A Barn Full of Angels

"Chad Nielsen has written much more than a biography of a forgotten early Latter-day Saint, he has captured a forgotten worldview. Nielsen not only introduces readers to Zerah Pulsipher, an 1832 convert to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and one of the presidents of the Seventy, he opens our vision to otherworldly encounters with angels, demons, exorcisms, and more. Pulsipher converts a future prophet and runs afoul of Brigham Young. He is the ultimate Forrest Gump of Mormonism. In Nielsen's skillful retelling, readers will delight in the front row seat they are offered into a cosmic contest that played out somewhere between heaven and earth." - W. Paul Reeve, Simmons Chair of Mormons Studies, University of Utah

"This is one of the most important Mormon biographies of the decade, and one of the first to focus on an early member of the Presidency of the Seventy. As a scholar, Nielsen acts as master tour guide, illuminating key moments in the church's early history through Zerah's eyes. As a descendent, he courageously lets the facts lead where they may-even to Zerah's young teenage wife. Informative, inspiring, and thought-provoking, this is a must-read." - Kurt Manwaring, editor-in-chief, From the Desk

"For those who want to delve deeper into the complex life of an early Latter-day Saint, this biography offers a compelling narrative. While many of us only know Zerah Pulsipher as the visionary missionary who baptized young Wilford Woodruff, Pulsipher's story is full of contradictions, hard-won life lessons, and doggedly devoted discipleship. In Nielsen's well-researched and thorough examination of Pulsipher and the era in which he lived, we get to know not just this early convert to the Church but his family over decades and the arc of his membership, leadership, and missionary efforts." - Kristy Wheelwright Taylor, author of Prepare Me for Thy Use: Lessons from Wilford Woodruff's Mission Years