Book Review: Jan Karon

Mitford Cookbook & Kitchen Reader

By Catherine Groves

Have you visited Mitford? Have you listened to Father Tim expound on Wordsworth? Perhaps youve laughed at one of Uncle Billys jokes or cried when (at the age of 60) Father Tim falls in love with Cynthia, his next door neighbor. Maybe, as I did, you found yourself praying that Dooley would go from being a lost child to a very much loved young man in the home of Father Tim. And then Puny; she gives a new meaning to the word Father for this Episcopalian bachelor.

Yes, these characters may be the fictional work of Jan Karon, author of At Home in Mitford and seven other books in the series, The Mitford Years, all of which were bestsellers. To her huge following of readers, these characters become so very real. Based in a southern town in North Carolina, Karon gives such personality to her characters that it seems quite likely they could be that someone that is serving up breakfast at the local diner.

In many scenes throughout the series, mouth-watering dishes are described in a way that one finds themselves wanting the recipe. From Father Tims meatloaf to Punys cornbread, and then theres Cynthias Heavenly Tea, and certainly the most coveted recipe of all; Esther Bolicks Orange Marmalade Cake. These recipes are available in Jan Karons Mitford Cookbook and Kitchen Reader!

If you love the Mitford books, youre sure to love this cookbook and reader. If youve not yet met Karons memorable characters, find her first Mitford novel, At Home in Mitford, and get ready to meet some endearing people youll call friends for life!

Jan Karons Mitford Cookbook and Kitchen Reader can be purchased at most major retail book stores and on Amazon.