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Customer Reviews for Christian Large Print The Journey
Christian Large Print The Journey
Average Customer Rating:
(41 Reviews) 41
Rating Snapshot (41 reviews)
5 stars
33
4 stars
4
3 stars
2
2 stars
2
1 star
0
38 out of 4193%customers would recommend this product to a friend.
Customer Reviews for The Journey
Review 1 for The Journey
Overall Rating:
Date:April 7, 2013
lantana
Location:Davenport, Fl
Age:55-65
Gender:female
Quality:
5
out of
5
Value:
5
out of
5
Meets Expectations:
5
out of
5
excellent story line from vol 1-3. would love to read more about the Kentucky Brothers and their families
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Review 2 for The Journey
Overall Rating:
this book has a good story line
Date:February 13, 2013
Nightowl
Location:Vancouver Ca
Gender:female
Quality:
5
out of
5
Value:
5
out of
5
Meets Expectations:
5
out of
5
well written with believable characters. The interaction is well portraited
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0points
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Review 3 for The Journey
Overall Rating:
Date:October 24, 2012
Quality:
3
out of
5
Value:
3
out of
5
Meets Expectations:
3
out of
5
The Journey is the story of Suzanne, who would rather work in the family's woodworking business than the traditional duties of a Amish woman and Titus is working to sort himself and his broken heart out.
I gave this book 3 stars because while I liked the premise of the plot, I found the characters distracting. For the majority of the first half of the book, Titus who was supposed to be a full grown man, came across many times as a whinny teenager while Suzanne, on the other hand was almost belligerent in her viewpoint in many places. The other problem I had was the dialogue. I love books that have huge amounts of dialogue, but in many places is was written almost amateurishly, although I don't know if the problem was the author or Barbour's editing staff. I've run into similar problems with other book published by Barbour. I also found the lack of common everyday Amish words very disappointing. I felt it was almost like non-Amish people were trying to be Amish, but speaking regular English.
I gave this book 3 stars because while I liked the premise of the plot, I found the characters distracting. For the majority of the first half of the book, Titus who was supposed to be a full grown man, came across many times as a whinny teenager while Suzanne, on the other hand was almost belligerent in her viewpoint in many places. The other problem I had was the dialogue. I love books that have huge amounts of dialogue, but in many places is was written almost amateurishly, although I don't know if the problem was the author or Barbour's editing staff. I've run into similar problems with other book published by Barbour. I also found the lack of common everyday Amish words very disappointing. I felt it was almost like non-Amish people were trying to be Amish, but speaking regular English.
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0points
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Review 4 for The Journey
Overall Rating:
Haven't read this book yet.
Date:September 21, 2012
barb
Location:Indiana
Age:Over 65
Gender:female
Quality:
5
out of
5
Value:
5
out of
5
Meets Expectations:
5
out of
5
Have read every book she has wrote so I'm sure I will love this series also.
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0points
0of 0voted this as helpful.
Review 5 for The Journey
Overall Rating:
Date:August 24, 2012
maggie
Location:Dallas, TX
Age:Over 65
Gender:female
Quality:
5
out of
5
Value:
5
out of
5
Can't wait to read the other volumes! This volumn felt like these people became like family.
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0points
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Review 6 for The Journey
Overall Rating:
I enjoy resding this kind of book
Date:June 26, 2012
EvelynMiller
Location:Dickinson, ND
Age:55-65
Gender:female
Quality:
5
out of
5
Value:
5
out of
5
Meets Expectations:
5
out of
5
I like the author of the book, a great author, I learned a lot about the Amish culture.
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0points
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Review 7 for The Journey
Overall Rating:
Great read!
Date:December 26, 2011
Quality:
5
out of
5
Value:
5
out of
5
Meets Expectations:
5
out of
5
Another great story from Wanda Brunstetter. I found it easy to read and enjoyable. An interesting story line coupled with the memorable characters this author is known for. You'll enjoy this Amish genre book!
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+1point
1of 1voted this as helpful.
Review 8 for The Journey
Overall Rating:
Does not measure up to other Amish novels
Date:November 7, 2011
Quality:
2
out of
5
Value:
2
out of
5
Meets Expectations:
2
out of
5
When the chance to work as a carpenter in an Amish community in Kentucky arises, Titus Fisher jumps at the opportunity. Always in the shadow of his perfect twin brother, Timothy, and watched like a little child by his mother, Titus feels it's time to find where he belongs in the world. And since this offer follows his girlfriend Phoebe's announcement that she still isn't ready to join the Amish church, Titus feels that perhaps it would do him some good to be away from the ties he has back home in Pennsylvania. Soon he's settling into the rhythms of life in Kentucky, despite the dilapidated trailer he lives in and his lack of a buggy, and he strikes up a good friendship with the Yoder family, who are employing him to work in their carpentry shop. But it takes him longer to warm up to Suzanne Yoder, an unconventional young woman who prefers being in the outdoors and woodwork to cooking and sewing. But Suzanne looks just like Phoebe, and Titus can't help but look of Suzanne and remember how Phoebe broke his heart when she went to explore the English world. Will Titus's memories of Phoebe put a rift between him and Suzanne, or will he learn to let go of the past and discover what God has planned for him in Kentucky?
I will advise that while I tried to start this book with an open mind, I've never been a big fan of Wanda Brunstetter. While she's incredibly popular in the Amish genre, which contains many of my favourite books, I've yet to figure out what is so appealing about her books. While many of them contain standard romance plots, I often find her writing stilted and her characters lacking in personality. Despite this, I determined to give her works another try with The Journey, which many of my friends have praised. The plot of this novel, while being fairly predictable, did sound like it had promise, particularly with Suzanne being such an unusual character for an Amish novel.
Unfortunately I found it very difficult to enjoy this book. As with previous Brunstetter novels (On Her Own, Plain and Fancy and Kelly's Chance, to name those that I've read) I found the dialogue very stilted and fake-sounding, as were the internal thoughts of many of the characters. This was particularly jarring as the majority of The Journey is dialogue. I would say that at least 80% of this book was dialogue, and while normally I love conversation-driven novels, there was barely any description at all. Books in the Amish genre really need descriptions of the scenery and day-to-day life to make them seem authentic. Sadly, The Journey was very lacking in this department and could really have been set anywhere, if for the occasionally Pennsylvanian Dutch word and mention of a buggy. The Penn Dutch speech was pretty irritating in that whenever a character said anything in Dietsch, another character would then repeat the same sentence back almost word for word so that the reader would understand what the word meant. This sounded incredibly fake, and happened too often for me not to notice.
The plot jumped around too much for my liking, leaping back and forth between Titus in Kentucky and his family back home in Pennsylvania, and occasionally over to Phoebe in California. It seemed really unnecessary to include Phoebe's sections as they really didn't add much to the plot, other than to show that she wasn't enjoying herself in the English world. The scenes in Pennsylvania were much the same, and seemed to repeat a lot of what had happened to Titus in Kentucky as word of his new life spread to all of her relatives. More often than not, these sections ended up detracting from the plot rather than adding to it.
There were a lot of dramatic events in this book, far too many than is realistic. On several occasions characters are nearly run off the road in their buggies - by a motorbike, a horse and wild dogs - and if these events had been connected I wouldn't have minded, but they weren't! These three events were never given any sort of plausible explanation that linked to the plot, and seemed mainly to function to bring Titus and Suzanne closer together in the aftermath of their experience. The first two events I shrugged off, but I'll admit that I nearly laughed out loud at the appearance of the feral dogs. There's also a situation surrounding some stolen money which is cleared up far too quickly and easily to be at all believable, and then is never mentioned again by any of the characters. It felt like the author kept trying to insert some sort of mystery into the book but then resolved the situations too fast to actually make the book mysterious. And don't even get me started on all the deaths and tragedies that occurred with this family - is it really possible for one family to suffer so many traumas? Some of them seemed quite unnecessary, and the way that the characters dealt with them seemed rather offensive to anyone who has lost a relative or a child.
I have a few minor complaints about this book which, coupled with my issues with the dialogue, plot-jumping and unrealistic nature of some of the events in this book, ended up taking away from what could have been a fairly enjoyable reading experience. Firstly, The Journey apparently follows on from another series of books as numerous references are made to Zach having being kidnapped as a child. Yet for new readers, this situation isn't explained very well and left me feeling very confused. There's nothing in the synopsis to suggest that this series follows another one, so new readers beware of this. I'd also like to caution that while this book is marketed as Christian fiction, the spiritual aspect is very minor. The characters only ever talked to God when they were in dire need of help, but otherwise never mentioned Him, which is particularly unsettling for a novel about the Amish where God is normally central to their community and way of life. There's a semi-conversion scene towards the end of the novel, which is one of my pet hates in Christian fiction because it is so rarely done in a tactful and satisfying manner.
While I did not enjoy this novel, I have read several glowing reviews of it and would encourage potential readers to read those before making a final decision on whether to read The Journey. As much as I hate to write a critical review, this is my honest opinion and I think it necessary to share my views on a book from one of my favourite genres. I've read many wonderful new books from this genre that have released this year, and The Journey just doesn't measure up to novels from newcomers like Kelly Long, Barbara Cameron or Ruth Reid. On a more positive note, fans of Brunstetter will probably enjoy this book as it's much the same as her earlier novels, but this also means that readers who dislike her work will probably have the same reaction as I did.
Review title provided courtesy of Barbour Publishing.
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+4points
4of 4voted this as helpful.
Review 9 for The Journey
Overall Rating:
Date:October 3, 2011
Genny
Quality:
5
out of
5
Value:
5
out of
5
Meets Expectations:
5
out of
5
I love to read all of series. Once I finish one, I can't wait to read the next one that comes out. They all speak to my heart.
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0points
0of 0voted this as helpful.
Review 10 for The Journey
Overall Rating:
Date:August 29, 2011
Kimmy
Location:Cumberland, MD
Age:55-65
Gender:female
Quality:
5
out of
5
Value:
5
out of
5
Meets Expectations:
5
out of
5
I just finished the book over the weekend and I related to Zach because of a previous book that the author had written and I like having a familiar character and story to relate to. Very easy reading and I will read Book #2 that follows which releases next month.
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0points
0of 0voted this as helpful.
Review 11 for The Journey
Overall Rating:
Plain and Simple- perfect!
Date:August 20, 2011
Quality:
5
out of
5
Value:
5
out of
5
Meets Expectations:
5
out of
5
The words "Plain" and "Simple" may be a bit underwhelming to most of us, but in the amish world those are very good things and I would definitely say that the plain and simple story told here about Silas and Suzanne and how their worlds come together is plain, simple, and a very good thing.
Silas Fisher is a broken man; the woman that he was so positive that he was set to marry has decided to take off to California as she isn't so sure that this Amish way of life is for her and wants to spread her wings and fly away. Poor Silas is left to lick his wounds and decides a change of scenery might be a good thing. He is presented with a job opportunity that takes him from Paradise, Pennsylvania to the more rural Pembroke Kentucky. Silas starts over with a new job doing woodworking with the Yoder family. Suzanne Yoder, not your typical amish woman also has a love for woodworking, although her family members can't quite embrace her affinity in that area and so she feels frustrated with her inability to do what she really loves. When these two characters meet at first, they both have a slight aversion to each other- Silas is not fond of Suzanne as her coloring is very similar to the girl who had jilted him and Suzanne wasn't fond of him becasue Silas wouldn't even meet her eyes, Eventually, they see each other for who they really are and the romance between the two is sweet and builds slowly as the story unfolds.
I liked the fact that both characters had some growing up to do in this story and that transpires because they both are grounded in their faith and want to do what God wants. One can't help but love the characters in the story and love the families around them that always try to love and support them even if their opinions can sometimes be a little off. They all meant well of course, but sometimes moms worried too much and brothers had their old-fashioned opinions. It just made the characters real and endearing. The Journey is the first in the Kentucky Brother's series and I have to say I'm hooked now and want to see what happens with next.
I was very fortunate to win this book through the First Reads giveaway program on Goodreads.
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0points
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Review 12 for The Journey
Overall Rating:
Very good
Date:August 4, 2011
Barbara Wagenbach
Location:Tremont, IL
Age:Over 65
Gender:female
Quality:
4
out of
5
Value:
5
out of
5
Meets Expectations:
5
out of
5
I just enjoy your books, having them on hand to pass to my family and looking back to reread if necessary.
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0points
0of 0voted this as helpful.
Review 13 for The Journey
Overall Rating:
Date:July 23, 2011
Becky
Age:Over 65
Gender:female
Quality:
5
out of
5
Value:
4
out of
5
Meets Expectations:
4
out of
5
I think this is avery good book... I would tell all my friend's to read it...
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0points
0of 0voted this as helpful.
Review 14 for The Journey
Overall Rating:
You can't run away from life choices
Date:June 6, 2011
Quality:
5
out of
5
Value:
5
out of
5
Meets Expectations:
5
out of
5
Titus needed to leave his home and start life anew in Kentucky.
Little did he plan to see her face and hair color on another
Amish girl. When he is forced to confront his feelings, he learns
that only time alone with God will help him find his way.
Little did he plan to see her face and hair color on another
Amish girl. When he is forced to confront his feelings, he learns
that only time alone with God will help him find his way.
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0points
0of 0voted this as helpful.
Review 15 for The Journey
Overall Rating:
Not very exciting
Date:June 2, 2011
Maren Moseley
Location:rural PA
Age:55-65
Gender:female
Quality:
3
out of
5
Value:
3
out of
5
Meets Expectations:
3
out of
5
I read a lot of "Amish Stories". After a while the themes run together and it gets boring. I would like a clear picture of how the characters apply the scriptures to challenges of life. And more detail about the Amish culture.
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0points
0of 0voted this as helpful.
Review 16 for The Journey
Overall Rating:
Keeps you interested & anxious to learn the ending
Date:June 1, 2011
AnnieB
Location:Cross Timbers, Missouri
Age:55-65
Gender:female
Quality:
5
out of
5
Value:
5
out of
5
Meets Expectations:
5
out of
5
I bought this book and am presently reading it. Loving it so far. Can't wait to see what happens next.
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0points
0of 0voted this as helpful.
Review 17 for The Journey
Overall Rating:
Date:May 13, 2011
Rita
Quality:
5
out of
5
Value:
5
out of
5
Meets Expectations:
5
out of
5
Awesome as always! I wanted to read it all the way through without stopping! Great read!
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0points
0of 0voted this as helpful.
Review 18 for The Journey
Overall Rating:
This book was great
Date:May 9, 2011
Mary Eubanks
Location:Whiting, NJ
Age:55-65
Gender:female
Quality:
5
out of
5
Value:
5
out of
5
Meets Expectations:
5
out of
5
This book was exciting and very well written. Wanda's books never disappoint me because I know I will always get a good book from her. I can't wait for the next one to come out. She always leaves you wanting more.
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0points
0of 0voted this as helpful.
Review 19 for The Journey
Overall Rating:
Great Book
Date:May 5, 2011
Holly
Age:25-34
Gender:female
Quality:
5
out of
5
Value:
5
out of
5
Meets Expectations:
5
out of
5
This is a wonderful book. Wanda Brunstetter always has a way of drawing you into her books. Once you start reading it is impossible to set the book down. I love how reading her books allows me to forget about all my worries and be distracted by a wonderful story. I love how she uses scripture throughout her stories. This book has a wonderful christian message and a great romance. I love Wanda's books and will continue to be one of her many fans!
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0points
0of 0voted this as helpful.
Review 20 for The Journey
Overall Rating:
Date:May 4, 2011
Angel
Age:45-54
Gender:female
Quality:
5
out of
5
Value:
5
out of
5
Meets Expectations:
5
out of
5
When I first started reading the book, I thought there was no chance for Suzanne and Titus because of the way things started at the beginning of the book but then as time went on they started getting along and her friend started teaching her how to be a better cook and I was hoping they would get together and the greatest joy was when he asked her to marry him and she said yes, I knew them two should be together.
Wanda, you are truly an amazing writer, the book was sad and I hated to see it come to an end. I truly love reading your books and I can't wait to see the next book that follows this one.
Thank you so much,
Sheryl
Wanda, you are truly an amazing writer, the book was sad and I hated to see it come to an end. I truly love reading your books and I can't wait to see the next book that follows this one.
Thank you so much,
Sheryl
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0points
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