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Book summary and reviews of Whitehorn Woods by Maeve Binchy

Whitehorn Woods by Maeve Binchy

Whitehorn Woods

by Maeve Binchy

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  • Published:
  • Mar 2007
    352 pages
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Book Summary

When a new highway threatens to bypass the town of Rossmore and cut through Whitethorn Woods, everyone has a passionate opinion about whether the town will benefit or suffer. But young Father Flynn is most concerned with the fate of St. Ann's Well, which is set at the edge of the woods and slated for destruction. People have been coming to St. Ann's for generations to share their dreams and fears, and speak their prayers. Some believe it to be a place of true spiritual power, demanding protection; others think it's a mere magnet for superstitions, easily sacrificed.

Not knowing which faction to favor, Father Flynn listens to all those caught up in the conflict, and these are the voices we hear in the stories of Whitethorn Woods - men and women deciding between the traditions of the past and the promises of the future.

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Reviews

Media Reviews

"Binchy takes it all in and orchestrates the whole masterfully." - PW.

"Binchy is at her best in this tender yet potent tale of a traditional land and people threatened and challenged by the forces of change." - Booklist.

"Her sentimental morality may be predictable, but Binchy's lilting Irish zest is undeniably addictive." - Kirkus.

This information about Whitehorn Woods was first featured in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.

Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.

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Author Information

Maeve Binchy Author Biography

maevebinchy.com

Maeve Binchy was born in a small village outside Dublin. She spent her childhood in Dalkey, an experience she draws on today when creating the rural villages usually at the heart of her novels. After receiving her B.A. from University College in Dublin, she began working as a teacher. The experiences she had while teaching at a Jewish school and on vacation in Israel compelled her to find work on a kibbutz. While abroad in Israel, she wrote weekly letters to her father describing life in a country constantly on the brink of war. When Binchy's father sent one of her letters to The Irish Times where it was published and earned her £18, Binchy, who had been making £16 working at the school, thought that she had truly "arrived."
...

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