The Copper Beech

Shancarrig is a small town in Ireland, but it has its share of drama. Each chapter of this book tells the story of one resident of Shancarrig, and as the book develpos, the relationships among the townspeople become ever-more twisted. From a young girl indulging in a forbidden love to another raising a Downs Syndrome child on her own, each story adds another complicated layer to this...more

Shancarrig is a small town in Ireland, but it has its share of drama. Each chapter of this book tells the story of one resident of Shancarrig, and as the book develpos, the relationships among the townspeople become ever-more twisted. From a young girl indulging in a forbidden love to another raising a Downs Syndrome child on her own, each story adds another complicated layer to this seemingly simple, backwater town. This was a difficult book for me to rate because there were times I really enjoyed the format of the separate stories, and times I strongly disliked it. My reactions didn't change with the individual stories, though, so I think it was more just which type of mood I was in. Although the stories interweaved, this was very much like reading a book of short stories, and that's a format I generally have to be in the mood for to really enjoy. Still, I like Binchy's character developments, and the writing is simple enough that it's easy to move in and out of the book without feeling jarred or as though I lost my place.   hide