Broken Roads
Returning to My Amish Father

Ira Wagler's memoir, Broken Roads: Returning to My Amish Father, is an incredible memoir that I thoroughly enjoyed reading. Wagler's first book, Growing Up Amish, was published in 2011 and Broken Roads was published in 2020. Wagler grew up Amish and left the Amish at age 26. Wagler is the 5th son of......more

An easy read for people wanting to know what happened to Ira after growing up Amish. Although Ira remembers details very well about places and times, he has a hard time connecting with his inner feelings and expressing them. At times he is vulnerable, but I would have loved to have seen more emotion......more

I find this book difficult to evaluate since Ira Wagler is my uncle (I am mentioned on page 238). I will give it a 5 star rating, however, if for no other reason than my uncle's writings help me process my own life. Though our stories differ, there are some similarities and there is even some overla......more

I loved Growing Up Amish and was thrilled when I was asked to read and review this book. As an author of Amish fiction, I love realistic glimpses into the Amish world. Broken Roads is a fantastic book about one man's struggles after leaving the Amish. So many times the focus is on what leads up to t......more

I had very mixed feelings about this one. I'll start with what I liked: Though Wagler left the Amish community, he doesn't berate or make fun of them. He has his differences, and his attitude is one of total acceptance. I marvel that he could forgive his ex-wife and his childhood friend for their af......more