Customer Reviews

he Mitford Years Box Set, Volumes 4-6: Out to Canaan, A New Song, and A Common Life

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

 

 

I almost never read books of this genre - they're usually way too sappy for me. I'm more of a historical novel kind of person - I like a lot of real characters and angst and war and to learn a little something while I'm reading. But for some reason, this series really started to grab me, especially after the second book. True, the characters don't seem to have any real problems and they all care for each other equally and live in an impossibly idyllic little village. But then again, maybe that's WHY I like this series so much. It's a vacation from my typical reading list - if I want to take a breather and read something that makes me happy and calm and transported to a fantasy-land that almost crosses over to reality, I take a trip to Mitford.

As a Catholic, the whole "we're all happy Protestants in this town" can get to be a little wearing after a while, but it's also a nice reminder that there are still people of faith and moral uprightness out there. That might be another reason this series appeals to me - I live a basically religion-free existence, thanks to popular American culture, and that's okay for the most part. But at the end of the day, I often find myself longing to reassociate with religion in a non-invasive way, and these books do that for me with their gentle spirituality.

If people are expecting to read books with depth and underlying tensions and hidden hatreds, you're not going to find that here. I consider these books "vacation" from everyday life, and the heavier fare that I typically read. They are sweet and simple and take you to a place that you just might be able to create for yourself someday.

I was rather disappointed with this series. I bought the first three books some time ago (at that time, half of the published series, but I believe two more books were written in the interim) and thought I was in for Maupin's "Tales of the City" in a more rural setting--I was wrong. SO wrong!!!!

Oh, the characters are colorful enough. I like the repartee Father Tim has with Dooley, his secretary (Edna?) and Puny, the kookiness of Miss Pattie and Miss Rose and Uncle Billy, and Puny's blunt down-home way of talking ("Esther Bolick's lookin' to give you the ol' 'whang-do.'")

However, there's no intrigue--the plot lines are short-lived and resolve with a "happily ever after" ending since most of the characters are God-fearing White Christian heterosexuals who live squeaky clean lives. I'm only a third of the way through the third book and it's obvious that I'm in for at least 100 more pages of "I can't believe how lucky I am to have found Cynthia" from Father Tim. That's great for Father Tim, but just think of all the paper wasted that could have been put to better use with say...an actual story arc or two.

As a Jewish gay man born and raised in NYC and now living in San Diego, perhaps I'm just the wrong demographic for this series. For sure I won't be finishing it--YAWN!!!

I came to these books in a backwards sort of way. Most of the people I know who are reading and loving Van Reid's wonderful Moosepath League books read Jan Karon first. I had just finished "Daniel Plainway" and was dying for something that was just as fun, funny, and heartwarming. I had seen Jan Karon's books many times, but finally decided to take the advice of friends and start them. I was so glad. They may not be as laugh out loud funny as Mr. Reid's books, and they aren't such rollicking adventures, but what they do have in common is a grand outlook on life. Too, Mr. Reid's romantic novels are set in 19th century Maine and Ms. Karon's are in modern day North Carolina. But that only goes to show that people are the same everywhere. Jan Karon's people are warm without being cloying, and her outlook on life is optimistic without seeming too rose colored. Her people have funny, but realistic problems of the heart and home. Do read them. And if you love them and haven't read Van Reid's books, you can do what most people have done and "read" them next. Whichever way you go, it's always wonderful to know that there is something more out there that isn't all darkness and anger and violence. Enjoy!

I just finished reading the Mitford series. The books were given to me almost a year ago and sat on my shelf. Recently, I had a personal crisis and have spent much alone time which allowed me time to read the entire series in less than 6 weeks. These are not deep books but often the simple is what we really need. The series provided an escape which could be perceived as a shallow endeavor but reflecting on the deep sprirtual undertones, I found the books inspiring and healing for me during a trying time personally and in light of our national situation as well... I would recommend these books for anyone who is looking for something better.

I have all of the Mitford Series books and "Esther's Gifts" and the "Mitford Snowmen". Her books are truly what I call "A feel good book". We've also started buying her children's books for our Grandchildren. Jan Karon's books always put you in a "feel good" frame of mind and leave you wanting more.

As you read this, you might find it hard to believe that at heart, I'm a sucker for warm hometown tales. I still watch, and enjoy, Andy Griffith reruns; Mayberry rules! So I was all prepared to curl up in a comfy chair and fall in love with Mitford too. Alas, this did not happen.

Have you ever watched little girls playing Barbie? Of course you have. You've seen how they haul out those stilt-legged little dolls (which, on their own, don't do much but lie there looking vacuous), and they walk them and "talk" them through imaginary scenarios, in accordance with whichever character they're imagining Barbie to be at the moment.

Well, that's the way Jan Karon handles her stable of lovable, eccentric small-town Southern characters. She fashions her "dolls" out of every cliched notion she can find, and then she walks and talks them through every possible hackneyed scenario, be it dramatic or touching or what passes for humorous -- and she calls it a novel. And wins the heart of millions.

But not my heart.

While the author's sincerity and good-heartedness, not to mention her faith, are apparent in her writing, I feel her stories and characters simply lack authenticity. Furthermore I found most of the characters to be more annoying than lovable; I failed to be won over even by the venerable Father Tim, a marshmallow of a man who, goodness me, remained a virgin till his marriage at 60. (Okay, so he's a clergyman, but still...) And his goody-two-shoes wife is even more irritating, perhaps because I expected so much more of her. I wouldn't want to be a fly on their bedroom wall; I'd probably die of boredom.

I have no objection to reading stories about people of faith, nor do I require steamy sex scenes, or even any sex scenes at all, to make my enjoyment of a novel complete. But I do demand a measure of depth and realism, which I did not find here (but found in abundance in, for example, Gail Godwin's wonderful novel about a small-town clergywoman, *Evensong*).

I know that Ms. Karon lives in a Mitford-like town and, no doubt, her characters are vaguely inspired by real-life people, but something got lost in the trip from the real world to the printed page. I went so far as to read the first four books in this series, hoping they would get better. They did, but only marginally so. I will concede that Ms. Karon seems to have grown a little more comfortable as a novelist. She will never be a Barbara Kingsolver or a Louise Erdrich, and I wouldn't expect that. But I would expect a far more authentic voice than I've experienced in the pages of these novels. I was not motivated to read beyond the fourth book in the series.

So count me NOT at home in Mitford. Give me Andy, Barney, Aunt Bee and even Otis any day.

I only read a couple of the books in this series and simply couldn't stomach anymore. I don't understand why these books have such a fanatical following. The plots are predictable and the characters are one-dimensional and plastic. It's easy to see that Jan Karon is just trying to make as much money as possible out of her popularity. ... I wanted to give these books no star but the computerized form wouldn't allow anything lower than one star...