Many of you know that I am writing Amish-themed fiction now.  It just seemed like a logical way to channel some of what I've learned about the Amish through the years.  And, besides, everyone else is doing it!:)  I consider myself a writer first. I'm just a writer who happens to have a lot of experience with the Amish.  Of course, Beverly Lewis is the "grande dame" of Amish-themed fiction.  She sort of invented the genre, and now bunches and bunches of writers (including yours truly) are jumping on the bandwagon.  I'll be honest, I've never read more than excerpts of Lewis's work. My wife has read one of her books.  It's just not my favorite genre to read (oh, but I am reading a gripping Stephen King novel now:), but I am enjoying the writing.  Especially once I decided to get into the game myself I didn't want to bias my writing in any way by reading the work of others.  I didn't want to be influenced or be accused of parroting the existing formulas out there. I wanted a clean slate and to begin my own style and interpretation of Amish life projected into fiction.  My first work was Rebecca at the Beach, an 88 page novella which you can buy for 99 cents on your Kindle or Nook,  You can also buy it at Amazon  as a hard copy book.  But my first full-length Amish-themed fiction will be out later this year. I doubt it'll fit into the same mold as a Beverly Lewis or a Wanda Brunstetter (I am a guy writer, after all:), but I'm hoping you all will enjoy it just the same!
In the meantime, a Colorado publication (where Lewis lives) ran a nice interview with her where she talks about the genre she invented. Click here to read it. Do you like her work? Â Do you dislike it? Which is your favorite Beverly Lewis novel?
Linda from KY
I am a huge fan of Beverly Lewis' novels. She's the one who got me interested in the Amish culture. I didn't even know what Amish was until then. After I started reader her books I began to be interested in The Amish Cook column. My family accuses of me of having an obsession with the Amish, but it's not true. I just find their simple way of life interesting, and fiction books about them are clean and wholesome. I've noticed that the vast majority of the Amish authors I've read so far, including Lewis and Brunstetter, have some type of family connection to the Amish. It certainly follows the old maxim of writing what you know.
Linda from KY
I can pick a favorite series by Beverly Lewis, but not a single title. That would be the two-part series with the titles, The Postcard and The Crossroad. I own the series, and I've read it several times.
Tiffanie
I love her first series, "The Shunning" etc.(Hickory Hollow), because I'm also a red head and adopted. It was also my first introduction to her work. But I also love the Abram's Daughters series. Such wonderful characters!
I can't wait to listen to the interview...right now!
michelle
I am a fan. I have read many of her books. But I did find The Secret to go on and on . We find out the mom has a secret in the first chapter, And that's about all we have learned by the last chapter. It made for a long read.
Bonnie
Love her books, have bought most of them in paperback. Now I have a kindlefire so I buy them on it. Will buy your book and read it too.
Denise
Beverly Lewis has a gift of immersing the reader into Amish culture. I loved the "Abram's Daughter's" series.
Joyce
I guess I'm in the minority because as much as I like the genre and have read most Amish fiction books out there, I really disliked Beverly Lewis' books. I found the dialog distracting as it sounded more Irish than Amish to me. I've never met an Amishman or Amish woman who sounded like that. Then her take on adoption was absurd. I remember asking someone, "What do you do when you're reading a book and you really dislike the main character??" So no, I'm not a fan. I guess I need to put on my flame retardant suit now 😉
Linda from KY
You'll get no flaming darts or tomatoes from me. You voiced your opinion, which is what Kevin asked us to do.
Have a blessed day! 🙂
Phyllis Barger
Beverly Lewis is tops in her genre. Just spend time in Shipshe or Berne or Napanee and you hear the Amish speak their form of Dutch German...they speak English to us Englishers but when they talk to one another it is never in English. Ms. Lewis opens our eyes to a whole world that is so unlike ours. I've been to several Amish homes and they look just like ours inside...running water, bathrooms,etc. with the exception all is run by a gas generator and their lighting is kerosene. They are the most hospitable people you could ever meet. Many years ago my husband was a milkman who picked up Amish milk . He hardly ever came home empty handed. They were always giving Tommy freshly butchered meat or baked goods. I see all those things in Beverly's writing. She captures the true essence of Amish life. That too is the reason Lovina's column is so special...a glimpse into the daily life of an Amish woman.
Carolyn Price
I too did not know a thing about the Amish until I read my first series of Amish fiction. I beleive that would be Abram's daughters. I now have a whole library of Amish fiction. I beleive Beverly Lewis, and Wanda Brunstetter are among my favorite, but there are many great ones out there. It is a breath of fresh air each time I read a Omish novel. It is clean reading in a world where so many things seem to be going so wrong. I would like to get Keven's book in the near future also.
Mona G.
Hi Kevin,
Could not get any sound where you are showing those books, and you don't hold them up long enough to even see the names of them 🙂 Don't be so fast.....Is there a problem with your sound ? Mine is working on everything else I click on.....