A Prayer for the Night

March 13, 2006
Amish teenagers run wild during Rumschpringe
, their time of testing in the outside "English" world, in Gaus's absorbing fifth entry in this powerful series (after 2003's Cast a Blue Shadow
). Eighteen-year-old Sara Yoder is torn between a modern culture of drugs, sex, iPods and cell phones and the strict values of her rural Ohio religious community. Tragedy strikes when two fellow teens, distant cousin Abe Yoder and his renegade friend and rival, John Schlabaugh, fail to appear for a secret gathering. Soon after, ruthless drug dealers who prey on naïve Amish youths kidnap Sara. Series regulars Rev. Cal Troyer and Prof. Michael Branden assist Sheriff Bruce Robinson in an intensive search of Holmes County bars, trailer parks, farms and hospitals that highlights the irreparable harm these young people suffer. Detailed Amish funeral and wedding rites conclude an otherwise taut tale, offering fascinating insights into this closed society's struggle to maintain traditions amid a rapidly changing world.