Friday Favorites: Mitford

 I guess I should admit up front that Mitford is not a real place. But the books by Jan Karon set in fictional Mitford, NC, are some of my all-time favorite books! In fact, I've just started reading the first book for the third time (or maybe the fourth).

It's all because the latest book in the Mitford series, "Somewhere Safe with Somebody Good" was just released in September and I bought a copy for my collection. But I wanted to try to wait to read it until I go on a beach trip in a couple of weeks. But I got that hankering to go to Mitford, so I decided to start back at the beginning and read all of the books leading up to the latest one. Not sure if I'll make it through seven books in the next two weeks, but we'll see.

My coworker who has never read the Mitford series was asking me about it the other day. Someone else had recommended it to her and she was interested, so when I also mentioned buying the latest book she was even more intrigued. I feel like I don't give a very compelling description of the characters and storylines, but I also think it's something you have to experience to appreciate. My mom tried several times to get into the series, and only this summer got hooked. Now she wants to be on the list to borrow my copy of the latest one!

As I have been reading the first book again this week, I have just had to smile at being reintroduced to Father Tim, Emma, Dooley, Cynthia, Puny, and Sadie Baxter. Those are just some of the characters who live in Mitford and become a part of the appeal of the books. I've also been surprised at how many important things took place in the first book. I had forgotten the sequence of some things and thought they happened in later parts of the story.

I first learned about the Mitford series when it was fairly new and I was visiting Blowing Rock, NC, for the first time. Mitford is said to be loosely based on Blowing Rock, so when I am reading the Mitford books, I have a mental picture of a quaint mountain town with a Main Street and fun shops. It makes me want to go back and spend some time in the mountains of North Carolina.

So, in the next few weeks, if you can't find me at lunch time or in the evening or on a Sunday afternoon, you can figure that I've "gone to Mitford" and will be back soon with a smile on my face and a nice, warm feeling in my heart!