An Okay Read
The Tinderbox is the first book about Earnest Miller's Plain family, to be followed by The Timepiece in the fall of 2019. Earnest Miller was raised an Englisher although he had always enjoyed spending time with his Old Order Mennonite grandparents. So it was not surprising that after the death of his parents and other life altering events he chose to seek a life among the Amish, the Plain folk. What was surprising was how those events from his past would come back to haunt him more than twenty years later, and how they would be brought to light.
Beverly Lewis has developed a story that probes the themes of honesty and forgiveness, of the value of seeking wisdom from the Lord and from those who have more life experience and spiritual wisdom than we currently possess ourselves. She has developed characters who have the opportunity to allow Christ to help them in the storm or to allow the waves to have their way. Her readers' hearts will be touched by the joy and the pain experienced by Earnest Miller and his family, and they may be led to meditate on the how their own choices impact the lives of those they love.
While it felt like this book got off to a slow start, by the time I had finished it, I was glad that I had read it. I look forward to the continuing story in The Timepiece. I am grateful to have received a copy of The Tinderbox from Bethany House via NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion. I was under no obligation to provide a positive review, and received no monetary compensation.
