I loved the book Rough Stone Rolling by Bushman. I read it a few years ago when I was teaching the Doctrine and Covenants in early morning seminary. I had previously read his other book, Joseph Smith and the Beginnings of Mormonism, which was equally as good, so was looking forward with anticipation to his latter book.
Some of my fellow teachers started reading it and were put off by the description of Joseph Smith Senior as being a financial failure, and how he might have viewed himself as such. I thought that Bushman was extremely fair in his research and the way he presented the known facts. As always, he concluded that he knew the church was true despite some controversial issues that may have been recorded. I liked this about his writing.
Anyway... loved the book, would recommend it to all! I think it is a definitive work on the prophet Joseph Smith.
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