Paradise Valley

The Daughters of Caleb Bender
Book One
Dale Cramer
2011
Bethany House
Fiction/Historical Romance/Amish

Reviewed by Cindy Loven

Caleb Bender was in jail.  Not only was Caleb in jail, so were four other Amish fathers.  It was 1921 and Ohio officials were trying to force the Amish communities to send their children to public schools.  And arresting these five fathers was sending a strong message to the Amish. 
Caleb Bender is determined that something has to change.  His wife is already in bad health, in fact the doctor has said she needs a dry climate, so when Caleb sees a ad for land for sale in Mexico, he knows that Gott is leading him. 
Moving his entire family to Mexico, Caleb is taking a huge step.  The unknown is scary, and after arriving in Mexico and realizing that there was real danger from bandits, Caleb is unsure if the other Amish families will come to Mexico. 
This book was again unlike any Amish book I have read, I am loving how the authors are reaching beyond the traditional Amish story and making the new Amish series more exciting and interesting!  Great book with a theme of grace and mercy, you will not want to miss this story. Even more I love that this story is factual, based on the author's grandfather's life.  359 pages US $14.99 4 stars

This book was provided by Bethany House for review purposes, no payment was received for this review.