Thursday, May 10, 2012

Amish Struggles During the Revolutionary War



The love story of Adam Wyse and Lena Yoder unfolds against the background of the Revolutionary War. The Amish believe fighting is wrong. Struggling to hold this belief separates them from their fellow Americans and opens them to persecution by both the Patriots and the Tories. It also leads to internal conflict for Adam Wyse.

On her death bed, Mary Yoder, Lena's mother, makes Adam promise that he will give up Lena's love until he is free from the father who abuses him. Adam desperately wants Lena. She's the love of his life, but equally, he can't break free from the abusive relationship with his father. This promise sets the stage for testing not only the young people, but the elders as well.

I enjoyed the book. It's an earlier time period than most Amish novels and much more complicated in the obstacles faced by the characters. I thought the author did a good job showing the internal conflict created by trying to live up to the belief that fighting is wrong while seeing that the fight for freedom is a worthy endeavor.

The too neat ending was, for me, a major flaw. All the problems were resolved. Each person got what they desired and life was beautiful. It was too much like a fairy tale. God helps to resolve issues, but it's not always the case that everyone gets what they think they want. I felt it would have been a stronger story if the ending hadn't tied everything up in a bow.

I reviewed this book for the Thomas Nelson Booksneeze Program.

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