(June 25) There are several new books out about Nauvoo and the temple recently rebuilt on the banks of the Mississippi.

But Don. F. Colvin's new "Nauvoo Temple: Story of Faith" focuses on the architecture of both the original and the rebuilt temple, backed by meticulous research and under the auspices of the Religious Studies Center at BYU.

Colvin, a member of the Historical Review Committee that examined plans for the reconstructed temple, is the great-great-grandson of Richard Demont Sprague, who worked on the Nauvoo Temple as a stone mason.

Colvin relates in the preface how the temple was not completely finished according to the architectural design, but had the builders been allowed to remain in Nauvoo, they would have given "a finer finish to several areas of the structure," which was nevertheless functional.

Chapter 5, "Spiritual Blessings," chronicles in their own words the strength early Saints received for the journey west by receiving temple ordinances before they left. Chapter 10 tells how various sections of the temple were dedicated and used as they were completed, before the public dedication of the entire building on April 30, 1846. (Tickets to the public dedication on May 1 cost $1, with the funds to help the workmen move their families west.)

Colvin intersperses his story of faith and sacrifice with material from original sources newspaper articles, diaries, private journals, letters, photos and detailed architectural plans and sketches for the original temple. Each chapter contains extensive end notes, and the appendix lists people hired to work on the original temple.

"Nauvoo Temple: Story of Faith," published by Covenant, retails at $29.95 for 309 pages in hard cover.