Title: THE BARGAIN
Author: Stephanie Reed
Publisher: Kregel
September 2013
ISBN: 978-0825442155
Genre: Amish
It’s 1971, and Betsie Troyer’s peaceful and predictable life
is about to become anything but.
When their parents flee the Amish, nineteen-year-old
Betsie and her seventeen-year-old sister Sadie are distraught. Under the
dubious guidance of a doting aunt, the girls struggle to keep the secret,
praying their parents will return before anyone learns the truth—a truth
that may end all hopes of Betsie’s marriage to Charley Yoder.
Worse still, Betsie must learn a trade while she boards
with a dysfunctional Englisher family: Sheila, a twelve-year-old
desperately searching for a friend and in dire need of her mother; the
free-spirited mother, who runs off to "find herself" on the stage;
the angry father whose structured life crumbles; and Michael, a troubled
college dropout nearly killed in the Kent State Massacre.
Thrust into the English world, Betsie must grapple with the
realities of war and miniskirts, pot parties and police brutality, protests and
desertion. Can she help the Sullivan family and find peace in her new
surroundings, or must she forget the bargain she made and seek refuge back in Plain City
THE BARGAIN is the first book in the Plain City Peace series by Ms. Reed. The story is very well written
and is—as it says above—about an Amish girl thrust entirely out of her element
to work in a saddle shop in place of her cousin who was drafted. Okay, the
language was a bit over the top. I understand that in the sixties and early
seventies people might have talked like that, but it was just… weird… and additionally,
instead of Betsie working in the saddle shop, she mostly worked as a
servant/housekeeper for the family. Though I did find it funny how she kept
“mending” Michael’s “ripped” clothes when his look was supposed to be “ratty.”
I just don’t know what to say. This book definitely wasn’t
your typical Amish book. It is more like a reality show, set in the 70’s – if
there is such a thing. “70’s meet the Amish”?
I don’t know. It had some really funny moments, and like I said, the
writing is good. I would read another book by Ms. Reed. I want to know what
happens with Michael. I am just really
mixed on this book. I had problems with
the plausibility of some of the early events in the book. I’m giving THE
BARGAIN 4 stars. It is unique, new, and different, and great writing. Fans of
reality shows would love it. Fans of Amish fiction who want to “experience Amish life" vicariously, would not. $14.99. 306 pages.
Book Info
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 About the book: Book one in the Plain City Peace series.It's 1971, and Betsie Troyer's peaceful and predictable life is about to become anything but. When their parents flee the Amish, nineteen-year-old Betsie and her seventeen-year-old sister Sadie are distraught. Under the dubious guidance of a doting aunt, the girls struggle to keep the secret, praying their parents will return before anyone learns the truth-a truth that may end all hopes of Betsie's marriage to Charley Yoder. Purchase a copy here: http://ow.ly/ptivJ  About the Author:Stephanie Reed lives on the outskirts of Plain City, Ohio, site of a once-thriving Amish community. She gleans ideas for her novels from signs glimpsed along the byways of Ohio, as she did for her previous books, "Across the Wide River" and "The Light Across the River."Learn more at Stephanie's website http://www.stephanielreed.com/ | |
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