Comments on: Mormon Lit: Who Was Samuel W. Taylor?

By: Larry Warner

Larry Warner — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 09:09:17 +0000

Hey Mardy, ran across your name on the net wondered if you went to Carla

By: Betty R. S.

Betty R. S. — Sun, 03 Oct 2010 17:15:50 +0000

I read a library book by Samuel Taylor in the mid-80’s. It was excellent, and I wanted to read it again. I can’t find it listed in the library now. The only one they have is “The Last Pioneer,” and I am sure that is not it. I remember some parts of it: blacks were going to come into the Salt Lake Valley in trains and cause problems, Mormons in Utah County had sloppy yards and homes until someone commented on their sloppiness in an article and that changed them into people with neater homes and yards. I was glad to see some recent posts on this and wondered if anyone could tell me what the title of that book is and where I could get a copy. Thanks

By: Mardelle Relf

Mardelle Relf — Sun, 03 Oct 2010 04:36:48 +0000

I grew up in the Bay Area. This book was from an estate in San Francisco.

By: Th.

Th. — Fri, 01 Oct 2010 21:13:23 +0000

I had no idea he lived in Redwood City. Are you in the Bay?

By: Kent Larsen

Kent Larsen — Fri, 01 Oct 2010 21:00:35 +0000

Mardelle, IIRC, Family Kingdom is non-fiction, a memoir of Taylor’s family life. While I wouldn’t say that its outside of what we cover here, its also not quite in the middle of our focus.

I haven’t read the book myself, so I can’t comment on its comments. But from what I understand it is important for its portrayal of what polygamous families were like.

By: Mardelle Relf

Mardelle Relf — Thu, 30 Sep 2010 18:09:55 +0000

Okay – I am writing again. I am not seeing this book mentioned in anything above – does anyone know about this book? Now that I know he lived in Redwood City it does make sense how he might have known Anna. Does anyone here know her as well???? If any of the sons are interested – I would like to know more about the man who wrote this book Family History.
I live in Europe most of the time but am in the US at present.

By: Mardelle Relf

Mardelle Relf — Thu, 30 Sep 2010 18:04:26 +0000

I have a book he wrote; (Samuel Woolley Tayor) called FAMILY KINGDOM. I have ir from the estate if Anna Blake Mezquida; and the book is signed by him to her.

I decided to read the book and I found it fascinating. I was looking up to see if he was still alive and I am disapointed to now know that he is not. I would have liked to spoken with him – and also to find out what he knew of Anna Blake (who lived forever in San Francisco) as she as well was fascinating.

Admittedly; I found it somewhat appalling that his father could have sired all these children and basically left them with very little but each other. If he was not driven from the church for his insistence that he adhere to the old ways (polygamy) he should have been at minimum called to responsibility to his children. Anyone who is interested in this book may contact me. It was really quite interesting!
MJR

By: Tony

Tony — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 01:02:51 +0000

Vertigo was written by different author named Samuel A. Taylor. Totally different gentleman.

By: Brian C.

Brian C. — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 17:07:31 +0000

Odd thing this flubber short- story he wrote. Seem William Pene du Bois wrote Peter Graves 11 years before Disney’s movie. Here’s a short synopsis of the story:
Peter Graves (1950) is a novel about marketing. The title character is a well-meaning but mischievous boy who encounters a gentlemanly and not-very-mad scientist named Houghton Furlong. Furlong is the inventor of an antigravity material named Furloy, and a Furloy-based invention called “the ball that bounces higher than the height from which you drop it.” In an unfortunate accident with the latter invention, Peter destroys Houghton’s house. Little of value is left in the wreckage except six balls of Furloy, each about the size of a tennis ball, with an antigravity pull of 25 pounds-force (110 newtons) each. Peter commits himself to spending the summer with Houghton in an attempt to earn the $45,000 necessary to rebuild his house. The implied puzzle is: how can Peter and Houghton make use of the six Furloy balls to earn $45,000? Hmmmm, Bouncing balls of flying rubber. Money needed to solve a problem. Hmmm. Wonder what du Bois, thought of it.

By: Th.

Th. — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 17:24:06 +0000

. (me again) I was just reading on Amazon that the stories that the flubbery movies were based on were originally spoof advice letters to FDR from a smalltown editor. That is a great conceit. Maybe I'll publish some fake letters to president-elect Obama.....