ERVIN R. STUTZMAN. Jacob’s Choice: Return to Northkill (Book 1). Harrisonburg, Va.: Herald Press, 2014. Pp. 297. $14.99 (U.S.).
Jacob’s Choice: Return to Northkill is a fictional retelling of the life of Amish farmer Jacob Hochstetler caught up in the events of the colonial French and Indian war (1754-1763). Jacob was a first generation immigrant with Swiss and German backgrounds who brought his wife and children to America looking for land to farm and freedom to worship. He was part of the first Amish community in America. The Author’s Note states that Jacob Hochstetler “stands tall as a hero of faith among the Amish” due to his nonresistant stance and faith during the conflict of war and personal loss.
At the beginning of this narrative, Jacob and his family have lived and farmed land in Pennsylvania for almost twenty years on Northkill Creek. The war, however, brings violence close to home as a soldier tells Jacob that two nearby family farms were attacked. All the family members were murdered, scalped, or taken captive. The Indians, to use the language of the time and the book, cooperate with the French against the English authorities and settlers. The Amish farmers are considered part of the English enemy regardless of their ethnic background or their stance on violence.
Readers who know Pennsylvania will be acquainted with many geographical locations mentioned, including Philadelphia, Reading, Lancaster, Carlisle, the Susquehanna River, Lake Erie, and Fort Hunter near Harrisburg. Native American nation names such as Delaware and Seneca will also be familiar. Those with knowledge of Anabaptism will recognize the stories of Dirk Willems and other historical figures. These known entities help ground the story in the reader’s own imagination and bring authenticity to the reading experience. Choosing the expanded edition of the novel that includes “maps, photographs, family tree charts, and other historical documents” will heighten the experience and allow the reader to follow the story more closely.
As the book unfolds, the story itself propels the audience to continue reading, but the novel disappointingly reads more as the genre of juvenile fiction than as an adult treatment of the subject. This is unfortunate for mature readers, who want to experience the deeper questions of family obligations, faith, theology, or the spiritual and emotional struggle that nonresistance and the violent loss of loved ones would naturally bring. While these topics are included at various points, the author never reflects deeply enough to give new insight into the angst and turmoil suffered in such traumatic events. The one theme more fully developed in the last section of the book is forgiveness. Here the author gives more deliberate thought and attention to this abstract theme with both Jacob’s thoughts and actions. Yet this reflection also falls short of a truly fresh and thought-provoking treatment, despite Jacob’s radical actions.
As needed for historical fiction, the author adds dialogue and incorporates details of daily life appropriate to the Amish community on the frontier. This task takes significant research into the subject’s life and the time period mixed with creative writing. One can appreciate the author’s work, while noting that the book lacks the literary artistry and imagination of the best historical fiction. Too many language choices are clichéd. Such overused words and phrases do not help the reader enter into the experience of the characters or the story in innovative and revealing ways. In one passage an “arrowhead” is described as “cut into the shape of an arrow.” Such a redundancy does not aid the reader’s ability to visualize the object nor does it engage any other senses. Neither does such a bland description point to the more subjective aspects of the arrowhead that could enrich the meaning in the story. Is an arrowhead inherently violent? Are people inherently violent?
In dealing with the abstract ideas of the novel, the author may rely too heavily on the acceptance of nonresistance by his audience. Certainly the reviews accompanying the book seem to come from those already convinced of the rightness of Jacob’s choices. But for those investigating these ideas, the argument for nonresistance is not adequately made in dialogue, inner monologue, or in the story itself. Jacob has moments of self-reflection and doubt along with times of Scripture reading, prayer, and an inner sense of God’s leading, but the writing stops short of delving deeply into these difficult issues to bring a sense of firsthand knowledge or a fresh perspective. If the actions in the story are meant to be a stand-alone argument without much verbal debate within the novel, then the lesson might be that nonresistance leads to sure death and tragedy—not a convincing end-result for the skeptical. One may argue that following biblical teaching is about obedience and not about end-results, but the novel itself does not make this case. The unconvinced reader needs more reasoning to understand and accept that Jacob is “a hero” for following his beliefs. Otherwise Jacob may simply be seen as a man making poor decisions for the wellbeing of his family.
In the end, this historical novel leaves the reader with an example, but not a fully satisfying exploration into an understanding of nonresistance, peacemaking, and reconciliation. Perhaps the example is enough. Many will enjoy reading a history that has been set inside a narrative that adds dialogue and descriptions of everyday Amish frontier life. It can certainly be a source for family or group reading and discussion, especially using the helpful study guide available online from the publisher. By asking questions about Jacob’s Choice, the study guide aids the text and the reader in the task of better understanding the complex issues involved. The guide, creating a fuller experience, is a valuable companion piece for the novel.