Introduction: The Bridesmaid by Beverly Lewis
The Bridesmaid (Home to Hickory Hollow)
Have you ever read a good book, but struggled to understand the characters because their cultures are so different from yours. For me, The Bridesmaid by Beverly Lewis, which I won in a giveaway, was such a book for me. This book is set in an Amish community, and so far, I have read about six books with similar settings.
The book affected me deeply because I am an active reader, so I immerse myself in the story, and try to see which character, if any, is most like me, and I really liked the protagonist Joanna Kurtz, but I resented the constraints that prevented her from being her best self.
But who am I to make that kind of judgment to determine another person’s best self? Who am I to force my beliefs on others? What makes one culture superior to another? And who makes that call? These are important questions – just look around our world today at all the conflicts.
For many in the Western world, we are constantly told we can be anything we want to be, if we just work hard enough, but the same rules do not apply in an Amish community where the greater collective good is more important than that of the individual. Books like The Bridesmaid (Home to Hickory Hollow)
by Beverly Lewis are relevant because they allow us to be more culturally sensitive. Although I do not think I could thrive in communities like the Amish, I appreciate that members are always helping each other, it’s what they do. They live the tenet, I AM MY BROTHER’S KEEPER.
What is The Bridesmaid by Beverly Lewis About?
In the story, Joanna Kurtz is considered old to still be single, at the ripe old age of 24 (tongue in cheek). She’s been asked once again to be a bridesmaid, and it’s a classic case of “three times a bridesmaid, never a bride”, at least in the mind of her younger sister, Cora Jane. Although she is worried that she may not take a trip down the aisle as a bride, Joanna refuses to believe those “old wives tales.”
The Kurtzs live in Hickory Hollow, Pennsylvania, but they have travelel to Virginia Beach because a relative has died. One day while at the beach, just sitting on the sand, Joanna spots a handsome Amish guy, Eben Troyer, taking photos, which is an unlikely sight. Eben approaches her and they start talking. It so happens that Eben is in Virginia Beach for the same reason. For the short time that both are in Virginia Beach, they spend most of their time together.
When Joanna returns to Hickory Hollow, and Eben to Shipshewana, Indiana, they start a long distance relationship via the mail. Joanna or Eben do not tell others about their relationship. After conversing by mail for a while, Eben asks Joanna for the phone number for the community phone. In the Amish community, the phone is supposed to be used only for emergencies and conducting business. But Joanna gives him the number anyway, and now, in addition to communicating by letters, they also talking by phone every other Friday.
Her relationship with Eben is not the only thing that Joanna is keeping as a secret, she is also a closet writer, and is very good at her craft. She writes in notebooks and hides them in her hope chest because in her culture she is not allowed to write “make believe” stories.
Through Joanna’s letters, Eben realizes that Joanna will not be willing to move to Indiana, so he will have to move to Hickory Hollow. But there is one problem with that scenario because Eben’s father is dependent on him to help with the family farm, until his younger brother Leroy returns to the fold. Leroy has shunned the Amish way of life because he aspires to be a pilot, and he craves the life in the English world. If Leroy doesn’t return to Shipshewana, then Eben has a big problem.
After the couple has been communicating for a while, Eben decides to visit Joanna in Hickory Hollow. Joanna is now forced to make her relationship public. She talks to her father, knowing that he will let her mother know. She realizes that it is best for her to tell her sister Cora Jane. Cora Jane doesn’t respond very well, and is quite upset that Joanna didn’t confide in her about the relationship, and she is actually quite mean spirited.
Eben takes public transportation, which takes a very long time. The Amish are not allowed to drive cars. At the dinner table, except for Cora Jane, the family likes and is comfortable with Eben. He tells the Kurtz family about his intention regarding Joanna, and explains his dilemma pertaining to his brother Leroy. Though they spend only a day together, Joanna and Eben cherish and enjoy the time they have. After Eben returns home, they still communicate by mail and phone calls every other Fridays at 7:00 pm, but after a while, Joanna feels despondent because the relationship is not progressing as far as she’d like.
Cora Jane steals one of Joanna’s notebooks out of her bag, and takes it to Bishop Yoder. She reports her sister for writing “make believe” stories – as a way of getting back at her sister for not confiding in her. Cora is resentful because she feels her sister slipping away from her. Joanna is very angry at what her sister has done. Bishop Yoder, visits her, and whenever something like that occurs, it’s not a good sign. The bishop reprimands her, and tells her if she thinks of transferring to another Amish community, he will not approve the transfer. I resented Bishop Yoder because I would not want any religious leader telling me to give up my passion for writing.
In a single act of defiance, for a short time, Joanna continues as a closet writer. Eventually she starts to write poetry as a way to cheer others up.
Leroy returns to his hometown, but he shows up with an English wife, and dashes Eben’s hope for ever leaving Shipshewana, Indiana. Eben’s heart is breaking, so he decides to visit Hickory Hollow to break up with Joanna since he cannot leave and he knows that she will not leave her hometown. Of course we know that these kinds of stories are formulaic, and must have tension to make them believable. The young couple break-up, but eventually get back together when Eben’s father decides to sell his farm and retire.
Final Thoughts: The Bridesmaid by Beverly Lewis
The Bridesmaid (Home to Hickory Hollow) by Beverly Lewis gave me insights into the Amish culture, and there are many things that I like and dislike about that way of life. But what I have learned over the years, is that because I do not like something, doesn’t make it bad, all it means is that it isn’t for me. The Bridesmaid by Beverly Lewis is a simple story, we’ve seen that formula before, but it’s a likable and wholesome one, and the thing that sets it apart is the setting, and who the characters are.
I like the rebel in Joanna, standing up for what she believes in, even in a community where there are so many constraints on individual. It’s important for all of us, every now and again, to read such stories, to learn about others. I recommend Beverly Lewis’ The Bridesmaid, and it makes great escape reading.
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