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| religion = [[Roman Catholic]]
| religion = [[Roman Catholic]]
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'''Maeve Binchy''' (born 28 May 1940<ref name="EB">[http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9095218/Maeve-Binchy Encyclopedia Britannica entry on Maeve Binchy]</ref>, [[Dalkey]], [[County Dublin]]<ref name="Guardian">[http://books.guardian.co.uk/authors/author/0,,-21,00.html Guardian Unlimited Books]</ref>) is an [[Ireland|Irish]] [[novel]]ist, [[columnist|newspaper columnist]] and [[Orator|speaker]]. Educated at [[University College Dublin]]<ref name="EB"/><ref name="Guardian"/>, she worked as a teacher<ref>[http://www.bookreporter.com/authors/au-binchy-maeve.asp An interview with Jana Siciliano for BookReporter.com]</ref><ref name="Guardian"/>, then a [[journalist]] at ''[[The Irish Times]]''<ref name="Guardian"/> and later become a Fat Bint.
'''Maeve Binchy''' (born 28 May 1940<ref name="EB">[http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9095218/Maeve-Binchy Encyclopedia Britannica entry on Maeve Binchy]</ref>, [[Dalkey]], [[County Dublin]]<ref name="Guardian">[http://books.guardian.co.uk/authors/author/0,,-21,00.html Guardian Unlimited Books]</ref>) is an [[Ireland|Irish]] [[novel]]ist, [[columnist|newspaper columnist]] and [[Orator|speaker]]. Educated at [[University College Dublin]]<ref name="EB"/><ref name="Guardian"/>, she worked as a teacher<ref>[http://www.bookreporter.com/authors/au-binchy-maeve.asp An interview with Jana Siciliano for BookReporter.com]</ref><ref name="Guardian"/>, then a [[journalist]] at ''[[The Irish Times]]''<ref name="Guardian"/> and later become a writer of [[novels]] and [[short stories]].


Many of her novels are set in Ireland, dealing with the tensions between urban and rural life, the contrasts between England and Ireland, and the dramatic changes in Ireland between [[World War II]] and the present day.
Many of her novels are set in Ireland, dealing with the tensions between urban and rural life, the contrasts between England and Ireland, and the dramatic changes in Ireland between [[World War II]] and the present day.
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In 1978, Binchy won a [[Jacob's Award]] for her [[RTÉ One|RTÉ]] play, ''Deeply Regretted By''. A second award went to the lead actor, Donall Farmer.
In 1978, Binchy won a [[Jacob's Award]] for her [[RTÉ One|RTÉ]] play, ''Deeply Regretted By''. A second award went to the lead actor, Donall Farmer.
Maeve binchy later won a third award in 2001, For her contribution to the Weight Watchers "Read to Slimness" campaign.





Revision as of 08:36, 13 July 2009

Maeve Binchy
OccupationNovelist
NationalityIrish
Notable works Circle of Friends
Website
http://www.maevebinchy.com

Maeve Binchy (born 28 May 1940[1], Dalkey, County Dublin[2]) is an Irish novelist, newspaper columnist and speaker. Educated at University College Dublin[1][2], she worked as a teacher[3][2], then a journalist at The Irish Times[2] and later become a writer of novels and short stories.

Many of her novels are set in Ireland, dealing with the tensions between urban and rural life, the contrasts between England and Ireland, and the dramatic changes in Ireland between World War II and the present day.

Her novel Circle of Friends was made into a 1995 Hollywood movie starring Chris O'Donnell and Minnie Driver with a radical change of ending.[4]

Binchy announced in 2000 that she would not be going on tours with any more novels, but would be devoting her time to other activities, and to her husband, Gordon Snell, a children's author. However, she has written four further novels since then — Quentins, Night of Rain and Stars, Whitethorn Woods, and Heart and Soul.

In 1978, Binchy won a Jacob's Award for her RTÉ play, Deeply Regretted By. A second award went to the lead actor, Donall Farmer. Maeve binchy later won a third award in 2001, For her contribution to the Weight Watchers "Read to Slimness" campaign.


Themes

Maeve Binchy is a modern day women's writer in the Jane Austen sense. Her books are generally female centric always dealing with modern day and timeless problems of Irish women in the 20th century. Marriage, divorce, abortions, affairs, and financial corruption and bankruptcy are common events that pop up in her novels. People often work in food service (a la Quentins, Scarlet Feather) or in the hotel industry (Evening Class, Light a Penny Candle.) The juxtaposition of poor and working class families versus the upper class occurs in many of her novels. The Catholic Church is a presence in her books; sometimes priests/nuns are main characters. This has lessened as the Church's influence has waned in modern Ireland.

While some novels are complete stories (Circle of Friends, Light a Penny Candle) many of her novels revolve around a cast of interrelated characters (The Copper Beech, Silver Wedding, The Lilac Bus, Evening Class, Heart and Soul). Her later novels, Evening Class, Scarlet Feather, Quentins, and Tara Road, feature a continuum of recurring characters.

Bibliography

Light a Penny Candle first novel published in 1982
Light a Penny Candle
first novel published in 1982

Novels [5]

Short story collections [5]

Binchy has also published several short story collections, including:

Other works

References

  1. ^ a b Encyclopedia Britannica entry on Maeve Binchy
  2. ^ a b c d Guardian Unlimited Books
  3. ^ An interview with Jana Siciliano for BookReporter.com
  4. ^ Circle of Friends at IMDB.com
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h Maeve Binchy's Official Site
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