Mennonite in a Little Black Dress

Mennonite in a Little Black Dress (A Memoir of Going Home) by Rhoda Janzen

Rhoda Janzen has written her story about returning home after a couple life-altering experiences. "Home" is a Mennonite community in California.

This book actually made me laugh out loud more than once. My favorite part was a little section she referred to as "the top five Shame-Based Foods for Mennonite youth lunches." The capitalization is hers, not mine. She writes about her family in such a way that you get a real sense of all their idiosyncrasies and weirdnesses (no, that's not a word) but you can tell that she loves her family and they all accept each other the way they are. And, rather than being mean-spirited or condescending, it's endearing.

The book jumps around a bit from present-day to the past, but I didn't find it difficult to follow. As her story unfolds, you get a real sense of where she came from and what it means to her to have returned to this community after many years away.

I love memoirs. Especially those of "ordinary" people (as opposed to celebrity memoirs). I believe everyone's life has a story to be told and this is no exception. I hope to hear more from Rhoda Janzen.