Clutter Rehab

Here's my review for Clutter Rehab by Laura Wittmann.  I really enjoyed reading a nonfiction for a change!  It was a very motivational book!

Sarah's Garden by Kelly Long

Sarah’s Garden by Kelly Long is the first book in her A Patch of Heaven series. Sarah King is a 20 year old, shy Amish woman who loves her garden. Sarah’s sister, who previously ran the family’s stand, got married and Sarah’s parents decide that Sarah will take over the stand. Sarah can’t imagine it since she is so shy and spends most of her time by herself in her garden. Her father also decides that Sarah will make her sister’s soon to come baby its first quilt. Sarah can’t imagine this either, because her creativity has been limited to her garden and she gave up quilting a long time ago. But Sarah decides to do her best in both. While working her first day at the stand, she meets an English man who she discovers is her new neighbor and a veterinarian. It seems to be love at first sight for her new neighbor, Grant. Sarah likes him too. As they spend more time together, they fall deeper in love, but they know the love is forbidden. She is Amish and will be shunned if she leaves the faith to marry him an Englisher. So, they must make some decisions about that love. Read the book to find out what happens.


I’ve had this book for awhile and can’t believe I waited so long to read it. This is the first book I have read by Kelly Long and I really like her writing style. I really enjoyed the Amish details she brought to life in the story. I really enjoyed seeing Sarah go from this shy garden loving girl to a very creative woman. I thought it was awful that her parents made her run the stand with her shyness, but as usual parent’s know best and it was really good for Sarah. I also loved the quilting theme in the book and how it was compared to the creative of working a garden. Sarah had used garden to help her relax and get guidance from the Lord. I think eventually that she uses quilting in the same way and learns to love it. The only thing I would have liked more was a better description of the quilt. It seemed like it was this awesome thing, but I just could not picture it in my mind. Overall I loved the book and can’t wait to read the second book in the series, Lily’s Wedding Quilt, which comes out in March.

The Journey by Wanda Brunstetter

The Journey written by Wanda Brunstetter is the first book in her new series Kentucky Brothers. Titus Fisher is 22 years old and still lives at home with his Amish parents. Titus lacks confidence in himself and feels like he is always being compared to his twin brother. He has been in love with Phoebe, an Amish woman who he has waited a long time to marry. Phoebe feels she still is not ready to settle down and become a member of the Amish church or get married. She breaks Titus’ heart when she moves California to pursue her interest in the English world. Titus decides to take an offer to move to Kentucky to work with an Amish woodworker and move away from his life and heartbreak. While there he meets Suzanne Yoder a 22 year old Amish woman who is not the average Amish woman. She lacks the ability to cook, mostly because her mother does not have the patience to teach her. She also really does not want to learn because she wants to work with her grandfather and brother in the woodworking shop, but they don’t really feel that’s a woman’s place. These two get off on the wrong foot from the start. Mostly, because Suzanne looks so much like Phoebe. They soon learn to be around each other. Suzanne’s friend Ester takes an interest in Titus. The whole mix gets even crazier when Phoebe comes to Kentucky and tries to get Titus to take her back and marry her. Will Titus pick Suzanne, Ester, or Phoebe? And will he stay in Kentucky permanently, even though his mother really wants him home? Read the wonderful book to find out.


I really loved this story. You can usually tell in stories like this that if the guy starts out hating the girl they usually end up together, but I was really left guessing who he would pick until the end. The story also contains a mystery about some money that is found that I found really interesting too. I liked seeing how Titus really grew throughout the book and started really find his way in life. He included God in helping him make those decisions and I think that really helped him in the end. Suzanne also grows in this story and people learn to accept her for who she really is and not who she is expected to be. I really loved this story and would recommend it to people who enjoy Amish fiction or inspirational fiction.

I was given an advance copy of this book from Barbour Publishing through NetGalley. I was not required to provide a positive review. The Journey comes out on April 1, 2011.