8.01.2012

Maeve Binchy

Maeve Binchy recently passed away. Maeve Binchy wrote Circle of Friends, the first novel I read with a protagonist I could relate to; a girl I knew, because she lived in my head. I have re-read Circle of Friends every year since I was 14. It holds up.

Binchy wrote sweeping stories about people who could be your friends, neighbors, family members, yourself. They are not epic adventures, there is nothing of the paranormal about them, they are not set in space or the future or in an alternate reality. Most often, they are set in an Irish town populated by people we all recognize, sometime in the last 50 years, and the situations are real. Love, hate, death, loss, betrayal, friendship. I would always look forward to a new book from her, and at this point, I have read everything she's written apart from a memoir. These books are not complicated (extensive casts notwithstanding). They are easy to read. They are comforting and lovely and worth a look.

I'm genuinely saddened by this loss. And will read Circle of Friends again very soon. It'll hold up.

*If you're interested, my favorites are Circle of Friends, Echos, The Glass Lake, Light a Penny Candle.