Recommended Amish Reading

The plethora of Amish fiction books flooding the reading markets are often light and romanticized versions of the Amish sects. For readers with more discriminatory tastes, there are Amish autobiographies, better-than-formula fiction, and a new soon-to-be released fiction book based on a former Amish man, which offer honest interpretations of being Amish.

My philosophy about Amish reading? I prefer Amish books which offer deeper characterizations, better insight, and less romanticized stories about the Amish. In these books I find greater satisfaction involving complex human dilemmas and honest questions about being Amish.

If you’re looking for Amish reads like that, too, here a few books I can recommend:

Growing Up Amish by Ira Wagler

A Basketful of Broken Dishes by Naomi
Stutzman

Why I Left the Amish by Saloma Furlong

I haven’t read these next two books yet, but they are on my future reading lists:

The Greater Inheritance by Mary Schrock

My Journey to Freedom by Mattie Mullet

As for fiction, I find many of Dale Cramer’s Amish themed books better reads than most standard formula Amish fiction.

One little known, but unforgettable, historical Amish novel really captured my interest: Eyes at the Window by Evie Yoder Miller.

Coming in August from River North is a novel from Alice Jay Wisler,Still Life in Shadows. Her novel is based on the life story of Mose Gingerich, who has been featured in several National Geographic television documentaries.

So if Amish is your preferred genre, but you’re looking for reads that stray from the typical bonnet books, try some of the books listed above.

Freelich lesen!

 

Dee Yoder has written an Amish novel The Miting, based on the lives of many of her ex-Amish friends. Her second coming-of-age novel The Powerful Odor of Mendacity is in the editing and revision stage. Her newest WIP is the second novel in the Amish series, The Way Out. Her work is represented by Terry Burns, of Hartline Literary Agency. — An update:  Kregel Publishing has offered Dee a 3 book publishing deal for her Amish novel and two more proposed novels!  We are very proud of you, Dee! 

Dee has written over 80 short stories for the Faithwriters’ Weekly Writing Challenge. Several of her entries have received Editor’s Choice awards and will be published in upcoming Faithwriters’ quarterly anthologies. She volunteers as the writer of the ex-Amish newsletter, Dee’s News. Dee has been published in The Evangel, Good Tidings, and The Quill magazines. Her short story “Gonna Be a Mighty Fine Christmas” won second place in The Quill’s holiday short story contest.

Dee is married to Arlen. They have a college-aged son, Joseph and have unofficially adopted a lovely former Amish young lady, Rachel, as their daughter. Rachel is married to Eli, who is a wonderful son-in-law and addition to the family. Dee and her family are actively involved with the Mission to Amish People ministry, and they love to interact with, and support, the former-Amish who live near them in central Ohio. Dee earned a B.S. in Biological Sciences from Lee University.

She can be contacted through email at: dee@jewelsofencouragement.com or dyoder005@neo.rr.com

Her online links are:

My Heart’s Dee-light blog: http://www.deeyoder.com/

Profile @ Faithwriters: http://www.faithwriters.com/member-profile.php?id=26676

Mission to Amish People (MAP) http://www.mapministry.org/resources/favorite-links