A Life of Joy: A Novel (Kauffman Amish Bakery Series)

I love this series and have truly appreciated the fact that Amy keeps so many of this large family members alive throughout this wonderful series.In this particular book Lindsay struggled with her decision whether she wanted to dedicate herself to the Amish faith or go back to her English roots. After all she had really felt at home the last 4 years (after her mother's death) living with her Aunt and Uncle in the Amish Community surrounded by love ... working in the bakery and having best friends. However, she was being pressured by her older sister, Jessica, who had chosen to go back to the English world .. that there was so much more out there for her. That she was selling herself short if she "only" stayed and worked in the bakery and helped out her family and would become a wife and a mother. She felt so pulled as this was the time for her to join the church .. or not! She also had felt a connection to Matthew .. or was he just a friend? All these decision ... and so many things pulling her at once.Then her mother's friends that helped out and were so close to her and raised her sister in the English world needed help when her "Aunt" (not really but referenced her this way) Trish fell and broke her leg badly and they needed her help. Of course, her sister was much too busy going on with her life to help her so it fell to Lindsay to interrupt her life and go into the English world and help ... but maybe this was meant to be. We get to explore her struggles of being in the English world but after 4 years of living in the Amish world is she really Amish now? Meanwhile her sister is still pushing and pulling for her to "better" herself!I think the ending of the book was my disappointment more than anything ... was happy with her decision just felt that it didn't carry it far enough it just kind of ended and that was that ... hoping that the next book maybe includes more of her story and makes me feel a bit better about this ... I feel that I know the ending of what she did ... I would just have liked to enjoy it after all of her struggles with her ...LOL! Maybe got a bit too involved in this book? Definitely hope this series continues have loved following this warm and loving family! However, I only gave it a 4 star because of the ending ..

Lindsey was indeed the better sister. Her sister Jessica is a bit much. Rebecca is the sisters aunt. This is a great book.

I like how I can relate to some of the characters. I would recommend this book to my friends. I enjoyed reading the book.

Mine own reading enjoyment.

All of Amy Clipston's titles are part of my library! I just love reading about the Amish and the Kauffman Amish Bakery Series is my all time favorite! I am almost finished reading this book and, like all of her books, you just can't put it down. Amy has a wonderful way of capturing the Amish culture and drawing you in where you just want to keep reading and reading until the wee hours of the morning! When you read Amy's books you will want to savor the characters as they become your neighbors and friends. All of her books gently teach lessons in faith, life and love. The only disappointment with her books is when you read the last page and you realize you have finished and then you have to wait until her next publication to read more about the characters! Her writing style is different as Amy teaches us that we all have our own story of what makes us who we are. AND and added bonus is that each book includes recipes that were incorporated in the story!I have even read her two non-Amish titles, Roadside Assistance and Betrayed. As I said, all of her titles are good reading and all have a place on my shelf in my library! Never a disappointment!

In reading book 1, I became intrigued with Jessica and Lindsay's story. Books 2 and 3 barely.touched on them, though we did get to know the Kaufman family.better. I really enjoyed following Lindsay's story in this book. I enjoyed seeing her determine where she belonged. Jessica made me kind of mad. I felt badly for her in book 1, but I was annoyed with her in this one.

Another great book in this series. It shows while going back to the place you lived while you were young can have some good memories, it can also show you that you are no longer the same person and it is not where you belong at this stage of your life. Also, sometimes you learn to do things that you don't think of as special....like speaking another language....but then an opportunity arises where you are the only one around who can communicate with a sick or injured person and help the medical people know what is wrong. God uses everything we learn along the way to show us how valuable we can be to others. Again, a very good story. Now on to the next one!

I really enjoyed this book series I’m going on to book 5 can’t wait to see what’s next. Great read

GENRE: AMISHPUBLISHER: ZONDERVANPUBLICATION DATE: FEBRUARY 01, 2012RATING: 9 OUT OF 10 - EXCELLENTPROS: 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 seriesCONS: Ending is very abrupt and leaves some unanswered questionsEighteen-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.

I can forgive the author for not finishing one or two aspects of the story because amy,s insights into godly living are wonderful. A relaxing transforming learning experience novel.

I bought this book, because the storyline was very close to another Amish Fiction Novel I read. It is super interesting to read about an english girl becoming amish, because a lot of books are the other way around. I learnt a lot of new things about amish culture and way of life!The story is nicely written and I really liked the characters! You just feel like your in the bakery with everybody:)

This final book in the Amish Bakery Series was a good read. I am sorry to see the series end but it has been a nice journey with the characters. Really wanted to see how it ended up for Jake though. I would recommend this book to others.

good book