Malinda Stauffer lives in Southern Maryland, but visited
her aunt in Ohio to help her over illness. However,
Malinda's chronic illness chose that time to flare up, and
after a hospital stay she headed home. Some changes have
come to Amish country this fall, and her doting Mamm fills
her in on all the gossip. Poor Malinda just has to pray THE
MENDING of her health will occur if she is ever to find a
beau.
Timothy Brenneman works alongside Sam, Malinda's brother,
handcrafting Amish furniture. He's pleased that Malinda is
safely home. He doesn't know that the nineteen year old
lady is receiving letters from a doctor who tended her -
letters she doesn't want and doesn't know how to answer.
St. Mary's County is off the beaten track, but the doctor
is attending a conference in Baltimore and suggests he
might pay a social call. This would not be appropriate in
the Amish world, where even Timothy would have to court the
lady in the company of her family.
I enjoyed the busy home environment, full of late summer's
picking four different varieties of apples, canning and
cooking. The families love their home cooking and this
makes life all the harder for Malinda with her Crohn's
disease. She has to be careful what she eats and can't gain
weight. Crohn's is an auto-immune condition, like a
rheumatism of the digestive system. This is definitely the
first novel heroine I have read with this particular
illness, and it's good to show that it can strike all ages,
and how the sufferer is affected by a flare-up, as we all
need to learn to help others. Author Susan Lantz Simpson
deals sensitively with this issue, showing how Malinda
misses out on some normal socialising but is determined to
work as hard as anyone and not be considered sickly. Her
kind Mamm keeps trying to fatten her up, but pushing rich
food on her really doesn't help.
The family transport is Chestnut and the buggy. The
children here play with one another, pick pumpkins, collect
pinecones and pebbles, stroke kittens. This really is an
alternative lifestyle to homes with screens and computer
games. Enjoy THE MENDING as a break from busy modern life
and a reminder that we should treat others with
understanding. This unusual romance has a stubborn heroine,
a bashful hero and a deepening love. What more could we
ask?
With autumn’s golden glow, marriage season comes to
Southern Maryland’s Amish country. But is such joy meant for
all? . . .
Malinda Stauffer is happy that her gutfrienden Phoebe Yoder may soon be married. Of course,
Malinda can’t help wondering about her own future. She hopes
someday to find the same contentment as a wife and mother
that she has helping her own mamm care for Malinda’s
father and five brothers. But a challenging health issue has
her convinced no man wants the burden of a fraa who
needs rest when there are farms to tend and businesses to
run. Adding to her stress is the unwanted attention of an
aggressive big city doctor smitten by her—an unsettling
distraction she has kept to herself.
Timothy Brenneman works alongside Malinda’s brother, Sam,
handcrafting the finest Amish furniture in St. Mary’s
County. He can’t recall when Sam’s little schweschder
blossomed into a beautiful young woman—but he would do
anything to hold Malinda close and soothe the sad yearning
in her eyes. Sensing her unease at the mention of her doctor
only confirms his desire to protect her. Healing, however,
is in Gott’s hands, and a hard lesson in the true
meaning of love may soon bless them both in ways they never
imagined . .
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