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An Amish Christmas Star—three Amish Christmas stories
Buggies, Trains, and Automobiles
by Shelley Shepard Gray
Ellie Coblentz is called back from vacation to help her Grandmommi. John Miller receives a phone call that his father, from whom he has been estranged for almost fifteen years, is on his deathbed. John needs to travel quickly if he wants to get to the nursing home before his father passes, something he is not sure he wants to do. It is a few days before Christmas when the two meet at a bulletin board searching for ways to get from Pinecraft, Florida, to Holmes County, Ohio, in bad weather. As strangers, they make for unusual travel partners, but God has a way of bringing them together under the difficult travel circumstances as they find themselves stranded several times along the journey. In addition to some crazy hired drivers, they also encounter some very kind and helpful people who think helping others is a wonderful way to celebrate Christmas. This is a sweet Christmas story that I think I would enjoy rereading.
Star of Wonder
by Charlotte Hubbard
Lizzie Zehr is a young Mennonite woman with a flamboyant, creative flair. Raised by her two sisters, first one who passed with MS, and then the other who was a talented, but perfectionist baker, Lizzie has felt stifled by them. She finds freedom in a job in a new bulk store in Promise Lodge. A lot of the Old Order Amish have moved there to be away from a mean-spirited Bishop.
Raymond Overholt is another creative who travels from Coldstream to Promise Lodge. His goal, however, is to sell art he has created from barnboard wood decorated with Christmas messages and stars. He just doesn’t enjoy or fit in well in his family’s dairy farm. So when offered a seasonal temporary job at the store in Promise Lodge, he accepts.
If Lizzie and Raymond have a future together, there will be a lot of opposition to overcome arising from the Amish leaders in Coldstream and Raymond’s family. It will take a change of heart by the leadership there and perhaps a change of circumstances. It will take a Christmas miracle!
Starlight Everlasting
by Rosalind Lauer
Rachel and Luke Coblentz began courting when they were quite young. They kept putting off their wedding in hopes that Rachel’s mother would recover from cancer and be able to be a part of the ceremony. Unfortunately, she passed away, leaving the family with seven children and a mountain of medical bills. As young marrieds, they feel an obligation to pay off the debts, but Luke is unable to find a job in the town of Joyful River. He gets a low paying factory job in Maple Run, but that means he and Rachel must live apart 5 days out of the week. This becomes a crisis for the young couple when Luke is required to work on both Thanksgiving and Christmas. Meanwhile, Rachel has restored an abandoned Christmas store in Joyful River. It is doing quite well, and she is able to help with the care of her younger siblings, but she misses Luke so much! They reach out to God and rely on him to give them the wisdom and faith required to help them through this difficult season.
Truman is one of Rachel’s young siblings, and I came to love him as much as Rachel does. As Rachel describes him, he is “odd.” He doesn’t understand social signals, but he “has a good heart.” Although bullied, he doesn’t retaliate. He is very smart and memorizes things quickly.
I enjoyed all of these novellas. They were able to tell a whole story in less space than a novel, and I didn’t feel that anything was missing.
I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
Rating: 5/5
Category: Christian, Religion, Romance
Notes: These novellas offer the reader the Christmas spirit relying on the story of Christ’s birth as well as the cultural decorations and themes that are celebrated by non-Amish.
Publication: September 30, 2025—Kensington
Memorable Lines from Buggies, Trains, and Automobiles:
When she looked back for Kramer, he was gone, and the truck was too. “I didn’t hear Kramer’s truck leave. Did you?” John stopped and stared. “It was like he vanished. That sure was strange, ain’t so?” “Usually I would agree, but I’m starting to think that he was our own guardian angel,” Ellie said.
Memorable Lines from Star of Wonder:
Best of all, though, she had a new circle of friends who shone as brightly as one of Raymond’s gold stars when the morning sunlight hit it. And for that, Lizzie felt extremely blessed.
Memorable Lines from Starlight Everlasting:
Gott had guided the wise men with a star. It seemed simple and yet profound. Gott was guiding all of his believers each and every day. And that was what had led Luke here tonight. Faith.
The Burnout–surfing/life metaphors
The Burnout
by Sophie Kinsella
Sasha is the Director of Special Promotions for Zoose, an app for a travel company. It was her dream job for several years—until it wasn’t. It happened gradually as the creative founder stopped being hands on, delegated a lot of authority to his brother, and the management became top-heavy. Several people quit her department in disgust and were not replaced increasing Sasha’s work load. Sasha’s complaints went unanswered. Her burnout was not pretty, and she ended up with her doctor signing off on a a three week leave. Sophia departs London for the Rilston Hotel on the beach in February. It’s cold and out of season there, and the hotel has gone downhill from the posh remembrances of her childhood, but at least she is separated from an endless parade of emails from all over the world and nonsense from the company’s “empowerment and well-being officer.”
There is a lot of humor as her mother pretends to be her very demanding PA and insists via morning telephone calls to the hotel that the staff provide Sasha with certain items that will help her on her “wellness journey” including kale smoothies and noni juice both of which are disgusting when they finally locate them for her. Her seaside room has boarded up windows, but she can spend her days in a decrepit beachside cottage that is destined to be torn down. The characters working at the lodge are just that—characters. They try so hard to please, but are very quirky. Sasha is too nice to complain or explain that she really would prefer to have crisps and a choc bar.
Sasha is not looking for romance which is good because one of the few guests is Finn, a man who also has burnout. They start not wanting to be anywhere near each other, but then discover that they both were surfing students of Terry back in the day. Everyone loved Terry who was part excellent surfing instructor and part philosopher.
The plot in The Burnout develops nicely with a growing friendship and false starts at a relationship. The pair collaborate to determine who is leaving mysterious messages in the sand. They meet up with their hero Terry again, and they find themselves a part of the small community of the town where everyone knows their business. I enjoyed the eccentric characters and felt like I was joining in on their celebration of Terry. Everyone had “Terry quotes” memorized which related to both surfing and life.
I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
Rating: 4/5
Category: Women’s Fiction, Romance
Notes: Some inappropriate language and sexual references in regard to sexual organs and libido, but no open door scenes.
Publication: October 10, 2023—Random House (Dial Press)
Memorable Lines:
Finn feels safe and trustworthy. And most important, he gets it. He knows how I feel. Just to meet someone who’s been through something similar is such a relief.
Infinite waves. Infinite chances. You can’t dwell or think about what might have been. There’s always another wave. Although you have to be looking the right way to see it.
It seems most art experts are happy to spout on endlessly about their own opinion, So my method is: Let them do that while I get on with drinking the free champagne. And when they pause, say, Stunning, isn’t it?
Positively, Penelope–theater and community
Positively, Penelope
by Pepper Basham
I wondered if Pepper Basham would follow up the very bookish epistolary novel Authentically, Izzy with another epistolary novel. If so, could it be as good, as fun, as the first? How do you write an epistolary novel in the twenty-first century anyway, a time when letter writing for personal reasons is rare? Basham continues her humorous style with Positively, Penelope told mainly in emails and text messages between Penelope who has taken a job as an intern helping the marketing team in the country of Skymar and her brother and two sisters who live in the Appalachians. There is also some third person narration thrown in. As a drama major, a very dramatic teacher of elementary age children, and a lover of storytelling and princesses, I can identify so much with Penelope who attacks life with more gusto than I can dream of mustering!
Penelope is trying to rescue the dying Darling House, a theater whose owners and managers lost their spirit with the deaths of the mother and grandmother over a short span of time. Penelope with her positive attitude spreads joy wherever she goes with her smiles, singing, and creativity. Two brothers, Matt and Alec, are grumpy but could make romantic heroes in the story as they fall under Penelope’s spell along with their father, Grandpa Gray. Matt’s daughter Iris who has not been allowed to enjoy fairy tales blooms under Penelope’s friendship as they share a love of pink and princesses. While Penelope seems like cotton candy fluff, she is actually quite bright. Unfortunately, every idea she comes up with is stolen by a rival theater; it seems a mole has invaded the Darling House team.
Silliness, suspicion, fear of sea monsters, a cute seven year old, costumes, royalty, creativity, and clean romance make Positively, Penelope a fun novel; I’m packing my bag for Skymar right now.
I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
Rating: 5/5
Category: Romance, Fiction, Christian
Notes: 1. #2 in the Skymar series. It could be read as a standalone, but I wouldn’t want you to pass up the very bookish first novel, Authentically, Izzy.
2. a lot of humor as the siblings banter with each other
3. Christian undertones woven subtly into the book
4. #3 has already been published about the flannel wearing, bachelor brother in the family, Loyally, Luke
Publication: August 1,2023—Thomas Nelson
Memorable Lines:
But no wonder he’s grumpy. Anyone who is against fairy-tale talk, singing in public, dancing on the sidewalk, and general hat-wearing has to be a sad sort of person.
Because story is the key to what we bring to the stage, how we present ourselves online, and even how we engage with one another. We all have stories, but in our hearts, we all LOVE stories (even if it takes some of us longer to admit it…kind of like a smile. Some people need more encouragement to smile than others, but you should really know a smile makes all the difference).
He came up to me, dismounted, and shot me this dazzling smile before saying, “I’ve always wanted to rescue a damsel in distress, but I never realized one would be so lovely in the rain.” Heaven HELP ME! Who says stuff like that? Only Skymarian men who ride on white horses in the rain????
How to Train Your Dad–the art of dumpster diving
How to Train Your Dad
by Gary Paulsen
Carl is the twelve year old narrator of this middle grade book which has a very conversational style. The vocabulary is somewhat advanced for a twelve year old, but that is because Pooder, Carl’s best friend who helps him write the story, goes through phases of interest (British, Navy seal, etc.). His various fascinations show up in his speech. Pooder admires Carl’s dad who, besides a few odd jobs, lives by bartering. Carl’s dad is very intelligent, mechanically inclined, and very kind. He trades energy (labor) for goods. He considers himself rich as he recycles from dumpsters or his neighbor Oscar’s junk piles. He built a whole truck from discarded spare parts. He prizes function over form; so if an invention works, it doesn’t matter how it looks.
His dad’s philosophy has been fine with Carl until he reaches middle grades and suddenly becomes aware of Peg as “the” girl. His summer goal is to become “lookatable” by the time school starts which is hard to do when your dad barters for XL camo T-shirts and pink bib overalls decorated with words like “juicy.”
The book explores Carl’s efforts to train his father using the methods in a puppy training pamphlet. His efforts are hilarious as are the contraptions his father builds and the objects he brings home. A lot of the dumpster diving food goes to the pigs and chickens. Carl and his dad have a rescue pit bull Carol who is an integral part of their family and, despite her stinky habit of shredding skunks, is allowed to accompany them everywhere.
How to Train Your Dad is a fun story that tweenagers will enjoy. Its casual style and over the top anecdotes are sure to appeal.
I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
Rating: 4/5
Category: Children’s Fiction, Middle Grades
Notes: Contains a very small amount of cussing
Intended ages: 10-14
Publication: October 5, 2021—Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group
Memorable Lines:
She’s in my grade at school and everyone likes her and I have never ever ever seen her be catty or crabby or phony to anyone ever which is something like a miracle in middle school, if you ask me.
Sometimes Pooder jumping from phase to phase without warning can be a little confusing. He might start things off an English lord before suddenly becoming an advertising mogul looking to make some coin and then turn into a Viking biting deep on a tomato-apple so the juice runs down into his beard-if-he-had-one while he’s thinking of pillaging a coast somewhere.
My father loved to barter. To trade, as he thought of it, energies, abilities, knowledge. Trade everything he could so as not to use money. “I have a widget,” he explained to me when I was very small, “and John Doe has an extra electric frying pan he doesn’t need, but he needs a widget and so we trade. We barter. Simple and clean. It’s the very best and purest way to do business.”
education pathways 