The Photograph

Lewis (The Love Letters), writing in her gentle, heartwarming fashion, unveils likable characters amid a richly described Amish culture of faith, community, and tradition. Eva, Frona, and Lily Esch, shaken by the untimely deaths of their parents, wonder what their futures will hold. The young women face uncertainty very differently, and soon Eva and Frona discover that Lily, the youngest, has run away. While the search for Lily progresses, the sisters must wrestle with the news that their brother intends to take over the family home. An engaging buggy maker, Jed Stutzman, arrives from a distant community, carrying a photograph of a young Amish woman. Such images are forbidden in their culture, and little does Jed know how it will affect his own future, as well as the lives of the Eva and her sisters. Lewis relies on her tried-and-true pattern (why change an award-winning style?), and her latest offering should more than satisfy her many fans. (Sept.)