EVENING WITH AN AUTHOR
We are very excited to announce that Terryl Givens, author of Stretching the Heavens: The Life of Eugene England and the Crisis of Modern Mormonism (published by University of North Carolina Press) will be here Wednesday, August 25 to speak about his book. He will be here from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m., will speak at 6:00, and answer questions and sign books before and after that time. We hope you will be able to make it that night but, if not, we can mail a signed copy or hold one here at the store for pick-up. To RSVP on Facebook, click here.
IMPORTANT NOTE: because of increased Covid infections in our state and area, MASKS ARE REQUIRED for this event, despite vaccination status—NO EXCEPTIONS! We are unable to social distance at this type of event in our store, and we expect a large crowd to come see and hear Terryl Givens, so it is important we take what precautions we can to try to ensure the safety of our customers and staff. Wearing facial coverings, used in the correct manner, will help us in that effort. If you have any symptoms of illness of any kind or you do not feel comfortable wearing a mask for the event, we invite you to stay home and watch the presentation via Zoom or later when it is available on our website, which you can do for any past author events. We very much appreciate your cooperation and understanding. We all long for the day when the pandemic will be behind us and we will be able to go about our normal lives again.
For the first time, we will have a live stream in addition to the in-person option:
When: Aug 25, 2021 06:00 PM Mountain Time (US and Canada)Register in advance for this meeting:
https://zoom.us/meeting/register/tJwpf-CgrDMiE9P1dTbieTM1Sw4BJeaegm_V
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.
Meeting ID - 984 8982 8897
Passcode - 538790
The live stream will be limited to 100 people—first come, first served. The video will then be archived on our website for subsequent viewing.
Eugene England (1933–2001)—one of the most influential and controversial intellectuals in modern Mormonism—lived in the crossfire between religious tradition and reform. This first serious biography, by leading historian Terryl L. Givens, shimmers with the personal tensions felt deeply by England during the turmoil of the late twentieth century. Drawing on unprecedented access to England’s personal papers, Givens paints a multifaceted portrait of a devout Latter-day Saint whose precarious position on the edge of church hierarchy was instrumental to his ability to shape the study of modern Mormonism.
A professor of literature at Brigham Young University, England also taught in the Church Educational System. And yet from the sixties on, he set church leaders’ teeth on edge as he protested the Vietnam War, decried institutional racism and sexism, and supported Poland’s Solidarity movement—all at a time when Latter-day Saints were ultra-patriotic and banned Black ordination. England could also be intemperate, proud of his own rectitude, and neglectful of political realities and relationships, and he was eventually forced from his academic position. His last days, as he suffered from brain cancer, were marked by a spiritual agony that church leaders were unable to help him resolve.
Stretching the Heavens: The Life of Eugene England and the Crisis of Modern Mormonism. University of North Carolina Press. Hardcover. 330pp. $34.95
Terryl L. Givens is a Neal A. Maxwell Senior Research Fellow. He formerly held the Jabez A. Bostwick Chair of English and was Professor of Literature and Religion at the University of Richmond. He is the author of many books about Latter-day Saint history and culture, including Wrestling the Angel: The Foundations of Mormon Thought, Feeding the Flock: The Foundations of Mormon Practice, and By the Hand of Mormon: The American Scripture That Launched a New World Religion, each with Oxford University Press. He is also co-author, with Fiona Givens, of The God Who Weeps, The Crucible of Doubt, and The Christ Who Heals.
