Echoes

Every once in a while, I need a story where I know that things will turn out all right in the end. Maeve Binchy always delivers, although with this story, things came a bit close to not turning out ok. As endings go, this is probably the least happy I’ve read from her. It surprised me and I liked that.

This one does not deviate from the normal Binchy pattern –
Small Irish town – check
Headstrong female protagonist – check
Oppressive Irish tradition – check
Going against the grain, but accepted in the end – check
Multiple romances – check
Rejection of the big city (Dublin) - check
A small town becoming suddenly prosperous and popular – check
People finding their places in life & being happy in them - check
Some minor tragedies, show more nothing earthshattering – check
A happy ending – check

These books are comfort books for me in some sense. When I don’t want excitement and danger of too high a degree, I look for one of these warm tales of people overcoming odds and sharing their lives with remarkable patience and open communication. Makes me sort of long for that kind of world, but then I remember how stifling the closeness of those Irish villages are and how I would hate it, even if I had my own happy ending. show less

I really enjoy Binchy's stories set in small Irish villages and the way she depicts the conservative, insular Irish culture changing through the years (in this case, the 1940s-1960s). Because this is one of her earlier books, it's a more cohesive story, not a series of connected character studies (the way, say, [Copper Beech] is) in which we see the same events through the eyes of different characters.

The main characters — 10-year-old Clare O'Brien, daughter of a shopkeeper, and 15-year-old David Power, only child of the local doctor and his rather snooty wife — are appealing and easy to root for from the start, though events that happen toward the end of this (long!) novel put them in a different light. And as usual, Binchy show more populates Castlebay with a winning assortment of secondary characters, from the playboy Gerry Doyle to Father Flynn to teacher Angela O'Hara, who sees something of herself in Clare that makes her the girl's fierce champion in her goals to attain a proper education.

The ending, though ... oof. I don't remember thinking much of it when I first read this as a twentysomething, but today? It's hard not to want David strung up by the twig-and-berries for the infidelity he so casually excuses with "my wife just had a baby and is no long focused exclusively on me and my sexual needs". Just, no. show less

I like reading Maeve Binchy as the characters are so real, the intertwined plots resonate with me as I either have lived it or know of someone who has. Although you get a general idea of what is going to happen and how the characters are going to act or react, as a reader I keep reading as every chapter is an emotive read. Binchy tells the story of lives that are intertwined through the years, the challenges, of love, class, hardships, infidelities, betrayal and tragedy, where the echoes of the past can be hard to shake off. This is an Irish novel, set in the bygone era 1950’s -60’s, a time and place, that seem so long ago but aspects of which makes me realise that although the world has moved on, it retains echoes of a of that time show more in terms of prejudices, judgements.
This is the story of working class Claire O'Brien, a shopkeeper's daughter, bright and ambitious, determined to escape her circumstances, helped by her teacher, Angela O'Hara, Claire gains a scholarship that takes her to Dublin to study. Then there is David Power, the local doctor's son, who meet up in Dublin where nobody knows them from their hometown so do not judge them as begin classes apart (rich – poor). They fall in love, marry and start a family but struggle to bridge the class divide, which leads David to have an extra marital affair with Caroline Nolan, a solicitor who is from a rich privileged background. Gerry Doyle, a local photographer, from a similar background as Claire, and who obsessed by her since their schooldays, aims to right this wrong by sending photos to Claire, and Caroline of both David and Caroline illicit affair. Gerry in the hope, of this being exposed, that Claire will leave David is heartbroken when she remains the ever-loyal wife.
Binchy makes characters we love and hate but we want to know more about these people and what will become of them. The ending was sad but I also felt angry with her, David, his mother, Agnes (Claire’s mother) and Chrissie (Claire’s sister) for not supporting her more. I do not know what I would have done in Clare's situation at the end of it all but I wished her happiness and hoped that she made something of her intellectual mind. show less

The story follows the lives of David and Clare for about 15 years from small town Castlebay, Ireland to Dublin and back. Clare is the daughter of a shop owner, smart but poor. David is the son of the local doctor, private schooled and well off. Others are also followed: Clare's sister Chrissie, local mover Gerry Doyle, and teacher Angela. Not a lot of real likeable characters and slow moving. Ending was meh after all that.

Easy to read and a compelling story based in a coastal town in Ireland where everyone knows everyone’s business. Reminded me a bit of my time in the South in the US. Flipping between perspectives naturally, Binchy shares a very personal side to the story through the spiderweb of characters in a small town. Forces at work beyond the characters’ control left me questioning what I would have done if it were me. How did they manage to persevere?

You know this really does read like "Circle of Friends" to me. This one feels a bit off to me since it seems a step back for Binchy. Most of the later works she published were tied together in some way. This one is a true standalone and I have read it many times over the years and always hit a point of dissatisfaction with the story. I think it's because the two main characters, Clare and David, hit a point when you just don't like either of them and then you just feel badly for Clare. You do wonder what would have become of Clare and David if they were not together in a time and place (1950s/60s) which meant that you were stuck with each other even when you know that the odds things were going to work out were slim.

"Echoes" follows show more Clare O'Brien and David Power who live in the seaside town of Castlebay in the 1950s. Clare is a daughter of a shopkeeper. David is the son of a doctor. The two of them don't make a lot of sense together. However, Binchy starts the first part of this really long book (it's over 700 pages) showing how smart Clare is and how she's not destined to just go off and be married. The local schoolteacher, Angela (sorry can't recall her last name) sees Clare's potential and pushes her through her studies. Clare has dreams of going to Dublin University, but needs to do well in order to be able to obtain a scholarship. We get to see Clare pushing away any thoughts of boys or anything that is going to keep her from her goal. David we get to see is pretty easy to like through the first part of the story. He seems like an affable young man and then you see him turning to follow in his father's footsteps to study medicine.

The book also shows us different people living in Castlebay, like Gerry Doyle who we find has an odd obsession with Clare. Clare's own mother, Molly is hesitant about her daughter getting above herself and the two find themselves at odds throughout this book. I have to say that I didn't really like David much towards the end of the book. I wonder at times if this is what would have become of Benny and Jack if they had gotten back together (see Circle of Friends).

The writing is typical Binchy. You get a lot of insight into what Ireland was like back in the 50s and 60s and how hard it was for a girl like Clare to try to do anything else than what she was "supposed" to do according to society.

The ending though I think just left too much unsaid. I think we readers can guess what comes next for David and Clare. However, I rather have it spelled out for me. This is probably one of the few Binchy books I have finished that I felt aggravated by when I finished it. show less

A saga style of novel set in an Irish coastal town, featuring a group of people as they grow up and discover life and love.

Pleasant, and well-written, but nothing special. I enjoyed re-reading it, but didn't feel close to any of the characters. I'd have given three-and-a-half stars if I could...