LDS Biographies

What kind of life preparation does the Lord give the men He will one day call to be prophet? And what are the lessons to be learned from such a life? From being raised in a home without the foundation of the gospel to the early days of his marriage and the stress of medical school to his last open-heart surgery in China, President Russell M. Nelson took advantage of every opportunity to learn and become more. In Insights from a Prophet's Life, Sheri Dew takes us through the life of President...

Dallin H. Oaks may not have seemed the likeliest choice to become an Apostle. His life path had been anything but conventional. He was only seven when his mother became a widow. His young adulthood saw him joining the National Guard and marrying at nineteen. But all along that path, the Lord was preparing him for the call that would eventually come. This engaging biography by noted historian Richard E. Turley, Jr. takes the reader on a fascinating journey through the life of an extraordinary...

Drawing from the very best of Hugh Nibley, this collection of excerpts feels more like a guided tour through a brilliant mind than a quote book. Arranged thematically, it covers the highlights of Nibley's best thinking and writing on everything from the Creation, through ancient people, times, and documents, to modern-day prophets and righteous living today. Two features give great insight into the man and his life's work: a very personal life sketch about Hugh Nibley written by his grandson,...

On a mission to bomb a French bridge and slow down Hitler's retreating army, U.S. bomber pilot Wendell B. Terry miraculously survived a harrowing parachute jump after his plan was hit by enemy fire. Scorched by the burning plane, he landed amid German SS troops and soon found himself in a German prisoner-of-war camp. He shared a cement room with 23 other prisoners. He lived with a dirt floor, no heat to ward off the bitter cold, one small window, and not much to do. To make matters worse,...

When M. Russell Ballard was set apart as Acting President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of The church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in January 2018, it was another milestone in a lifetime of service to the Lord. Having set aside a variety of entrepreneurial ventures to serve as president of the Canada Toronto Mission at the age of forty-five, he then accepted a call to serve in the First Quorum of the Seventy two years later, in 1976, and thus never ended up returning to the...

Even the bleakest, most winding road can lead to the strait and narrow path. For Ed Willis, life was one harsh blow after another. Born into generational poverty within a system that was not designed for the success of Black men, most of his options led to dead ends. But in between jail time, drug addiction, unemployment, the struggles of racism, and family strife, there were brief flashes when the light of Christ touched Ed's heart, instilling in him a desire to know and to be more. He sought...