Nephi Anderson

Christian Nephi Anderson (January 22, 1865 – January 6, 1923) was a prominent Utah novelist and member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). A prolific writer of the " Home Literature" period of LDS fiction, Anderson published ten novels including the bestselling ''Added Upon'' (1898), as well as short stories, poetry, essays, and a history of the Church for young people.

Family and church life

Anderson was born in Christiania (modern Oslo), Norway on 22 January 1865. His parents, Christian and Petronella Nielson, had joined the LDS Church only a few years before his birth and in 1871 they emigrated to Utah Territory, United States. They settled first in Coalsville and later in Ogden.

In 1886, Anderson married Asenath Tillotson and began a teaching career in Ogden and Brigham City. From 1891 to 1893, he served a mission for the LDS Church in his birth country of Norway and resumed teaching upon returning. He served as Superintendent of Schools in Box Elder County, Utah, from 1900 to 1903.
Asenath died in January 1904, having borne six children with Nephi (three of which survived to adulthood).

Just two months after his wife's death, Anderson left on his second mission for the church, this time to Great Britain, where under the direction of Heber J. Grant he became assistant editor of the LDS periodical ''Millennial Star''. Returning to Utah in 1906, Anderson moved his family to Salt Lake City and secured a position as instructor of English and Missionary Studies at Latter-day Saints High School. In 1908, he married Maud Rebecca Symons, with whom he would have six more children.

After a short mission which involved his whole family moving to Independence, Missouri, and an assignment there as editor of another LDS periodical, '' The Liahona'', Anderson was asked to come back to Utah and begin working as an editor and librarian with the Genealogical Society of Utah, replacing Joseph Fielding Smith, who had been called to the church's general leadership. In January, 1923, Anderson developed appendicitis and died on January 6 after an operation for the malady when he developed peritonitis. Speakers at his funeral included Heber J. Grant ( LDS Church president, with whom Anderson had always remained close), George Albert Smith, Joseph Fielding Smith, John A. Widtsoe, Anthony W. Ivins, Rodger Clawson, and several other prominent LDS leaders of the period.

Literary career

In a piece in ''The Improvement Era'' entitled "A Plea for Fiction" (1898), Anderson wrote of the Mormon experience—"What a field is here for the pen of the novelist." Although he is well known for his particular style of early LDS fiction, his first published book was the non-fiction title, ''A Young Folks' History of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints'' (1889

https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/16534] In the early 1890s, Anderson began submitting short works to '' The Contributor (LDS publication), The Contributor''.

He published his most recognized work, the novel ''Added Upon'', in 1898, to wide acclaim and popularity. At his death, a local newspaper exclaimed that ''Added Upon'' had "been read by almost every person in tah" During the last three decades of his life, Anderson would write ten novels and numerous short stories, all involving LDS characters and storyline.

Publications

Novels

*
Added Upon
' (1898)
**The first and most popular novel written by Anderson. Originally published in 1898 by Deseret News Publishing Company and significantly enlarged and expanded in its fifth edition (1912), the book has never been out of print (its copyright expired in 2005, at which time it began to be re-printed by numerous online publishers). The story concerns several spirit children of God who move from the pre-existence, to mortal life, to their eternal reward, interacting with each other at each step. The novel influenced many subsequent Mormon works of literature, notably ''Saturday's Warrior''.
''Marcus King, Mormon''
(1900)
''The Castle Builder''
- serialized in the ''Improvement Era'' 1901-1902 and published as a novel in 1909.
''Piney Ridge Cottage''
(1912)
''Story of Chester Lawrence''
(1913)
''A Daughter of the North''
(1915)
''John St. John''
(1917)
''Romance of a Missionary''
serialized in the ''Improvement Era'' 1907-1908 published as a novel in 1919
''The Boys of Springtown''
(1920)
*
Dorian
' (1921)
**A critical edition with scholarly notes, commentary, and analysis edited by Eric W. Jepson was published by Peculiar Pages in 2015 (). It received the Special Award for Scholarly Publishing and was a finalist for the Criticism Award at the 2016 Association for Mormon Letters conference.

Novellas

* ''Almina'' published serially in ''The Contributor'' from November 1891 through May 1892
* ''Beyond Arsareth'' published serially in ''Relief Society Magazine''" from October 1919 through July 1920

Non-fiction

*
A Young Folks' History of the Church
' (1889)
*" A Plea for Fiction" January 1889 ''Improvement Era''
"Pride"
September 1889 ''The Contributor''
"Wisdom of God-Agency of Man"
August 1890 ''The Contributor''
*"Beyond the Arctic Circle" (1895) published serially in ''The Contributor'' November 1894-May 1895
"Seven Sermons"
August 1896 ''The Contributor''
"Current Comment"
September 1896 ''The Contributor''
*" Purpose in Fiction" February 1898 ''Improvement Era''
"Seeing the Midnight Sun"
July 1898 ''Improvement Era''
"From Faith to Faith"
March 1899 ''Improvement Era''
"Life and Character Sketch of Lorenzo Snow
June 1899 ''Improvement Era''
"The Returned Elder"
November 1899 ''Improvement Era''
"The Pilgrims: The Pioneers"
July 1900 ''Improvement Era''
"Are We Americans?"
October 1900 ''Improvement Era''
"A Day in June"
June 1905 ''Improvement Era''
"The Pictures on the Wall"
October 9, 1909
"The Spirit of Christmas"
December 25, 1909 ''Liahona''
"The Best Tract"
February 19, 1910 ''Liahona''
"The Personality and Omnipresence of God"
March 5, 1910 ''Liahona''
"What is a Saint?"
March 19, 1910 ''Liahona''
"Modern Testimonies to a Falling Away
October 18, 1910 ''Liahona''
"Sunny Days in Ireland"
November 1910 ''Improvement Era''
"A Gospel Outline"
''A Scrapbook of Mormon Literature, Vol. 1'' (1911)
"The Importance of Genealogy Among the Latter-day Saints"
January 3, 1911 ''Liahona''
"Malerstuen"
May 1911 ''Improvement Era''
"A Day With Carry Nation"
September 1911 ''Improvement Era''
"Show Us the Father"
November 5, 1912 ''Liahona''
"The Place of Genealogy in the Plan of Salvation"
April 9, 1912 ''Liahona''
"Twelve Reasons for not Drinking Whiskey"
May 21, 1912 ''Liahona''
"Unity of the Faith"
January 7, 1913 ''Liahona''
"Spirit and Element"
February 18, 1913 ''Liahona''
"Educational Value of the Missionary System of the Latter-day Saints
July 1913 ''Improvement Era''
"Give the Saints a Chance"
August 19, 1913 ''Liahona''
"'Follow-up Work' in the Mutuals"
August 1913 ''Improvement Era''
"The Test of Efficiency"
August 1919 ''Improvement Era''

Short stories

"Lester Amsden's Love"
January 1890 ''The Contributor''
"Grandmother's Rocking Chair"
May 1890 ''The Contributor''
*"Mary, A Story of Sagebrush Bench
part 1
an
part 2
November-December 1890 ''The Contributor''
"The Finding of the Pearl"
January 1894 ''The Contributor''
"Tallie, Bill White's Girl"
March 1894 ''The Contributor''
"Conscience from Carthage"
July 1894 ''The Contributor''
"On the Border-land of Light"
September 1, 1894 ''The Juvenile Instructor''
*"Cat-tail Farm" (1894)
part 1
an
part 2
December 1 and 15 1894 ''The Juvenile Instructor''
*"For the Salvation of Souls"
part 1
an
part 2
March and April 1900 ''Improvement Era''
*"Finding of Olga: A Pioneer Story"
part 1
an
part 2
February and March 1901 ''Improvement Era''
*''Fisherman Knute's Christmas Gift'' (1903) ( ch. 1-2 and ch. 3) November-December 1903 ''Improvement Era''
"Nannie Tout in London"
September 1904 ''Young Woman's Journal''
"The Letter from Mary"
December 1904 ''Improvement Era''
"By This Shall All Men Know"
January 26, 1905 ''Millennial Star''
"The Leavening of the Lump"
March 30, 1905 ''Millennial Star''
"What Shall We Do?"
June 22, 1905 ''Millennial Star''
"Evidences of Immortality"
November 30, 1905 ''Millennial Star''
"The Sword Without; Yet Peace Within"
June 21, 1906 ''Millennial Star''
"That They Might Have Joy"
July 5, 1906 ''Millennial Star''
"Because I Love You"
July 12, 1906 ''Millennial Star''
"The Lewellen Family's Christmas Present"
December 14, 1905 ''Millennial Star''
"Freedom of Donald Gray"
April 1906 ''Improvement Era''
"Because I Love You"
August 10, 1907 ''Liahona''
"The Inevitable"
August 1907 ''Improvement Era''
"The Heart's Eternal Tenderness
August 1907 ''Young Woman's Journal''
"When the Stove Smoked"
September 1907 ''Improvement Era''
"Tales of a Sunday School Board 'The Word of Wisdom'"
October 1, 1907 ''The Juvenile Instructor''
"Tales of a Sunday School Board 'An Andersen Tale'"
October 15, 1907 ''The Juvenile Instructor''
"Tales of a Sunday School Board 'Nelda Wilson's Debut'"
November 1, 1907 ''The Juvenile Instructor''
"How the Lord Was Good to Aunt Johanna"
December 1909 ''Improvement Era''
"The Lonesome Christmas"
December 25, 1909 ''Liahona''
"Giving and Getting"
February 17, 1910 ''Millennial Star''
"The End of the Rainbow"
June 1910 ''Improvement Era''

A Little Child Shall Lead Them"
October 1910 ''Improvement Era''
"Out of the Abundance of the Heart"
February 1910 ''Improvement Era''
"The Home Guard"
March 1911 ''Improvement Era''
"How to Obey the Gospel"
January 3, 1911 ''Liahona''
*"John Engleman and the Spirit of Christmas'
part 1
an
part 2
December 1911– January 1912 of ''Improvement Era''
"The 'Larger Hope' for the Dead"
December 18, 1913 ''Millennial Star''
"The Home Field"
January 1915 ''Improvement Era''
* "The Silent Protest"
part 1
an
part 2
April-May 1916 "The Juvenile Instructor"
"Unbidden Guests"
May 1915 ''Improvement Era'' - winner of the February ''Improvement Era Prize''
"Double Tragedy"
June 1915 ''Young Woman's Journal''
"The 'Selfishness' of Jacob and Rachel"
September 1915 ''Relief Society Magazine''
"Mother's Day"
July 1916 ''Relief Society Magazine''
"Testing of Gilda"
June 1916 ''Improvement Era''
"The Barefoot Boy"
October 1916 ''The Juvenile Instructor''
"How the Spirit of Christmas Came"
December 1916 ''The Juvenile Instructor''
"At St. Peter's Gate"
November 1917 ''Improvement Era''
*"Tendrilla"
part 1
an
part 2
September and October 1917 ''Improvement Era''
"The Essential"
February 1918 ''Relief Society Magazine''
"Forfeits"
April 1918 ''Improvement Era''
"The Welding Link"
May 1918 ''Relief Society Magazine''
"Gold Mines and Riches"
July 1918
"Mother's Christmas Story
December 1918 ''Relief Society Magazine''
"The Ridge Between"
February 1919 ''The Juvenile Instructor''
"The Girl"
October 1921 ''Improvement Era''
*" Distance Lends Enchantment" October 1922 ''Improvement Era''
"The Straw"
October 1922 ''Improvement Era''
"Exceptions"
January 1923 ''Improvement Era''

Poetry

"The Visit of the King"
December 1895 ''The Contributor''
"Consolation"
December 1900 ''Improvement Era''
"A Vision"
April 1901 ''Improvement Era''
"Died in the Field"
February 1901 ''Improvement Era''
republished
in the January 15, 1910 ''Liahona'')
"Love's First Conquest"
September 1904 ''Improvement Era''
"The Home Call"
October 1906 ''Improvement Era''
"True Riches"
February 1912 ''Improvement Era''

Notes

References

* Cracroft, Richard H.
"Seeking 'the Good, the Pure, the Elevating': A Short History of Mormon Fiction, Part 1"
''Ensign'', June 1981.
* Cracroft, Richard H.
''Nephi, Seer of Modern Times: The Home Literature Novels of Nephi Anderson''
''BYU Studies'', 1985.
* Jensen, Andrew, ''Nephi Anderson'', ''Latter-day Saint Biographical Encyclopedia'', 1919.
*Podhorny, Ole, ''Christian Nephi Anderson: Popular "Mormon" Author of Norwegian Origin'', University of Oslo, 1980.

External links

Text of ''Added Upon'' on Gutenberg
*
*
*

{{DEFAULTSORT:Anderson, Nephi
1865 births
1923 deaths
19th-century Mormon missionaries
20th-century Mormon missionaries
American Latter Day Saint writers
19th-century American novelists
Deaths from peritonitis
Historians of the Latter Day Saint movement
Mormon fiction
Mormon missionaries in Norway
Mormon missionaries in the United Kingdom
Mormon missionaries in the United States
Norwegian emigrants to the United States
Norwegian Mormon missionaries
Norwegian Latter Day Saints
Writers from Salt Lake City
American Mormon missionaries in Norway
American male novelists
20th-century American novelists
19th-century American male writers
People from Brigham City, Utah
20th-century American male writers
Novelists from Utah
Latter Day Saints from Utah
People from Coalville, Utah
20th-century American non-fiction writers
American male non-fiction writers