The Next Mormons

This 2016 survey asks surface-level, non-controversial questions about LDS religiosity, staying, leaving, active, inactive, etc. Yet, the data doesn't delve into or examine the family rifts that happen when people question or leave all together. Small snippets relay a few respondent's personal experiences but that's it. The scope was also narrow, US-specific, and excluded the FLDS contingent.

I was also disappointed by the low number of BIPOC, converts, and gender-related experiences. Missions are such an integral part of the LDS experience, but this book doesn't dig into the effects of those trips on the missionaries and the communities they're embedded in after missions end. The book just covers data around missionaries active status after they return.

The anecdotal stories from select BIPOC and female-identifying respondents were fascinating and the best, most insightful parts of this book. Sadly, that was a very small part of the overall piece and LDS as a whole.