Episode 159: Books of the Massacre

**Bryan Buchanan** (0:12)
I know, I know, I know. Trust me, I've heard it.

**Lindsay Hansen Park** (0:16)
Heard what?

**Bryan Buchanan** (0:17)
Outcry from the public.

**Lindsay Hansen Park** (0:19)
Though, what now?

**Bryan Buchanan** (0:20)
People are mad. They're voicing their opinion, Lindsay.

**Lindsay Hansen Park** (0:23)
Oh, oh, you mean about the unethical government that?

**Bryan Buchanan** (0:26)
No, no, yes, but not in this case. I'm talking about the outcry, the furor over the lack of Books of Mormons Reports. All during the series we've been doing on Mountain Meadows, I just kept thinking, we'll do one for the last episode. Then we got thinking, there has been so much written about this event, stuff that is in itself historic, that we thought we would, wait for it.

**Lindsay Hansen Park** (0:50)
Do an entire Books of Mormons Report episode.

**Bryan Buchanan** (0:54)
Listen, we agreed I get to say that. It's like live from New York. You stole my thunder.

**Lindsay Hansen Park** (0:58)
Yeah, yeah, yeah, go cry to old Jetty Grant about it. Hi, this is Lindsay Hansen Park.

**Bryan Buchanan** (1:06)
And this is Bryan Buchanan.

**Lindsay Hansen Park** (1:08)
Bringing you the story of Mormonism from the shadow of the Everlasting Hills, straight out of Zion. This isn't your grandpa's Mormon history.

**Bryan Buchanan** (1:36)
This is the tale of Mormon saints and sinners from our roots until present day. Saddle up.

**Lindsay Hansen Park** (1:41)
Gird your loins, lock your hearts and pay your tithing, because we're bringing you the story of Mormonism in all its paradisiacal glory.

**Bryan Buchanan** (1:48)
It's the Sunstone History Podcast. You know, Lindsay, speaking of books, as we frequently want to do, our friends at the University of Utah Press have just published a book that listeners will be interested in.

**Lindsay Hansen Park** (2:19)
This is very true. Let's talk about it. Laurie Rankle was 16 when she delivered her first baby. I witnessed the entire universe unfold at my feet, she writes in Desert Birthright. Later, working as a hospital doula, Rankle observed firsthand the suffering inflicted upon birthing women by male-dominated Western childbirth practices, from casual racism to unnecessary and non-consensual procedures, including the dreaded husband stitch. After a traumatic labor and delivery of her own, she decided to take back a woman-centered childbirth and start a home birth midwifery practice. Desert Birthright traverses 25 years of midwifery, midwifery, often in fundamentalist polygamous circles, weaving together birth stories with childhood memories, as Rankle grapples with her shifting Mormon faith. Her poetic voice shines, a placenta becomes a tree of life, the folds in a baby's arms layer layers of sand in the desert. Desert Birthright is a deeply personal story of life, death and modern womanhood in the rural southwest and one of midwives and of one midwife's journey of faith, self-discovery and liberation in the faith of adversity. I got to review this book. I thought it was lovely. I learned so much about it actually.
Some really cool stuff as far as the folklore and legend of birthing practices of old pioneer women up until today. You should definitely check it out and learn about the husband's stitch. If you don't know what that is, we're not going to tell you. You'll have to read about it. Desert Birthright, a midwife's memoir by Laurie Wrinkle, new from the University of Utah Press. Because the press are good people, use code SUNSTONE35 to get 35 percent off everything at their site. Visit them at uofupress.com.

**SPEAKER_3** (4:36)
Hey, Bryan, how you been?

**Bryan Buchanan** (4:40)
Good, okay, that's coming to me. You, oh, this is bad. Jennifer. No.

**Lindsay Hansen Park** (4:47)
Close.

**Bryan Buchanan** (4:48)
Uh, Lindsay!

**Lindsay Hansen Park** (4:50)
That's the one, there's so many redheads in your life, you can't keep track.

**Bryan Buchanan** (4:55)
Uh, it's been a minute. We know that. You people have very kindly, in email form, in person form. By the way, thanks for coming and saying hi at the store. We've heard you, and we're back. So there's been things, let's call them the holidays.

**Lindsay Hansen Park** (5:11)
Did you miss us? Did you miss us? Are you sad? It's been a long time. Listen, we did six episodes on the Mount Meta Massacre.

**Bryan Buchanan** (5:21)
One more than Sanity would allow for, I believe.

**Lindsay Hansen Park** (5:25)
It wasn't good. I don't like them. I'm glad it's over. I forced Bryan through too much of Frontier, Utah. We needed a break. So what have you been up to?

**SPEAKER_3** (5:35)
Why have we been gone?

**Lindsay Hansen Park** (5:36)
Listen, we have been consistent putting these out, but they are a ton of work. People will always be like, oh, we love the production. Who produces it? I do. I literally do that in my bed while I eat Cheez-Its and drink my many, many swig drinks. It's not good for my health. And we do it for the love of the game, but it's a lot of effing work. And we just got busy. Bryan, what have you been up to?