Review: Abinadi *****

Title: Abinadi
Author: H.B. Moore
Why I Read This: It sounded good, and it won a Whitney Award.
Short Summary: As King Noah leads his people into wickedness, Abinadi is called to cry repentance.
Website: http://www.hbmoore.com

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If you’ve read the Book of Mormon, you know the plot of this story, even though Abinadi doesn’t get his call as a prophet until 2/3 of the way through the book. So, there are no surprises here. Still, there is some suspense as the characters deal with Lamanite attacks and flee from King Noah’s wrath.

The real gem of this book came from the characters. They were so well created. I could feel Abinadi’s hopes and doubts. Alma’s character arc was great, and I love that Moore decided to use his personal life to parallel what was happening with the people. He’s pulled in to the wickedness of the court, then comes to realize that this life is empty, and starts to make changes, so he’s ready for conversion when Abinadi makes his climactic speech before King Noah. Racquel, the daughter of Amulon, and love of Abinadi, is also strong and interesting in her own right.

Moore decided to set the Book of Mormon lands in what today is Guatamala, and has a map to show it. She says in the preface that this is “one favored location for the land of Nephi” though the notes at the back are written as if it is the location of the Nephites. That rankled me a little bit, because I believe at this time, nobody can know for certain where the Nephites lived. Still, Moore used this setting to do some painstaking research to make the story of Abinadi come to life, by describing the smallest details of life, including what foods they ate and what clothes they wore. That, I really appreciated. For those afraid that a book like this would cause them to forget what’s real and what’s just made up, the chapter notes list what scriptures are referenced in each chapter.

This book ends with Alma planning to baptize the people in the waters of Mormon. The sequel to this book, called Alma the Elder, will come out Fall 2009. There is also a third book planned for Alma the Younger.

There is no swearing in this book. Alma does get involved with harlots, but acts are not described. There is some violence, but nothing in great detail.

Overall, I give this book 5 out of 5 stars.