The pages keep turning to new stories and promise
Written: Jul 15 '04
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Product Rating:
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Pros: When each chapter brings a new author, style & story, it's motivating to read.
Cons: Not nearly as fine a collection as its companion, "Scottish Girls Around Town."
The Bottom Line: Not every author can pull off Maeve Binchy's brilliance, but surprisingly more than half of this adult story collection comes daringly close. A few duds are to be expected.
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| lisandrea's Full Review: Maeve Binchy et al - Irish Girls About Town Books |
Good grief, this book is posted on Epinions three times--twice with the same cover. Regardless, I'll be the first to review this post of it...it is the same as the one I'm holding in my hands, anyway, the paperback where the cover has an Irish redhead lying in bed of ivy.
"Maeve Binchy" at the top of any book it's going to grab my attention. Her stories are beautiful reads--rich, interesting, and enjoyable. So, when I saw "Irish Girls About Town" the $10 in my pocket started to burn a hole. It just wanted to be broken! So, $8 later I abandoned all of life to hole myself up in the big pillows and get started. I love a good short story collection because it gives me the opportunity to learn about authors on a "try me" basis without the full commitment, and even if I abhor one short I can expect better things from the next...and so on until I've worked through (in this case) 16 short stories.
I was corrected in my "Scottish Girls..." review not go through the low-down on all featured authors, so I'll just tell you about the good, the bad & the fantastic.
Author, Story, Brief overall impression:
Marian Keyes, "Soulmates"--I found this a bit dull, and ended up asking, at the end, "So?" OK, so the "perfect couple" really isn't. Everyone loves & hates them at once, and then the gossip rings raise as the news comes out...the angels have fallen hard. No one seems sad...they seem relieved, having hated living in the shadows of this couple. The reader is left hanging; unsure what to take away from the story...it's so predictable. No one is flawless, so from the first page I found myself just waiting for the fall to come. It was anticlimactic.
Joan O'Neill, "De-Stress"--Too simply written, with juvenile word choices and narrow vocabulary, you'd think it was written for a preteen audience, but the topic is definitely adult. Novice writing.
Catherine Barry, "The Twenty-Eighth Day"--Brilliant! This first person stream of conscience episode is easy reading & really grabs ahold of the woman reader. Having managed ferocious attacks of PMS myself I felt every ebbing peak and valley of the protagonist's emotions and the embarrassment of being controlled by hormones. Among my favorites by far.
Cathy Kelly, "Thelma, Louise and the Lurve Gods"--Hated the title from the start...story was alright...fun. Just a couple of gals looking for a good time in a couple of guys they meet along the way. Pleasant summer fun not trying to be much more than that.
Gemma O'Connor, "Your Place or Mine?"--Another possible title could have been "The Incomers." This story built so slowly only self-discipline carried me through to the end, where surprises awaited. Wordy, thick, heavy to wade through. The labor required deciphering the dialect, word choices, etc. slowed the reading all the more. In the end I thought it was stupid and I was confused with questions hanging that even my neighbor & I couldn't agree on about what exactly happened here? Is this typical Gemma O'Connor? I don't know, but I'm not likely to seek the answer, either. After Kelly's story I'm a bit low about two in a row below fantastic...
Mary Ryan, "A Good Catch"--Well-written but littered with language (f-word everywhere). I hated to see it end, though. And the wave of interest rises again...what will be thrown my way next?
Sarah Webb, "About That Night"--A slight bit contrived in the telling, but a good story to be told. Yikes! What happens when a secret is exposed at the most inopportune time...like a wedding?
Julie Parsons, "The Cup Runneth Over"--Decent. A man gets trapped in his lies by the woman who has stolen his affections from his wife...or has she? It's one thing for the wife to find out about an affair, it's another thing for the mistress to find out about the wife...! Humorous play on an age-old theme.
Maeve Binchy, "Carissima"--Classic Binchy. Well-written, smooth & easy, seamless dialogue use. It's no wonder this woman's books are sailing off the shelves. She is obviously operating in her giftedness! This is a smart story about a common situation--adult siblings disagreeing over how to care for their ailing parent...the communication bbreakdowns the remarkably unfair expectations and delayed life that result.
Martina Devlin, "The Ring Cycle"--Fantastic! There's a nice build in the collection now from a couple disappointments in a row. In this story a woman struggles with what to do with her wedding ring now that it no longer belongs on her finger. The ring seems to come alive and taunt her. She tosses it, it returns, she wants to give it away, sell it...but sentiment mixed with regrets make an strange tasting cocktail. As the ring is turned over & over in her hand the pages turn for more. Well closed.
Annie Sparrow, "The Unlovable Woman"--Following the building trend to improved stories in this collection, this one is my favorite! The best. Forty-six year old Millie sees herself as unlovable...but love waits just 'round the corner. If she'd only wake up and see it! Timid unrequited love--a playful presentation that will have you yelling at Millie, "Hullo!? Turn around & open your eyes, silly biddy!"
Colette Caddle, "Moving"--Still strong for quality. My momentum grows. Gentle and sweet story. Travel forward through a time line that draws out the escapades of intertwined lives and forbidden loves. Affairs are a common theme in both this collection and the Scottish edition.
Catherine Dunne, "Playing Games"--Now I'm really enjoying myself. Great, great! This is a great description that gives you a taste of the creative writing by Catherine Dunne, "Her mouth is pulled tight, looking like an asterisk." I really see that image. So well done. Here a woman gives her time to her old ungrateful auntie who uses her more than she knows until Aunt Delia dies and shocking secrets unfold in her departure.
Maris Mackle, "Girls' Weekend"--Fun, though predictable. Breaking away from an old worn out relationship and exploring new possibilities...but it's easy to see where this will lead. Language and subject, as in many of these stories, is very adult.
Tina Reilly, "The Union Man"--LOL fun! "Anyway, to cut a long story short, in this brainwashed state, I was convinced that I was marrying God. Only there was no way God would have been as good-looking. Or as funny. Or the union's min man on the ground." It doesn't take long for Cor to realize she's married a puffed up Momma's boy with an elevated air of self-importance. By the end the reader feels every ounce of frustration of the union man's wife. Well executed.
Morag Prunty, "An Independent Woman"--another fun one, and what a great way to exit, with a smile on my face as I pass it on...and grab for the next read, "Scottish Girls About Town." I am not disappointed in the continuation as my summer is passing so quickly with a few great reads.
Overall--not for young readers, this is an adult-themed secular book full of frolics in the hay with other women's husbands. It presents good samples of authors' writings as introduction and will likely draw you to explore a new writer beyond the pages of this collection.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
lisandrea
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Location: Virginia
Reviews written: 45
Trusted by: 4 members
About Me:
AP, NFP, WAHM/SAHM but NO SPAM (thank you, Ma'am)! :O)
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