Amish Society

Features

• Cover Type: Paperback with 448 pages
• Published by: The Johns Hopkins University Press
• Edition: 4th Edition April 1, 1993
• Written in: English
• ISBN 10 Number: 0801844428
• ISBN 13 Number: 978-0801844423
• Book Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 1.1 inches
• Weighs: 1.4 pounds

Product Review


"The definitive book on one of America's most misunderstood communities." -- Philadelphia Inquirer



"In a class by itself." -- Journal of American History



"The best single book available on the Amish." -- Christianity Today

Product Description


Highly acclaimed in previous editions, this classic work by John Hostetler has been expanded and updated to reflect current research on Amish history and culture as well as the new concerns of Amish communities throughout North America.

Reader Reviews
The author is a professor emeritus from Temple University and grew up in an Old-Order Amish family. So in addition to academic credentials, the author has lived the life he describes so well in this book. While this is not a travelogue for those wishing a tour of Amish Country, it would be a very good thing to read before you go to Lancaster, PA or any of the other Amish-settled areas in the US and Canada. Dr. Hostetler describes attitudes to "the English World", the religious and daily life, and how the Amish merge with their secular neighbors. The book also describes a bit of the struggle the Amish faced in the 60's when they sought permission to have their own schools and end formal educatiion for their children at grade 8. While he says little about it, Hostetler's own life must have been affected by this attitude to what is required in education; he left the community to become a university professor, and subsequently lived with the Hutterites, another religious society in Canada and Europe. This is an enjoyable and realistic book with no sentimentality or gloss. If you want to know more about the Amish, this is definitely the book to read.