubbard MacKay's other books, as they are also excellent:



The Joseph Smith Papers, Documents, Vol. 1: July 1828-June 1831 (with Grant Underwood, Gerrit J. Dirkmaat, Robert J. Woodford, and William J. Hartley)

There is a forthcoming book he is a co-editor of alongside Craig Ostler and Barbara E. Morgan: