Dairy farmer Abe Stoltzfus hopes to get around to proposing to Lavinia Fisher, but he’s feeling inclined to leave it until farm goods sales are better. While doing some mending, he takes a tumble off the farmhouse roof and everything changes. THE AMISH FARMER’S PROPOSAL will have to wait.

This gentle romance is the third in a series called Hearts of Lancaster County. The Amish of this Old Order community make some compromises towards modern convenience. For instance, they might carry a cell phone for farming emergencies, and hire a local person to drive them if needed. But farming life has its own rhythm, and weddings happen after harvest. 

Young Lavinia sees Abe fall off the roof as she drives her buggy to visit. She flags down a passing motorist and asks him to call 911. From then on, she spends a lot of time in the hospital, as the staff mistakes her for Abe’s frau and his parents, Faron and Waneta, who are getting elderly, don’t correct the impression. Abe can’t consider a wedding when he learns that his mobility is lost. He has what might be temporary paralysis along with a broken arm and concussion. Oh, and the roof still leaks.

Trying to be brave, Lavinia keeps making rag rugs. Lavinia’s mother Emma runs a store selling Amish handicrafts and the girl always intended to contribute to her new family when she married. But with milk prices so low, and Abe in a wheelchair, there’s no telling when that day will come.

The romance makes a lot of good points, such as the need to support farmers, even as we enjoy alternative drinks made of almonds or soy. Abe’s cows are grazing open fields, living to a fine age, and cared for like family. That’s worth a lot. Small family farms are shown as almost self-sufficient, with extra produce being canned or bottled for winter as soon as it’s ripe, and freshly picked greens set on the table each day. 

The busy tale features others who are getting on, and sometimes they aren’t doing so well. Farm life is hard on the body, and people wear out. Some are also slipping into confusion but recognise the faces they’ve known for decades. Community support is such a valuable service and it goes further than the stock image of barn-raising. Barbara Cameron presents a well-rounded picture in THE AMISH FARMER’S PROPOSAL and helps us to make up our minds about the kind of community we’d like to encourage. This is a thoughtful and enjoyable romance.