A Continual Feast: Words of Comfort and Celebration, Collected by Father Tim

by Jan Karon

Overview

"For years, Mitford's Father Tim Kavanagh has transcribed into his dog-eared journals words of wisdom, faith, and encouragement gleaned from favorite thinkers. Indeed, A Continual Feast contains lively ideas, common sense, profound wisdom, and plain good humor from the likes of C. S. Lewis, Emily Dickinson, William Blake, Helen Keller, G. K. Chesterton, and Will Rogers, to name but a few." This book is an entertaining and useful handbook for all those who relish a good "aha!" - including fans of the Mitford novels, clergy, speechmakers, dog lovers, and anyone who enjoys insight into everything from the righteous to the ridiculous.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780143036562
Publisher:	Penguin Publishing Group
Publication date:	02/28/2006
Series:	Mitford Series
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	192
Sales rank:	53,709
Product dimensions:	5.00(w) x 7.80(h) x 0.50(d)
Age Range:	18 - 17 Years

About the Author

Jan Karon, born Janice Meredith Wilson in the foothills of North Carolina, was named after the title of a popular novel, Janice Meredith.

Jan wrote her first novel at the age of ten. "The manuscript was written on Blue Horse notebook paper, and was, for good reason, kept hidden from my sister. When she found it, she discovered the one curse word I had, with pounding heart, included in someone's speech. For Pete's sake, hadn't Rhett Butler used that very same word and gotten away with it? After my grandmother's exceedingly focused reproof, I've written books without cussin' ever since."

Several years ago, Karon left a successful career in advertising to move to the mountain village of Blowing Rock, North Carolina, and write books. "I stepped out on faith to follow my lifelong dream of being an author," she says. "I made real sacrifices and took big risks. But living, it seems to me, is largely about risk."

Enthusiastic booksellers across the country have introduced readers of all ages to Karon's heartwarming books. At Home in Mitford, Karon's first book in the Mitford series, was nominated for an ABBY by the American Booksellers Association in 1996 and again in 1997. Bookstore owner, Shirley Sprinkle, says, "The Mitford Books have been our all-time fiction bestsellers since we went in business twenty-five years ago. We've sold 10,000 of Jan's books and don't see any end to the Mitford phenomenon."

Hometown:

Blowing Rock, North Carolina

Date of Birth:

1937

Place of Birth:

Lenoir, North Carolina

Website:

http://www.mitfordbooks.com

Editorial Reviews

Hard-core fans of Karon's fictional Mitford will welcome her latest offering, a sequel of sorts to Patches of Godlight. Like Patches, this "commonplace book" collects favorite quotations of Karon's protagonist Father Tim on things quotidian and spiritual. Everything from John Wesley's "Direction for Singing" to witticisms by Lauren Bacall are here. Book lovers will delight in the musings about books, such as the Italian proverb "There is no worse robber than a bad book." There are reflections on aging, a few felicitous selections from Proverbs and some wise instructions about prayer. Father Tim (and Karon) are nothing if not well read: other sources of wisdom in this slender volume include Thomas Jefferson, George Herbert, Episcopal priest Barbara Brown Taylor, William Shakespeare, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Billy Graham, Mother Teresa, St. Augustine, Epictetus and Dorothy Sayers. And, of course, there's a good dose of Oswald Chambers, one of Father Tim's favorite devotional writers (Chambers is often quoted in the Mitford novels, as well). The book's design is delightful; most of the quotations appear in a font meant to resemble Father Tim's hand (scrawling, yes, but not too hard to read), with the occasional quotation typed on his trusty Royal manual and faux-taped into this book. Even folks who have never journeyed to Mitford will enjoy Karon's enchanting collection of insightful quotations. (Mar.) Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.

Publishers Weekly

Inspirational quotes: a companion to Patches of Godlight. Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

Library Journal