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Kauffman Amish Bakery #4
A Life of Joy
Take a trip to Bird-in-Hand, Pennsylvania, where you’ll meet the women of the Kauffman Amish Bakery in Lancaster County. As each woman’s story unfolds, you will share in her heartaches, trials, joys, dreams � and secrets. You’ll discover how the simplicity of the Amish lifestyle can clash with the “English� way of life—and the decisions and consequences that follow. Most importantly, you will be encouraged by the hope and faith of these women, and the importance they place on their families. In A Life of Joy, the fourth installment in the series, eighteen-year-old Lindsay Bedford has reached a crossroads. Should she stay in the small Amish community she's known and loved for four years or return to the English life in her hometown in Virginia where her older sister is a college student? An extended visit to Virginia might just tip the scales as Lindsay reconnects with friends, joins a new church, works on her GED, and is pressured by her sister to stay and "make something of herself." Will Lindsay leave her aunt Rebecca and become English or settle in Bird-in-Hand and join the Amish church? Legions of Clipston fans want to know. Full of well-researched Amish culture, Clipston's book is true to form, delivering the best of the Amish fiction genre wrapped around a compelling story, with characters who will touch the hearts of loyal fans and new readers alike.
336 pages, Paperback
First published November 15, 2011
64 people are currently reading
1,311 people want to read
About the author
Amy Clipston
134books2,067followersHi! I'm a bestselling author of heartwarming romance and happily ever after.
Contemporary Romance (Non-Amish)
The Heart of Splendid Lake (2021)
The View from Coral Cove (2022)
On the Way to Christmas (Anthology) (2022)
Something Old, Something New (2023)
Starstruck (2023)
Finding You (2024)
With This Ring (2025)
Second Chance at Sunshine Inn (7/2025)
The Lighthouse at the Cove (12/2025)
Stand Alone Amish Fiction
Caring for the Amish Family (4/2025)
Guideposts Amish Suspense
A Heart Set Free (9/2025)
An Amish Legacy
1. Foundation of Love (2022)
2. Building a Future (2022)
3. Breaking New Ground (2023)
4. The Hearts of Shelter (2023)
An Amish Marketplace
1. The Bake Shop (2019)
2. The Farm Stand (2020)
3. The Coffee Corner (2020)
4. The Jam and Jelly Nook (2021)
An Amish Homestead
1. A Place at our Table (2017)
2. Room on the Porch Swing (2018)
3. Seat by the Hearth (2018)
4. A Welcome at Our Door (2019)
An Amish Heirloom
1. The Forgotten Recipe (2015)
2. The Courtship Basket (2016)
3. The Cherished Quilt (2017)
4. The Beloved Hope Chest (2017)
Hearts of Lancaster Grand Hotel
1. A Hopeful Heart (2013)
2. A Mother’s Secret (2014)
3. A Dream of Home (2015)
4. A Simple Prayer (2015)
Kauffman Amish Bakery
1. A Gift of Grace (2009)
2. A Promise of Hope (2010)
3. A Place of Peace (2011)
4. A Life of Joy (2012)
5. A Season of Love (2012)
Amish Anthologies
� An Amish Kitchen (2012) � Spoonful of Love (Stand-alone story)
� An Amish Cradle (2015) � A Son for Always (This story complements A Mother’s Secret)
� An Amish Market (2016) � Love Birds (This story complements The Forgotten Recipe)
� An Amish Harvest (2016) � Love & Buggy Rides (This complements The Courtship Basket)
� An Amish Home (2017) � Home Sweet Home (Stand-alone story)
� An Amish Summer (2017) � Summer Storms (Stand-alone story)
� Amish Sweethearts (2018) –Complements The Kauffman Amish Bakery Series and also has a sequel to my story in An Amish Summer
� An Amish Heirloom (2018) � Complements A Place at our Table
� An Amish Homecoming (2018) � Complements A Place at our Table
� Seasons of an Amish Garden (2019) � Complements The Christmas Cat, novella included in An Amish Christmas Love
� An Amish Reunion (2019) � Complements Room on the Porch Swing
� An Amish Christmas Bakery (2019) � Cookies and Cheer (Stand-alone story)
� An Amish Singing (2021) (Collection of four stories by Amy Clipston)
� An Amish Christmas Wedding (2020) –Evergreen Love (Stand-alone story)
� An Amish Barn Raising (2021)
� An Amish Schoolroom (2021)
� An Amish Quilting Bee (2021)
Young Adult
1. Roadside Assistance (2011)
2. Reckless Heart (2012) (Kauffman Amish Bakery young adult book)
3. Destination Unknown (2014)
4. Miles from Nowhere (2015)
Non-Fiction
A Gift of Love (2014)
Seasonal
� A Plain and Simple Christmas (2010) Naomi’s Gift (2011)
� Kauffman Amish Christmas Collection (2012)
� An Amish Christmas Gift (2015) includes Naomi’s Gift
� An Amish Christmas Love (2017) –The Christmas Cat
� An Amish Christmas Bakery (2019)
� An Amish Christmas Wedding (2020)
� On the Way to Christmas (2022)
Contemporary Romance (Non-Amish)
The Heart of Splendid Lake (2021)
The View from Coral Cove (2022)
On the Way to Christmas (Anthology) (2022)
Something Old, Something New (2023)
Starstruck (2023)
Finding You (2024)
With This Ring (2025)
Second Chance at Sunshine Inn (7/2025)
The Lighthouse at the Cove (12/2025)
Stand Alone Amish Fiction
Caring for the Amish Family (4/2025)
Guideposts Amish Suspense
A Heart Set Free (9/2025)
An Amish Legacy
1. Foundation of Love (2022)
2. Building a Future (2022)
3. Breaking New Ground (2023)
4. The Hearts of Shelter (2023)
An Amish Marketplace
1. The Bake Shop (2019)
2. The Farm Stand (2020)
3. The Coffee Corner (2020)
4. The Jam and Jelly Nook (2021)
An Amish Homestead
1. A Place at our Table (2017)
2. Room on the Porch Swing (2018)
3. Seat by the Hearth (2018)
4. A Welcome at Our Door (2019)
An Amish Heirloom
1. The Forgotten Recipe (2015)
2. The Courtship Basket (2016)
3. The Cherished Quilt (2017)
4. The Beloved Hope Chest (2017)
Hearts of Lancaster Grand Hotel
1. A Hopeful Heart (2013)
2. A Mother’s Secret (2014)
3. A Dream of Home (2015)
4. A Simple Prayer (2015)
Kauffman Amish Bakery
1. A Gift of Grace (2009)
2. A Promise of Hope (2010)
3. A Place of Peace (2011)
4. A Life of Joy (2012)
5. A Season of Love (2012)
Amish Anthologies
� An Amish Kitchen (2012) � Spoonful of Love (Stand-alone story)
� An Amish Cradle (2015) � A Son for Always (This story complements A Mother’s Secret)
� An Amish Market (2016) � Love Birds (This story complements The Forgotten Recipe)
� An Amish Harvest (2016) � Love & Buggy Rides (This complements The Courtship Basket)
� An Amish Home (2017) � Home Sweet Home (Stand-alone story)
� An Amish Summer (2017) � Summer Storms (Stand-alone story)
� Amish Sweethearts (2018) –Complements The Kauffman Amish Bakery Series and also has a sequel to my story in An Amish Summer
� An Amish Heirloom (2018) � Complements A Place at our Table
� An Amish Homecoming (2018) � Complements A Place at our Table
� Seasons of an Amish Garden (2019) � Complements The Christmas Cat, novella included in An Amish Christmas Love
� An Amish Reunion (2019) � Complements Room on the Porch Swing
� An Amish Christmas Bakery (2019) � Cookies and Cheer (Stand-alone story)
� An Amish Singing (2021) (Collection of four stories by Amy Clipston)
� An Amish Christmas Wedding (2020) –Evergreen Love (Stand-alone story)
� An Amish Barn Raising (2021)
� An Amish Schoolroom (2021)
� An Amish Quilting Bee (2021)
Young Adult
1. Roadside Assistance (2011)
2. Reckless Heart (2012) (Kauffman Amish Bakery young adult book)
3. Destination Unknown (2014)
4. Miles from Nowhere (2015)
Non-Fiction
A Gift of Love (2014)
Seasonal
� A Plain and Simple Christmas (2010) Naomi’s Gift (2011)
� Kauffman Amish Christmas Collection (2012)
� An Amish Christmas Gift (2015) includes Naomi’s Gift
� An Amish Christmas Love (2017) –The Christmas Cat
� An Amish Christmas Bakery (2019)
� An Amish Christmas Wedding (2020)
� On the Way to Christmas (2022)
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 142 reviews
September 8, 2017
About this book:
“Lindsay Bedford began her life as an Englisher, but since going to live with her aunt and uncle, she has found peace in the Amish community of Bird-in-Hand. Now that she’s eighteen, she has to figure out where she belongs. As a member of the Amish church? Or in the English world like her older sister?
Eighteen-year-old Lindsay Bedford has reached a crossroads. Should she stay in the small Amish community she's known and loved for four years or return to the English life of her hometown in Virginia where her older sister is a college student? An extended visit to Virginia might just tip the scales as Lindsay reconnects with friends, joins a new church, works on her GED, and is pressured by her sister to stay and “make something of herself.�
Will Lindsay leave her aunt Rebecca and become English or settle in Bird-in-Hand and join the Amish church?�
Series: Book #4 (of five) in “Kaufman Amish Bakery� series. (Review of Book #1 Here!, #2 Here!, & #3 Here!) (Has two bonus Christmas novella connecting to the series. Review of #1 Here! and #2 Here!)
Spiritual Content- Scriptures are mentioned, quoted, read, remembered, & talked about; Prayers & Blessings over food; Church going, Singings, Youth Groups, & Sunday School classes; Many talks about God, trusting Him, praying, faiths, being baptized, & joining the (Amish) church; ‘H’s are capital when referring to God; Many mentions of God, trusting Him, & His plans; Many mentions of prayers, praying, & blessings over food; Many mentions of churches, church going, worship, services, sermons, ministers/bishops, hymns, youth groups/singings, & Sunday School classes; Many mentions of being baptized, baptism classes, & joining the (Amish) church; Mentions of Bibles, Bible reading, books of the Bible, & Scriptures; Mentions of blessings & being blessed; Mentions of faiths; Mentions of Amish beliefs; Mentions of Mennonites; Mentions of miracles; A few mentions of thanking God; A few mentions of sins; A couple mentions of devotions; A couple mentions of cross necklaces.
Negative Content- Minor cussing including: a ‘duh�, a form of ‘dumb�, and a ‘stupid�; A bit of sarcasm & eye rolling; Sibling bicker & arguments; Pain (barely-above-not-detailed); A wild party with drinking, drunks, & people kissing; Mentions of a car accident & deaths; Mentions of pain, an accident, & injuries; Mentions of throwing up & blood; Mentions of alcohol, drinking, & drunks; Mentions of bars, clubs, & wild parties (and Jessica going to them); Mentions of hateful comments; A few mentions of a father leaving his family; A few mentions of lies & lying; A few mentions of jealousy; A few mentions of rumors & busybodies; A couple mentions of when Jessica ran away; A mention of a possibility of being hit by a car;
*Note: Mentions of car brands; A mention of an actor (Kevin Bacon).
Sexual Content- five head/forehead kisses (married couples), two cheek kisses (married couple), and a not-detailed kiss (married couple); Noticing; Touches, Warmth, Embraces, & Smelling (barely-above-not-detailed); A drunk tries to grab Lindsay’s rear (she yells at him & snacks away his hand, barely-above-not-detailed); Mentions of young adults making out & grouping each other at a party; Mentions of dating/courting, dates, breakups, couples, boyfriends, & waiting for a relationship with someone; Mentions of liking someone, feelings, just being friends, blushes, & staring at them; Mentions of flirting; A few mentions of seeing a couple kiss (barely-above-not-detailed); A few mentions of noticing; A few mentions of cute boys; A couple mentions of jealousy; A mention of a girl kissing a boy behind an outhouse; A mention of a summer romance; Love, falling in love & the emotions;
*Note: Mentions of swimsuits (& skimpy ones), shorts, & tank tops; A few mentions of scantily clad young people; Mentions of the possibility of a miscarriage; A couple mentions of infertility; A mention of a uterus expanding in a pregnancy; A mention of pregnancy hormones; A couple mentions of men who try to take advantage of young women.
-Lindsay Bedford, age 18
P.O.V. switches between Lindsay, Rebecca, Jessica, & Katie
311 pages
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Pre Teens- One Star
New Teens- Two Stars
Early High School Teens- Three Stars
Older High School Teens- Four Stars
My personal Rating- Four Stars
Ever since I read the first book, “A Gift of Grace� a few years ago, I’ve always liked Lindsay and felt connected to her. Maybe it’s because our names are a letter apart, but she’s always been a favorite for me. I’ve been looking forward and looking forward to reading her story and I wasn’t disappointed. This novel had tons of Spiritual Content, which I so enjoyed. I was a little shocked by that ending…“wait, that’s it?? Huh?� Looks like I’ll need to read the last book here soon! :)
Link to review:
*BFCG may (Read the review to see) recommend this book by this author. It does not mean I recommend all the books by this author.
“Lindsay Bedford began her life as an Englisher, but since going to live with her aunt and uncle, she has found peace in the Amish community of Bird-in-Hand. Now that she’s eighteen, she has to figure out where she belongs. As a member of the Amish church? Or in the English world like her older sister?
Eighteen-year-old Lindsay Bedford has reached a crossroads. Should she stay in the small Amish community she's known and loved for four years or return to the English life of her hometown in Virginia where her older sister is a college student? An extended visit to Virginia might just tip the scales as Lindsay reconnects with friends, joins a new church, works on her GED, and is pressured by her sister to stay and “make something of herself.�
Will Lindsay leave her aunt Rebecca and become English or settle in Bird-in-Hand and join the Amish church?�
Series: Book #4 (of five) in “Kaufman Amish Bakery� series. (Review of Book #1 Here!, #2 Here!, & #3 Here!) (Has two bonus Christmas novella connecting to the series. Review of #1 Here! and #2 Here!)
Spiritual Content- Scriptures are mentioned, quoted, read, remembered, & talked about; Prayers & Blessings over food; Church going, Singings, Youth Groups, & Sunday School classes; Many talks about God, trusting Him, praying, faiths, being baptized, & joining the (Amish) church; ‘H’s are capital when referring to God; Many mentions of God, trusting Him, & His plans; Many mentions of prayers, praying, & blessings over food; Many mentions of churches, church going, worship, services, sermons, ministers/bishops, hymns, youth groups/singings, & Sunday School classes; Many mentions of being baptized, baptism classes, & joining the (Amish) church; Mentions of Bibles, Bible reading, books of the Bible, & Scriptures; Mentions of blessings & being blessed; Mentions of faiths; Mentions of Amish beliefs; Mentions of Mennonites; Mentions of miracles; A few mentions of thanking God; A few mentions of sins; A couple mentions of devotions; A couple mentions of cross necklaces.
Negative Content- Minor cussing including: a ‘duh�, a form of ‘dumb�, and a ‘stupid�; A bit of sarcasm & eye rolling; Sibling bicker & arguments; Pain (barely-above-not-detailed); A wild party with drinking, drunks, & people kissing; Mentions of a car accident & deaths; Mentions of pain, an accident, & injuries; Mentions of throwing up & blood; Mentions of alcohol, drinking, & drunks; Mentions of bars, clubs, & wild parties (and Jessica going to them); Mentions of hateful comments; A few mentions of a father leaving his family; A few mentions of lies & lying; A few mentions of jealousy; A few mentions of rumors & busybodies; A couple mentions of when Jessica ran away; A mention of a possibility of being hit by a car;
*Note: Mentions of car brands; A mention of an actor (Kevin Bacon).
Sexual Content- five head/forehead kisses (married couples), two cheek kisses (married couple), and a not-detailed kiss (married couple); Noticing; Touches, Warmth, Embraces, & Smelling (barely-above-not-detailed); A drunk tries to grab Lindsay’s rear (she yells at him & snacks away his hand, barely-above-not-detailed); Mentions of young adults making out & grouping each other at a party; Mentions of dating/courting, dates, breakups, couples, boyfriends, & waiting for a relationship with someone; Mentions of liking someone, feelings, just being friends, blushes, & staring at them; Mentions of flirting; A few mentions of seeing a couple kiss (barely-above-not-detailed); A few mentions of noticing; A few mentions of cute boys; A couple mentions of jealousy; A mention of a girl kissing a boy behind an outhouse; A mention of a summer romance; Love, falling in love & the emotions;
*Note: Mentions of swimsuits (& skimpy ones), shorts, & tank tops; A few mentions of scantily clad young people; Mentions of the possibility of a miscarriage; A couple mentions of infertility; A mention of a uterus expanding in a pregnancy; A mention of pregnancy hormones; A couple mentions of men who try to take advantage of young women.
-Lindsay Bedford, age 18
P.O.V. switches between Lindsay, Rebecca, Jessica, & Katie
311 pages
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Pre Teens- One Star
New Teens- Two Stars
Early High School Teens- Three Stars
Older High School Teens- Four Stars
My personal Rating- Four Stars
Ever since I read the first book, “A Gift of Grace� a few years ago, I’ve always liked Lindsay and felt connected to her. Maybe it’s because our names are a letter apart, but she’s always been a favorite for me. I’ve been looking forward and looking forward to reading her story and I wasn’t disappointed. This novel had tons of Spiritual Content, which I so enjoyed. I was a little shocked by that ending…“wait, that’s it?? Huh?� Looks like I’ll need to read the last book here soon! :)
Link to review:
*BFCG may (Read the review to see) recommend this book by this author. It does not mean I recommend all the books by this author.
June 13, 2017
This book, while enjoyable, feels like one big story that was split into two smaller ones. The focus is on Lindsay mostly, but to a lesser extent her friends Lydia Ann and Katie feature as well. It talks about the crossroads Lindsay finds herself at and how each of her friends also handle the upcoming changes in their life. Problem is, almost from the beginning, you can tell that this book is not quite finished. It all feels so temporary! That prevented me from forming a deeper connection to the characters as I am wont to do. While I did like the advancement of the story arc as a whole, this installment wasn't as good as previous books in the series.
May 2, 2019
When Lindsay’s godmother breaks her leg, she goes to help care for her during her recovery. Lindsay finds herself in a quandary, torn between the Amish community she misses and the English world she left years ago. Rediscovering old friends and old ways has her wondering where she really belongs. This book was interesting, but other than Lindsay re-experiencing the English lifestyle, not much happens. Still, the novel was entertaining, and serves as a bridge to the next installment.
October 20, 2023
A wonderful Amish story!
September 4, 2017
.
This author has a way with combining a sensible plot and believable characters.
Each book has its own story line that captivates the audience. This book features Lindsey and her struggle between becoming Amish or remaining English, after spending four years with her Amish Aunt and Uncle, after her parent's deaths. Just putting things in perspective is a daunting task.
This book is able to stand on its own, clean and wholesome, and concludes with an HEA. These are important attributes for my reading pleasure.
This author has a way with combining a sensible plot and believable characters.
Each book has its own story line that captivates the audience. This book features Lindsey and her struggle between becoming Amish or remaining English, after spending four years with her Amish Aunt and Uncle, after her parent's deaths. Just putting things in perspective is a daunting task.
This book is able to stand on its own, clean and wholesome, and concludes with an HEA. These are important attributes for my reading pleasure.
June 7, 2023
We revisit Lindsay who came to Bird in Hand four years ago after her parents were killed in car accident. While Lindsay remains with their Amish relatives, her sister Jessica goes back the Englisher world to finish her education. Jessica tells her she won't be visiting in the summer due to a surprise college accounting internship opportunity in New York.
While Jessica is deemed selfish by her sister and boy-friend, I wonder who are the selfish ones.
Meanwhile, Lindsay must decide if she wants to take classes during the summer to join the Amish church. So even though she's condemning her sister for continuing her education in the Englisher world, she herself doesn't know if she wants to dunk in the culture or keep one toe in each world.
Two sister bickering at each other and then make up.
Circumstances happen, and Lindsay ends up spending the summer in the Englisher world and gets her GED. This fourth in the series had me shaking my head.
While Jessica is deemed selfish by her sister and boy-friend, I wonder who are the selfish ones.
Meanwhile, Lindsay must decide if she wants to take classes during the summer to join the Amish church. So even though she's condemning her sister for continuing her education in the Englisher world, she herself doesn't know if she wants to dunk in the culture or keep one toe in each world.
Two sister bickering at each other and then make up.
Circumstances happen, and Lindsay ends up spending the summer in the Englisher world and gets her GED. This fourth in the series had me shaking my head.
February 18, 2012
From my blog:
A Life of Joy by Amy Clipston
I was graciously given a copy of this book through NetGalley and Zondervan to read and write a review. I am under no obligation to write a positive review, just an honest one.
A Life of Joy by Amy Clipston is the 4th book in the Kauffman Amish Bakery series.
I have read the 1st (click here for a review) and 3rd (click here for a review) book in the Kauffman Amish Bakery series, and it's safe to say that I really, truly, love this series!
So I jumped on the opportunity to read A Life of Joy, and I will definitely say I was not remotely disappointed.
We are once again back in Bird-in-Hand, Pennsylvania. Eighteen-year-old Lindsay Bedford has a huge decision to make. Four years after her parents died and she moved to live with her Amish aunt in Bird-in-Hand, she is at the age where she must decide if she wants to be baptized and permanently join the Amish faith or not.
She absolutely loves her life, working in the Kauffman bakery, but her older sister keeps pushing her to leave her Amish life. Jessica (her sister) believes she should get her GED and then go to college, and keeps pushing Lindsay to walk away from her life in Bird-in-Hand. Lindsay doesn't have any interest, but Jessica keeps telling her that she is selling herself short.
And then there is Matthew. Though Lindsay won't admit it, she has feelings for him. But he is baptized into the Amish faith and if she wants to be with him she has to commit to the faith too. But then again, choosing the commitment of baptism for a boy is not the correct way to make the life-changing decision.
Lindsay's life is thrown upside-down when her dear family friend, and pseudo-aunt back in Virginia severely breaks her leg, Lindsay feels obligated to leave Bird-in-Hand and go back into the Englisch world to care for her until she heals.
Now that Lindsay is back in the Englisch world with cell phones, computers, the internet, television, and modern conveniences, she can see everything she walked away from and gave up four years earlier. And as she begins work on her GED and finds new and old friends at her old church Lindsay struggles to figure out which life is for her.
Will Lindsay choose to join the Amish? Or can she live her life for God amongst the Englisch with modern conveniences? Either way, she has to leave something behind: her old life with Englisch conveniences and temptations, or her new life with the Amish. Which will she choose?
Read A Life of Joy to find out!
The decision to be baptized into the Amish faith isn't necessarily the easiest for those who were raised in the faith. But to be raised fourteen years outside the Amish community and then convert to the Amish would be infinitely more difficult.
I loved getting to know Lindsay more. She was one of the main characters in the first book in this series, A Gift of Grace, and has been a more secondary character since. But now, we get to know her more as she is on the path to choose between her former Englisch life and her now Amish one.
For being only eighteen, Lindsay is such a mature young woman. It is clear that four years amongst the Amish has been very good for her (not that she was ever horribly misbehaved) and she has grown to be respectful, dedicated, hard-working, caring and kind.
The problem is her sister Jessica who has the attitude that without an education, one cannot be anything successful, and that choosing not to go to college or even finish high school is selling one's self short.
Here is where I was a bit torn in two directions. On the one hand, I firmly believe in education. After all, I myself am 24 and about to have a graduate degree in May. I could understand where Jessica was coming from, especially since Lindsay is a very smart girl and completely capable of succeeding in college.
But, on the other hand, I felt for Lindsay. She is happy in the Amish faith and way of life, and content to work in a bakery. Who is to say that even though she is capable of going to college that choosing that path is the correct decision for her?
I could understand Jessica thought she was pushing her sister to achieve her best, but it was so unfortunate how clear it was that she never actually would listen and hear what Lindsay had to say. As the book makes clear, part of successful conversation is not only talking, but listening and actually hearing the person you are talking with. Though Jessica is a few years older, it made her seem younger and more immature than Lindsay.
I also appreciated that Lindsay's friends back in Pennsylvania did not pressure her to make her decision, at least not terribly. They respected that she had to choose on her own time and though they all wanted her to choose the Amish faith, none of them demanded it of her.
The characters in this series are so wonderful and I could relate to them so easily. I love that while this series doesn't have to be read in numerical order, it is more interconnected than most other series in which books can be read out of order. Ultimately, I would recommend starting at one and proceeding through the series that way, but it isn't absolutely necessary.
However, that being said this book ended on an abrupt note, and I can only assume that in the next book, A Season of Love, we will learn more about the resolution.
I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves Amish fiction or anyone who wants to try out the genre. Amy Clipston is a fabulous writer and a great read for the Amish fiction lover and the Amish fiction newbie alike!
4.5 out of 5 stars!
A Life of Joy by Amy Clipston
I was graciously given a copy of this book through NetGalley and Zondervan to read and write a review. I am under no obligation to write a positive review, just an honest one.
A Life of Joy by Amy Clipston is the 4th book in the Kauffman Amish Bakery series.
I have read the 1st (click here for a review) and 3rd (click here for a review) book in the Kauffman Amish Bakery series, and it's safe to say that I really, truly, love this series!
So I jumped on the opportunity to read A Life of Joy, and I will definitely say I was not remotely disappointed.
We are once again back in Bird-in-Hand, Pennsylvania. Eighteen-year-old Lindsay Bedford has a huge decision to make. Four years after her parents died and she moved to live with her Amish aunt in Bird-in-Hand, she is at the age where she must decide if she wants to be baptized and permanently join the Amish faith or not.
She absolutely loves her life, working in the Kauffman bakery, but her older sister keeps pushing her to leave her Amish life. Jessica (her sister) believes she should get her GED and then go to college, and keeps pushing Lindsay to walk away from her life in Bird-in-Hand. Lindsay doesn't have any interest, but Jessica keeps telling her that she is selling herself short.
And then there is Matthew. Though Lindsay won't admit it, she has feelings for him. But he is baptized into the Amish faith and if she wants to be with him she has to commit to the faith too. But then again, choosing the commitment of baptism for a boy is not the correct way to make the life-changing decision.
Lindsay's life is thrown upside-down when her dear family friend, and pseudo-aunt back in Virginia severely breaks her leg, Lindsay feels obligated to leave Bird-in-Hand and go back into the Englisch world to care for her until she heals.
Now that Lindsay is back in the Englisch world with cell phones, computers, the internet, television, and modern conveniences, she can see everything she walked away from and gave up four years earlier. And as she begins work on her GED and finds new and old friends at her old church Lindsay struggles to figure out which life is for her.
Will Lindsay choose to join the Amish? Or can she live her life for God amongst the Englisch with modern conveniences? Either way, she has to leave something behind: her old life with Englisch conveniences and temptations, or her new life with the Amish. Which will she choose?
Read A Life of Joy to find out!
The decision to be baptized into the Amish faith isn't necessarily the easiest for those who were raised in the faith. But to be raised fourteen years outside the Amish community and then convert to the Amish would be infinitely more difficult.
I loved getting to know Lindsay more. She was one of the main characters in the first book in this series, A Gift of Grace, and has been a more secondary character since. But now, we get to know her more as she is on the path to choose between her former Englisch life and her now Amish one.
For being only eighteen, Lindsay is such a mature young woman. It is clear that four years amongst the Amish has been very good for her (not that she was ever horribly misbehaved) and she has grown to be respectful, dedicated, hard-working, caring and kind.
The problem is her sister Jessica who has the attitude that without an education, one cannot be anything successful, and that choosing not to go to college or even finish high school is selling one's self short.
Here is where I was a bit torn in two directions. On the one hand, I firmly believe in education. After all, I myself am 24 and about to have a graduate degree in May. I could understand where Jessica was coming from, especially since Lindsay is a very smart girl and completely capable of succeeding in college.
But, on the other hand, I felt for Lindsay. She is happy in the Amish faith and way of life, and content to work in a bakery. Who is to say that even though she is capable of going to college that choosing that path is the correct decision for her?
I could understand Jessica thought she was pushing her sister to achieve her best, but it was so unfortunate how clear it was that she never actually would listen and hear what Lindsay had to say. As the book makes clear, part of successful conversation is not only talking, but listening and actually hearing the person you are talking with. Though Jessica is a few years older, it made her seem younger and more immature than Lindsay.
I also appreciated that Lindsay's friends back in Pennsylvania did not pressure her to make her decision, at least not terribly. They respected that she had to choose on her own time and though they all wanted her to choose the Amish faith, none of them demanded it of her.
The characters in this series are so wonderful and I could relate to them so easily. I love that while this series doesn't have to be read in numerical order, it is more interconnected than most other series in which books can be read out of order. Ultimately, I would recommend starting at one and proceeding through the series that way, but it isn't absolutely necessary.
However, that being said this book ended on an abrupt note, and I can only assume that in the next book, A Season of Love, we will learn more about the resolution.
I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves Amish fiction or anyone who wants to try out the genre. Amy Clipston is a fabulous writer and a great read for the Amish fiction lover and the Amish fiction newbie alike!
4.5 out of 5 stars!
September 11, 2017
It is really interesting how interwoven all the lives of the characters are. I enjoyed seeing Lindsay from the first book again, several years later.
Unlike the majority of Amy Clipston's books, this one is about Lindsay deciding whether or not to embrace the Amish life, and much of it takes place outside the Amish community. There was less romance as well, though there were certainly hints of it.
I did feel that the book ended a little abruptly, but that's because I suspect that everything will be tied up nicely with the last book.
Unlike the majority of Amy Clipston's books, this one is about Lindsay deciding whether or not to embrace the Amish life, and much of it takes place outside the Amish community. There was less romance as well, though there were certainly hints of it.
I did feel that the book ended a little abruptly, but that's because I suspect that everything will be tied up nicely with the last book.
October 11, 2019
3.5 stars. I would have done so much different with this book. But, it was pretty good as it was. I just wish that Lindsay didn't feel the need to have the exact same conversation with everybody all through the book. The last 20 pages or so really saved the book.
July 6, 2021
This book left me guessing and angry at some point. But can Jessica make Lindsey go back to her English ways? We will definitely find out and much more this was a book that kept me enthralled until the end
December 6, 2019
I loved this book!! Great story!! Can't wait to read the next book in the series!! Love this author's books!!
March 5, 2020
Oh how I needed that. Sometimes I just feel like a good Amish book fix! BUT now I NEED to move on to the next one in the series and hear MORE! 💕
April 27, 2016
I just love this series. I haven't read one yet that didn't make me both laugh and cry. Clipston does a wonderful job of making you feel the emotions of the characters as you read, so you're not just reading; you feel involved in the story, like you're there.
Lindsay is 18 now. Four years ago, she came to live with her aunt Rebecca when her parents died in an auto accident. Her sister, Jessica, also came then but later moved back to Virginia to live with her parents' friends, Frank and Trisha. Lindsay accepted the Amish way of life and wanted to be a part of it, while Jessica wanted everything life could give her and more. She graduated from high school, went to college and was spending the summer in New York City as an intern at an accounting firm. She didn't understand why Lindsay was content to waste her life with the Amish, content with an eighth-grade education and no responsibilities, or at least that's how Jessica saw it, and she didn't hesitate to have that discussion with Lindsay every chance she got.
Lindsay is sure she knows what she wants, until Trisha breaks her leg and needs help. The girls grew up with Frank and Trisha as their parents' best friends, so they were like an aunt and uncle to the girls. Jessica is in New York. Frank has a job. The break was a bad one though, and Trisha needed help. Lindsay agrees to go.
Before she leaves, Rebecca finds that she's pregnant again. This is truly a miracle. For 15 years, she and Daniel had been married and unable to conceive, so they thought they never would. Rebecca felt that Jessica and Lindsay were the only chance she'd ever have to be a mother, and now here she was pregnant for the third time. It was a miracle, but she's 40 years old and the pregnancy is high-risk. Everything seems to be going well though, besides Rebecca's fatigue, so Lindsay feels comfortable leaving to help Trisha. Besides, the Kaufman family is close, and if Rebecca needed help, she wouldn't have trouble getting it.
Lindsay goes through a culture shock when she returns to Virginia Beach. She grew up there. She meets some of her school friends, but she no longer has anything in common with them. Most of them are going to college and Lindsay isn't. They're into partying, and Lindsay is uncomfortable with that. Then, some of the girls take to insulting her, so she knows she doesn't fit in there.
She attends the church she grew up in and finds some solace there, but even that's different. The Amish way of worship is different and Lindsay is used to that, but her Sunday School class is involved in community projects and that helps give Lindsay some purpose to her days, besides just taking care of Trisha, the house and walking on the beach. She's still not sure where she belongs though.
Through it all, Lindsay studies for the GED, even though she's sure she won't go to college, writes to her friends and family back in Pennssylvania and slowly starts going out with the pastor's son. But there's a young man back in Pennsylvania too. She'll have to make up her mind about joining the church, though, if she hopes to have a future with him. Can she be content with cell phones, TV's, complicated front-loading washing machines where she can't even figure out where to put the laundry detergent, movies and all sorts of other things that just seem to add unnecessary complications to her life, or will she go back to her simple life in Pennsylvania? Wringer washers, clothes lines, having to go to a shanty if you need to use the phone, so you rely on letters mostly and face-to-face contact with the locals, no movies or TV...that was the life she got used to and that's the life she longs for, the longer she stays in Virginia. So what will her choice be?
I loved this book. I love the whole series. Each one is filled with real-life characters facing real-life decisions that will have ramifications for the rest of their lives, and those decisions won't just effect them, but everyone they love as well. That's life, isn't it? I love the Kaufmans, their bakery, reading about their simple life and imagining, if only for a little while, that I'm with them and my life is as simple as theirs.
Lindsay is 18 now. Four years ago, she came to live with her aunt Rebecca when her parents died in an auto accident. Her sister, Jessica, also came then but later moved back to Virginia to live with her parents' friends, Frank and Trisha. Lindsay accepted the Amish way of life and wanted to be a part of it, while Jessica wanted everything life could give her and more. She graduated from high school, went to college and was spending the summer in New York City as an intern at an accounting firm. She didn't understand why Lindsay was content to waste her life with the Amish, content with an eighth-grade education and no responsibilities, or at least that's how Jessica saw it, and she didn't hesitate to have that discussion with Lindsay every chance she got.
Lindsay is sure she knows what she wants, until Trisha breaks her leg and needs help. The girls grew up with Frank and Trisha as their parents' best friends, so they were like an aunt and uncle to the girls. Jessica is in New York. Frank has a job. The break was a bad one though, and Trisha needed help. Lindsay agrees to go.
Before she leaves, Rebecca finds that she's pregnant again. This is truly a miracle. For 15 years, she and Daniel had been married and unable to conceive, so they thought they never would. Rebecca felt that Jessica and Lindsay were the only chance she'd ever have to be a mother, and now here she was pregnant for the third time. It was a miracle, but she's 40 years old and the pregnancy is high-risk. Everything seems to be going well though, besides Rebecca's fatigue, so Lindsay feels comfortable leaving to help Trisha. Besides, the Kaufman family is close, and if Rebecca needed help, she wouldn't have trouble getting it.
Lindsay goes through a culture shock when she returns to Virginia Beach. She grew up there. She meets some of her school friends, but she no longer has anything in common with them. Most of them are going to college and Lindsay isn't. They're into partying, and Lindsay is uncomfortable with that. Then, some of the girls take to insulting her, so she knows she doesn't fit in there.
She attends the church she grew up in and finds some solace there, but even that's different. The Amish way of worship is different and Lindsay is used to that, but her Sunday School class is involved in community projects and that helps give Lindsay some purpose to her days, besides just taking care of Trisha, the house and walking on the beach. She's still not sure where she belongs though.
Through it all, Lindsay studies for the GED, even though she's sure she won't go to college, writes to her friends and family back in Pennssylvania and slowly starts going out with the pastor's son. But there's a young man back in Pennsylvania too. She'll have to make up her mind about joining the church, though, if she hopes to have a future with him. Can she be content with cell phones, TV's, complicated front-loading washing machines where she can't even figure out where to put the laundry detergent, movies and all sorts of other things that just seem to add unnecessary complications to her life, or will she go back to her simple life in Pennsylvania? Wringer washers, clothes lines, having to go to a shanty if you need to use the phone, so you rely on letters mostly and face-to-face contact with the locals, no movies or TV...that was the life she got used to and that's the life she longs for, the longer she stays in Virginia. So what will her choice be?
I loved this book. I love the whole series. Each one is filled with real-life characters facing real-life decisions that will have ramifications for the rest of their lives, and those decisions won't just effect them, but everyone they love as well. That's life, isn't it? I love the Kaufmans, their bakery, reading about their simple life and imagining, if only for a little while, that I'm with them and my life is as simple as theirs.
January 14, 2012
Amy has done it again...another great book in the Kauffman Amish Bakery Series.
Four years ago Jessica and Lindsey Bedford came to live with their Aunt and Uncle Rebecca and Daniel Kauffman, when their parents were tragically killed. Jessica is now in college and taking an internship in NY City and wants Lindsey to join her.
Lindsey has embraced the Amish way of life in all ways, except by joining the Church. She loves working in the bakery, helping Aentie Rebecca, caring and playing with her little cousins. She also is starting to have feelings for Matthew Luntz. She is searching her heart and in constant prayer for answers.
When a call comes that her Aunt Trisha has broken her leg, and Uncle Frank needs help. She decides to return to her former home in Virgina Beach. She leaves with some reluctance as her Aentie has not been feeling well, and just found out she is pregnant. Rebecca advises Lindsey to go!
You have to wonder will Lindsey now want to go back to her life as an English woman, or yearn for a quieter more peaceful life of the Amish?
This book does end in what I felt was a cliff hanger, need the next book in this series....soon!!
I was provided with a copy of this book by Netgalley and the Publisher Zondervan, and was not required to give a positive review.
Four years ago Jessica and Lindsey Bedford came to live with their Aunt and Uncle Rebecca and Daniel Kauffman, when their parents were tragically killed. Jessica is now in college and taking an internship in NY City and wants Lindsey to join her.
Lindsey has embraced the Amish way of life in all ways, except by joining the Church. She loves working in the bakery, helping Aentie Rebecca, caring and playing with her little cousins. She also is starting to have feelings for Matthew Luntz. She is searching her heart and in constant prayer for answers.
When a call comes that her Aunt Trisha has broken her leg, and Uncle Frank needs help. She decides to return to her former home in Virgina Beach. She leaves with some reluctance as her Aentie has not been feeling well, and just found out she is pregnant. Rebecca advises Lindsey to go!
You have to wonder will Lindsey now want to go back to her life as an English woman, or yearn for a quieter more peaceful life of the Amish?
This book does end in what I felt was a cliff hanger, need the next book in this series....soon!!
I was provided with a copy of this book by Netgalley and the Publisher Zondervan, and was not required to give a positive review.
November 11, 2011
What a joy to read more about the life of Lindsey and Jessica,Two young adult women, four years down the road after the death of their parents. Lindsey chose to stay in Bird-in-Hand with her Aunt Rebecca and Uncle Daniel, while Jessica returned to the "English" life with their parents friends. The two sisters butt heads over their very different life choices. The many Amish recipes made my mouth water! I can't wait to read more about the famlies and return for a visit to Bird-in-Hand.
January 7, 2020
This was a great book, but I felt like the ending left on a cliff-hanger. I wanted more information and for things to be tied up, that were not.
November 10, 2021
Ever since she moved in her aunt 4 years before, Lindsay has felt more at home in the Amish community than the community she grew up in. Now that she and her friends are about to start taking the classes for her baptism into the church, though, she finds herself unsure of if this is what she really wants to do. She knows she can't join the church until she's sure, so her plans to put her baptism on hold make sense, especially when she gets a phone call from her old family friend who needs her to come help her after a bad break. Back in her old life she finds life hard to get re-accustomed to, and can't get her friends and family off her mind. When she starts studying for her GED and reconnecting with old friends, will she be swayed into returning to the Englisch world?
This book is a couple of years after the third book, so there a couple of things that were just thrown at you. Like two couples who weren't married before and were only courting suddenly are married and have kids, and there's no real lead up to it, like maybe she could have had one of the characters reminiscing over the last two years where it talked about these things, not just suddenly this couple brought this kid over. This book also leads directly in to the final book in the series, so I would recommend having that one on hand before you get this one.
This book is a couple of years after the third book, so there a couple of things that were just thrown at you. Like two couples who weren't married before and were only courting suddenly are married and have kids, and there's no real lead up to it, like maybe she could have had one of the characters reminiscing over the last two years where it talked about these things, not just suddenly this couple brought this kid over. This book also leads directly in to the final book in the series, so I would recommend having that one on hand before you get this one.
March 16, 2021
Book 4 is told from Lindsay's point of view. She has been my favourite character throughout this series so far, so I was really excited to get a whole book about her.
Lindsay is at a cross roads, she must decide if she is going to join the Amish church, or go back to her Englisch life. After an accident leaves her Englisch aunt injured, Lindsay must return to her old hometown to help her aunt out. She sees what it is like to be back in the Englisch world, and this helps her make her decision once and for all.
I really enjoyed this one. Lindsay stayed true to herself against a lot of opposition, which I really admired. It didn't end with things as wrapped up as I like, so I am looking foreword to seeing what else is install for Lindsay in the final book in the series. It wasn't as romantic as previous books, with Lindsay being away, but there was a little bit there, which was exciting enough.
If you are looking for a good Amish series, I recommend The Kauffman Amish Bakery series.
Lindsay is at a cross roads, she must decide if she is going to join the Amish church, or go back to her Englisch life. After an accident leaves her Englisch aunt injured, Lindsay must return to her old hometown to help her aunt out. She sees what it is like to be back in the Englisch world, and this helps her make her decision once and for all.
I really enjoyed this one. Lindsay stayed true to herself against a lot of opposition, which I really admired. It didn't end with things as wrapped up as I like, so I am looking foreword to seeing what else is install for Lindsay in the final book in the series. It wasn't as romantic as previous books, with Lindsay being away, but there was a little bit there, which was exciting enough.
If you are looking for a good Amish series, I recommend The Kauffman Amish Bakery series.
January 30, 2012
GENRE: AMISH
PUBLISHER: ZONDERVAN
PUBLICATION DATE: FEBRUARY 01, 2012
RATING: 4.5 OUT OF 5 � EXCELLENT
PROS: Lindsay’s struggles are easy to relate to; breaks out of the mould of traditional romantic Amish novels; revisits characters from earlier books in the series
CONS: Ending is very abrupt and leaves some unanswered questions
Eighteen-year-old Linsday Bedford has lived with her Amish aunt and uncle in Bird-in-Hand, Pennsylvania ever since her parents died in a car accident. While she’s settled into the Amish way of life and enjoys working in the family bakery and helping to care for her younger cousins, her older sister, Jessica, lives with a family friend back home in Virginia and is pursuing a college degree. Lindsay thinks that she’s settled in her new lifestyle, until her sister comes to visit and encourages her to experiment more in the English world that she grew up in and see all that she’s missing out on. As much as Lindsay enjoys life in Bird-in-Hand, she can’t help but wonder whether she’s letting her real parents down by not pursing a college degree and a career like her sister. So instead of taking baptismal classes with her friends, she spends the summer staying with Jessica’s legal guardians and caring their “Aunt�, who has broken her leg. But although the temptations of the English world are all around her, Lindsay feels uncomfortable wearing the typical beach clothes everyone in Virginia is wearing, attending rowdy parties with her old school friends and eating off paper plates in front of the television. As her old friends and neighbours question the way of life she’s been living with her aunt and uncle back in Pennsylvania, Lindsay also questions the route she’s meant to take in her life. Does God want her to be career-motivated like Jessica? Or is her contentment in Bird-in-Hand a sign that she’s meant to stay there?
Next to Beverly Lewis, Amy Clipston was the first Amish author I ever read. The first book in her Kauffman Amish Bakery series appealed to me because it wasn’t a standard romance, but the tale of two orphaned English teenagers who came to live with the childless Amish uncle and aunt. A Life of Joy revisits these teenagers, who are now young women, and follows Lindsay as she figures out which path in life she’s destined to take. This novel differs from a lot of other Amish novels in that at least half of it takes place in the “English� world in Virginia, where Lindsay is staying with family friends. But despite the lack of buggies and prayer kapps, Amy has crafted an incredibly compelling story. There’s a little romance in the background of the story, kept alive through letters and phone calls between Lindsay and a male friend back in Pennsylvania, but the main body of the story deals with Lindsay finding herself.
Any woman who has felt torn between the life God wants her to lead and that which the world and her peers think is best for her will be able to relate to Lindsay’s struggles. This book came at just the right time for me, so I may be a little biased in my review. I’ve known since I was a teenager that all I want to do in life is get married and have a family. I’d love nothing more than to be a stay-at-home mum; but right now I’m getting married this summer rather than pursuing an internship or searching for work experience bemuses my fellow classmates. I’m not driven like they are when it comes to career matters, but they don’t always understand this; just like Jessica doesn’t understand how her sister can enjoy baking pies and babysitting her cousins over going to college. I could completely empathise with Lindsay feeling pulled towards the English world even though she was normally content being Amish. Sometimes the pressures of friends and family make us feel like we’re not doing enough, just because we’re taking the path that most avoid. Reading about Lindsay’s search for the place she was meant to be and the role she was meant to inhabit truly encouraged me, and I hope it does the same for many other readers.
This is the fourth novel in the Kauffman Amish Bakery series, and unlike some books in the Amish genre I don’t think it can be read as a standalone. That said, long-term fans of Amy’s novels will be pleased to revisit characters like Lindsay and Jessica, as well as their aunt and uncle, in this novel. Characters from the second and third instalments in the series also appear in the background from time to time, as do popular locations such as the bakery and furniture store. But just as this book follows on from earlier instalments in the series, the ending left me wondering if Lindsay and Jessica’s stories were going to be concluded in the fifth and final book. I turned the page on my Kindle expecting another chapter or an epilogue to find discussion questions and had to go back and reread the last paragraph, surprised at how abrupt the ending was. While it was optimistic for Lindsay, I couldn’t help but feel that Jessica’s story wasn’t finished yet, and there were some unanswered questions regarding Lindsay’s aunt and one of her friends. I do hope that Amy plans to answer these questions in the final book in the series, and since she’s announced that she’ll be writing a YA spinoff of the Kauffman Amish Bakery series perhaps this will revisit some of Lindsay’s teenage friends.
The fourth novel in the Kauffman Amish Bakery series is just as delightful as those that came before it, and many readers will be able to relate to Lindsay’s struggles to discover her place in life. Long-term fans of the series will be pleased to revisit old favourite characters in A Life of Joy and will be left greatly anticipating the fifth and final instalment, A Season of Love.
Review title provided by Zondervan.
PUBLISHER: ZONDERVAN
PUBLICATION DATE: FEBRUARY 01, 2012
RATING: 4.5 OUT OF 5 � EXCELLENT
PROS: Lindsay’s struggles are easy to relate to; breaks out of the mould of traditional romantic Amish novels; revisits characters from earlier books in the series
CONS: Ending is very abrupt and leaves some unanswered questions
Eighteen-year-old Linsday Bedford has lived with her Amish aunt and uncle in Bird-in-Hand, Pennsylvania ever since her parents died in a car accident. While she’s settled into the Amish way of life and enjoys working in the family bakery and helping to care for her younger cousins, her older sister, Jessica, lives with a family friend back home in Virginia and is pursuing a college degree. Lindsay thinks that she’s settled in her new lifestyle, until her sister comes to visit and encourages her to experiment more in the English world that she grew up in and see all that she’s missing out on. As much as Lindsay enjoys life in Bird-in-Hand, she can’t help but wonder whether she’s letting her real parents down by not pursing a college degree and a career like her sister. So instead of taking baptismal classes with her friends, she spends the summer staying with Jessica’s legal guardians and caring their “Aunt�, who has broken her leg. But although the temptations of the English world are all around her, Lindsay feels uncomfortable wearing the typical beach clothes everyone in Virginia is wearing, attending rowdy parties with her old school friends and eating off paper plates in front of the television. As her old friends and neighbours question the way of life she’s been living with her aunt and uncle back in Pennsylvania, Lindsay also questions the route she’s meant to take in her life. Does God want her to be career-motivated like Jessica? Or is her contentment in Bird-in-Hand a sign that she’s meant to stay there?
Next to Beverly Lewis, Amy Clipston was the first Amish author I ever read. The first book in her Kauffman Amish Bakery series appealed to me because it wasn’t a standard romance, but the tale of two orphaned English teenagers who came to live with the childless Amish uncle and aunt. A Life of Joy revisits these teenagers, who are now young women, and follows Lindsay as she figures out which path in life she’s destined to take. This novel differs from a lot of other Amish novels in that at least half of it takes place in the “English� world in Virginia, where Lindsay is staying with family friends. But despite the lack of buggies and prayer kapps, Amy has crafted an incredibly compelling story. There’s a little romance in the background of the story, kept alive through letters and phone calls between Lindsay and a male friend back in Pennsylvania, but the main body of the story deals with Lindsay finding herself.
Any woman who has felt torn between the life God wants her to lead and that which the world and her peers think is best for her will be able to relate to Lindsay’s struggles. This book came at just the right time for me, so I may be a little biased in my review. I’ve known since I was a teenager that all I want to do in life is get married and have a family. I’d love nothing more than to be a stay-at-home mum; but right now I’m getting married this summer rather than pursuing an internship or searching for work experience bemuses my fellow classmates. I’m not driven like they are when it comes to career matters, but they don’t always understand this; just like Jessica doesn’t understand how her sister can enjoy baking pies and babysitting her cousins over going to college. I could completely empathise with Lindsay feeling pulled towards the English world even though she was normally content being Amish. Sometimes the pressures of friends and family make us feel like we’re not doing enough, just because we’re taking the path that most avoid. Reading about Lindsay’s search for the place she was meant to be and the role she was meant to inhabit truly encouraged me, and I hope it does the same for many other readers.
This is the fourth novel in the Kauffman Amish Bakery series, and unlike some books in the Amish genre I don’t think it can be read as a standalone. That said, long-term fans of Amy’s novels will be pleased to revisit characters like Lindsay and Jessica, as well as their aunt and uncle, in this novel. Characters from the second and third instalments in the series also appear in the background from time to time, as do popular locations such as the bakery and furniture store. But just as this book follows on from earlier instalments in the series, the ending left me wondering if Lindsay and Jessica’s stories were going to be concluded in the fifth and final book. I turned the page on my Kindle expecting another chapter or an epilogue to find discussion questions and had to go back and reread the last paragraph, surprised at how abrupt the ending was. While it was optimistic for Lindsay, I couldn’t help but feel that Jessica’s story wasn’t finished yet, and there were some unanswered questions regarding Lindsay’s aunt and one of her friends. I do hope that Amy plans to answer these questions in the final book in the series, and since she’s announced that she’ll be writing a YA spinoff of the Kauffman Amish Bakery series perhaps this will revisit some of Lindsay’s teenage friends.
The fourth novel in the Kauffman Amish Bakery series is just as delightful as those that came before it, and many readers will be able to relate to Lindsay’s struggles to discover her place in life. Long-term fans of the series will be pleased to revisit old favourite characters in A Life of Joy and will be left greatly anticipating the fifth and final instalment, A Season of Love.
Review title provided by Zondervan.
December 30, 2021
Another solid installment, revisiting the characters from book 1 in the series. The good: Rebecca is still as sweet as can be (and her growing family is adorable), Daniel has been redeemed as he takes a more father figure role with Rebecca's nieces, even offering Lindsay advice, and Lindsay is a great lead character trying to find where her place is (with the Amish or English). Oh, and Matthew has solid potential. The bad: Jessica is annoying as ever AND this story ended super abruptly. I get what the author was doing to end it when she did, but it was less effective than I think she was hoping for. I agree with other reviews that the book seems like a filler...but I think it would have been less of a filler if the author added another chapter or two. 3.5 stars
July 5, 2023
4.5 stars.
I really enjoyed reading this book and getting to know more about Lindsay and about the decisions that she would make about her future. Lindsay has to decide if she’s going to join the Amish church or go back to her “English� life and I loved her journey to discovering who she is, what she wants and what God wants for her.
I said this in the first book but I really don’t like Jessica. In the first book I somewhat understood her because she was a teenager but in this book she’s now 20 and she’s still so immature and selfish. She doesn’t realize how she can’t control what everyone does with their life or how much she hurts everyone that loves her. I hope to see her change in the last and final book in this series but I don’t know if she’ll be in it or not.
I really enjoyed reading this book and getting to know more about Lindsay and about the decisions that she would make about her future. Lindsay has to decide if she’s going to join the Amish church or go back to her “English� life and I loved her journey to discovering who she is, what she wants and what God wants for her.
I said this in the first book but I really don’t like Jessica. In the first book I somewhat understood her because she was a teenager but in this book she’s now 20 and she’s still so immature and selfish. She doesn’t realize how she can’t control what everyone does with their life or how much she hurts everyone that loves her. I hope to see her change in the last and final book in this series but I don’t know if she’ll be in it or not.
January 25, 2020
Great story about Lindsay, born English in Virginia Beach, but living with her Amish aunt and relatives in Pennsylvania for the last four years. Lindsay is now 18 and unsure if she wants to join the church and still uncertain of her calling. She continues to grapple between English and Amish life even as she has travelled back to Virginia Beach to assist her aunt/godmother after an accident. She also volunteers in a Nursing Home and becomes attached to an Amish patient. Lindsay encounters circumstances that become a turning point in her life and in the end, after much prayer she learns where she belongs.
July 19, 2023
In this fourth of a five-book series, we meet up again with Lindsay and Jessica Bedford. Four years ago their parents died and the girls went to live with their Amish Aunt Rebecca and Uncle Daniel. While Lindsay took to Amish life, Jessica went back to Virginia to live with her parents� English friends, Trisha and Jim. Now Jessica will be a junior in college and Lindsay is 18 and wondering whether she belongs in the English world with her sister or the Amish community that she loves. When Trisha needs help after surgery, Lindsay goes to Virginia to help. Will her trip to the English world of her past help her figure out her future? And what about Matthew Glick, on whom Lindsay is sweet?
July 2, 2018
Decisions of joining the church, her friends have decided, but Lindsay felt like something was holding her back. She is noticing Matthew, yet, he too is joining the church. Four years with the Amish, but was it for her. Her sister says she needs an education, but dies she. She enjoys the simply life, working at the bakery, and visisting with people. A book of choosing, which will be the right one for her.
December 16, 2019
I finally got my book focused on Lindsay! It definitely had me on edge for a little while. Had it not ended like it did I would have been worried. Well technically now I’m worried for another reason. I’m not a big fan of Katie or Lizzie Anne at this point. At the beginning of this book they were kinda judgmental with Lindsay. I’m more than ready for the fifth and final book.
I’m hoping this series ends fairly well.
I’m hoping this series ends fairly well.
January 28, 2018
Loved it. I am so glad this one was about Lindsay making her decisions on what she wanted in life. Was it to be Amish or English. Going back to Virginia to help her aunt Trish, gave her a look again at the English lifestyle. She kept thinking about what she was missing in Lancaster. Her sister Jessica kept harassing her about furthering her education, but was it that important to Lindsay.
April 20, 2020
I would have given this 3 1/2 stars if that was an option. I was annoyed endlessly by the use of Pennsylvania Dutch throughout. I didn't realize till the end there was a glossary. Most helpful if translations were footnoted or the glossary was placed at the beginning. Otherwise a good wholesome story. And a fine example of "sacrifice" & "duty".
November 5, 2020
I love this series so much following 2 English raised sisters that lost their mom who was raised Amish but left the faith to be English and having to live with their Aunt they didn't know in a culture they had no idea existed. One sister flourished in the culture while the other one felt suffocated. Love love love
December 3, 2017
This is the fourth book in the series. Lyndsay has gone back to Virginia to care for her parents best friend that has broken her leg. She battles with her old life and friends as she decides if she will become Amish forever. Another great read by this author.
March 30, 2018
I read all 5 books.
She does a nice job with dialog. She created a believable Amish town while exposing the reader to some of their culture. I read that she knows Amish families and has them proof read her books pre-publication.
She does a nice job with dialog. She created a believable Amish town while exposing the reader to some of their culture. I read that she knows Amish families and has them proof read her books pre-publication.
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