Amish Values for Your Family: What We Can Learn from the Simple Life [Paperback]

Suzanne Woods Fisher (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1, 2011

For readers who long for strong families that know how to truly enjoy life together, there is much to learn from the Amish. Values like community, forgiveness, simple living, obedience, and more can be your family legacy--without selling your car, changing your wardrobe, or moving out to farm country.

In Amish Values for Your Family, bestselling author Suzanne Woods Fisher shows how you can adopt the wisdom of the Amish when it comes to family matters. In this inspiring and practical book readers will find charming true stories interlaced with solid, biblical advice about parenting, marriage, and all aspects of family life. As readers get an intimate glimpse into the everyday lives of real Amish families, they will learn to prioritize what's truly important, simplify decision-making, slow down as a family, safeguard time together, and let go when the time comes.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

"Amish Values for Your Family is charming! It will lift your spirits and bring you closer to the Amish."--Cindy Woodsmall, New York Times bestselling author of When the Soul Mends

When it comes to strong families that know how to truly enjoy life together, there is much we can learn from the Amish. Just how do they establish such strong family bonds, such deeply held values, and such wonderful family traditions? In Amish Values for Your Family, bestselling author Suzanne Woods Fisher shares the secrets of Amish family life. In this inspiring and practical book, you will meet real Amish families that are a lot like yours. Through their stories you'll discover how to

slow down
safeguard family time
raise children who stand strong in their faith
prioritize what's truly important

Amish values like community, forgiveness, simple living, obedience, and more can be your family legacy--without selling your car or changing your wardrobe.


Suzanne Woods Fisher is the bestselling author of Amish Peace and Amish Proverbs, as well as the Lancaster County Secrets novels. Her interest in the Anabaptist cultures can be directly traced to her grandfather, W. D. Benedict, who was raised in the Old Order German Baptist Brethren Church in Franklin County, Pennsylvania. Suzanne is the host of a radio show called Amish Wisdom. She lives in California.

About the Author

Suzanne Woods Fisher is the CBA bestselling author of Amish Peace and Amish Proverbs, as well as the Lancaster County Secrets series. Her interest in the Anabaptist cultures can be directly traced to her grandfather, W. D. Benedict, who was raised in the Old Order German Baptist Brethren Church in Franklin County, Pennsylvania. Benedict eventually became publisher of Christianity Today magazine. Suzanne is the host of a radio show called Amish Wisdom and her work has appeared in many magazines. She lives in California.

Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Revell (August 1, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0800719964
• ISBN-13: 978-0800719968
• Product Dimensions: 5.3 x 0.7 x 8.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (35 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #283,505 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

In no particular order, Suzanne Woods Fisher is a wife, mother, writer, lifelong student of the Bible, host of Amish Wisdom (a weekly radio show), raiser of puppies for Guide Dogs for the Blind, a gardener and a cook...the latter two with sporadic results.

Suzanne has loved to write since she was a young teen. After college, she started to write for magazines and became a contributing editor for Christian Parenting Today magazine. Her family moved to Hong Kong for four years, just as the internet was developing, and she continued to write articles in a 44-story high-rise apartment, sending manuscripts 7,000 miles away with a click of a key.

After returning from Hong Kong, Suzanne decided to give her first novel a try. For four and a half months, she worked on an antediluvian computer in a cramped laundry room. She didn't even tell her husband what she was up to. When the novel was completed, she told her family at dinner one night that she had written a book. "That's why there's no food in this house!" said her slightly insensitive sons.

Undaunted...Suzanne found a small royalty publisher for that book and wrote three more (all earned multiple). With help from an agent, she has five books currently under contract with Revell. On September 1st, Amish Peace: Simple Wisdom for a Complicated World, a non-fiction book of stories and examples about the Old Order Amish, will be released by Revell. The Choice, a novel about the Amish, will follow on January 1st.

Writing, for Suzanne, is a way to express a love of God and His word. With every book or article, she hopes readers get a sense of what faith really looks like in the daily grind. She hopes they realize that life can be hard, but God is good, and never to confuse the two.

Suzanne can be found on-line at: www.suzannewoodsfisher.com

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Amish Values for Your Family August 11, 2011

By Lollipops

Format:Paperback

Amish seem to know what they are doing when it comes to raising strong families. They enjoy life together, work together, play together, and even have strong extended family ties. What do they do differently than us? And how can we recreate their method in our busy lives?

Suzanne Woods Fisher addresses that issue in AMISH VALUES FOR YOUR FAMILY. She tells a true story about an Amish family or someone well acquainted with the Amish, and then works in practical applications for us to implicate. That is followed by two quotes by Amish scribes in different parts of the country.

In this book, Suzanne shares how the Amish can teach us to:

. slow down
. safeguard family time
. raise children who stand strong in their faith
. prioritize what's truly important

The book is divided up into four sections:

1. Children are loved but not adored
2. Great expectations
3. Daily bread
4. Letting go

I read through this book in one sitting, but it is meant to read slowly, so you can absorb the principles in the pages. I will be going back through this book again to fully understand some of the ideas, especially the ones that our family doesn't already do. If you are looking for a simpler life, a closer family, and having your priorities straight, then AMISH VALUES FOR YOUR FAMILY is a book to pick up. You won't be disappointed.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars If Heart of the Amish Appeals to You, You'll Want to Grab a Copy... September 10, 2011

By Kelly Klepfer VINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback

I'm not in love with Amish fiction, which seems to be on the top of the book pile of popularity. So, I've not read any of Suzanne Woods Fisher's novels.

But, I am fascinated by the Amish lifestyle. There is a part of me, buried deep within my soul, that wants to live simply and in a tight knit family-rich society. I read and watch documentaries about this simple way of life with a little bit of envy and a lot of wistful sighing. I know I've romanticized the Amish. There is a deep sense of mystery to them, and a steadfastness that is the polar opposite of modern society. Their lives are hard, and I'd miss things like my every other month pedicure if I set out to join up with a group of simple people. (And probably my husband, too, he would make for an impressive Amish man but don't think he shares my longing.)

All that said. If you feel the way I do about the simple life. If there is a longing in your soul to work hard and shun modern conveniences and distractions, you probably need to just go ahead and click on the "add to my cart" button. (Another English convenience I'd miss.)

Fisher covers dozens of aspects and attitudes of Amish life and recounts stories and examples from Amish folks. She then sifts through the simplicity of the Amish lifestyle to the core issue, names it and suggests what we English can add to our own lives and families to capture the sense of simple. With quotes and sweet stories, moments of convicting thoughts, and helpful suggestions, she makes it possible to choose to simplify where we can so that we can have a taste of the peace and fulfillment that seems to occur in a life lived simply.

If you took the time to read the review, you just probably need to get a copy.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars MUST read for EVERY family!!! September 28, 2011

By E. K. Collins

Format:Paperback

I really like this one. I think every family in this crazy busy world needs to read this. There are stories of the Amish- but also ideas at the end of each story on how to make a simpler more satisfying family life. There is something in here for everyone. It has made me realize how busy we are- running from here there to everywhere. I need to remember to stop and smell the roses and play with my kiddos. Values are sometimes forgotten in our busy lives- a child asks why they should not steal and we say because it is against the law- is that really the reason? Sometimes we forget to instill values into our children so that they can become good citizens later in life. I really feel this book hits the nail on the head- Amish values can be used in my family- can they in yours too?