Reviews

Forgiven: The Amish School Shooting, a Mother's Love, and a Story of Remarkable Grace by Terri Roberts, Jeanette Windle

oviedorose's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad

5.0

tomaind's review against another edition

4.0

I still remember hearing of this tragedy 11 years ago and being shocked that anyone would want to target an Amish School. It is still hard to comprehend the shooter's reasons for doing what he did. Terri Roberts, the author and shooter's mother, helps you see the child and man he was before becoming known for this horrible crime. This really makes you think about what it must be like to have to live with the guilt and shame you feel when a loved one commits an unspeakable crime such as this. The shock and confusion that people felt when hearing of the Amish community & families of the victims forgiveness and compassion toward the shooter's family and even the shooter himself, is explained in this story. This really makes you think if it is really worth living with anger and resentment in our hearts. How much more peaceful life and our world could be if we could all learn to forgive as Jesus did.

k_lee_reads_it's review against another edition

3.0

You can choose bitterness, or you can choose forgiveness. It is a choice. It is always a choice and that truth is easily forgotten in this contentious world we inhabit.

Terri Roberts tells the story of her life both before and after the day her son, inexplicably chose to enter an Amish school and change the path of numerous lives. This book doesn't have an answer to why he did it. But it does give the steps to how the survivors moved from shock, grief, anger, and pain into healing.

Terri shares all kinds of events in her life and her son's life. I found some really boring parts, which I skimmed, but I also found priceless gems of helpful advice.

tanyarobinson's review against another edition

3.0

This memoir is written by the mother of the 2006 Amish School Shooter, which is an unusual perspective for this sort of book. Terri Roberts is a deeply Christian woman who was completely blindsided when her eldest son took hostages in a small Amish schoolhouse, then opened fire on the children before taking his own life. This particular massacre stayed in the headlines due to the unusual response of the Amish community: complete forgiveness for the family of the murderer, including sharing money that came in from sympathetic donors. Roberts ended up building close friendships with the victims' families, even providing in-home-care for a handicapped survivor of the tragedy.

The story is quite remarkable, though the writing is not. I was mostly interested in the school shooting itself, so I got a little bored through the many chapters that chronicled Terri's lifelong spiritual journey. I was certainly uplifted and felt the desire to be a more forgiving person, but that is not a good enough reason to give the book a really high rating. 3.25 stars.

anetintime's review against another edition

4.0

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. There is so much wisdom contained within the pages. I was struck by how hard this tragedy was, but how God used it to bring about healing and forgiveness through people throughout the United States as well as beyond to Japan. How Terri, learning to forgive and to extend grace, helped others and was called upon to speak about what she had learned throughout all this. Good book, recommend you read it. :)

tabmcclure's review against another edition

emotional sad medium-paced

5.0

jessicaleahreads's review

5.0

T his book... Wow. I thought when I chose this book to review that it would be difficult to read. I spent probably 90% of my reading time in tears. This book is authored by Terri Roberts, the mother of the man who shot ten girls in an Amish school house and then shot himself. I grew up and still live (after a few detours) in another area in Pennsylvania with a large Amish population and I remember when this happened. We were shocked. Having grown up seeing the Amish daily, I couldn't imagine why anyone would choose to do this to them, and especially to a schoolhouse full of children. Also difficult was hearing that several of the girls shot were 7 years old: the age of my own oldest daughter now. So this part of the author's story definitely brought me to tears, the horror of the experience. But what also brought me to tears repeatedly were the expressions of grace brought to life. I remember hearing about the gracious response of the Amish population in Lancaster, but this book just brings it so vividly alive. It is amazing what a representation of Christ's grace these Amish families, the same Amish families who lost daughters, or watched their daughters suffer as the recuperated, or continue caring for daughters to this day who may never walk or talk or be as they were, what grace they extended to the author and her husband as well as the perpetrator's wife and children. I don't know that it ever crossed my mind, even once, how his parents would feel knowing what their son had done. She writes this story so transparently and beautifully. She shares her struggles of being a mother of faith who prayed fervently for her sons almost every single day of their lives and her anger at God for not stepping in and answering her prayers and changing the story. This story is full of grace, forgiveness, healing and God's love. If you have struggled with your circumstances, please pick up this book. It spoke to me as a mom of a boy born without part of his brain, who is severely developmentally delayed. It spoke to me as a mom who gets frustrated with her children and struggles with showing grace. No matter what your situation, this book is excellent and moving and beautiful.

I recieved a copy of this book from the author in exchange for my honest review.