New Releases from
Cascadia Publishing House LLC

Books marked DSB are released by Cascadia under the DreamSeeker Books imprint. Listed in order of publication date, most recent releases first.

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Living Faith: Embracing God's Callings, Keith Graber Miller, 2012. "Graber Miller calls all Christians to discern their passions, to be followers of Christ in vocations that matter. With the charm of a master story-teller, the vision of a teacher, and the insight of a seasoned scholar, he ranges from Mennonite history to today’s urban and professional Mennonite culture in a way that will inform and challenge lay readers and theologians alike." —Nancy T. Ammerman, Professor of Sociology of Religion, Boston University and Author, Sacred Stories, Spiritual Tribes: Religion and Spirituality in Everyday Life

The Apple Speaks, poems by Becca J. R. Lachman (DSB, 2012). "Lachman reflects on a heritage that inspires but also restrains. From within that struggle, in language of striking clarity and subtlety, Lachman witnesses a world generous with both pain and redemption, music and despair. These are poems born of a rigorous heart and a questioning mind." —Mark Wunderlich, Author, Voluntary Servitude

What's in the Blood, poems by Cheryl Denise (DSB 2012). "Cheryl Denise’s poems shine with the elemental power of blood, new-turned earth, sex, and baptism. They wrestle with body and spirit, tradition and desire, violence and work. That work includes nursing, writing, farming, forgiving, being female, Mennonite, and married. In "Mother from Paradise," Eve tells her version of the Fall and its aftermath, ending with this command: "Stop listening to God’s stubble-faced cronies/. . . who thrust that apple between our lips/to shut us up.// Spit or swallow/ but speak, dear daughter, speak." Read What’s in the Blood and rejoice. Cheryl Denise is true to her words. —George Ella Lyon, Author, She Let Herself Go

Roots and Branches: A Narrative History of the Amish and Mennonites in the Southeast United States, 1892-1992, volume 2, Branches, Martin W. Lehman (2011). "This second volume, covering in considerable detail the 1969-1992 period with briefer glimpses spilling into the twenty-first century, focuses on . . . what emerged as new people came to faith from traditionally non-Mennonite white, African-American, Hispanic, Garifuna, Haitian, and other origins. Today, over half of the Southeast Mennonite Conference congregations derive from these newer populations within the Mennonite faith family." —James R. Krabill, Senior Executive for Global Ministries, Mennonite Mission Network, in the Foreword to Volumes 1 and 2

Present Tense: A Mennonite Spirituality, Gordon Houser (2011). "Gordon Houser has looked at the practices valued highly in his Mennonite community—patient following, peaceful reconciling, political integrity, playful relating, prayerful thinking, perfect imperfection and celebrating the present—and allowed them to be a mirror of his own life in the Spirit and as a member of ‘the community of the Spirit.’ He did not write of the Anabaptist virtue of humility, he demonstrated it. The book is a great read, except for when it starts reading you back and nudging to practice things left unpracticed." —David Augsburger, Professor of Pastoral Care and Counseling, School of Theology, Fuller Theological Seminary

Jesus Loves Women: A Memoir of Body and Spirit, Tricia Gates Brown (DSB, 2011). "Finally, the body is getting its due as the normal and gifted vehicle for Spirit! It has taken us a long time to realize the Christian obvious, and Tricia Gates Brown is making it both more obvious and thoroughly Christian." —Richard Rohr, O.F.M., Center for Action and Contemplation, Albuquerque, New Mexico

The Jesus Factor in Justice and Peacemaking, C. Norman Kraus (2011). "If you are a Christian interested in peace, if you are a Christian justice or peace practitioner, if you are Buddhist or Hindu or Jewish and interested in understanding connections between your own faith and Christian approaches to peace—then this book is for you. —Howard Zehr, Professor of Restorative Justice, Center for Justice and Peacebuilding, Eastern Mennonite University, in the Foreword

God's Healing Strategy, Revised Edition: An Introduction to the Bible's Main Themes, Ted Grimsrud (2011), "The revisions are spot-on for contemporary issues. How do Christian believers relate to other faiths? Where is God when life falls apart? The Bible wrestles with those questions without pat answers. This book puts us in touch with that biblical struggle." —Lynn Jost, Vice President and Dean of Fresno Biblical Seminary

This Crowded Night: And Other Stories, stories by Elrena Evans (DSB, 2011). "In these short stories, Elrena Evans joins a long, Christian literary and theological tradition that extends back to the times of the medieval mystery plays and likely before that. To the Bible stories’ bare contours, she adds earthly atmosphere, creaturely flesh and very deep feeling. Her renderings of the familiar tales offer such startling insight and moving revelation that this work of devotion and imagination deserves to find a place beside the more conventional approaches to the Bible." —Julia Spicher Kasdorf, Author, Poetry in America

Overcoming Violence in Asia: The Role of the Church in Seeking Cultures of Peace, ed. Donald Eugene Miller, Gerard Guiton, and Paulus S. Widjaja, copublished with World Council of Churches (2010). "This volume is another example of the very creative contribution that the Historic Peace Churches are continuing to make to the ecumenical search for reconciliation and peace. For teachers and students engaged in developing a new approach to an ecumenical ethics of peace and for those committed to overcoming violence in their local context, the book provides valuable insights and welcome encouragement." —Konrad Raiser, World Council of Churches General Secretary, 1992–2003

Meditations on the Beatitudes: Lessons from the Margins, Donald R. Clymer (2011). "Don Clymer’s Meditations are creative, thoughtful, and substantive. Clymer does a beautiful job of setting up a personal story for each meditation and then reflecting on the beatitude in question and the conflicting cultural value associated with it. This is excellent material for study groups." —Dorothy Jean Weaver, Professor of New Testament, Eastern Mennonite Seminary

The "Ideal" Couple: The Shadow Side of a Marriage, Marilyn and Carl Wolgemuth (DSB, 2011). "Carl and Marilyn became wonderful friends for Jackie and me during my first solo pastorate. When I learned of Carl’s temptation in the context of a men’s prayer group, it became a matter of caring conversation and prayer for our group. The struggle and defeat he endured, and restoration from sin to covenant with God and Marilyn, is detailed in this book. Read it with care and prayer for them—and for others in similar turmoil." —John Poling, Interim Pastor, Round Rock (Tex.) Presbyterian Church, after serving multiple congregations nationwide.

Rethinking Religion: Beyond Scientism, Theism, And Philosophic Doubt, Alan Soffin (2011). "An atheist drawn to religion, Soffin shows how to conceptualize a "God" who is in and of the cosmos rather than also beyond it as theists affirm. This allows Soffin and those who see value in the path he blazes to embrace and value the treasures of religion even while not being theistic. Says Soffin, "For those who sense in modern life an underlying absence of fundamental meaning—yet fear self-deception in pursuing "God"—there may be no recourse but to shoulder the burdens of reflection and begin the ancient journey anew."

Third Way Allegiance: Christian Witness in the Shadow of Religious Empire, Tripp York (2011). "The quasi-Christian civic religion of America is like an immunization shot: people get just enough surrogate Christianity to keep them from getting the real thing! Third Way Allegiance is a powerful cure to this widespread diabolic affliction. I don’t know any work that so succinctly and effectively helps readers wake up to the way many values and practices of the American empire, and of the American church are opposed to the kingdom Jesus established. This well-written, provocative and insightful little book deserves to be—indeed, needs to be—in the hands of every American who is serious about following Jesus." —Greg Boyd, Author, The Myth of a Christian Nation; Pastor, Woodland Hills Church; and Adjunct Professor

How Trees Must Feel: A Poetry Collection, Chris Longenecker (DSB, 2011). “Chris takes the happenings of a common day, a conversation with a lover, a family gathering, and winds them into a framework that, like Georgia O’Keefe’s magnified flowers, helps us really see these moments—which, without poets or artists, might slip by unnoticed. She surreptitiously, by way of trees, lilies, and socks on the floor, nudges us to lean into life and love.” —Pamela Dintaman, contemplative pastor, chaplain, and Yuma, Arizona, desert dweller

A Table of Sharing: Mennonite Central Committee and the Expanding Networks of Mennonite Identity, ed. Alain Epp Weaver (2011). Over more than ninety years, MCC , the relief, development, and peacebuilding agency of Mennonite and Brethren in Christ churches in Canada and the United States, has been both a product and a producer of Mennonite identity. MCC arose and has been sustained through inter-Mennonite cooper ation, while MCC has also served as a catalyst for expanding the networks of Mennonite identity. In this volume, over twenty leading scholars explore how MCC has contributed, to borrow a phrase for the renowned historian of nationalism, Benedict Anderson, to the "imagined communities" of Mennnonite Peoplehood.

Sticking Points, a novel by Shirley Kurtz (DSB, winter 2011). At Anna’s church, war is wrong wrong wrong. The vestibule doesn’t have a fancy signboard commemorating soldiers who sacrificed theirlives. Thou shalt not kill, period, and the church folks have no intention of chucking this big mainstay belief. Still, is theirs a bloodthirsty God? Is Anna crazy for wondering? Have Anabaptist groups like hers—Mennonites, Church of the Brethren, the Brethren in Christ, and others--clung to a skewed gospel?

Releases 2010 and earlier

European Mennonite Voluntary Service: Youth Idealism in Post-World War II Europe, Calvin W. Redekop (Summer 2010). “One of the most dynamic Mennonite movements since 1945 has been youth-oriented voluntary service. It is especially important for North Americans to understand the European part of this story. Redekop is an exceptional quide. —John A. Lapp, Executive Secretary Emeritus, Mennonite Central Committee

The Singing Junk-Man, Truman H. Brunk (DSB, summer 2010). A sequel to That Amazing Junk-Man, The Singing Junk-Man is Brunk's second book drawing on his life and ministry. A natural story-teller, Brunk draws upon a lifetime of personal experiences with many age groups, and people from a wide variety of backgrounds. These are stories of humor, grace, and hope.

Face to Face: A Poetry Collection, Julie Cadwallader-Staub (DSB, summer 2010). “I read a lot of poetry, but rarely do I read poems so elegant in their simplicity, so profound in their humanity. I read many accounts of great love and great loss, but rarely do I see suffering explored as honestly and hopefully as it is here. The faith that shines through these poems—so powerfully that it renews the reader’s faith—is neither vague nor pious. It is bone-deep faith, a phrase that stands in paradoxical tension with the fact that bone cancer took Julie Cadwallader-Staub’s beloved Warren from her and their children, leading to this painful and redemptive journey in language and life.” —Parker J. Palmer, author of A Hidden Wholeness, of Let Your Life Speak, and of The Courage to Teach

Diary of a Kidnapped Colombian Governor: A Journey Toward Nonviolent Transformation, Guillermo Gaviria Correa (spring 2010), ed. James F. S. Amstutz, trans. Hugo and and Norma Zorilla. The dramatic rescue and release of Colombia hostage Ingrid Betancourt on July 2, 2008, riveted the world's attention on this South American country. Another 2002 kidnapping victim was the governor of Antioquia, Guillermo Gaviria Correa. Little known is his embrace of nonviolence as a political strategy—a strategy that led to his capture by the FARC and his tragic death during a failed rescue attempt in 2003. Is a non-killing society possible? Here is the story of how Governor Guillermo Gaviria of the state of Antioquia, in Colombia, paid with his life for taking this question seriously and modeling nonviolent leadership and love.

Peace Be with You: Christ's Benedication amid Violent Empires, ed. Sharon L. Baker and Michael Hardin (spring 2010). Is it the church's role to sustain cultures and empires? Or should churches take a prophetic stand in relation to the human situation? Can the church both stand for justice and continue in the way of peace? This book offers proposals for those who want to carry forth Christ's benediction of peace. Authors include Brian McLaren, Craig A. Carter, Sharon L. Baker, Andy Alexis-Baker, Derek Alan Woodard-Lehman, Ted Grimsrud, Richard T. Hughes, B. Keith Putt, Jim S. Amstutz, Anthony Siegrist, Jean F. Risley, David B. Miller, Reta Halteman Finger, Jonathan Sauder.

Storage Issues: Poems, 1998-2008, Suzanne Kay Miller (DSB, spring 2010). Storage Issues pictures an individual wandering through the remains of communal life. These personal lyric and narrative poems search for meaning in the background, events, and concerns of one Mennonite woman\rquote s existence. The poems invoke archetypal help and seek elemental order, but they also accept the changing world.

At Powerline and Diamond Hill: Unexpected Intersections of Life and Work, a memoir by Lee Snyder (DSB, 2010). This story, which begins with a place—a farm and a church—represents a personal journey of discovery; an attempt to uncover those pivotal forces which are never fully understood in constructing a life. . . . At the center of it all is the timeless present worked out through everyday rhythms of hunger and fullness, of sun, wind and rain, of light and darkness, of inexorable and unreasoned joy, of discontent and gratitude. —Lee Snyder, in the Preface

An American in Persia: A Pilgrimage to Iran, Richard A. Kauffman (spring 2010), who tells stories of his encounters with Iranians, their culture and politics, to give witness to ways walls can break down when the stories, culture, and history of others are attended to. The image that many people in the West have of Iran is of a country run by radical Muslim clerics who support terrorism in the Middle East and are determined to build nuclear weapons that will pose a threat to Israel and beyond. This is only part of the reality. Determined to get a fuller picture, Kauffman traveled to Iran as a journalist in 2008. What surprised him was how many total strangers approached him and his fellow travelers on the street . They showed the kind of hospitality for which Middle Eastern culture is known. Kauffman is hopeful that Americans and Iranians aren't doomed to be enemies and that mutual understanding is possible between Christians and Shi'a Muslims.

Roots and Branches: A Narrative History of the Amish and Mennonites in the Southeast United States, 1892-1992, volume 1, Roots, Martin W. Lehman (winter 2010). This book tells the story of Southeast Mennonite Conference, a diverse Mennonite denominational body that, from its inception, included small churches rooted in missions and larger congregations of Sarasota begun by Mennonites who moved south for sunshine and business opportunities. Roots and Branches recounts decade by decade the century-long history of Amish and Mennonites in the Southeast United States. With gentle candor Lehman, storyteller as well as historian, examines southeast Mennonites' clashes of conscience as their subculture was challenged by the diverse cultures of the people they sought to serve.

A Mennonite Woman: Exploring Spiritual Life and Identity, Dawn Ruth Nelson (winter 2010). "My grandmother was named Susan Alderfer Ruth. She was born in 1909 and died in 2005. In those years, in an area just north of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, she led a life representative of what a certain kind of Mennonite spirituality was then and some Amish spirituality remains today. In 2001, I decided to talk to her and determine what formed her spiritually. I felt I could generalize from her life—discover practices in her life that would help me get at the core of Mennonite spirituality and spiritual formation in the twentieth century." —Dawn Ruth Nelson, in Chapter 1

Continuing the Journey: The Geography of Our Faith, ed. Nancy V. Lee, ACRS Memoirs 2 (Nov. 2009). Some stories are boldly told, others with a measure of reticence. Some are scholarly, many informal. There is no one road ‘most traveled’ in these memoirs, no one pattern. . . . Among the riches you can claim in this book are the ways these thinkers dealt with change in the Mennonite church, change in themselves, and change in society." —Katie Funk Wiebe

Making Sense of the Journey: The Geography of Our Faith, Cascadia edition, ed. Robert Lee Nancy V. Lee, ACRS Memoirs 1 (Dec. 2009). The Mennonite writers of this book (which preceded Continuing the Journey, see above) were Depression-era babies who amid experiencing World War II, the Korean, Vietnam, and the Cold wars, helped Eastern Mennonite College (now University) and North American Mennonites develop more global perspectives and commitments. Authors include Esther K. Augsburger, Myron S. Augsburger, Titus W. Bender, James R. Bomberger, Gerald R. Brunk, Ray Gingerich, Samuel L. Horst, Albert N. Keim, C. Norman Kraus, Nancy V. Lee, Harold D. Lehman, John R. Martin, Paul Peachey, Calvin W. Redekop, Calvin E. Shenk. "Life is a mystery, and the best memoirs reflect that mystery. Good lives are those which bring hope and courage in the midst of that mystery. This book reflects that struggle," says Albert N. Keim, in the Introduction This volume, a Cascadia republication of the original Anabaptist Center for Religion and Society edition, is copublished with ACRS as well as Herald Press.

Ask Third Way Café: 50 Common and Quirky Questions About Mennonites, Jodi Nisly Hertzler (Autumn 2009). "Some of Hertzler’s answers are little tweets while others flow in succinct paragraphs, but regardless of length, they quickly capture Mennonite views on many things." —Donald B. Kraybill, in the Foreword

Defenseless Christianity: Anabaptism for a Nonviolent Church, Gerald J. Mast and J. Denny Weaver (Summer 2009). "I've been reading with interest the important work being done by Denny Weaver and others on violence in relation to our understandings of God, atonement, and eschatology. I've also been watching, with joy, the growing rediscovery of the nonviolent heritage of the Radical Reformation. So I enthusiastically await the release of Defenseless Christianity." —Brian D. McLaren, Author/Activist (brianmclaren.net)

Mutual Treasure: Seeking Better Ways for Christians and Culture to Converse, ed. Harold Heie and Michael A. King (Spring/Summer 2009). Rejecting both withdrawal from culture and confrontational approaches to culture, this book calls for a better way—engaging others by coming alongside them, building relationships of mutual trust. The effectiveness of this better way is illustrated by means of eight actual case studies in which Christians have redemptively engaged others in the areas of politics, environmental public policy, film production, the academy of scholars, church discussions of homosexuality, conflict transformation, and interfaith dialogue.

See Complete List for all releases going back to our first book published 1998. Browse or buy any of our titles at our Cascadia/Amazon.com Bookstore. Or search below for our books or any book at all available through Amazon.com.