Oh, I identified with Ruth in this book! Perfectionist student who never quite fit in, over-eager teacher who quickly realized that all the lesson planning in the world won't account for "reality". Yeah, that all sounded familiar. I loved watching Ruth chill out a bit, learn to flex, understand that she doesn't have to strive for the impossibility of perfection. And Zach - what a sweetie he turned out to be! I really enjoyed their story.

Also - I was thrilled that we got to catch up with Deborah and see her more settled and at peace in her faith and in motherhood. She of all people needed a sweet romance, and I was so happy that she got one! Naomi, though... whew. Girlfriend needed some serious counseling, and I'm not sure her story was over even when the book was finished. But Aunt Sadie? What. A. Hoot!! Grinned through nearly all of her scenes! I pictured her as an older version of Martin's girlfriend Sherry on the TV show Frasier, if anyone remembers that character.

Hate saying goodbye to the Byler family with this last book in the series - they've all become friends. "A Hand To Hold" and its theme of restoration and value hold true and timely no matter who you are or what your life experiences. ( )

This was book 3 in the "A Hearts of Middlefield" series. You could easily read it as a stand alone story, but they do have people from the first two stories in this book, so it is helpful in knowing those people better if you read the books in the order they were written. This story starts off with Zach Bender driving truck into the school house that Ruth Byler is in and setting up for her first day of teaching in the Amish schoolhouse. Zach has always been known for getting into trouble growing up in the Amish community and Ruth has been known as the "good girl" who always wanted to teach school. They are now thrown together literally and these two opposite people will find themselves getting to know each other and helping each other through difficult times. But there is also another story going on with two other folks in this Amish community that I thought was just as interesting and special. A young woman returns for her mother's funeral, who left the community because she got pregnant and never got married. Now she returns and life is not easy for her on the farm, but one man befriends her and together they just might have a future.

This was a well written story with what I thought was an honest look at the Amish community and their thoughts and lifestyles. A story about faith, forgiveness, love and sorrow. I enjoyed each of the stories in this series and thought this author had a good grasp of the people she was writing about. ( )

Zacharian Bender drove his pickup truck into the schoolhouse. Ruth Byler was teaching Amish children there and he destroyed half of her suplies and the building. He promised to repair the damage, but he is known to be very unreliable and could be doing the repairs for a long time. They both soon realize how much they need each other and that God offers second chances in live.

The third book in the Hearts of Middlefield series continues with the story of Ruth Byler, Zack Bender, Deborah Coblentz, and Stephen Byler.

Once again, Fuller tells a story filled with faith, hope, and love. She shows her knowledge of Amish life and takes the reader to Middlefield to live and work with the characters in the book. Fuller is able to make the characters and the situations seem real. Her sense of humor shines through in this novel, and I found myself laughing out loud in several spots. ( )