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6th out of 23 books
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11 voters
The Undaunted
When it comes to creating spellbinding historical fiction, nobody does it quite like Gerald N. Lund. In The Undaunted, he transports readers first to the coal mines of Yorkshire, then across the ocean and the plains to the territory of Utah, where, even in 1879, there is pioneering to be done. A little- known and perhaps even less- appreciated chapter in the Church's histo
...moreHardcover, 804 pages
Published
August 5th 2009
by Deseret Book
(first published January 1st 2009)
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I've always loved Gerald Lund's way with words. He made the Restoration come to life for me with The Work and the Glory series, and now he's done it again with The Undaunted: The Miracle of the Hole-in-the-Rock Pioneers. Only this time, he made my own family history come alive. My ancestor was one of the four scouts on the Hole in the Rock journey. I can't imagine what these amazing pioneers went through. They thought they'd only be walking for six weeks, and ended up trudging along for six mont...more
I can't give 5 stars ONLY because Lund isn't the most artistic of writers. I was never able to get through more than 20 pages of the Work and the Glory, and this is more of the same Lund -- just with the most incredible story that every member of the church should read. I love the footnotes of actual journal entries, etc. The history with the Indians is fascinating and the sacrifices these pioneers made solely out of a desire to obey their leaders and except a calling is astounding. They weren't...more
"The Undaunted" is the story of the Hole-in-the-Rock pioneers. I had not heard of these pioneers until reading this book. They were a group of Mormons living in Southern Utah area in the late 1800's and they were told by the First Presidency of the church that they needed to move to the southeast corner of Utah around the Four Corners to settle a new area. The journey was treacherous and most people didn't think it was going to be possible. As Gerald Lund as done in other novels he tells a histo...more
First off: I'm not a big fan of Gerald Lund's fiction. I know there are lots out there who absolutely loved The Work and The Glory. I just couldn't get into them. I started the first one three times before I finally decided I wasn't going to waste any more effort on the series. (My husband felt the same.) So given that this 800 page behemoth of a book was going to garner a huge investment of my time I started it with some reservations.
However, I was pleasantly surprised. I actually enjoyed it q...more
However, I was pleasantly surprised. I actually enjoyed it q...more
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I din't really know anything about the Hole-in the Rock Pioneer expedition so I was looking forward to this book. I found it to be quite similar to the Work and the Glory series in the style and substance. It took a while for the story to get going as the first half of the book is more about the main character David and how he ends up in Utah in the first place. So that was a little bit annoying. If you've read the Work and theGlory you will like this because of the romance that goes on between...more
A 800-page fat book that has been languishing on my shelf since it came out in 2009. In fact, it was given to me as a gift, I gave it to my daughter, and then bought it for myself again. I finally decided it would be a good book to read in the month of July to celebrate pioneers, and it was great. Really engrossing. I love it more for the history than for the writing. And I love the footnotes as much as the story to see exactly what is true and what is fictionalized--and really, most of it is tr...more
I've always wanted to read this book since it was published 3 years ago. Not only did I have direct ancestors on that trek, but I love a good historical fiction. This one didn't dissapoint. It's the same story of the other Gerald Lund novels: fictional family tossed in the middle of real life events, interacting with historical characters and becoming a part of the company. I was absolutely fascinated with the journey itself. They thought they could just take a shortcut from Ceder City to Bluff...more
I have complex feelings about this book. It really isn't very well written. The characters are fairly shallow; the situations they get into are totally canned; and there is an AWFUL lot of weeping, crying, sobbing, tears, red eyes, and wet cheeks. I think every single character annoyed me at least once. And I didn't like the didactic historical footnotes that Lund often included — which were themselves poorly written. Many times, the book came off as a nonfiction account of the Hole in the Rock...more
I was excited to read this book, having read The Work and the Glory series. I was pleasantly surprised at how the author began the book by following the lives of the Draper (Dickinson) family in England. I completely absorbed the history of the coal and it made me want to read more on the topic.
I love almost everything about this book, the storyline, the history, to drama, the danger, the lives of the many fictional and nonfictional characters. The book kept me well intrigued, enlightened and e...more
I love almost everything about this book, the storyline, the history, to drama, the danger, the lives of the many fictional and nonfictional characters. The book kept me well intrigued, enlightened and e...more
It struck me as more than a little odd that I was reading about the incredible hardships of some Mormon settlers as I lay on a beach in Mexico sipping my pina colada. Ahhhh. But this was a perfect read for hours of reading time. Before reading this book, I knew very little about the Hole in the Rock pioneers. I knew they had cut a hole in the rock for their wagons to get through and that is about it. This was a fascinating glimpse into that event, and it is an incredible story. I like how Gerald...more
I love stories of the LDS pioneers and early days of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. This was a very interesting story and portrayed the overwhelming demand of the mission call to establish LDS settlers in the San Juan area - four corners area of Utah. Gerald Lund is an amazing author and I absolutely loved his series The Work and The Glory. This book, however, was a little bit slower and less complex. But, the descriptions of the difficult terrain and amazing accomplishments of...more
I've never read any of Gerald Lund's other books, so I wasn't familiar with his writing style and his approach to historical fiction. I am generally turned off by books of this length and only read this one because one of my husband's ancestors was involved with the Hole in the Rock mission and was featured in this book. Thus, all of my husband's family has read the book and have a vested interest in it.
To me, the book was way too long and did not hold my attention. I nearly quit reading several...more
To me, the book was way too long and did not hold my attention. I nearly quit reading several...more
Wow...
I have NEVER had a book suck me into it like this one did! I like reading, and there are times when I really want to finish a book, but I had to really tell myself that I needed to accomplish other things in my life besides the book! The way that Lund uses fiction with history to tell the story of the San Juan pioneers is amazing... just amazing. I was thinking of the story whenever I wasn't reading it, and having dreams about it! I didn't really want it to come to an end.
And, to think, I...more
I have NEVER had a book suck me into it like this one did! I like reading, and there are times when I really want to finish a book, but I had to really tell myself that I needed to accomplish other things in my life besides the book! The way that Lund uses fiction with history to tell the story of the San Juan pioneers is amazing... just amazing. I was thinking of the story whenever I wasn't reading it, and having dreams about it! I didn't really want it to come to an end.
And, to think, I...more
This is the story of the Hole in the Rock Pioneers. Lund started way back in the coal mines of England with his characters. I found this part of the book to be very interesting. His fictional characters were a little fluffy at times but helped you stay interested. He does not set out on the Hole in the rock expedition until the last third of the book which is probably good because it truly was a daunting journey and very hard to keep reading about one more trail to be made on the face of a rock,...more
I finished this 802 page epic novel at the beginning of the summer. The ladies in my Daughters of the Utah Pioneers group gave it to me when I was recuperating from my surgery last December. I didn't start it exactly then, but it took me a while to get it read. I actually liked it! I have an interest in the pioneering people, and what they went through and lived through to make life possible for us here today. So the historical facts about the Hole In The Wall expedition to the San Juan River va...more
I really like books that inspire, and that is what this book did. . . .Well the historical part anyway. I have a special place in my heart for pioneers, especially the handcart pioneers, and so I felt this could be a continuation of those strong faithful examples. One of my sisters lives in Monument Valley which "as the crow flies" is a pretty short distance from some of the most treachorus(?) parts of their journey. I was glad to understand why this route was chosen, the circumstances surroundi...more
I hadn't read any Gerald Lund books since I gave up on the Work and the Glory series back after the second book. When I picked up this book and saw that it was (gulp), more than 800 pages, I wasn't excited about reading it (which is why I put it dead last on my list). But I shouldn't have let my the length of the book, or my history with Lund's previous books, color my perspective too much, because I actually enjoyed this book quite a bit. I even cried at the end. The Undaunted follows the typic...more
Whew! I've been reading this book basically since Christmas! When you write an 800 page book called The Undaunted, you run the risk of people asking the question--who is the undaunted? The characters or the reader? Anyway... It's a giant book which is hard to hold with one hand while nursing so it's taken me forever to read. But besides that, I liked it. It really didn't seem as....what's the word? It didn't seem as thorough, focused, or...good as his other historical novels. After writing a for...more
In reading about the participants of the Martin and Willie Handcart companies, I was introduced to the Hole in the Rock expedition of the San Juan Mission, as some of the members of the former played major roles in the latter. How glad I was to learn that a book had come out about the latter. Although presented in the form of a novel, this presentation is founded on a bedrock of historical accuracy (a trademark of Mr. Lund's writing) of those who were called to bring Zion to a land that was anyt...more
It's been over ten years since I've read Gerald Lund's 'Work and The Glory' series. The writing style in this book was very similar. I enjoyed reading about the historical facts and what some of the early saints were asked to do. To leave your home, your town and your friends to settle the wild frontier, would have been a very difficult task. Especially knowing the problems with outlaws, ruffians and the delicate truce they had with the indians. As for the fictional part of the story, David remi...more
I really enjoyed learning about this part of Mormon history that, to be perfectly honest, I had no idea ever happened. It was a little hard to understand some of the decisions that were made. I guess I understand trusting in the Lord and wanting to go forward with a mission call you are given as soon as possible but so many problems could have been avoided by waiting until Spring. I am sure it was an important trial/experience for those saints to go through.
The reason I didn't LOVE this book is...more
The reason I didn't LOVE this book is...more
In the preface to this novel, Lund quotes David McCullough "The truth of history is the objective always. But the truth isn't just the facts. You can have all the facts imaginable and miss the truth, just as you can have facts missing or some wrong, and reach the larger truth."
I hadn't heard of these 'Hole-in-the-rock' pioneers before reading this book - and found the novel very interesting - particularly the notes included at the end of each chapter, explaining the history. I also quite enjoyed...more
I hadn't heard of these 'Hole-in-the-rock' pioneers before reading this book - and found the novel very interesting - particularly the notes included at the end of each chapter, explaining the history. I also quite enjoyed...more
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This story was amazing. My seventh grade Utah History teacher, Mr. Stevens, was passionate about this story and spent several days relating it to us back then. But that was a LONG time ago (my goodness. Am I really that old?) and much of the details had faded. I just had a faint recollection of wagons being lowered down a cliff or something, and I don't think I ever really grasped the enormity of what this journey entailed. My husband didn't actually know what it was about, but when I told him,...more
Informative and enjoyable. I finished it over the course of about 36 hours (not straight- I worked a regular shift and slept,) therefore it is a very easy read and one should not be put off by the 800+ pages of narrative.
I found it to be silly and sappy in places and think could have been much shorter if the unnecessary bits that did not add to the plot were eliminated. Definitely too much "fluff" added for my taste. I would have preferred less romance and think the audience does not need to ha...more
I found it to be silly and sappy in places and think could have been much shorter if the unnecessary bits that did not add to the plot were eliminated. Definitely too much "fluff" added for my taste. I would have preferred less romance and think the audience does not need to ha...more
I really debated what rating to give this book. I really enjoyed the beginning as we're introduced to the fictional characters that are followed throughout the novel. The characters we're interesting and the story was engaging. However, I soon food myself wondering when we were going to get to the story of the Hole In The Rock pioneers. This is a huge book, 800 pages, and it takes Gerald Lund way too much time to tell this story.
In the end I found that the story just didn't move along well enoug...more
In the end I found that the story just didn't move along well enoug...more
The first part of this book was a solid 5, but the rest vacillated between 2 to 4 stars, so I'm going with an even 3 ... which was really disappointing because the beginning was soooooo good!
Gerald Lund is one of my favorite historical authors. He takes a fictional character/family and places them in real events that feel like they really could have been there. He also has great footnotes at the end of each chapter giving you more detail about what was fact and what was fiction in the chapter. Y...more
Gerald Lund is one of my favorite historical authors. He takes a fictional character/family and places them in real events that feel like they really could have been there. He also has great footnotes at the end of each chapter giving you more detail about what was fact and what was fiction in the chapter. Y...more
I can't say that Gerald Lund is great writer. His romances (especially that first one in W&G) are overly dramatic and his editor seems to have slept through most of the proofreading. It could stand being shorter and a little less confusing in parts. That being said: I gave it four stars. Why? Because Gerald Lund is the best LDS author I have ever read. Unlike Hughes, Lund believes that most people are innately good and are just trying to be better and do what they think is right. Unlike Hugh...more
As was my feeling with the Work and the Glory series, Gerald Lund is a fabulous researcher ... but not always a fabulous writer. He just has little quirk phrases he uses over and over that bug me. For instance, all of his female characters are chronically short and must "go up on tiptoe" to kiss the tall male characters. And when people are upset or agitated, they tend to "turn on their heel" to leave a room---a rather awkward and dancelike movement I can't even picture. The little boy in this w...more
I always have mixed feeling about Lund's historical novels. On the one hand, he makes the epic of Mormon history much more accessible to readers in general. people who would not otherwise read history, will get the narrative of what takes place.
On the other, his fictional characters are so one dimensional, I found myself skipping over much of the inane banter between them.
Still, I learned about a little known chapter in the settling of Southwestern Utah, a truly monumental, and under-appreciate...more
On the other, his fictional characters are so one dimensional, I found myself skipping over much of the inane banter between them.
Still, I learned about a little known chapter in the settling of Southwestern Utah, a truly monumental, and under-appreciate...more
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| thoughts on book | 2 | 44 | Mar 17, 2010 07:54am | |
| The Undaunted | 1 | 27 | Nov 28, 2009 01:35am |
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“It is good to look to the past to gain appreciation for the present and perspective for the future. It is good to look upon the virtues of those who have gone before, to gain strength for whatever lies ahead. It is good to reflect upon thw work of those who labored so hard and gained so little in this worls, but out of whose dreams and early plans, so well nurtured, has come a great harvest of which we are the beneficiaries. Their tremendous example can become a compelling motivation for us all.
Gordon B. Hinckley”
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