Milin Luo Luo itibaren Snyder, TX 79549, Birleşik Devletler itibaren Snyder, TX 79549, Birleşik Devletler

Let it be known that I occasionally become obsessed with random topics, people, genres, places, etc. Currently, I'm really into Mormons. Specifically, fringe Mormons who've splintered off from the mainstream LDS church and practice polygamy, living off the land and fashioning bad hairstyles in their weird separatist communities. Over the winter I got really into the HBO series Big Love. For the uninitiated, Big Love is about a family who live in a suburb of Salt Lake City. A family of polygamists. (Three wives, one Bill.) Big Love is a superbly done show, with good writing and acting, (specifically, writers who have done their homework: there are lots of relevant references) and watching it, I started to think "hey, maybe polygamy and religious fanatics who create their own churches on a whim really aren't that bad". I needed a wake up call, one not delivered by the guy who found James Cameron's Titanic and survived a twister by making out with Helen Hunt (the excellent Bill Paxton). Krakauer is such a good writer (I read Into Thin Air when I was ten, and Into the Wild at sixteen) and Under the Banner of Heaven is downright fascinating. Admittedly, the book is a bit disjointed. Krakauer starts out by profiling the murders of a young mother and her two-year-old by the Lafferty brothers, religious fanatics who started out as mainstream Mormons but have become totally deranged and think God has told them to kill people. Then Krakauer skips around, talking about weird separatist communities in Utah, Canada, and Mexico. He details the history of the founding of the Mormon church-- Joseph Smith and the equally influential Brigham Young. The edition I have ends with some controversy in the form of a letter from a higher up in the Mormon Church (who takes issue with several of Krakauer's claims) followed by a refute from Krakauer. I toe the line between atheist and agnostic, so I'm biased. But religious people are totally crazy. Even "regular" Mormons believe some fucked up things. Then again, so do all people who follow major religions... Krakauer provides a compelling glimpse into the fray.