A Brighter Dawn by Leslie Gould

 

vy Zimmerman is successfully navigating her life as a young Mennonite woman, one generation removed from her parents' Old Order Amish upbringing. But when her parents are killed in a tragic accident, Ivy's way of life is upended. As she deals with her grief, her younger sisters' needs, the relationship with her boyfriend, and her Dawdi and Mammi's strict rules, Ivy finds solace in both an upcoming trip to Germany for an international Mennonite youth gathering and in her great-great-aunt's story about Clare Simons, another young woman who visited Germany in the late 1930s.

As Ivy grows suspicious that her parents' deaths weren't, in fact, an accident, she gains courage from what she learns of Clare's time in pre-World War II Germany. With the encouragement and inspiration of the women who have gone before her, Ivy seeks justice for her parents, her sisters, and herself.

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About The Author

 Leslie Gould is the best-selling and award-winning author of over forty novels. She loves research, traveling, and church history. She and her husband live in Portland, Oregon and have four grown children and one grandchild. http://www.lesliegould.com/ 

 

My Review

This is one of the best books I've read, it is a dual time, which brings this read alive and answers a lot of questions.

This a story of Anabaptist and their struggles and persecution through the ages, from their time under communism to the evil that spread through Europe during the 1930's and 1940's.

Yes, we begin in Oregon with a Mennonite family, and are there when tragedy happens, and travel with part of the family while they go to visit their Old Order Amish family in Lancaster PA.

From coast to coast in the US, but then we are off to Germany and with friends and family there. Questions are answered about why sides were taken during WWII, and I was surprised. I loved the stories that were told by the elderly Aunt, and see if you can guess the answers prior to her telling.

Be sure to read the author's notes, they are eye opening and show what is going on to this day.

I received this book through Net Galley and the Publisher Bethany House, and was not required to give a positive review.