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    Circle of Friends
    Unavailable
    Circle of Friends
    Unavailable
    Circle of Friends
    Audiobook (abridged)2 hours

    Circle of Friends

    Written by Maeve Binchy

    Narrated by Fionnula Flanagan

    4/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this audiobook

    It began with Benny Hogan and Eve Malone, growing up, inseparable, in the village of Knockglen. Benny—the only child, yearning to break free from her adoring parents...Eve—the orphaned offspring of a convent handyman and a rebellious blueblood, abandoned by her mother's wealthy family to be raised by nuns. Eve and Benny—they knew the sins and secrets behind every villager's lace curtains...except their own.

    It widened at Dublin, at the university where Benny and Eve met beautiful Nan Mahlon and Jack Foley, a doctor's handsome son. But heartbreak and betrayal would bring the worlds of Knockglen and Dublin into explosive collision. Long-hidden lies would emerge to test the meaning of love and the strength of ties held within the fragile gold bands of a...Circle Of Friends.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherPenguin Random House Audio
    Release dateAug 1, 2000
    ISBN9780553752656
    Unavailable
    Circle of Friends

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    Reviews for Circle of Friends

    4/5

    909 ratings28 reviews

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    • 4/5
      A group of friends realize what friendship is all about when they share laghter, saddness and even betrayal.
    • 1/5
      Very long winded
    • 5/5
      Another great Binchy read and probably the best story in my opinion. The characters were well-developed and some you could love and some you could hate. It's a coming-of-age story that follows the lives of several girls as they grow into young women, navigate romantic relationships, and try to come to terms with who they are as people. I'm looking forward to reading Firefly Summer next and would highly recommend her books to those who love reading about Ireland.
    • 5/5
      What a wonderful old hardback with wildly colorful red poppy end papers echoing the cover!And, what a different perspective from the dismal Country Girls!Maeve Binchy creates the exact feelings and behaviors of living in a small Irish country town and adds humor, as in Benny and Eve's Wise Woman predictions about the future of their townspeople and with the unwelcome entrance of Fonzie and Clodagh.Knockglen will be a place to visit again and again, a place where secrets do not dominate the story:"But it's not a mystery or a crime or anything, is it?" Maybe all three...Favorite characters were Clodagh, Heather, and Sister Mary Francis.Plot stretches, which led to the book being overlong, include:men not using simple birth control after all the women they had enjoyed in their livesand Eve forgiving Jack for betrayals to her little home and her best friend.He should have stayed as far away as Nan.And, I could have lived without "fly cemeteries." blech.
    • 5/5
      The 5 star is a product of my younger self. I adored this book when I was a teen, and read it countless times.
    • 5/5
      This book was fantastic. It does a really great job of showing the kinds of friends you have in your life, and the roles they play. I highly recommend it.
    • 4/5
      When I am in between reads and waiting for the next library "hold" to come in I inevitably turn to Maeve Binchy and I am never disappointed. Her style and structure work perfectly for me. I felt as if I had met some of the characters during my time at school. The storyline was interesting and believable. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book.
    • 3/5
      Gentle and character driven. Very well written and you do come to really care about the characters. Haven't read Binchy in a while, but I do remember that this holds true for most of her books. I can't pick just one character to like or dislike, they are all wonderfully written and realized.
    • 4/5
      I've long contemplated reading this book so when I discovered it in the free books rack at my local library I snagged it. Opened it with trepidation as so often the translation between book and movie is less than ideal. Adored the movie though so hoped the book would be at least as good. I was not disappointed. The book is even better than the movie and I know I will read it again and again through the years.
    • 4/5
      The main character, Benny, has all the angst and self-doubt of any young adult trying to figure out life...and every college student planning her future. Binchy provides plenty of life events to keep the reader's heart aching for Benny through all her success and failures (real and imagined). The story is like real life - unpredictable, predictable; misinterpreted events and betrayal (real and imagined). I enjoy reading about Ireland, and I grew up in a small town - so this book has everything for me. Life in the Irish village (and cities) is at once exotic, yet the themes of friendship and growing-up are familiar. This book stays on my bookshelf, so I can re-read it when I'm in the mood for ordinary life events, turned to angst through a compelling narrative.
    • 3/5
      Maeve Binchy is comfort food reading - her works are not great literature, and there are things I sometimes dislike about them. The characters are often rather simplistic - not so much in description or situation, but in their attitudes and conflicts, in ways that can sometimes seem unrealistic. But then, many people do go through life without questioning fundamental assumptions and without seeing things that seem obvious to others - there are people who are quite like Binchy's characters. But I don't read her books for depth or conflict, I read them because they tend to be charming books about Irish women, the kind I grew up with: women who have the responsibility for everything, and handle all disasters capably and mostly calmly. Women who suppress tears when there is no time for them, who are strong in friendship and fearless in the face of cruelty and injustice. I read these books from time to time when I need comfort and solace, and they never fail to provide it.
    • 5/5
      A good gossipy read which avoids an overly- syrupy ending. Fans of Maeve Binchy should enjoy this.
    • 3/5
      Not my favorite Maeve Binchy but good nonetheless. The book is, of course, better than the movie made with Minnie Driver as the main character.
    • 4/5
      Like a rollercoaster ride. It was slow to get going, then it whooshed through many twists & turns! Luckily I had Benny's admirable strength of character to hang on to.
    • 5/5
      I have loved Maeve Binchy since I discovered her during my first year of university. My dad gave me 'The Copper Beech' one Christmas and I felt cast under a spell from the first chapter. I remember going back for Winter Term and hitting exams, being totally exhausted and tired of studying so wandering down to Waterloo Town Square to a Coles bookshop. I wanted a distraction so thought I would see if Maeve had anything else to offer. I picked Circle of Friends off of the book shelf and it saw me through the next few weeks, as I promised myself a another chapter or a few more pages for every hour I could stick with studying. So my attachment to this book is largely emotional but it's also a great story.
    • 5/5
      One of my all time favorite authors. One of my all time favorite books. To read Maeve Binchy is to be immersed in her world. This is a book where you think about the characters long after you're done with the book and wish you could find Knockglen on a map and go to visit.
    • 5/5
      Read this book many years ago in high school. Remember Loving the book, the movie (like usual) did not do the book justice......Think it may be time to dust this one off, and experience it again.
    • 5/5
      Upon reflection of many readings of this particular novel, I still find it relevant, and most of all perhaps Binchy's best. The characters are well written, the plot intriguing as you follow two naive ladies into adulthood. Childhood bonds are tested as betrayal and heartbreak enter the picture. Gone is their innocence. I prefer the book for all the amazing details, but the movie for the rosy ending.
    • 3/5
      A strictly middle-of-the-road story about growing up, love and friendship. It pains me to say this, but I liked the movie better.
    • 5/5
      Ireland setting, many family and friends
    • 5/5
      A favourite that I read long ago and first was introduce to Binchy with this book. The beginning of a love affair with an author.
    • 5/5
      This story will suck you in. I felt totally wrapped up in each character. It's an edge of your seat book. I have read it twice.
    • 5/5
      Probably my favorite Maeve Binchy novel. It's the one that started my love for her writing. What I admire most is the way she takes the ordinary lives of people and invites us into the drama, the loss, the love, the joy, the success, the failure - we realize that no one's life is ordinary.
    • 4/5
      I liked this, short and sweet but a nice read
    • 4/5
      ‘A Circle of Friends’ is a story that I read after returning from a memorable and enjoyable time walking the streets of Dublin with our daughter, Genevieve, who resides in the city. As such, the story had a new context for me, as I recalled the lovely setting of picturesque places, such as the beach promenade at Dun Laoghaire or the tranquil park of St. Stephens Green. With the setting in mind, I was enthralled with the novel, feeling closer to the characters, as I felt like I was revisiting Dublin again. If not for my connection to the setting, I don’t know that I would have completed this 722-page odyssey. The story was heartwarming and detailed, taking the reader into the lives of several characters who mostly generated from a small village in the outskirts of Dublin called Knockglen. Benny is a warm-hearted and large young girl who befriends Eve, an orphan who lives with the nuns in the village monastery. As the years progress, Eve and Benny continue in their friendship, as they both attend the University College of Dublin where they encircle themselves with other relationships to which the story is developed. In this saga, Maeve Binchey introduces the reader to the lives of numerous secondary characters in the the village of Knockglen, such as Patsy the Hogan’s maid. Although Binchey’s efforts portray the convivial spirit of a small Irish village, I felt that for the sake of brevity in developing the plot, some editing might have been worthy.For me, I was so entranced with all the locations that were mentioned in the story that I couldn’t wait to read further. ‘Circle of Friends’ is not a provocative or intriguing story, but it is what I would call a ‘comfort’ novel instead. The characters are well developed and the reader is acclimated to the relationships that Benny and Eve forge as they find their way into adulthood.
    • 4/5
      Set in 1950s Dublin and fictitious town of Knockglen in rural Ireland. Friends Bernadette 'Benny' Hogan and orphan Eve Malone grow up in a small town and whilst Benny goes to university, Eve struggles to find her feet and the money to do so. They meet the ambitious Nan Mahon and the handsome Jack Foley. A story of friendships, first love and the loss of both of them.An interesting cast of characters and a comfortable read.
    • 5/5
      The circle began with Benny Hogan and Eve Malone, growing up, inseparable, in the tiny village of Knockglen. Benny - the only child, yearning to break free from her adoring parents. Eve - the orphaned offspring of a convent handyman and a rebellious blueblood, abandoned by her mother's wealthy family to be raised by the nuns. Eve and Benny - they knew the sins and secrets behind every villager's lace curtains...except their own.The circle blossomed in Dublin, to the university where Benny and Eve met beautiful Nan Mahon and Jack Foley, the handsome son of a doctor. But heartbreak and betrayal would eventually bring the sheltered world of Knockglen and Dublin together in an explosive collision. Long-hidden lies would surface to test the meaning of love and to try the strength of bonds created within the fragile gold bands of a Circle of Friends...I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book; as I have enjoyed so many of Maeve Binchy's books that I've read in the past. I originally thought that I read it about fifteen or twenty years ago, but I was mistaken. I don't believe that I've ever read this book before. However, I do remember watching the movie starring Chris O'Donnell and Minnie Driver, when it came on television about seven months ago. I loved both the book and the movie, but they were each so different that I was slightly confused over whether I had actually read the book before. I give Circle of Friends by Maeve Binchy an A+!
    • 4/5
      Maeve Binchy breathes a warm, cozy aura into every word - the story of friends who grow up, attend college and stretch into the challenges of freedom, independence and real friendship.