As many of you, I have been very busy with the holidays. However, I read several books and now it is time to write posts about them! One book I really enjoyed was A Life of Joy by Amy Clipston. Here is a little synopsis of the story: Take a trip to Bird-in-Hand, Pennsylvania, where you’ll meet the women of the Kauffman Amish Bakery in Lancaster County. As each woman’s story unfolds, you will share in her heartaches, trials, joys, dreams . and secrets. You’ll discover how the simplicity of the Amish lifestyle can clash with the “English” way of life-and the decisions and consequences that follow. Most importantly, you will be encouraged by the hope and faith of these women, and the importance they place on their families. In A Life of Joy, the fourth installment in the series, eighteen-year-old Lindsay Bedford has reached a crossroads. Should she stay in the small Amish community she’s known and loved for four years or return to the English life in her hometown in Virginia where her older sister is a college student? An extended visit to Virginia might just tip the scales as Lindsay reconnects with friends, joins a new church, works on her GED, and is pressured by her sister to stay and “make something of herself.”
My comments: This was a great story, although I still wonder how many “English” would switch over to the Amish lifestyle and embrace it wholeheartedly. If you know of any real person who has done this, please let me know. I can see the appeal, believe me. I cannot, however, see the work – the washing, the sewing, the cooking, etc. I also have some problems with the legalism. Other than that, the close family ties, the simpler (in some ways) lifestyle, and the work ethic appeals to me. The Amish seem to have a great faith in God and His will in their lives and believing that all things that happen are His will. I just question shunning, and their extreme separation from the rest of the world – even other believers. Also limiting themselves to an eighth grade education doesn’t appeal to me at all.
I actually found myself pulling for Lindsey to go back to her roots – the English roots. She had some great support systems in both the English and Amish worlds. Maybe I was hoping for the English lifestyle because I know the English world and seems to be what her parents wanted for her. I am anxious to see what happens in the next book. Clipston does a great job leaving you off with a great cliff-hanger. I enjoy her books and her writing and will continue to keep reading them!
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