Mention Books Supposing Echoes
| Original Title: | Echoes |
| ISBN: | 0440122090 (ISBN13: 9780440122098) |
| Edition Language: | English |
| Setting: | Castlebay(Ireland) |
Maeve Binchy
Paperback | Pages: 496 pages Rating: 3.8 | 11430 Users | 584 Reviews
Rendition Conducive To Books Echoes
"It was sometimes called the echo cave, and if you shouted your question loud enough in the right direction, you got an answer instead of an echo..."Clare and David--divided as children by a rigid social code that branded her as shanty Irish and him as gentry...brought together as adults by a desire that knew no class, no barriers, only the urgent hunger of two people destined to love--and ready to defy a world determined to keep them apart.
Even at fifteen, David Power knew the echo would answer eleven-year-old Clare O'Brien's dearest wish, to win a school prize. But it was years before Dr. Power's cherished only son saw in the huckster's daughter the answer to his own heart's desire.
Here in Castlebay, perched precariously on the seaside cliffs, the lines between them were clearly drawn. Clare's only hope is to leave the town where time stopped, propelled by scholarships to Dublin, fueled by her own drive and brilliance, far from the insular, gossipy world of Castlebay and those in its thrall... Angela O'Hara, beautiful, isolated, a teacher trapped in the convent school, who risks everything to help Clare escape... Gerry Doyle, the town charmer who finds in Clare the woman he vows to have at any price... Caroline Nolan, the beautiful, rich outsider who comes to plunder...
For Clare, that was before the wild freedom of Dublin, and love. And David. Before fate drove them back to Castlebay, and the past...
List About Books Echoes
| Title | : | Echoes |
| Author | : | Maeve Binchy |
| Book Format | : | Paperback |
| Book Edition | : | First Edition |
| Pages | : | Pages: 496 pages |
| Published | : | February 10th 1997 by Dell Publishing Company (first published 1985) |
| Categories | : | Fiction. Womens Fiction. Chick Lit. Cultural. Ireland. Romance |
Rating About Books Echoes
Ratings: 3.8 From 11430 Users | 584 ReviewsDiscuss About Books Echoes
I really enjoy Maeve Binchy's novels, and apparently this is a reissue of one of her very early ones. This story focuses on 3 characters: Angela O'Hara, a spinster teacher caring for her invalid mother; David Powers, the only son of the town's doctor and his unhappy wife; and Clare O'Brien, the intelligent, ambitious daughter of a shopkeeper. The lives of the 3 are closely intertwined, and we follow them through the 1950's and early 1960's. Clare rises "above her station" and wins a scholarshipI don't know what it is about Maeve Binchy but somehow she makes her books just satisfying. I stayed up way too late reading this one and couldn't seem to put it down. Unfortunately, in part, that was due to there not being chapters, just breaks within the pages. Oh, well! It was a really good book.
Well, I always enjoy Binchy books and was not disappointed by this one. Three main characters, all likable, all multi-dimensional and of course their lives are entwined as in all Binchy stories. It was a definitely a blast from the past going back to pre-Vatican (for non-Catholics) late 50's and 60's It seemed a bit foreign as so many social mores, rights and wrongs and proper/improper have drastically changed. Watching the characters struggling with "bucking the system" or accepting and
Echoes, 1985, is Maeve Binchys second full novel. I appreciated the breadth of watching the protagonist grow up, enough for four stars. Authors must never mislead readers with otherworldly themes. The legend of an echo cave was the premise that interested me, which amounted to nothing. However, readers will fall in love with the scholar, Clare. She rises above finances, a jealous sister, and a judgemental hometown: Castlebay. Her parents owned a grocery shop that was only afloat in tourist
Emotional
I received Echoes from a dear friend who is a big fan of Ireland (spending several years there herself) and of Maeve Binchy. This is the first book that I've read by the author. To be honest, the first third of the book seemed extremely slow going to me. I thought that the character backgrounds that Binchy plotted out were extremely vast and overdone. BUT, by the time the storyline really picked up, I was entranced. I'd already developed emotions and opinions about every character, and Binchy
I've been disappointed by some Binchys in the past, but this one, I loved.There are for sure frustrating things about it, but I think they only add to the realism of the whole feel of this story. This is 1950s/1960s Ireland, and I think the ending is in perfect alignment with the mentality of the time and place. The fact that Clare's first reaction to the news of Gerry's death is 'thank God' just says so much about how all consumingly-devastating it would have been to her if those pictures got
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