Why Do They Dress That Way? (Rev ed) (People's Place Book, No 7)

Rating:
Summary: An excellent resource
Review: This book is a fascinating look at the various Protestant (mainly Anabaptist) groups that wear plain clothes, focusing primarily on the Amish, Hutterites and Old Order Mennonites. The author grew up in a nominally Christian home, but over the years he found himself drawn more and more to the commitment of the plain clothes Christians that he saw. Eventually he himself embraced the plain clothes style mode, and this book is his labor of love.

This book tells you everything that you might want to know about these plain clothes groups, including why they dress the way that they do, how they dress, and the differences that exist in the items worn by plain clothes people. Along the way, the reader is treated to many wonderful black-and-white pictures of plain clothes people.

Overall, I found this to be a fascinating and informative book. If you are interested in the plain clothes people, then I would have to say that you must get this book. It is an excellent resource!

Rating:
Summary: Great Book!
Review: This book is a well written, sensitive look at one aspect of plain people's practices. Quite often misunderstood, this book explains the "reasons" behind the dress practices as well as the distinctions. It is my understanding that the author is not just writing this from an impersonal, analytical vantage point, but rather plain dress is a personal and important value of his being a member of the Old Order River Brethren in Lancaster County, PA.

Rating:
Summary: A lot of detail on the clothing.....
Review: This is a good addition to the library of someone studying the Old Order or 'plain people' groups. I have yet to find a more thorough breakdown of the different types of clothing worn by the four main branches of Old Order Anabaptist sects.

On the down side, the writing was not particularly well done and there were a few typographic errors. The section on Catholics and Hasidic Jews, though appropriate, were very short.

Despite the problems mentioned above, this is still a very good reference.