Rating: 
Summary: Better than I had been told
Review: I had always been under the assumption that this was a mean-spirited book about Joseph Smith. I was surprised to find that it wasn't. Obviously Brodie doesn't believe that Smith was a prophet, so this book is written from that perspective. But I found that she was very simpathetic and offered some interesting insight into his life. I came out respecting Smith for who he was and what he accomplished, regardless of whether I believed his claim or not.
Rating: 
Summary: Well Written, Deeply Biased
Review: This is a very well written book, which accounts for some of its considerable impact. Readers should know, however, that it was written from a profoundly naturalistic perspective. Some, of course, will love that. Others, however, will (or should) find it troubling. It's amusing, for instance, to see some of the apparent evangelical Christians below praising the book. They don't seem to realize that Mrs. Brodie's attitude toward their beliefs would have been essentially the same as her attitude toward the beliefs she herself had rejected. She was an outspoken agnostic or atheist. The other fundamental flaw of this book is its practice of psychohistory -- the same technique that she used in her approaches to Thaddeus Stevens, Richard Nixon, Sir Richard Burton, and, rather disastrously, to Thomas Jefferson. In the cases of Smith, Stevens, Nixon, and Burton, Mrs. Brodie was dealing with marginal, unfashionable, or even unpopular characters, who had no influential constituency to defend them. When she took on Mr. Jefferson, however, many scholars (my personal favorite is Garry Wills) came down on her like the proverbial ton of bricks. The methodological flaws that they identified in her Jefferson book were precisely those that her earlier critics had noted in her earlier books -- when nobody was willing to listen. Final verdict: Well written, worth a read, not to be trusted as the final word. Nor anything close thereunto.
Rating: 
Summary: Got history, footnotes and pictures!
Review: This book is considered anti-mormon by many but reading it I didn't feel that way. I felt it was very comprehensive. Many say that her sources are distorted to produce a negative image. However most people have only read info from second hand sources while Brodie used first hand sources. There are a lot of history which is very informative and I believe every LDS and Non-LDS alike should read. This is quite a popular book on Mormonism but there are a lot of other books worth looking at also.
Rating:
Summary: Impressive work
Review: I wasnt sure what to expect with Fawn McKay Brodie being a close relative of a former LDS Church President. However, I must say it was a fascinating read and also well-documented. The heavy footnotes are essential in a book of this nature as the Mormons are notorious for having a selective history. An excellent book from someone who experienced the religion first hand.
Rating:
Summary: ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS WRIITEN ABOUT FOUNDATION OF MORMONISM
Review: I'm real partial to Fawn Brodie's writing style. She is a very talented writer with the ability to share historical facts and still be gripping. I appreciate the well documented script. I sense from the mormon responses that they have some denial issues happening. I suppose if one really took a truthful and honest look at the foundation of the LDS church it would prove to be mostly sand. Fawn is in line with truth. I'm glad that she took on this subject and hope that she will perhaps add to her collection by writing more on this subject. This religion is built upon the sand, And the floods will come, and the winds will blow, and will beat upon that house, and it will fall: and great will be the fall of it. Sand represents falshoods and the beginning of the church is permeated with them as expressed in this book. Jesus is the Rock! Build on him... Buy this book and share it with your freinds. I appreciate the accuracy.
Rating: 
Summary: embarrassingly trite
Review: A completely suspect read, this book's unqualified criticism becomes all the more clear when viewed in tandem with Miss Brodie's manufactured bio on Thomas Jefferson ("Thomas Jefferson: An Intimate History").For a critical rereading of this book, see "Tinkling Cymbal and Sounding Brass," an excellent deconstruction by Hugh Nibley of Miss Brodie's methodology.
Rating: 
Summary: Very interesting!
Review: As a Mormon, I expected to find myself offended by this book, but it simply wasn't the case. Granted, Brodie approaches Smith with the assumption that he was not a real prophet...but once you understand that, her true facination and, yes, admiration for the man comes through. On the downside, she does try to psychoanalyze Smith using 20th century standards, and loses much of her credibility in the process. On the other hand, though, I've never read a more riveting account of the Missouri period. This book gives a flavor for what a truly remarkable man Smith was...whether one believed his claims or not. My advice to Mormons is: Read this book if you truly have an open mind and can appreciate a non-believer's point of view. To non-Mormomns I'd say: Remember, this book doesn't tell the whole story. All authors on Mormon history approach the subject matter from preconceived notions of belief or unelief, and that orientation clouds whatever comes after. Contrary to other reviewers, my feeling is that a book of this kind will never help someone to understand whether a religion is genuine or not. Those decisions come from other places in one's mind...and heart.
Rating:
Summary: This touted "Objetive" work is a forum for a personal agenda
Review: This oft quoted work is supposedly the model of objective research regarding Joseph Smith and the foundations of Mormonism. Brodie has been able to dig up some little known and little talked about events to be sure, but she places primary importance on these facts and pieces them together in a fashion that exposes a pretty strong personal agenda. Brodie is a master at brushing by events that do not support her agena. Much more than her poor presentation of facts, I am concerned that Brodie seems to "know" what Smith and others were thinking when the events unfolded. Most of her conclusions could be argued if not absolutely proven false. If you are looking for the truth about Mormonism, there are much better books out from both Mormon and Non-Mormon sources.
Rating:
Summary: Cults in America
Review: Brodie has helped expose the LDS Church as a cult that deserves the attention of both state and federal authorities. If it can happen in Waco & Jonestowne, when will it happen in Salt Lake City---
Rating:
Summary: A NON-SENSATIONALIST LOOK AT JOSEPH SMITH
Review: I FELT THIS BOOK TO BE A GOOD READ ALTHOUGH LESS SCANDALOUS THAN I THOUGHT IT WAS GOING TO BE. SHE DID NOT REALLY EXPLAIN WELL WHY THE MORMONS WERE SO HATED IN MISSOURI. IT IS BECAUSE THEY WERE THIEVING GENTILE PROPERTY AND THIS WAS NOT FULLY DEVELOPED IN HER NARRATIVE. ALSO , AND THIS IS A COMMON COMPLAINT, SHE TRIES TO GUESS AT HIS MOTIVES. A VERY DIFFICULT TASK INDEED. SHE IS NO PSYCHIATRIST YET SHE THEORISES ABOUT HIS BRAIN QUITE A LOT. I WOULD HAVE LIKED HER TO EXPLAIN IN THE BOOK WHY SHE DID NOT CONSIDER THE REPORTS OF HIS TIME IN AN INSANE INSTITUTION WORTH MENTIONING IN THE MAIN BODY OF HER WORK. HER POLITICS ALSO SEEPS INTO THE PAGES. DESPITE THESE CRITICISMS, IT IS OVERALL A VERY GOOD BOOK AND I RECOMMEND IT AS BASIC TO ANYONE CONSIDERING BECOMING A MORMON.
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