Showing results by publisher "Recorded Books" in Amish & Mennonite

For generations, Ellie Hostetler's family has tended their Lancaster County orchard, a tradition her twin brother, Evan, will someday continue. Yet when Evan's draft number is called up in the lottery for the Vietnam War, the family is shocked to learn he has not sought conscientious objector status, despite their Old Order Amish belief in nonresistance. The faraway war that has caused so much turmoil and grief among their Englisher neighbors threatens to touch much too close to home. Can she and her family find the courage to face a future unlike any they could have imagined?

A wrong turn in a rainstorm leads Englisher Amelia Devries to Michael Hostetler - and the young Amishman's charming Old Order community of Hickory Hollow. Despite their very different backgrounds, Amelia and Michael both feel hemmed in by the expectations of others and struggle with how to find room for their own hopes. And what first seems to be a chance encounter might just change their lives forever.

When Anna Konig first meets Bairn, the Scottish ship carpenter of the Charming Nancy, their encounter is anything but pleasant. Anna is on the ship only to ensure the safe arrival of her loved ones to the New World. Hardened by years of living at sea, Bairn resents toting these naive farmers - dubbed "Peculiars" by deckhands - across the ocean. As delays, storms, illness, and diminishing provisions afflict crew and passengers alike, Bairn finds himself drawn to Anna's serene nature.

When Joel and Shani Beck arrive at their new home on Juneberry Lane in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, they're looking for peace. Joel's recently returned from Iraq and is recuperating, and Shani is just happy to have her family back together. They can't imagine any trouble with their Amish neighbors, the Lehmans, but things get off to a rocky start when their son accidently hurts Simon, one of the Lehman boys.

The Secret by New York Times best-selling author Beverly Lewis is a compelling portrait of an Amish family's struggle to overcome the effects of a baffling secret. Soon-tobe-engaged Grace Byler is perplexed by her mom's nocturnal weeping and wandering - and her dad's refusal to discuss what's wrong. But when her mom runs off, Grace puts her own life on hold to pick up the pieces her mother left behind.

Luke Schrock is a new and improved man after a stint in rehab, though everyone in Stoney Ridge only remembers the old Luke. They might have forgiven him, but nobody trusts him. Amos and Fern Lapp allow Luke to live at Windmill Farm under two conditions. First, Luke must make a sincere apology to each person he's hurt - a four-page, single-spaced list. Second, he must ask each victim of mischief to describe the damage he caused.

Formerly Amish, Tilly Lantz Barrows and her younger sister Ruth Lantz find themselves plagued by the memories of their family's trauma when they return to Eden Valley for their parents' landmark wedding anniversary. Each woman carries a burden of past guilt, unknown to the other, along with unresolved relationships with their six married brothers...and aging parents. Headstrong Tilly urged Ruth to flee the People as well, welcoming her into the fancy English world. Neither had joined the Amish church.

In The Shunning, beautiful 22-year-old Katie Lapp longs to experience the forbidden things of the outside world, even while she is making plans to forever embrace the traditions of her people. In a few days, Katie will marry Bishop John, a widower with five young children. She should be excited, but instead she feels trapped. Her thoughts in turmoil, she heads to the attic to be alone. As she explores a dusty trunk, she discovers a satin infant gown, much too fancy for an Amish baby.

Anna is eager to begin a new chapter in her life as a Lancaster County tour guide in the picturesque area where her Plain grandmother once stayed. Anna wishes she could talk with her grandmother about those long-ago days, but the elderly woman suffers from Alzheimer's, and beyond a vague hint about an old stone wall, much about that time is a mystery. Thankfully, Martin Nolt, a handsome Mennonite, takes the young Beachy Amish woman under his wing for her training, familiarizing her with local highlights, including Peaceful Meadows Horse Retreat, for children with special needs.

Lena Rose Schwartz hadn't planned to leave her Old Order community in Centerville, Michigan. But then, she could not have foreseen the accident that made her and her siblings orphans. After her parents' funeral, her younger brothers and sisters are farmed out to various nearby relatives. But when the deacon in charge of the arrangements tells her there aren't places enough for everyone, she agrees to go live with her father's second cousin and his family in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Beside the fact that Lena has never been more than a few miles from home, she's never met the family she will now be living with. But worse than that is the thought of being separated from her siblings. How will they manage without her to care for them - especially eight-year-old Chris?

A compelling story of friendship from the top author in Amish fiction, Leona Speicher got the "sister" she'd always dreamed of the day Gloria Gingerich and her family moved to Lancaster County Amish farmland. The Arkansas newcomers seem to be everything a devout Plain family should be, and Leona can't help comparing Gloria's engaging young parents to her own. Leona's cousin shows a romantic interest in Gloria around the same time as Gloria's older brother expresses his fondness for Leona.

Impulsive Lydie Stoltzfus has always felt like a disappointment—a square peg in a round hole in her quiet Amish community. Leaving her family and church seems like her best move, even though it would mean leaving Nathan Yoder behind. Nathan claims he’s in love with her, but she knows she’s not good enough for him. And if she is ever in doubt, Nathan’s father reminds her frequently. Knowing Lydie is “between” jobs again, the local doctor asks her to fill in at the front desk for a few months. This gives Lydie time to figure out how she’s going to say goodbye to Nathan

Twenty-year-old Bethany Schrock is restless. Her love life has derailed, her faith hangs by a thread, and she is spending the incredibly hot summer days wading through a lifetime's accumulation of junk at the home of five ancient Amish sisters. About the only thing that holds her interest is the spirited and dangerously handsome Jimmy Fisher - and he seems bent on irritating her to no end.

Back and broke in Stoney Ridge, Jimmy Fisher has coasted as long as he could through life on charm, good looks, and deep-set dimples. They always worked just fine for him - until they didn't. His smile has no effect on the violet-eyed beauty he met at the Bent N' Dent, the one with that stunning horse. She's offered him a job, but nothing else. The last thing Sylvie Schrock King needs around Rising Star Farm is a grown boy working for her, especially her neighbor Edith's son. The woman holds a serious grudge against Sylvie and her son....

For years Zane Beck and his Amish neighbor, Lila Lehman, were the best of friends. But just as Zane gathered the courage to discover if their friendship could develop into something more, her controlling father arranged for her to be courted by their bishop's son. Zane, heartbroken and frustrated, joined the army, running away from his shattered dreams.

Twenty-seven-year-old Amish woman Joanna Kurtz has been a bridesmaid plenty of times, but never a bride. And despite having a secret romance with responsible young Amishman Eben Troyer, their relationship can only go so far, because the two are always kept apart. Will Joanna ever know the joys of marriage?

Rose Kauffman pines for prodigal Nick Franco, the Bishop's foster son who left the Amish under a cloud of suspicion after his foster brother's death. His rebellion led to the "silencing" of their beloved Bishop. But is Nick really the rebel he appears to be? Rose's lingering feelings for her wayward friend refuse to fade, but she is frustrated that Nick won't return and make things right with the People. Nick avowed his love for Rose - but will he ever be willing to sacrifice modern life for her?

Even at 16, Jake’s handsome features hold the calm certainty and patient confidence of a man, and Rachel Bender knows—Jake Weaver is the one. Rachel will grow into a strong young woman with powerful gifts—but in a faraway country, without her Jake. In 1921, Ohio’s new law forces Caleb Bender’s family to seek sanctuary in the wilds of Mexico where the government will not interfere with their Amish way of life, or take their children from them.

On the day before her Amish parents' 20th wedding anniversary, Sylvia Miller stumbles across the key to the old brass tinderbox her father keeps in his Lancaster County watch repair shop. Piqued by curiosity, Sylvia unlocks the cherished heirloom, not realizing that what she is about to discover will splinter apart her happy life.

In the summer of 1951, 18-year-old Maggie Esh is in need of some hope. Sweet-spirited and uncommonly pretty despite struggling with a debilitating illness, she is accustomed to being treated kindly by the young men of her Old Order Amish church district. Yet no one but Jimmy Beiler ever asks her out, and she always declines, certain he only pities her. To make matters worse, Dat has recently remarried, less than a year after Maggie's mother died. And while her stepmother is kind, she's much younger than Mamm, and she simply doesn't understand Maggie or her illness the way Mamm did.