Book Description
Beloved on both sides of the Atlantic, bestselling Irish writer Maeve Binchy has been acclaimed by critics and readers alike for her heartwarming, beautifully crafted takes celebrating Ireland, its people, and the journey of life itself. Now three of her finest, most memorable works have been brought together for the first time in an outstanding collection that shines with the luminescent storytelling that has earned the author international renown.
THE LILAC BUS
Featuring two novellas, The Lilac Bus and Dublin 4, this national bestseller showcases Binchy's talents at their finest. In The Lilac Bus, Binchy masterfully and poignantly interweaves the lives and fates of eight very different individuals who travel from Dublin to the Irish country town of Rathdoon every Friday night in a lilac-colored minibus. In Dublin 4, a quartet of stories vividly portrays the quiet desperation and everyday heroism of ordinary people living ordinary lives in contemporary Ireland.
FIREFLY SUMMER
When American millionaire Patrick O'Neill comes to Mountfern in the fateful summer of 1962 to convert a dilapidated manor house into a luxury hotel, his intrusion turns life in the small Irish village upside down. The ensuing conflict between new money and old traditions, which strains families and friendships to the breaking point, is brilliantly explored in this truly unforgettable family drama that will live in your heart long after the last page is turned.
SILVER WEDDING
Guilty secrets from the past and plaguing fears in the present surface when sons and daughters, sisters and brothers, and friends and lovers reunite to celebrate Desmond and Deirdre Doyle's twenty-fifth wedding anniversary. Among the difficulties the Doyles must come to terms with: the daughter struggling to become a nun, the son who prefers the dreary farm in Ireland to life in London, and the enviable successes of their best man and bridesmaid.


From the Inside Flap
Beloved on both sides of the Atlantic, bestselling Irish writer Maeve Binchy has been acclaimed by critics and readers alike for her heartwarming, beautifully crafted takes celebrating Ireland, its people, and the journey of life itself. Now three of her finest, most memorable works have been brought together for the first time in an outstanding collection that shines with the luminescent storytelling that has earned the author international renown.
THE LILAC BUS
Featuring two novellas, The Lilac Bus and Dublin 4, this national bestseller showcases Binchy's talents at their finest. In The Lilac Bus, Binchy masterfully and poignantly interweaves the lives and fates of eight very different individuals who travel from Dublin to the Irish country town of Rathdoon every Friday night in a lilac-colored minibus. In Dublin 4, a quartet of stories vividly portrays the quiet desperation and everyday heroism of ordinary people living ordinary lives in contemporary Ireland.
FIREFLY SUMMER
When American millionaire Patrick O'Neill comes to Mountfern in the fateful summer of 1962 to convert a dilapidated manor house into a luxury hotel, his intrusion turns life in the small Irish village upside down. The ensuing conflict between new money and old traditions, which strains families and friendships to the breaking point, is brilliantly explored in this truly unforgettable family drama that will live in your heart long after the last page is turned.
SILVER WEDDING
Guilty secrets from the past and plaguing fears in the present surface when sons and daughters, sisters and brothers, and friends and lovers reunite to celebrate Desmond and Deirdre Doyle's twenty-fifth wedding anniversary. Among the difficulties the Doyles must come to terms with: the daughter struggling to become a nun, the son who prefers the dreary farm in Ireland to life in London, and the enviable successes of their best man and bridesmaid.

ANNOTATION

The New York Times calls Maeve Binchy, "a remarkably gifted writer . . . a wonderful student of human nature." Engrossing, beguiling, compassionate, and humorous, these bestsellers present an array of characters that are heartwarming and unforgettable. Includes The Lilac Bus, Firefly Summer, and Silver Wedding.

FROM THE PUBLISHER