Steph Reviews The Plain Choice: A True Story of Choosing to Live an Amish Life by Sherry Gore

Publisher: Zondervan
Source: Purchased
Release Date: August 25, 2015
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Blurb from goodreads:

Raised in a broken family and emotionally overlooked, Sherry Gore grew up without a solid foundation, a prisoner of her own poor choices, and at times without hope. A series of terrible mistakes left her feeling wrecked and alone and a sudden tragedy threw Sherry into an emotional tailspin too powerful to escape.

Sherry hangs by a thread, unable to see how she can go on living, until it happens: on a morning of no particular significance, she walks into a church and BAM the truth of Jesus’ forgiving love shatters her world and cleaves her life in two: She goes to bed stunned; she wakes up a Christian.

Unwilling to return to the darkness of her former life, Sherry attacks her faith head on. Soon the life Sherry Gore remakes for herself and her children as she seeks to follow the teachings of the Bible features head coverings, simple dress, and a focus on Jesus Christ. Only then does she realize, in a fit of excitement, that there are others like her. They are called Amish and Mennonite, and she realizes she has found her people.

The plain choice that Sherry makes is not easy – and life still brings unexpected pain and heartache - but it changes everything for her, as she becomes one of the few people on earth to have successfully joined the Amish from the outside.

She has found her place. And her story proves that one can return from the darkest depths to the purest light with the power of God.

Steph's Thoughts:


I do not know how I wound up following Sherry on Facebook but somehow I did. It might come as a surprise to many of you but I LOVE to read Amish fiction. So imagine my shock when I found an Amish writer on Facebook. Amish and Facebook just do not sound like they should be in the same sentence. Yes, I realized that there are different sects of Amish-Mennonites but still it was weird. Over the course of a couple of years, I found myself check her page almost daily. I was, like many people, concerned for her daughter, Jacinda, who was very ill. Then one day, I found myself staring at the last sight I ever expected to see on an Amish-Mennonite woman’s page. It was a picture of Sherry, with bleached blonde 80’s hair. I could have been staring at a picture of myself from back in the day. The questions that ran through my head… She wasn’t BORN into the plain lifestyle? Why did she join? It is pretty rare for someone who was not raised Amish, to join the church. Yes, she joined one of the churches that allows for more modern conveniences but even then, it is rare. It was then I learned she was writing a book on how she came to join the church.

Getting this book has been on my “to do” list, and I have not gotten around to getting it. I saw she posted that it was included on the cyber Monday sale, so I jumped on it. I really did not mean to start reading the book tonight, much less finish it in an hour and a half. I couldn’t put it down. I LOVED it!

This woman, who seems to have her life nice and orderly, was once a homeless teen. This modest funny lady that enthralls her fans with her writing and cooking, was once a deejay in L.A. She was once face to face with Rob Lowe and yet, her life was out of control. It really is amazing how our lives turn out by a choice. Sherry didn’t wake up one morning saying “Today, I become Amish” It was a gradual awareness of religion and the kind of relationship that developed with God over time.

This book moved me to tears. I already knew what was going on with her daughter because I follow Sherry on Facebook. One thing I always admired about Jacinda was her unwavering faith. I can’t imagine being that sick at 14 and knowing what the final outcome was going to be and not be pissed at God. Even at 44, I can’t imagine having that kind of faith. Hell at Jacinda’s age, I was more like her mom. No, I am not about to toss out my broomstick and head on over the Amish church…. Or any church for that matter but this book DID make me think about a lot of personal things and makes me want to be a bit better person.