Karen Jones Gowen

Lighting Candles in the Snow by Karen Jones Gowen
Story starts out with Karoline and her life up to when she meets Jeremy. She meets her sister in Utah and gets a job there-being they are the only ones left of the family-their parents travel and live in Florida.
She meets Jeremy and there's a lot of thought process of how they met, got along, she wanted to meet his family-only his mother left, til they moved in. They do get married and things don't go quite right and they end up divorced.
Suz her sister is always the positive one and keeping Karoline moving. She's lost her job at the mortgage company and does some part time temp work but she still love Jeremy. She meets and dates another man but Jeremy comes back into her life.
Sad thing for me was finding out what candles in the snow was all about-it's so sad, about his past.
Love hearing of the hiking and the locale, some place I'd like to visit some time.
Author bio and other works by the author are highlighted at the end.… (més)

When I started reading Karen Jones Gowen’s new novel, Afraid of Everything, I had to double-check that it was a novel and not a memoir. The beginning details a woman’s struggle with an uncontrollable anxiety through the interaction with a psychotherapist. The protagonist, Helena, is a Labor and Delivery nurse, whose extreme anxiety and fear of harming a patient have forced her to take a leave from her career. Anxiety permeates every aspect of her daily life, rendering her helpless to move forward. As Gowen slowly builds tension in her story, I found myself experiencing her fears and anxieties. Her writing is free-flowing and engaging. She paints a vivid picture of how anxiety looks and feels.

“When Mom died, my grief came like a silent howling creature, one whose throat was cut before it could scream. Sorrow was too mild a word for what coursed through me like a living being of destruction.” (Chapter Five, page 40)

In a unique plot twist, she is critically injured in a car accident and ends up in a coma. It is what happens while she is in a coma that keeps me turning the pages. Without giving away too much of the story, she finds her truth and her priorities and emerges a stronger person who is able to fully participate in her life. Although this is fiction, there are many valuable lessons for all of us. I highly recommend this well-crafted, creative novel which sheds light on anxiety and how it can impact our lives. It is an enjoyable and enlightening read.… (més)

Farm Girl Country Cooking: Hearty Meals for the Active Family by Karen Jones Gowen
Being raised near a farm I thought this would bring back a lot of memories of the food we grew up on-fresh grown.
Rule of three makes sense to the way we eat now. Love the added suggestions on what other foods could be placed on the menu.
Found the main meals/casseroles to use a lot of meat-something we have maybe once a week now but gave me ideas on combining a few recipes together for a meal.
Love getting back to basics with dry beans. Loved muffins the best and refrigerated dough that can be used for cinnamon rolls and dinner rolls.
Lacking are the pictures of food made but otherwise a good resource for old time cooking.… (més)