After being reminded by a friend that this series is delightfully like "curling up with a cup of tea," I realized that the whole series is missing from my Goodreads list. It's been quite a while since I've read this book, so I'm just guessing on the date. I won't rate it, because the details are fuzzy, but I loved this series. Don't pick it up if you're looking for something exceptionally deep or literary. It's just a warm-hearted and good series with characters striving to learn and do what it right.

Even with the familiar Grille characters and the rector's predictable inactions,
the plot falls flat with the boring cave episode and too many unresolved loopholes:

Why didn't Tim and Cynthia immediately tell the doctor and Buck to go to Lace and her mother?
Buck would have stopped the father from any future beatings or worse
and Hoppy would have taken the mother to a hospital and on to a nursing home.

Why didn't Louella, Tim, and the Constable simply disable the car
to prevent Sadie from killing someone?

Why does Tim keep calling his wife Kavanaugh when it just sounds phony and
would not be something Cynthia would actually permit...?

Why didn't everyone immediately go get Poobaw?

And why is there no mention at all of Pauline's 4 year old daughter Jessie?
And the missing kid in Oregon - no search there either.

Tim and Cynthia don't care as they go romping away to another scenic picnic.
while there is no response from Dooley before he leaves...or from any adult. ( )

51058

not a book club book ( )

When my soul needs soothing, I return to Mitford. Somehow I always find what I need in these novels. Perhaps it is because, like Father Tim, I am recently married later in life. This novel has themes of what marriage means. Perhaps it is because I have faced loss recently, as have so many during this pandemic. These High, Green Hills explores profound, unimaginable loss and mourning. Perhaps it is because of the joy in the fellowship of friends. I needed this book now.

Released in 1996, I believe the setting is earlier in the 1980s when home computers were still relatively new, and word processing was in its infancy. While there are serious moments and sad, they are leavened by humor that is always kind.

I thoroughly enjoyed my trip to Mitford. Do start at the beginning of the series so you can watch the characters evolve. The series is highly recommended. ( )