I've been reading a terrific book lately, Clive James' Cultural Amnesia: Necessary Memories from History and the Arts. It's a sort of demented encyclopedia, with shortish articles about a whole lot of figures in literary history, some of them important and some of them obscure. The essays each begin with a short quotation from the figure in question, and the accompanying essays sometimes deal with that writer's work, and something go way off the tracks on some other subject altogether. The main theme has to do with how literature and humanism intersect with politics, and in particular the savage politics of the 20th century. Great book, recommend it highly.

Anyway, one quirk James indulges is the one in which he informs us what the very best book is on any of a number of topics. Best Civil War History, for example: clearly Shelby Foote's. Best Sartre biography: Hazel Rowley's. And so on.

So I thought it might be fun to do that. Make up our own subjective list of the very best ever in different categories. The point would be to introduce people to books they may not know. I mean, if I say The Backslider is the best Mormon novel ever, and you think it's The Giant Joshua, well, we disagree. But if I've never read The Giant Joshua, maybe I'd be inclined to after reading someone else on the topic. So here are a few:

Best Mormon novel: The Backslider (Levi Peterson)
Best Mormon short story: God on Donahue (Margaret Young)
Best collection of short stories: Under the Cottonwoods (Doug Thayer)
Best collection of short stories most people probably haven't heard of: Nothing Very Important (Bela Petsco)
Best LDS film: States of Grace (Richard Dutcher, dir.)
Best film put out by the Church: Man's Search for Happiness
Best LDS hymn: If you should Hie to Kolob
Worst LDS hymn: Oh, Say, what Is truth?
Best LDS musical: Bring the Mountain Down (Marvin Payne and Steven Kapp Perry)
Best LDS play: Hancock County (Tim Slover)
Best Mormon fantasy writer: Dave Farland (otherwise known as Dave Wolverton
Best Joseph Smith biography: is there any doubt? Rough Stone Rolling
Best General Authority public speaker: Matthew Cowley

I second a lot of these. Love "Hie to Kolob"! But I second Andrew on Gadianton. I would say that Neal Chandler's Benediction is the best short story collection. There are too many "Worst LDS Hymns" for me to even start but I'd have to include "Called to Serve." I've never been able to sing it since Art Bassett described cheerleaders with pom-poms leading the song . . .

I believe the story collections Eugene England did were called "anthologies" (collections with stories by different authors, where "story collections" are collections of stories by the same author), and so could be in their own category without actually competing with the story collections Eric has listed.

I'm with Darlene in liking BRIGHAM CITY more than STATES OF GRACE.

And I much prefer reading Orson Scott Card's fantasy works to Dave Farland's, though I really like both men. Also, I think Brandon Sanderson is well on his way to giving both a them a run for their money.

I'd have to say that even though I feel more affection for Brigham City, States of Grace is the superior film when it comes to aesthetics, thematic development, and alla that other stuff.

What about best Mormon poetry collection or single poem?

What about best Mormon visual or performing artist?

Friendliest Mormon Community for the arts?

Wow, I'd forgotten In Our Lovely Deseret. It certainly wins the "unintentional comedy" sweepstakes. But my son has a paraphrase of Oh Say What Is Truth, which begins Oh How Cool Is Truth, and continues "it's rad, it's phat, it's da bomb," which I think lampoons the paucity of invention and insight that mars Oh Say What is Truth. Plus our ward sang it last week, at the usual Utah funereal pace, and my it was a long 10 minutes.

I actually have Cultural Amnesia on hold at our library at the moment - so now I am even more excited to read it. Having never lived in Utah, just visited extended family there, it is interesting for me to note the varied backgrounds of AML members. As far as I remember, I have never seen a Mormon play or musical (do ward roadshows from the 70s count?). I have only seen one or two Mormon films - they don't come to our theaters and I rarely think about renting them later (even if they are to be found locally). I think I had the misfortune of seeing a couple of the worst LDS films and that probably doomed my future viewing. We do own Saints and Soldiers - I don't consider it an LDS film (but close) but we think it's a great film!! Although I have a degree in English, I had never read any Mormon fiction or memoir at all. Recently I ordered Hooligan, Long After Dark and Brother Brigham from Zarahemla Books and The Backslider from another venue. We are reading Hooligan aloud as a family (we always have a read-aloud book going) and with just a 13-year-old son still at home, I am pleasantly surprised how much he is enjoying the book!

So my contributions must be small here, but I would love to see David O. McKay and the Rise of Modern Mormonism as a best in some category. I agree with Rough Stone Rolling. I am in accordance with the 2 top hymns so far - I would rank O My Father first with If You Could Hie to Kolob a close second (in my former ward, the ward music director was asked that we not sing Kolob or a number of other hymns so we could stick to the more familiar ones that members knew and felt comfortable with!!). I won't nominate As Sisters in Zion as the worst hymn, however, it is one I simply cannot sing to the end. Every time I get to the line "the errand of angels is given to women" I get stuck!! If that is true, why are all the angels in scripture male?????? It seems to me more correct to sing that "the errand of angels is given to the men" but probably that's just me!

Anyway, on another note, I have been a member of AML off and on for several years but only joined the online discussion group a few weeks ago (and what an exciting time to join!!). If people wonder at the benefit or purpose of AML, I will note that it is directly through this venue that I became aware of the books I ordered, the existence of Zarahemla Books and a couple of other small LDS publishers, and perhaps started to recognize the need for Mormon literature. I just try to read great literature, not worry about what "kind" it is, but my awareness in this area is increasing. After having read so much about States of Grace and reading an online interview with Richard Dutcher (also found through this group), I will rent the movie and watch it. I am not able to avail myself of conferences in Utah, plays at the BYU campus, etc, but I feel the benefits in other ways. Having few LDS literary ties, the AML provides me with enlightening (albeit usually one-sided) conversation. Keep it up!!!!!

Great to hear from an old friend. I would add that one high priority for us is to make AML even more valuable for those of our members who don't live in Utah. To that end, we're planning to make available podcasts of our Writers' Conference and Annual meeting, plus we're working to make the AML annuals available on-line. And we're interested in any suggestions that will benefit our membership. Let's keep the conversation going!

Over the weekend, I had a chance to talk to my father about this thread, and he disagreed with all my hymn choices. He's a musician, and thinks "I believe in Christ" is our finest hymn. I think it's about the dullest hymn imaginable, but I still like my Dad just fine. But our conversation reminded me just how many terrific classic hymns there are from our early history, hymns like Oh My Father, and The Spirit of God and of course, Come Come Ye Saints. I heard a recent arrangement of Adam Ondi Adam that I thought was completely terrific. And recent hymns, like Robert Cundick's That Easter Morn are equally fine. I could live without the martial ones, the We are All Enlisteds and Onward Christian Soldiers, which seem to require Salvation army uniforms to get the whole effect, but there are surely some wonderful hymns in our history.

I agree, Mahonri.

On the other hand, some of the best children's songs have been written in the past half century. "I'll Follow Him in Faith" and "How Will They Know" are the two that immediately spring to mind.

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A Motley Vision: Mormon Arts and Culture