Are you looking for something to read with a focus on family, faith, and love? Do you enjoy a quieter pace of life and bucolic landscapes? Are you enchanted by the romance of Amish country? Perhaps you'd enjoy a Bonnet Book.
The term Bonnet Book is used to describe an increasingly popular sub-genre of romance set in Amish or Mennonite communities. The novels' covers often feature young women wearing a prayer kapp or bonnet, hence the alliterative nickname. The books tend to be gentle reads, though they might cover difficult topics such as mental illness or abuse. Often one of the main characters will be an outsider to the community, leading to the possibility of a forbidden romance. The authors themselves tend to be outsiders, though most books are well researched.
The Amish countryside is an increasingly popular setting for books, and not just for romance. You can find Amish murder mysteries, Amish werewolves, or cookbooks at Carnegie-Stout Public Library, but for fans of Bonnet Books we've compiled a handy list. Bookmarks are also available at the Recommendations Desk on the first floor.
If you're interested in checking out our collection of Amish Romance, you can start with
this list of titles available at Carnegie-Stout.
Other links you might enjoy:Amish Hearts: A blog maintained by a group of Amish Romance writers (Beth Wiseman, Kathleen Fuller, Barbara Cameron, and Amy Clipston).
An article on Amish Romance from USA TodayAn interview with Shelley Shepard Gray from NPRAn article from the Wall Street Journal focusing on Cindy WoodsmallAn article from Time Magazine focusing on Beverly LewisAn article from the Telegraph-Herald on the local Amish community
