Who wouldn’t love a good book for Christmas? Wonder no more about what to get your friends and loved ones—just find the closest description below and away you go!

*Disclaimer: Of course, we can’t guarantee someone will love their gift. But seriously, what’s not to love, right? We hope you enjoy browsing this fun Christmas gift-giving guide. Who knows? You might even find a little treat for yourself, too! Just click the image or one of the links below it to find a site where you can purchase a copy of the book.

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1. For the foodie who wants some “yum” with their fiction, we recommend…Made with Love by Tricia Goyer and Sherry Gore!

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Christianbook | Harvest House

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2. For the Amish fiction lover who’s read it all and wants something new, we recommend…My Brother’s Crown by Mindy Starns Clark and Leslie Gould!

(Note: This story is about another Protestant group called the Huguenots. Learn more about the similarities and differences between the Amish and the Huguenots in this article by Leslie Gould!)

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Christianbook | Harvest House

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3. For the friend who needs to believe in miracles this Christmas, we recommend…Anna’s Healing by Vannetta Chapman!

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Christianbook | Harvest House

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4. For the ebook aficionado who loves sweet novellas, we recommend…Amish Christmas Memories by Jerry S. Eicher, Mary Ellis, and Murray Pura!

(Note: This is an ebook-only collection of three previously published Amish Christmas novellas titled Susanna’s Christmas Wish, Sarah’s Christmas Miracle, and An Amish Family Christmas.)

Kindle | Nook | Christianbook

P.S. Did you know you can gift ebooks via email? Read this article to see how to gift a Kindle book from Amazon.com.

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5. For the teacher or student who knows the value of a good education, we recommend…An Unexpected Match by Gayle Roper!

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Christianbook | Harvest House

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6. For the incurable romantic who likes a lot of drama with the sweet, we recommend…Miriam and the Stranger by Jerry S. Eicher!

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Christianbook | Harvest House

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7. For the loved one who has always dreamed of living the simple life, we recommend…My Life as an Amish Wife by Lena Yoder!

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Christianbook | Harvest House

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8. For the curious soul with lots of questions about Amish culture, we recommend…Plain Answers about the Amish Life by Mindy Starns Clark!

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Christianbook | Harvest House

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9. For the one who wants to be inspired in her faith, we recommend…The Amish Book of Prayers for Women by Esther Stoll!

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Christianbook | Harvest House

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10. For the cook who knows the way to your heart, we recommend…99 Favorite Amish Recipes by Georgia Varozza!

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Christianbook | Harvest House

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Bonus: For the child or grandchild who shares your love of the Amish, we recommend…Blossoms on the Roof by Rebecca Martin!

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Christianbook | Harvest House

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Happy Christmas shopping!

Filed under: Amish Fiction, Esther Stoll, Gayle Roper, Georgia Varozza, Jerry Eicher, Lena Yoder, Leslie Gould, Mary Ellis, Mindy Starns Clark, Murray Pura, Sherry Gore, Tricia Goyer, Vannetta Chapman by Amber | AmishReader.com
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I suppose the thing that has fascinated me most about the Amish is their stance on non-violence, which is something they share with Hutterites, Quakers, and most Mennonites. So when I write my Amish stories, that aspect of their faith is prominent. And when my Mennonite neighbors buy and read my books, it is the aspect of my Amish stories they identify with.

But it is not the only thing they connect with. One woman, picking up The Wings of Morning, exclaimed, “Oh, your book is about us!” She said this because of the way the heroine is dressed on the front cover. The Amish and the Holdeman Mennonites do have a lot of the same clothing and physical appearance codes – women’s dresses must be full length, hair must be up and partially covered; the men must have short hair and sport no moustaches, but men who are married must have a bit of a beard on the chin.

On the other hand, Amish women normally wear dresses that are black or navy blue or other dark plain colors. Holdeman Mennonite dresses are colorful and have busy patterns. I met a young woman recently whose dress was dark purple and covered by scorching black flames. And the Holdeman (officially known as Church of God in Christ, Mennonite) drive pickups and cars, use quads and tractors and gas-driven combines. They also use cell phones and computers.

Yet at their core Amish and Holdeman Mennonites are the same – no musical instruments, no TV, no radio, no CDs, no applause, their ministers are bi-vocational and serve for life, bishops have a great deal of authority over all matters of life and faith, they don’t vote or enlist in the military or get involved in law enforcement. And they share a pacifist approach to life in a violent world. After reading The Wings of Morning one Holdeman woman asked me, “Do you believe the same way?” She was referring to the hero’s non-violent lifestyle, no less heroic for that choice in a story that takes place during World War One.

After years of writing about the Amish and living among the Mennonites (they have three houses on my street), I finally made the decision to write a story about my Holdeman Mennonite friends. I told them about this, but they don’t seem worried – perhaps they are more pleased than worried. I told them I was transplanting their congregation to New Mexico for the story’s setting but all the rest would be them. Including the romance. Because if they didn’t love romance, they wouldn’t be reading my books. And I can’t write about the Amish and the Mennonites without bringing into the stories all their common characteristics, which include the love of God and the love of a man for a woman.

Murray Pura earned his Master of Divinity degree from Acadia University in Wolfville, Nova Scotia, and his ThM degree in theology and interdisciplinary studies from Regent College in Vancouver, British Columbia. For more than 25 years, in addition to his writing, he has pastored churches in Nova Scotia, British Columbia, and Alberta. Murray’s writings have been shortlisted for the Dartmouth Book Award, the John Spencer Hill Literary Award, the Paraclete Fiction Award, and Toronto’s Kobzar Literary Award. His novels for Harvest House include The Face of Heaven, The Wings of Morning, and Ashton Park. Murray pastors and writes in southern Alberta near the Rocky Mountains. He and his wife, Linda, have a son and a daughter.

Filed under: Amish Fiction, Murray Pura by Amber | AmishReader.com
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We’re celebrating a sweet and simple Christmas here at AmishReader.com with a series of fun author interviews! Join some of your favorite Amish authors as they share happy reminiscences of Christmases past, interesting information on the Amish approach to the holiday, and fascinating lists of Christmas/book favorites. Find a cozy place by the fire or looking out on the wintry weather, prepare a mug of hot chocolate, and enjoy Part 3 of this special 3-part interview…

Featured Books:

• Christmas at Pebble Creek by Vannetta Chapman (FREE short story ebook)
• Sarah’s Christmas Miracle by Mary Ellis ($3.99 in ebook format through 1/6/2015)
• An Amish Family Christmas by Murray Pura ($3.99 in ebook format through 1/6/2015)

Welcome back, Vannetta, Mary, and Murray! Today, we’d like to know which one you’d choose out of two Christmas-themed options…

1. White Christmas or a sunny holiday?

• Vannetta: Well, I live in Texas so I usually have SUNNY, but I wouldn’t mind WHITE.

• Mary: Since I’ve lived in northern Ohio my whole life, I would pick a sunny holiday. I believe I’ve only had one once or twice!!

• Murray: White Christmas with tall evergreens and mountains.

Mary Ellis preparing for a draft-horse-drawn sleigh ride in Ohio’s Amish country

2. Riding in a horse-drawn sleigh or sledding downhill?

• Vannetta: Sleigh. Definitely sleigh.

• Mary: Definitely a horse-drawn sleigh. I’ve only done this once, but I loved it! I get too cold and wet while sledding.

• Murray: A sleigh ride is Christmas magic.

3. Lots of presents or one meaningful gift?

• Vannetta: One gift.

• Mary: Lots of small, inexpensive, practical gifts like socks, tablets, pens, or candy. I love opening presents.

• Murray: Too many gifts spoil the event. So a sock and one meaningful gift.

4. Big family dinner or a nice restaurant?

• Vannetta: Big family dinner – that way the dog is allowed to come.

• Mary: If we can get away, then a big dinner with out-of-town family in Kentucky or Texas.

• Murray: Family dinner for sure. There’s nothing like relaxing at home instead of not-really-relaxing at a restaurant.

Mary Ellis’s barn in the winter

5. Home for Christmas or traveling elsewhere?

• Vannetta: Home. I like to be snuggled on the couch with a fire blazing, my dog lying next to me, and holding a good book with everyone around me doing the same.

• Mary: Usually we travel for both Easter and Thanksgiving, so we’re home just the two of us for Christmas.

• Murray: Home is where the people are so if it means travel, fine, so long as road conditions or sky conditions permit, and the trip itself can be a happy part of the celebration, not a huge stress.

Thank you Vannetta, Mary, and Murray for joining us this week and helping us to celebrate Christmas here on AmishReader.com!

Giveaway!

Amish readers, share your choices for all 5 of the either/or scenarios (listed above) in the comments section to enter to win a paperback copy of An Amish Family Christmas by Murray Pura!

Fine print: Giveaway is open to residents of the U.S. and Canada only, and participants must be 18 years old or older to enter. A winner will be randomly selected and emailed on Friday, December 26th. This giveaway is in no way sponsored by or affiliated with Facebook, WordPress, or Twitter.

Filed under: Amish Fiction, Authors, Mary Ellis, Murray Pura, Vannetta Chapman by Amber | AmishReader.com
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We’re celebrating a sweet and simple Christmas here at AmishReader.com with a series of fun author interviews! Join some of your favorite Amish authors as they share happy reminiscences of Christmases past, interesting information on the Amish approach to the holiday, and fascinating lists of Christmas/book favorites. Find a cozy place by the fire or looking out on the wintry weather, prepare a mug of hot chocolate, and enjoy Part 2 of this special 3-part interview…

(Mary Ellis is pictured left)

Featured Books:

• Christmas at Pebble Creek by Vannetta Chapman (FREE short story ebook)
• Sarah’s Christmas Miracle by Mary Ellis ($3.99 in ebook format through 1/6/2015)
• An Amish Family Christmas by Murray Pura ($3.99 in ebook format through 1/6/2015)

Welcome back, Vannetta, Mary, and Murray! Today, we’re talking favorites.

Please name your favorite…

Amish Christmas recipe

• Vannetta: A yellow cake with homemade chocolate icing.

• Mary: My favorite Amish recipe is the Christmas cake recipe in the back of Sarah’s Christmas Miracle. It contains a pound of butter, a cup of yellow raisins, and 3 cups of chopped pecans. What’s not to like?

• Murray: Oh, I have one that can turn Christmas upside down it’s so good: a 30-day Amish Friendship Cake that includes pecans, walnuts, coconut, peaches, pineapple, cherries, raisins, vanilla, and brandy. Once the 30 days of preparation are completed, and the cake is finally baked to a golden brown, any Amish within a hundred miles will be knocking at your door and asking for a slice, bitte. The recipe is too long to include here, but if you write me via Harvest House I can provide it. Mind you, it will have to be for a late-January cake at this point, but that’s all right; it will help you beat the post-Christmas blues and the long winter doldrums.

Character in your story

• Vannetta: Grace.

• Mary: My heroine, Sarah, is my favorite. She’s complex and confused, as we all are at times, but she’s kind and has a heart for Jesus.

• Murray: Micah, the young man who is estranged from the Amish community after returning from a tour of duty as a medic in Afghanistan. He keeps his cool, fosters love, submits to the shunning, and is ready to help and bless the community despite the harshness of his situation.

Christmas tradition

• Vannetta: Opening one gift with our children on Christmas Eve.

• Mary: Traveling to downtown Cleveland to see the lights and attend services at the Old Stone Church on Public Square. I go with my husband now that my mom is gone.

• Murray: The Christmas Eve Box. Into it goes a selection of gifts that may be opened Christmas Eve. There are beverages to drink and the glasses to drink from; things to eat like specialty cheese and crackers and cold cuts, as well as a cutting board to prepare food on; a Bible and a book to read out loud. Everything you want to eat or drink or do on Christmas Eve is sealed in a beautiful box – either a decorated cardboard one or, in our case, an attractive chest handmade from knotty pine.

Element of your cover

• Vannetta: I love the green bow on the cover! The book looks like it’s been gift-wrapped!

• Mary: I love the model selected to be my Sarah. She’s so sweet and earnest looking.

• Murray: I love the use of burgundy and black on the cover; it’s a very pleasant color mix, in particular the young woman’s black cape contrasting with her maroon or burgundy dress.

Line from your story

• Vannetta: “Sometimes I wonder what would have happened if we’d all ridden together, if the buggy I was in had turned left instead of right. But as mamm says, it’s best not to wonder over what-if’s. We did turn right as the sun was slipping toward the horizon, and my life was never the same.”

• Mary: “Sometimes a person didn’t appreciate the goodness the Lord has bestowed until it was almost gone.”

• Murray: “My Lord, so much has changed for the better, and yet for the great change to come so much had to be lost—our pride, our hardness of heart, our tradition, our unwillingness to bend, our reluctance to think something we did not understand could be from you. It has not been easy. It has not been without pain. But neither has it been without its own special glory. And it has been your doing.”

Join us tomorrow (December 18th) for Part 3 of this interview with Vannetta, Mary, and Murray, as we talk about some either/or scenarios!

Filed under: Amish Fiction, Authors, Mary Ellis, Murray Pura, Vannetta Chapman by Amber | AmishReader.com
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We’re celebrating a sweet and simple Christmas here at AmishReader.com with a series of fun author interviews! Join some of your favorite Amish authors as they share happy reminiscences of Christmases past, interesting thoughts on the Amish approach to the holiday, and fascinating lists of Christmas/book favorites. Find a cozy place by the fire or looking out on the wintry weather, prepare a mug of hot chocolate, and enjoy Part 1 of this special 3-part interview…

Featured Books:

• Christmas at Pebble Creek by Vannetta Chapman (FREE short story ebook)
• Sarah’s Christmas Miracle by Mary Ellis ($3.99 in ebook format through 1/6/2015)
• An Amish Family Christmas by Murray Pura ($3.99 in ebook format through 1/6/2015)

AmishReader: Welcome, Vannetta, Mary, and Murray! Wonderful to have you here with us this week before Christmas. Tell us, what did you find most challenging about writing a story set during the Christmas season? Most fun?

• Vannetta: I live in Texas – so sometimes it’s hard to remember exactly what all of that snow and cold weather feels like. Christmas at Pebble Creek is set in Wisconsin, and they certainly have their share of winter weather. I did spend three years as a child living in Connecticut, so it was fun to pull out those pictures, look at the snow and mittens and sleds, and remember.

• Mary: The Old Order Amish celebrate the holiday differently than us, and not all districts celebrate the same way. I had the responsibility to “get it right,” at least for my specific community. The essence of the holiday season makes it fun, no matter what your denomination.

• Murray: You have to write the story well before Christmas occurs, so getting in a “Christmas mood,” and writing in that mood for several weeks and months, isn’t always easy. On the other hand, the process fixes your mind on a time of year that is normally quite pleasant, so it becomes a series of “feel good” writing sessions for the most part.

Amish schoolroom in Wisconsin (Courtesy of Vannetta Chapman)

 AmishReader: Please share one of your favorite Christmas memories. Did it have any bearing on your story?

• Vannetta: The story opens with Grace (the little girl from A Promise for Miriam) grown and now teaching school—they’ve just had the Christmas program and are about to have a short Christmas break. I have many good memories of Christmas from my childhood, but this story brought back memories from my teaching days. I loved teaching, and I especially liked the anticipation and fun during the days preceding Christmas break. I would read stories to my high school students—maybe O. Henry’s Gift of the Magi or Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol. Most students have seen cartoon renditions of these classics, but when they read the original story they understand why they became a classic. Some of my favorite Christmas memories are of sitting in a classroom, with 30 students around me, hanging on to every word I read and not wanting to leave when the bell rang. We had a lot of fun with snacks and decorations too! I try to put this love for teaching and reading into my stories.

• Mary: One of my favorite memories is riding the bus with my mom downtown to see the beautiful lights and displays on Cleveland’s Public Square. We couldn’t afford to shop in the fancy department stores, but we would ride the escalator to see the decorations on every floor. My Amish character, Sarah, takes a trip to Cleveland from Winesburg and experiences what I did as a child.

• Murray: I used to love to sit in the dark and look at the tree when it was all lit up. We had random blinking lights on the tree as well and, as a boy, I never got tired of watching them. However an Amish Christmas celebration is a different affair in many respects so my fondness for gazing at the tree in the dark never made it into my story.

Vannetta, Shelley, and Amy in Shipshewana

AmishReader: Have you ever visited Amish country during the holidays? What do you especially love about how the Amish celebrate Christmas?

• Vannetta: I have! I had the pleasure of being asked to lead the Christmas parade in Shipshewana, Indiana with Shelley Shephard Gray and Amy Clipston. That was a very special experience. We were put in a sleigh with beautiful horses, a lighted harness, and a warm blanket across our laps. It felt like we were in a fairy tale!

• Mary: I have visited Holmes and Wayne Counties in Ohio, several times during the holidays. I love how they concentrate on friends, family, and most of all, the Lord during this holy season. Englischers put too much importance on the commercial aspect of the season.

• Murray: I have not been in Amish country during the holidays – though Amish country has greatly expanded over the last decade and now there are five locations in nearby Montana – but I have read quite a bit about it. I would have to say I most admire the simplicity of their celebration and the absence of mass commercialization. Their Christmas is very worship-centered and family-centered.

Join us tomorrow (December 17th) for Part 2 of this interview with Vannetta, Mary, and Murray, as we talk about more Christmas favorites!

Filed under: Amish Fiction, Authors, Mary Ellis, Murray Pura, Vannetta Chapman by Amber | AmishReader.com
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We have a great deal right now on some fantastic reads! You’ll find all the titles listed below for $2.99/each — available wherever ebooks are sold!

This offer won’t last forever…it ends on Monday, January 21, 2013. So, check out your favorite ebook store today. And Happy Reading!

–Your Friends at AmishReader.com

Amish Novels

The Face of Heaven by Murray Pura

Lyndel Keim and Nathaniel King are at odds with their Amish colony when they join the Civil War effort.  A wound threatens Nathaniel’s life and Lyndel must call upon God. A dramatic and moving story set during America’s darkest hours.

The Wings of Morning by Murray Pura

Jude Whetstone and Lyyndaya Kurtz, whose families are converts to the Amish faith, are slowly falling in love. Jude has also fallen in love with flying that new-fangled invention, the aeroplane. An exciting historical romance set in 1917 during America’s participation in World War I.

Other Inspirational Fiction

Love Blooms in Winter by Lori Copeland

In a little town in North Dakota in 1892, an engagement, a runaway train, and a town of quirky, loveable people make for more of an adventure than a visiting railroad executive is expecting. But it is amazing what can bloom in winter when God is in charge of things.

Every book in the beloved “A Place Called Home” series by Lori Wick

A Place Called Home

After escaping to Baxter because of her grandfather’s deathbed warning, Christine begins to piece together a new life. The love she finds there, along with newfound faith, sustains her as she faces the threat of danger.

 A Song for Silas

Amy thought love would never pass her way again. She didn’t know how close it was…until she met Silas. A tender story of the flowering of hidden love and the nurturing of faith in the farmlands of Wisconsin.

The Long Road Home

Broken now in body as well as spirit, Paul must face his own heart as he encounters the love of God in the patient care of his nurse. This turn–of the century romance touches the shattered dreams of a young, widowed pastor with God’s faithfulness and the possibility of new love.

 A Gathering of Memories

Her heart was fragile from too much pain—would her defenses push Ross away? A poignant tale about love fulfilled, A Gathering of Memories will capture the hearts and minds of romantics everywhere.

Filed under: Amish Fiction, Lori Copeland, Murray Pura by AmishReader.com
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