Book Review- Under the Banner of Heaven by Jon Krakauer

This is a fascinating read. Krakauer has done a great job of inter-weaving the story of a murder with an exploration of the Mormon church, past and present. He's done an astounding amount of research and the writing keeps the story moving quickly. The purpose of the book is to examine the murder of a woman and her infant daughter in 1984. But to do that he's had to go back into the beginnings of the Mormon religion (which is shrouded in mystery) as well as the subsequent story of how the Mormons came to be as they are today. Along the way he reveals the seeds of Mormon fundamentalism and the tragedy of the practice of polygamy. I was familiar with some of the story from previous reading but this is in more depth. Highly recommended, particularly since we have a Mormon running for president this year.