Monte Nyman

This is the first commentary I've really taken the time to use, so I cannot compare it to any others, but this was precisely what I wanted to help me with my D&C study this year. It contains the text of the D&C in the book, so I don't have to have this book open alongside the scriptures--which is good because the book itself has a glued binding that isn't conducive to lying open.

The sections are arranged into thematic groupings (usually they're consecutive chapters, but not always) per chapter. The chapter starts out with the historical background for a section, then a detailed section outline. Next, the text of each pericope is printed, following by Nyman's commentary. The end of the chapter is my favorites--quotes from general authorities.

The commentary itself is usually a summary or narration of the block of scripture in question, with connections drawn to other scriptures in the standard works. You'd think a simple summary wouldn't be all that helpful, but at this point in my study, it turned out to be helpful--I'd read the D&C passage, and then use Nyman's summary as a kind of test to see if I was really paying attention to the verses or not. So far I still need this sort of training wheels. Nyman does a good job clarifying references to Church history--which was a big part of the reason I wanted a D&C commentary to begin with, because I wasn't terribly familiar with it. There was also just the right amount of explanation for any phrases that confused me. It's a pretty conservative commentary, so if you're looking for more speculative material, this is *not* the commentary you're looking for.

A minor quibble--there are a ton of typographical errors. Thankfully, there weren't any *bad* ones, if you know what I mean.

And... I'm not sure if this is an Easter egg or not, but in the index, there's an entry for unicorns.… (altro)