The Preacher's Daughter

by Beverly Lewis

Book Overview

Annie's People Book 1- A new series from The New York Times bestselling author of the ABRAM'S DAUGHTERS series The Preacher's Daughter begins a remarkable journey of heartache and homespun delight--a series readers will find impossible to forget. Paradise, Pennsylvania, is likened to a little slice of heaven on earth...but for Annie Zook--the preacher's eldest daughter--it seems like a dead-end street. She is expected to join the Amish church, but...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0764201050
• ISBN13: 9780764201059
• Release Date: November 2005
• Publisher: Bethany House Publishers
• Length: 350 Pages
• Weight: 0.76 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.5" x 8.7"

Customer Reviews

Friends in High Places

Beverly Lewis paints an engaging and colorful tale in the first rendering of her series, Annie's People. Annie Zook is the daughter of the preacher of the Plain People in idyllic Paradise, Pennsylvania. Although Annie loves and respects her family and loves her Amish life, she is putting off becoming a member of the church, much to the consternation of her father. Conflicted with the God-given artistic ability that she has been secretly nurturing, Annie is at a cross-road. She has been hiding her beautiful artwork because her strict Amish beliefs forbid such things. Annie also recently broke off the relationship with the man she loved because she knew she would have to give up her an important part of herself. When Louisa, Annie's long-time penpal and art teacher from the English world asks to visit Annie's Amish world to escape the aftermath of breaking off her own engagement, Annie finds a kindred spirit. How the two girls accept, encourage and are open and honest with one another through their individual dilemmas is a poignant story of love, friendship and steadfast faith. - Victoria Austin

Heartwarming and satisfying!

What can I say about this wonderful-gut book that hasn't already been said? I immediately felt absorbed into this community and into an emotional connection with the characters. The unlikely friendship and sisterly bonds between Annie and Louisa was so heartwarming! How could I not relate to Louisa and her desire to escape the rat-race and simplify her life to find a deeper meaning? I usually don't like endings that leave loose ends unresolved, but in this case, the author has achieved her purpose in leaving me longing for more, and I'm glad the follow-up book is only two months away. Annie's People is destined to be a series as compelling as Abram's Daughters. It is equally as well-written and absorbing, with wonderful insight into this often mysterous and misunderstood culture. I hope it's ok to add this here, but I want to recommend an obscure book that Beverly Lewis fans are sure to embrace. Don't cringe or overlook it because it's a harlequin book - It will provide a highly satisfying fix while waiting for the next installment in the Annie's People series: Reluctant Witness by Linda Markowiak

Charming Beginning to a New Series

The Preacher's Daughter is a charming beginning to a new series by Christian author Beverly Lewis. In this first novel, Annie Zook is a young Amish woman who is struggling with her love of art and her dedication to her church. Already having given up her first boyfriend, Rudy, because she is afraid of her forbidden secret coming out, Annie has yet to make the committment to God and her church that is expected of her. Being the preacher's daughter makes her all the more torn by her desire to continue drawing and painting. Annie is joined in her life indecisions by her penpal Louisa, who comes to Paradise, PA, to escape overly controlling parents and a bad engagement. The two young women bond over their art and experiences until Annie is forced into making her hardest decision ever. Lewis manages to throw in a mystery, a side story of spousal abuse, and a possible non-Amish romantic interest for Annie in this well-developed book. Coming on the heels of the wonderful Abram's Daughters series, this one shows promise of becoming just as engrossing in later novels. *Slightly* less gripping than the aforementioned series, this is still Lewis giving us insight into the Plain way of life and giving us wonderful characters with lots of heart. Recommended!

A sweet and interesting tale exploring the conflicts of an Amish woman

New York Times bestselling author Beverly Lewis has made a name for herself exploring the lives of Amish women, and in THE PREACHER'S DAUGHTER, the first installment of her Annie's People series, she shows why she's become one of inspirational fiction's queens of the gentle read. Where does responsibility to family, church, and community give way to an individual's God-given gifts and talents? Lewis explores this question through the character of 20-year-old Annie Zook, the daughter of an Old Order Amish preacher. Annie and her family live in a remote area of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, appropriately called "Paradise" (a real place, by the way). From her earliest years, Annie has loved to draw and paint, but at six, her father shamed her when she drew a black kitten. Since then, Annie has hidden her artwork from her family. She despairs of choosing between her art and her desire to be a dutiful daughter, and doesn't understand why her church has forced her into making this choice. "It annoys me no end that some Amish bishops allow for artistic expression, permitting their people to create and sell art, while our bishop does not." There's more guilt. Although Annie loves Rudy Esh, she isn't willing to put aside her art, join the church, and marry him. He's moved on to a new sweetheart, and Annie finds herself obliged to be polite to them both, although she still cares for him. It's impossible to carry a load of guilt like this alone, and Annie's safety valve is her pen-pal relationship of more than a decade with the newly engaged 22-year-old Louisa Stratford, an art teacher who lives in Colorado. Lewis compellingly shows how both women idealize the life of the other. Louisa, who's chafing against her mother's opulent wedding plans for her, finds that "Excessive extravagance had begun to slowly sicken her toward all she had grown accustomed to." Annie is convinced that Louisa has everything anyone could want since she's free to express herself through art; Louisa pines for the simplicity and tight-knit family ways of Annie's Plain folks' life. The subplots create some nice parallel tension to Annie's narrative. Among these are the mysterious disappearance of a young child years ago, perceived rebellion against the church, unsuitable love interests, the long-term effects of tragedy on a family, and the abuse of a young mother. Readers new to Amish culture may be surprised by some of the controversies faced by the characters, especially the "rebellion" against her church by Esther Hochstetler for her belief that her salvation is sure. The multiple storylines and points of view, part of Lewis's setting up the new series, are handled fairly adeptly, although two "prologues" may be a bit much. There are a few other quibbles. An emergency home birth is rather a cliché for fiction fans (how many novels has this scene been a part of?). Sometimes the description of food at each meal seems more like a menu than a natural part of the narrative ("Foll

Another great book from Mrs. Lewis

I read this book in 2 days! I could't put it down. I always find it interesting to read Lewis' books because there are 3 or 4 stories going on at once. She ties them all together very well so I never feel 'lost' when I'm reading. I eagerly await the next book in this series.