A New Song - Paperback

by Jan Karon (Author)

In the fifth novel in #1 New York Times bestselling author Jan Karon's beloved series, fans old and new will discover that when it comes to Mitford, absence only make the heart grow fonder...

Mitford's longtime Episcopal priest, Father Tim, has retired. But new challenges and adventures await when he agrees to serve as interim minister of a small church on Whitecap Island. He and his wife, Cynthia, soon find that Whitecap has its own unforgettable characters: a church organist with a mysterious past, a lovelorn bachelor placing personal ads, a mother battling paralyzing depression. Whitecap has more than its fair share of challenges, but in the end, Father Tim and Cynthia find that Mitford is never far away when circumstances back home keep their phone ringing off the hook...

Back Jacket

Though 600 miles from home, Father Tim and Cynthia find that Mitford is never far away. Another feast for fans of America's favorite small town.

Recently retired after years of serving as the rector of Lord's Chapel, Father Tim agrees to pastor a small parish off the Atlantic coast. There's only one problem: How can he and Cynthia leave the town -- and the boy -- they love?

Soon, however, the charming island of Whitecap reveals its own cast of unforgettable characters: a lovelorn bachelor trying his hand at personal ads, a church organist with a past, a gifted musician who never ventures beyond his gate, and a young mother struggling with paralyzing depression.

Father Tim and Cynthia become immersed in the challenges and quiet victories that make a community special, but the high, green hills of Mitford are never far from their minds -- especially when Dooley ends up on the wrong side of the law.

Like every other bestselling Mitford novel, A New Song is a book you can't bear to see end.

Author Biography

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."