Historical Committee Home page              Juvenile and Youth Books              Guide for writing entries Adult Books of Interst to Youth FICTION Send Your Comments or Reviews of These Fiction Titles Brenneman, H. G. (1954). But Not Forsaken. Harrisonburg, VA: Christian Light Publications. Krauter, like any other German city, was a blacked-out vacuum at night. But tonight in his inmost soul Hans felt as though everything was too quiet, as though something were wrong. His heart still pounding from his race with time, Hans leaned against the wall for support, surveying...the scattered possessions and the rumpled bed on the floor. Hans buried his face in his hands, fighting despair...Who might know where his family had gone? Maria and Hans Penner, Mennonite refugees from the Russian Ukraine, forge ever west with their family, west to freedom! In east Germany the Communists tragically separate Maria and Hans Penner. Each fears the other lost, slain. Hoping against hope, each continues westward. But Not Forsaken graphically portrays the effect of war on the hearts of humans, the bountiful blessings of the free, the faithfulness and love of God. The Penners' fight for life, for faith, for freedom is both daring and dangerous as they trudge west "from one oasis of friendship to another through the vast desert of their hopeless existence." Found at Christian Learning Resource Bookstore Wojtasik, T. (1996). No Strange Fire. Scottsdale, PA: Herald Press. Six Amish brans burn to the ground one night in the Big Valley of central Pennsylvania. Jacob Hostetler, a young Amish man who left home months ago, is the prime suspect. But Jacob is missing. What happens to a youth who leaves his Amish community, tempted by the outside world? Winner of 1997 Silver Angel Award from Excellence in Media. Found at Provident Bookstore Yoder, J. W. (1995). Rosanna of the Amish. Scottsdale, PA: Herald Press. The thrilling narrative of Rosanna McGonegal Yoder, the Irish Catholic baby girl, who lived with an Amish woman, Elizabeth Yoder. Joseph W. Yoder gives an honest, sympathetic, straightforward account of the religious, social, and economic customs and traditions of the Amish. Over 412,800 in print. Found at Provident Bookstore NON-FICTION Send Your Comments or Reviews of These Non-Fiction Titles Beiler, D. (1989). Making War and Making Peace: Why Some Christians Fight and Some Don't. Scottsdale, PA: Herald Press. Participation in warfare is now so fully a part of the majority Christian heritage that it is hard for most Christians to imagine anything else. Catholics and Protestants of all the major denominations hold to the theory which justifies Christian participation in warfare. In holding to this theory, the vast majority of Christians have followed Augustine, a bishop in north Africa at the beginning of the fifth century. They have developed an informal system for determining when it is justified and necessary for Christians to kill other human beings. Following this line of reasoning, Christians have participated in revolutions, wars of national defense, wars of conquest and genocide, wars of religious intolerance, and wars caused by mistakes and misunderstandings. At the same time, however, small numbers of Christians have always refused to kill other human beings. They have based this on the demands of the gospel of Jesus Christ, who laid down his own life instead of punishing the enemies of his people. These Christians continue to believe that prayer and selfless obedience to God's way of peace and love have a greater influence on the final outcome of events than do bullets and bombs. Found at Provident Bookstore Detweiler, L. (2000). The Hammer Rings Hope . Scottdale, PA: Herald Press. With photos and gripping accounts, Lowell Detweiler shows and tells the dramatic story of MDS. Winner of 2001 Silver Angel Award from Excellence in Media. Found at Provident Bookstore Dyck Peter J. (1991). Up From the Rubble. Scottsdale, PA: Herald Press. Here is the epic story that has charmed Mennonite audience for years. Peter and Elfrieda Dyck share their World War II experiences of helping Mennonite refugees escape from war-torn Europe and to find new homes in South America and Canada. Many photos are included. Found at Provident Bookstore Hochstetler, M., & Hochstetler, S. (1989). Farm Life in the Hills. West Union, OH: Martin and Susan Hochstetler. A sequel to Life on the Edge of the Wilderness, this story chronicles the Hochstetlers' move back to Ohio after having lived in the Canadian Northwest for several years. This provides a glimpse of the Amish community in Holmes County, Ohio. Hochstetler, M., & Hochstetler, S. (1987). Life on the Edge of the Wilderness. Coalgate, OK: Martin and Susan Hochstetler. This is the Hochstetlers' own story of the two years they lived on a ranch in the Cariboo Region in British Columbia. An Amish family from Holmes County, Ohio, they were attracted by the timber in British Columbia, and along with some other families from Ohio, made the big move to the Canadian Northwest. Kaiser, G. (1986). Dr. Frau. Intercourse, PA: Good Books. Grace Kaiser spent 28 years as a family doctor among the "plain people" of Lancaster County, PA. These are her reflections on a side of life few people have seen. Includes delivering babies on farms and in snowstorms. Found at Provident Bookstore Moore, J. A. (1984). Anabaptist Portraits. Scottsdale, PA: Herald Press. John Allen Moore's honest and balanced account of the life and work of six leading Anabaptists: Conrad Grebel, Felix Mantz, George Blaurock, Michael Sattler, Hans Denck, and Balthasar Hubmaier. Written for the high school student. Found at Provident Bookstore Ruth, J. L. (1976). 'Twas Seeding Time. Scottsdale, PA: Herald Press. In 'Twas Seeding Time author John L. Ruth gives readers some little-known insights concerning Mennonite community life in America 200 years ago. On the eve of the Revolution, nearly a century after the first Mennonite settlers arrived in Pennsylvania, these formerly oppressed Swiss-Germans were enjoying the liberties of the Quaker Commonwealth. Their small farms, laboriously carved out of "Penn's Woods," provided an adequate livelihood, and their simple meetinghouses showed the reality of the religious freedom so often denied them in Europe. While their belief in love and nonresistance was tested at times in their contacts with the Indians, they dwelt in peace and contentment under the British crown and the sympathetic Quaker government of Pennsylvania. But the real trial of faith came with the rising sentiment of rebellion in the colonies. Following the first battles of the Revolution in Massachusetts during the spring of 1775, the martial spirit spread to Pennsylvania. All able-bodied men came under pressure to respond to the call to arms, or if conscience prevented that, to contribute liberally of their means to the patriots' cause. Thus whether in the eighteenth century or the twentieth, American Mennonites have found it difficult to remain uncompromised in their relation to government. John L. Ruth's lively account is far more than a collection of interesting stories and anecdotes. It provides a fine historical perspective to help us evaluate our role in American society today. Found at Provident Bookstore Sharp, J. E. (2001). Gathering at the Hearth: Stories Mennonites Tell. Scottsdale, PA: Herald Press. Here are stories about David Toews, Annie Funk and the Titanic, Orie Miller, Emma Richards and Marilyn Miller, Peter Dyck, Mesach Krisetya, a new search for Clayton Kratz and more. Found at Provident Bookstore Stucky, S. (1983). For Conscience' Sake. Scottsdale, PA: Herald Press. For Conscience' Sake recounts the conscientious objection of three generations of a Mennonite family in Kansas. The sights and textures of Kansas farmland are interwoven with the struggles of conscience faced by young men in time of war. From a plow in the sun-warmed soil of Kansas to the jungles of the Pacific to the sixties peace rally in Washington, D. C., you walk with father, son, and grandson in the way of peace. Wiebe, K. F. (1997). The Storekeeper's Daughter. Newton, KS: Faith and Life Press. Striking storylines and images fill this classic memoir by Katie Funk Wiebe. There are the "four corpses in the house in two weeks" and the smoking ravaged town of Brodi on the Austrian border," where "horror faced them on all sides." There are the "hunger years" and the trek from Russia to Canada. There are those "sweet mysteries of life" and the delicious details of young Katie's quest to unravel the Great Mystery. Beneath it all Wiebe is on a journey, a trek not only from one country to another but from childhood through adulthood and back to embrace a once-distant past. "walking with Wiebe is an enlightening, interesting, and challenging experience. Her zest for life is contagious. Parents and children alike can benefit from this funny and sometimes tragic book."--Peter J. Dyck, author of Up from the Rubble. Found at Provident Bookstore -Sheryl Nisly-Nagele, Cincinnati, Ohio -Karen Neufeld, Fresno, California Back to Literature Network Index

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