162 Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought support to a truly epic piece of litera- sickle, and did reap with your ture and inspired work of art. He calls might, yea, all the day long did ye it "an active epic . . . [that] give[s] labor; and behold the number of meaning to humankind's general des- your sheaves! And they shall be tiny" (64). gathered into the garners, that The broad scope of Feasting on the they are not wasted. Yea, they Word is another scholarly aspect that shall not be beaten down by the weighs in its favor. For instance, when storm at the last day; yea, neither discussing the literary value of the "let- shall they be harrowed up by the ters" of the Book of Mormon, Rust uses whirlwinds; but when the storm a definition of the term "letters" by cometh they shall be gathered to- Hugh Walpole: "[letters] ought to be gether in their place, that the nothing but extempore conversation storm cannot penetrate to them; upon paper" (149). According to Rust, yea, neither shall they be driven the letters found within the Book of with fierce winds whithersoever Mormon "have claim to be examined the enemy listeth to carry them. as literature because they engage our But behold, they are in the hands interest both for what they say and for of the Lord of the harvest, and the way in which they are expressed. they are his; and he will raise The imagery found within the Book of them up at the last day. Mormon's text is also of great import in describing its literary value. According Feasting on the Word is an ex- to C. Day Lewis and N. Friedman: "Im- tremely well done piece of scholarship. agery in a literary sense is 'a picture It is insightful and thorough in dealing made of words' . . . and 'refers to im- with what said is the ages produced in the mind by language "cornerstone" of Mormon theology— . . .'" (167). By way of illustration, Rust The Book of Mormon. Richard Rust is cites Alma 26:5-7 as to "the vividness correct in stating: "On each rereading, and clarifying power of imagery" (168) the book becomes more significant, found in the Book of Mormon: deep, and powerful . . ." (219); Rust's work helps clarify just how deep and The field was ripe, and blessed powerful. are ye, for ye did thrust in the

A Handsome Volume

Mahonri Young: His Life and Art. By MORMONS ASSOCIATE MAHONRI Thomas E. Toone (: Sig- YOUNG with his LDS : Seag- nature Books, 1997). ull Monument and This Is the Place Mon- ument in Salt Lake City, and the Reviewed by Jessie L. Embry, Oral His- statue in Washington, tory Program Director, Charles H. D.C. Yet Young was internationally Redd Center, Brigham Young Univer- known for his work, and his pictures sity, Provo, . and sculptures of the Native Ameri- Reviews 163 cans of the southwest, men at work, color and most in black and white. I and boxers are exquisite. enjoyed the various angles of some of Thomas E. Toone's biography re- the sculptures such as the backs of the volves around Young's art. Toone, a model for Brigham Young, Heber C. professor of art at Utah State Univer- Kimball, and from sity, explains Young's life based on his This Is the Place Monument. The pic- work. He describes Young's struggle to tures of sculptures, such as the Gos- receive commissions, his moves, his sipers, capture the three-dimensional teaching experiences, and his family aspects of the works. There are also life, but the focus is always the paint- photographs of Young and his family ing or sculpting that Young was doing that illustrate the artist's personality. at the time. There are delightful stories As a historian, I would have liked such as Young's ability to please the more analysis of the people and events Young family and Utah's congres- surrounding Young's work. For exam- sional delegates by showing his grand- ple, how did Young convince Mormon father, Brigham Young, as a gentle fa- church leaders to construct the Seagull ther and stern governor. The text is Monument? Why did the Utah Pioneer light and a delightful read. Trails and Landmarks Association in- Toone helps us understand more sist on a competition for This Is the about Young by including brief biogra- Place Monument? What were the poli- phies of other artists—friends and com- tics in teaching and working in New petitors. He shows how Young worked York and ? by explaining how he found models But then I realize that there are and developed his themes. He describes many types of biographies. While Young's love for the Hopis, Apaches, Toone's book is not a complete study and Navajos and the love those people of all aspects of Young's life, it does had for him as he sketched his way give a clear picture of his art, exactly through the southwest. what Toone set out to do. It is a hand- As with most art books, the illus- some volume that will liven up any trations are essential. There are beauti- coffee table. ful pictures of Young's art, some in