Customer Reviews

The Mitford Years: At Home in Mitford / A Light in the Window / These High, Green Hills / Out to Canaan (Four-Volume Set)

5 star:		(68)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

My friend told me of these books after a book signing that occured in town and now; I am sorry to have missed meeting Jan Karon! I have read all 5 books in less than a couple of months! I absolutely loved each and every one of them. Everyday I would transport myself to the town of Mitford and the interesting people in it. It was so wonderful to read something pleasurable and wholesome. I found them quite humerous at times. Father Tim is such a wonderful example of a good friend and just a giving person. Cynthia becomes a strong aspect of his life, revealing another side of him. Her love for life just grabs you! Dooley transforms into a wonderful new person because of all the unconditional love and support that Father Tim and all the people in Mitford give him. It broke my heart to finish the last book, yet I am glad to have "known" the people of Mitford. I so impatiently wait for Jan Karon's next masterpiece and that is what led me to her children's books "Miss Fannie's Hat" and "Jeremy." I have read these with my children time and time again. We look forward to more Jan Karon books!

Where do I begin to describe the wonder and beauty of a place called Mitford? Normally, I read romance and murder mystery novels, but after reading the Mitford series, have no desire to pick up anything else. They have transported me to a higher plane and inspired me to be a better Christian, better friend, better mother, and better wife. Father Tim, Cynthia, Dooley, Barnabus, Uncle Billy . . . all the characters are real people to me. I feel like I should walk outside and see them on the street. They are honest and caring and giving and very, very human. The difference that Father Tim has made in the lives of everyone around him is a perfect example of what the Holy Spirit can do in the life of a believer. And what a difference a dog, a boy, a wife, and a household filled to the brim with happiness and confusion has made in his own life. That's what life is all about. Learning and growing and becoming the kind of people that God wants us to me. Hats off to Jan Karon!

Jan Karon certainly made me want to live in Mitford. Since I can't do that her books have been the closest thing to being there.I'm on the third book in the series and look forward to spending time with Father Tim and Cynthia and the wonderful and real cast of characters who inhabit Mitford. I first read about Mitford and Jan Karon when I picked up a copy of TEA magazine and read a review of her new book A New Song and an interview with Jan Karon. I grew up in a small New England town much like Mitford. It is a delight to escape there everytime I read about miss Rose, uncle Billy, Emma and Dooley not to mention the Main Street Grille. Each book includes a certain amount of mystery too. Will Tim and Cynthia get married? Will Dooley become a gentleman? Will Barnabas return?These questions keep me coming back for more and more. Ms.Karon please keep writing and providing me with a great escape.

I have zoomed through these 4 Mitford books and am now midway through the 5th. The characters grab you and transport you to a town where I think, deep down, we would all like to call home. Father Tim is a "real" person with very human characteristics. Yet his basic goodness will restore your faith in humanity. The theology is not shoved down your throat, but rather is grasped between the lines. All the characters are memorable. Cynthia and Dooley in particular help shape the wonderful story line. The huge dog, Barnabus, who is disciplined only by hearing Bible verse, worms his way into your heart. I am so glad I discovered this series, and I recommend it to absolutely anyone!

I live in the Bronx, I travel the subway to work in Manhattan every day. In short, I'm in the rat race. But whenever one of Ms. Karon's books are in my hands, I am transported to a kinder, gentler world where Father Tim and Cynthia are my friendly next door neighbors and all is right with the world. I would recommend this book and all the Mitford books to everyone. I wish she would write at a faster pace!

The novel is a perfect depiction of small town life. Wholesome, entertaining and uplifting reading. There is no need to censor for young teenage or pre-teen readers. Mrs. Stan Covalt

The first thing that came to mind after I finished reading this book is that I wish it were a television series. If t.v. was of the same high quality, good-hearted, old-fashioned, moral standards as this book then I wouldn't be afraid for my neice and nephew to watch it. These books are wholesome and that is a quality that is shunned in today's society. While I know that books as literature can be expressed in anyway, I really enjoyed the folks of Mitford and their honest lives, it was so refreshing. I have only read the first installment but I assure you the other 4 will be read quickly. I wish I had a Father Tim in my life.

After reading each book, I could not get to the bookstore fast enough to get the next one. I felt very sad when the "Last Song" was done. I anxiously await her next book.

Every character is delightful. I especially love Barnabus the "scripture" fearing dog.

I absolutely loved this series, and have shared it with my closest friends and family. Mitford certainly has its share of eccentric folks, and I found myself identifying with many of the them, and truly enjoying them. A pleasant, easy read, I looked forward to each book. I found the writing wonderfully humorous and at times quite touching and would recommend this series of books to anyone looking for characters with the human touch! Jan Karon has described my kind of town in Mitford.

After I started reading the first chapter of the first book in this series, I knew I was hooked. I could not put it down. You are immersed into the life of this little town, Mitford, and you follow the joys and anxieties of Father Tim while he is trying to tend to his parish!

I have been looking in the bookstore for a whole year just waiting for volume 5 to come out!

I have even though of starting to read the series again.....