A biography, "Gordon B. Hinckley: Go Forward in Faith," was released in November 1996. Another biography, "Gordon B. Hinckley — Shoulder for the Lord," was released three months earlier. "Standing for Something" was released in early 2000. "Stand A Little Taller" was released in October 2001. Another book, "Way to Be," was released in August 2002.

Many church members will always recall Pesident Hinckley's accent on reading the Book of Mormon before the end of 2005. The First Presidency Message in the August 2005 Liahona and Ensign extended an invitation to all members to read the Book of Mormon by the end of the year.

"Those who read the Book of Mormon will be blessed with an added measure of the Spirit of the Lord, a greater resolve to obey His commandments, and a stronger testimony of the living reality of the Son of God," the First Presidency stated.

At a Sugar House Sons of Utah Pioneers banquet in 1986, he noted the urgency of building more temples. "There is so much more that needs to be done," he said. "It sometimes scares you to think of the responsibility of getting it done. We have not scratched the surface. The church is now a very small minority. It has to grow. It will."

In April 1998, he was the keynote speaker for the Western Region I conference of the National Association of Colored People in Salt Lake City. This historic first punctuated President Hinckley's efforts of building friendship and cooperation.

Reflecting on his life, President Hinckley once said in a 1961 memo to Elder Mark E. Petersen just after he had been sustained to the Quorum of the Twelve: "I know of no other young man in the church who has been so blessed. I had a great father and a highly gifted mother, and I have had the association of wonderful men since I went on a mission in 1933 when I first met President McKay, who called me to his office and talked with me about a paper I had written while in the Mission Home.

"I have been personally acquainted with all the general authorities and worked with them in a way that few young men have had an opportunity to do. These wonderful men have been my tutors. They have given me responsibility and freedom to fulfill it, and they have blessed my life. I honor them as the Lord's chosen and anointed and have counted it a rare privilege to work with them. It is an even greater privilege now to be more closely associated with them."

At the October 2005 General Conference, he announced two new temples planned for the Salt Lake Valley.

President Hinckley dedicated the 280,000-square-foot Joseph F. Smith Building on the BYU campus, the new home of the university's two largest colleges, the College of Family, Home and Social Sciences and the College of Humanities in September.

On July 22, 2005, President Hinckley's 95th birthday was commemorated with a gigantic celebration in the Conference Center in Salt Lake City that featured in a 90-minute concert a sampling of the diverse musical excellence to be found among Latter-day Saints.