Publisher's Synopsis
The secret lives of church ladies continue to be explored in "The Mission of Mildred Budge: The Short Adventures of Mildred Budge." Like the first volume of short stories, "Miss Budge in Love," "The Mission of Mildred Budge" offers a fresh and often funny behind-the-scenes look at Southern church life with an emphasis in this collection on the work of missions, fund-raising for missions, and the mysterious ways that people unite in the fellowship of the saints called worship. Like the two full-length novels ("Mildred Budge in Cloverdale" and "Mildred Budge in Embankment") the stories in this newest collection look deeply into the motivations of hometown Christians and the power that fuels their faith. While the stories in this collection have a missions focus, they branch off into a spontaneous exorcism ("Sibel, You're Getting Fat") considerations about grief ("The Unfaithful Widow), and even the kind of funeral some people want ("Muffins all Around"). Lifelong friendships are explored and even the best of friends in church who routine squabble doing committee work are rightly sent to time-out in the story
