Maeve Binchy

Maeve Binchy was born in Dublin and came to fame first as London Correspondent for the Irish Times. Her first novel, Light A Penny Candle made her famous in the UK and USA.

She says of her upbringing. ‘My memory of my home was that it was very happy, and that there was more fun and life there than there was anywhere else. My mother could do all kinds of things, like take a bone out of your throat if it got stuck and you were choking, or clean out a turkey on Christmas Eve when it arrived far from oven-ready. She could take out splinters and cure headaches and get the grocer to deliver her a packet of Gold Flake by giving a list of other items as well and asking if it could be brought up to the house soon because she was in a hurry for the cornflour. Our house was ten miles from Dublin City where we all went to University and then to work. Ten miles is near enough to live at home, and just a little too near to get a flat unless there was some bad feeling. And there was no bad feeling.’

She says of herself. “I was the big bossy older sister, full of enthusiasms, mad fantasies, desperate urges to be famous and anxious to be a saint. A settled sort of saint, not one who might have to suffer or die for her faith. I was terrified that I might see a Vision like St Bernadette or the Children at Fatima and be a martyr instead. My school friends accused me of making this up but I never looked up into trees in case I saw Our Lady beckoning to me.”

She lives in Dublin with her husband, Gordon Snell.

Fellow novelist SOPHIE KING on MAEVE BINCHY

I was only a teenager when I discovered Maeve and I've always loved her books but the one that sticks out in my mind is Evening Class. It's told from the point of view of different characters - which is what I do in my own books. It's a wonderful way of getting into the characters' heads and also to move the plot along.

If you like Maeve Binchy you might also like to read books by Rosamunde Pilcher, Deirdre Purcell and Amanda Brookfield

The Copper Beech Maeve Binchy A Special Edition of The Copper Beech by Maeve Binchy to celebrate Orion's 20th anniversary. Maeve Binchy's marvellous portrait of a small Irish town whose untroubled surface conceals the passions, rivalries, friendships, ambitions and jealousies beneath. Format: Paperback - Released: 20/02/2012 Lovereading Price: £5.99 - Saving £2.00 (25%)

Full House (Quick Reads) Maeve Binchy A World Book Day 2012 Quick Read. Dee loves her children very much, but now they are all grown up, shouldn't they leave home? Format: Paperback - Released: 02/02/2012 Lovereading Price: £1.49 - Saving £0.50 (25%)

Minding Frankie Maeve Binchy June 2011 Book of the Month and eBook of the Month. A great family tale about the power of love and friendships. Noel finds himself left alone to bring up baby Frankie but... Format: Paperback - Released: 09/06/2011 Lovereading Price: £5.99 - Saving £2.00 (25%)

Minding Frankie Maeve Binchy A great family tale about the power of love and friendships. Noel finds himself left alone to bring up baby Frankie but Noel is a troubled soul himself and when Social Workers start threatening to take Frankie away family and... Format: Paperback - Released: 17/02/2011 Lovereading Price: £9.74 - Saving £3.25 (25%)

Minding Frankie Maeve Binchy December 2010 Book of the Month. A great family tale about the power of love and friendships. Noel finds himself left alone to bring up baby Frankie but Noel is a troubled soul... Format: Hardback - Released: 30/09/2010 Lovereading Price: £14.24 - Saving £4.75 (25%)

The Return Journey Maeve Binchy Twenty-one linked short stories with travel the overall theme. Featuring jet-setters to homely couples, sad people to warm folk, in fact all walks of life, they contain characters brilliantly ‘fleshed out’ in just a few words – Binchy’s hallmark –... Format: Paperback - Released: 10/06/2010 Lovereading Price: £5.99 - Saving £2.00 (25%)

Heart and Soul Maeve Binchy The brand new novel from Maeve Binchy is another tale of family and relationship dramas. The story centres round Clara Casey, who is finding her two grown daughters more of a handful now than when they were teenagers. Not only... Format: Paperback - Released: 09/07/2009 Lovereading Price: £5.99 - Saving £2.00 (25%)

Heart and Soul Maeve Binchy The brand new novel from Maeve Binchy is another tale of family and relationship dramas. The story centres round Clara Casey, who is finding her two grown daughters more of a handful now than when they were teenagers. Not only... Format: Hardback - Released: 02/10/2008 Lovereading Price: £14.24 - Saving £4.75 (25%)

This Year It Will Be Different Maeve Binchy A collection of short stories relating to Christmas which would make a good stocking filler for someone who hasn’t really read Maeve Binchy before. If you are a fan you may have read some of the stories before in other... Format: Paperback - Released: 04/09/2008 Lovereading Price: £5.99 - Saving £2.00 (25%)

Whitethorn Woods Maeve Binchy This is a book of interconnecting stories. Different characters give their story and point of view about the possible destruction of Whitethorn Woods and the well of St Ann that sits in the middle of the woods, due to proposals... Format: Paperback - Released: 27/06/2007 Lovereading Price: £5.99 - Saving £2.00 (25%)

Star Sullivan Maeve Binchy Quiet, sweet, good natured Star Sullivan always has everyone else's best interests at heart. But when she falls for the boy next door and enlists his help to solve the many issues her family are facing is she really acting... Format: Paperback - Released: 02/03/2006 Lovereading Price: £1.49 - Saving £0.50 (25%)

Nights of Rain and Stars Maeve Binchy Four strangers with life crises unite in a Greek taverna and witness a tragedy. This author is so warm and infectious, so perceptive and absorbing, it’s like dropping in on an old friend for gossip and advice. This title is... Format: Paperback - Released: 29/06/2005 Lovereading Price: £5.99 - Saving £2.00 (25%)

The Glass Lake Maeve Binchy Repercussions for a whole family when the mother goes missing, presumed drowned. Village life with all it’s characters and twists and turns brought on by one event. Maeve Binchy doing a great job of keeping the reader glued with every... Format: Paperback - Released: 29/06/2005 Lovereading Price: £5.99 - Saving £2.00 (25%)

Quentins Maeve Binchy A very gentle read and one that brings in characters form Binchy’s best loved stories. One for when you want a quiet easy read on a cols winter evening. Format: Paperback - Released: 29/06/2005 Lovereading Price: £5.99 - Saving £2.00 (25%)

Tara Road Maeve Binchy Two women, one from Dublin one from New England end up on a house swap for the summer and find their lives changed forever. Another tale with strong female characters and the importance of friendship. As always there are a... Format: Paperback - Released: 29/06/2005 Lovereading Price: £5.99 - Saving £2.00 (25%)

Evening Class Maeve Binchy An evening class starts up in the Dublin suburbs, transforming the lives of those who attend in more ways than they can ever have expected. Maeve Binchy takes her characters through the ringer and back and always ends by giving... Format: Paperback - Released: 29/06/2005 Lovereading Price: £5.99 - Saving £2.00 (25%)