The Lilac Bus

Lilac Bus, by Maeve Binchy, weaves the stories of eight people, seven of them who take a lilac-coloured minivan home to their tiny village every weekend from Dublin, and the driver of said bus. On the surface, Nancy, Dee, Mikey, Judy, Kev, Rupert, Celia and Tom all have ordinary lives and ordinary families, but as we get to know them better, we learn that they all have their own secrets to keep. One's gay, one's a former drug dealer, one's gotten into trouble with a gang, one's in love with a married person, etc. etc. etc. Each chapter tells the story of one of the characters, although they all weave in and out of each other's stories to one degree or another. It's another gentle slice of life from Maeve Binchy, and one that I quite show more enjoyed. Recommended. show less

I started off liking this book. I thought it was a novel and was interested in the characters and all. However, the book flipped to a new set of characters, and then another story, and then a new set of characters, and so on. It was then when I sorely realized that I've been burned again by a short story book masquerading as a novel. I kicked myself by not researching it first, because I hate short stories. So if you hate them, like me, be forewarned. I wish I could recover the wasted time reading this.

Re-read June 27, 2022: I haven't been doing too much but laying in bed and forcing myself to eat food with no taste for about a week now. I got to this one last night and finished it up today though. I also finished a horror book I really enjoyed, so that's three books down after what felt like an endless year. "The Lilac Bus" is always great to re-read. You in essence get a lot of short stories tied around 8 people in the first half, and then 4 stories taking place in Dublin at the tail end. For the first half of the book I really think Celia and Tom were the best. Once again though, without meaning to, one of these stories does center around abortion. I have to give Binchy hats off for that though. She talks about it frankly I think show more through most of her books and doesn't shy away from it. I wonder how that was viewed in Ireland at the time?

I have owned this book forever and per usual I always like to re-read Maeve Binchy books. "Lilac Bus" is set during the 1970s/1980s and follows a group of people who lie in Dublin, but take a lilac bus back to Rathdoon in West Ireland. Each chapter focuses on a different character and sometimes things are told from their perspective about an event you read about earlier or via a different character. I just really enjoy this one. But the book then takes a turn for the weird when Binchy includes other stories, but not connected to the lilac bus riders. Yes it was a bit confusing, but I went with it.

Nancy (5 stars)-Woot. This was a good one to start with. We follow Nancy in this one, a young woman who doesn't see herself clearly at all. You don't get it at first, but as you read along you see why Nancy is a bit hard to take. When the rose colored glasses fall from her eyes, you get a chance to see if Nancy is going to be able to change.

Dee (5 stars)-A young girl who realizes that the romance she has had with someone has come to an end. It's a sad story somewhat, because Dee it seems finally grows up and sees her parents not just as these terrible figureheads. But as people who have wants and wishes too.

Mikey (4.5 stars)-A weird story. I liked Mikey and the fact that he in essence grows up (though he's not a young man at all). He and a few other men in this story I think are written as "bachelors" and I think that was Binchy soft-pedaling them as being gay. But then she writes one character as being gay so I dunno what to think about Mikey though in retrospect. Mikey having to drop his clown act due to the tailspin his brother left his family though was an interesting read.

Judy (4 stars)-A sad story about a woman who fell into the 60s and was left alone and considered a bad influence. The ending leaves things up in the air, but I don't think she's going to end up with a happy ending.

Kev (3.5 stars)-This was a bit muddled from all of the stories. Kev falls in with some tough guys and it takes one of his brothers helping him out of the mess.

Rupert (4.5 stars)-I felt for Rupert. He has fallen in love with someone, but he knows that telling his parents the truth about him and the man he loves will devastate them. Or will it?

Celia (5 stars)-Celia has to come home from Dublin to deal with her mother and the family pub. I liked the reveal about what was going on in the Ryan home and how Celia finally pushed things in order for not just her mother, but others to see the truth about what was going on.

Tom (5 stars)-Tom is the driver of the Lilac Bus and I thought his story was a sad one, but ends on a hopeful note. No spoilers.

Then we go into the "Dublin Four" portion of the book.

"Dinner in Donnybrook" (5 stars)-A woman throws a dinner party with a hidden meaning. I loved the twists and turns this story takes and I do love the one man telling the lead character (Carmel) that when she was younger she was more brave about things. And I think the character was, but I get why she did what she did.

"Flat in Ringsend" (5 stars)-A young woman moves into a flat with two other women and hilarity ensues. This one did make me laugh. I think since this was written for the 70s/80s I can understand why the main character got worried about living with two people she didn't know. Her mind jumps to big conclusions when her flatmates don't return home.

"Decision in Belfield" (5 stars)-A young girl named Pat tries to work out her family and older sister's history and secrets. And realizes how everything can become muddled and a mess when she finds herself in a situation that she thinks her sister has been in before.

"Murmurs in Montrose" (5 stars)-What a great story to end on. I often wonder how it ends. But you can guess I think. The family of Gerry Moore wakes up and they all have different thoughts flickering through their heads as he returns home. show less

great read, short stories of seven intertwined characters from a small Irish town, Rathdoon. Each Friday they catch the Lilac Bus from Dublin (where they work) to go home to Rathdoon for the weekend returning to Dublin every Sunday night. Tom Fitzgerald (a Rathdoon resident) is the owner-driver of the bus, he is a quiet, well-liked character, however he did not meet the expectations of his parents who along with his siblings have higher aspirations and are viewed as superior. The book explores how these characters with strong Roman Catholic values cope with problems such as alcoholism, homosexuality, unwanted pregnancy, infidelity, drug use, divorce, body image and other taboos of a small town where gossip is most feared and the shame show more that may result. We can all find a bit of us in each of the characters - Maeve Binchy understands the human personalities and put this into words really well, the characters are people whom as a reader you can empathise with. show less

This is an enjoyable group of stories by Maeve Binchy, and she weaves a good story (as always!) about everyone that goes back to the village of Rathdoon every Friday on the Lilac Bus. Each person is about to make some crucial adjustments in their life, or crucial decisions, you are just left wanting more. I, for one, wanted to know what happened next in their lives following these decisions. This is the problem of short stories for me - I always want more and want to know what happens next. Maeve Binchy's website does list it as a novel and whilst more than one of the characters appears in each story, I feel it is still a collection of stories rather than a novel. If you are a fan of Maeve Binchy or like well written short stories I show more would recommend this book to you. show less

Eight linked stories are told from the POV of eight different people, who commute from their jobs and lives in Dublin back to their hometown of Rathdoon, Ireland each weekend. The reasons they continue to commute vary widely. Some have family that need support or relief from the heavy responsibility of health care; some have problems in the city they are trying to escape; some have nothing to hold them in the city and home seems a better alternative. Whatever the situation, during the course of this weekend they each make a discovery or a decision that will effect their future. Really well put together.

Binchy is windy. In her novels, that's ok, because we settle in with the characters and get to know them over time. In the short stories here, it's annoying, because each of these snippets is more pages and less satisfaction than the reader deserves.

dnf Feb. 2021