A Gift of Grace: Zondervan Author Amy Clipston Hits Home in Lancaster with Story of Living a New Life after Death

"A Gift of Grace" is an authentic read. This novel by author Amy Clipston captured my interest from the moment the cows welcomed Rebecca Kauffman home to Lancaster, Pennsylvania. For Lancaster is also my hometown and the same feeling I receive every time I travel home.

Rebecca is Amish and unable to have children of her own. When her sister, Grace, who has left the Amish culture, dies unexpectedly in a car accident, Rebecca becomes guardian to her two teenage nieces.

Imagine this scenario for just a moment. Taking two teenagers (ages 14 and 15) out of the English culture with their access to technology including telephones, computers, music, television and video, and transporting them into the Amish culture that seems stuck in time. It would be a shock to both of the English girls and to everyone living in the Amish home. Talk about a period of required adjustment. It would not be easy.

Beyond that, dealing with the death of a mother and sister, the characters' plates are filled both emotionally and physically. "A Gift of Grace" is not an easy road of facing death and living a new life. The teenagers are going to have a completely new life on the Amish farm, as both of their parents are now dead. That is compounded by the loss of the modern day lives they once knew.

Clipston manages to capture the simple beauty of living on an Amish farm. I grew up around the Amish in Lancaster County and Clipston has clearly done her homework, by sharing the details in the beauty of a simpler life.

The dichotomy between being raised in the city and living a new life in the middle of the country without modern day conveniences is intriguing. Adding in the emotions of dealing with the deaths of your parents, long-term life choices need to be made. Clipston's talent of interweaving smaller moments into many scenes reminds the reader of the deceased Grace at every turn. The sound of Grace's name, Grace's wedding ring hanging on her daughter's necklace, and Rebecca's reminder to Daniel that the girls are all she has left of Grace. The stress put on a marriage by these dramatic additions to their family was palpable. I found myself in tears as I reminded myself these were fictional characters. But, in my work of conducting funeral services, this story read authentically in relationships, facing unexpected loss, emotion and setting.

The reader is left with the question: How do you go on after a tragedy like this one?

In Clipston's writing, the reader feels safe even when there are tears. Clipston is a crafty author who doesn't overwhelm the reader with melodramatics that are built into facing significant loss. Life can be pure drama and depression after someone dies. But, Clipston doesn´t allow the reader to wallow in pain. Instead, she encourages the reader to learn what is possible while facing the impossible.

Add in the true voice of a modern day teenager, it seems to put life into perspective. "I don't know how I will charge my phone or my iPod."

How I'd love to send my kids to an Amish farm for a summer, without the drama of dealing with death. This thought keeps me reading. How would my own teenagers (also ages 14 and 15) face this dilemma? They would be in pure shock, while also appreciating the beauty of nature that they've never experienced in the city life they know best. Would they stay on the Amish farm or would they return to city life, the life they knew the best?

"A Gift of Grace" is an education to both the English and Amish. I don't know that this book will be made available in Amish communities, but I would love to hear their feedback because the two communities oftentimes collide unexpectedly in the real world. How do we accept our similarities and dramatic differences?

If you've ever been inside of an Amish home or experienced time with an Amish family, you quickly realize that life decisions default to the man of the house. Clipston captures the patriarchal society of Amish culture, as Rebecca's husband, Daniel, is very much in control of the household. Beyond that, the Bishop also has a say in every household and the working order of how they live. Although they are very polite, outsiders are not always embraced in the Amish community.

The change in culture is so difficult for the older girl, Jessica, which the reader expects. It is a complete change in her lifestyle and she rebels terrifically against it.

"A Gift of Grace" is very well written and an authentic take on Amish culture, especially considering that Clipston has never lived among the Amish.

The overall message of "A Gift of Grace" is a powerful one. No matter your limitations or circumstances, you can choose a path to move forward after dealing with loss. Not everybody can go down the same path toward healing, but you need to find what works for you. The individual answer can be found in living life.

"A Gift of Grace" by author Amy Clipston and published by Zondervan is available in bookstores, select Wal-Marts, and online through Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com, Borders.com, Christianbooks.com, and other major booksellers.

For more information on author Amy Clipston visit www.amyclipston.com

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