Chestnut Street

By: Maeve Binchy

Narrated by: Sile Bermingham

Length: 12 hrs and 1 min

Publisher's summary

Maeve Binchy imagined a street in Dublin with many characters coming and going, and every once in a while she would write about one of these people. She would then put it in a drawer; “for the future,” she would say. The future is now.

Across town from St. Jarlath’s Crescent, featured in Minding Frankie, is Chestnut Street, where neighbors come and go. Behind their closed doors we encounter very different people with different life circumstances, occupations, and sensibilities. Some of the unforgettable characters lovingly brought to life by Binchy are Bucket Maguire, the window cleaner, who must do more than he bargained for to protect his son; Nessa Byrne, whose aunt visits from America every summer and turns the house - and Nessa’s world - upside down; Lilian, the generous girl with the big heart and a fiancé whom no one approves of; Melly, whose gossip about the neighbors helps Madame Magic, a self-styled fortune-teller, get everyone on the right track; Dolly, who discovers more about her perfect mother than she ever wanted to know; and Molly, who learns the cure for sleeplessness from her pen pal from Chicago...

Chestnut Street is written with the humor and understanding that are earmarks of Maeve Binchy’s extraordinary work and, once again, she warms our hearts with her storytelling.

©2014 Random House Audio; 2014 Maeve Binchy

Critic reviews

“Gives us one last extraordinary look at ordinary people as they struggle with family relationships, romances gone awry, and the possibility for a better future. . . . One finds here insightful observations about human nature—all with Binchy’s thoughtful and loving touch that will be sorely missed.” — Publishers Weekly

“Binchy was well-known for creating realistic characters who interact in ordinary ways, in ordinary places. . . . Her many fans are sure to line up to read this.” — Booklist

Doesn't read like Maeve Binchy - Too many characte

What would have made Chestnut Street better?

Reduce the number of people being introduced. Can't keep track once it went past 20 or so.

Has Chestnut Street turned you off from other books in this genre?

More turned off on the author than the genre. I have read and really enjoyed her stories in the past. This one was more of a collage across people, time, problems, and most of it negative.

What didn’t you like about Sile Bermingham’s performance?

Sometimes the tenor of the voice seemed to be confused between male and female characters.

If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from Chestnut Street?

All the ones that make the female characters stand out as a bunch of uneducated, never left home, abused by men, can't think for themselves women. That would be about 90%.I don't think that is a realistic picture of women in the western world, I hope not...

I returned it - the narrator made my skin crawl.

What would have made Chestnut Street better?

Why in the world would Audible hire a narrator who had a lisp? I tried to get past it, but it bothered me so much that I had trouble concentrating on the story. I made a note of her name so I won't make the mistake of buying something she narrated again.

What was most disappointing about Maeve Binchy’s story?

It was a little disjointed.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

Her lisp drove me insane!

You didn’t love this book... but did it have any redeeming qualities?

Not many.

Women Wronged

First, I should say I’ve read most of Maeve Binchy’s books and am a big fan. However, this volume, published after her death, might better be considered an unfinished work. It’s a collection of 36 stories, only loosely connected by the street on which some of the characters live (in some cases it’s a tangential connection). Most of the stories end rather abruptly, and knowing Binchy’s previous work, I expect she would have connected some of the stories and characters, and possibly have fleshed out some of the characters and expanded some stories had she lived to help in the editing process.

Certainly she would have brought some element into the book to redeem the otherwise gloomy outlook. Of the 36 stories, there are but three that might be considered optimistic. These are all character studies of mostly sad, wronged women who work hard and are continually disappointed in their relationships with parents, siblings, friends, and especially men. The men, in all but four of these stories, are drunks, gamblers, philanderers, drug dealers, unethical businessmen, workaholics, neglectful and cheating husbands and boyfriends, and absent fathers.

The narrator has a pleasant Irish accent, but she also has a lisp that is sometimes distracting, and there is no attempt made at differentiating characters through voice; so they all sound exactly alike.

Audible only downloaded books 2 & 3"

What would have made Chestnut Street better?

What a waste of time. I spent one of my credits & was only able to load books 2 & 3. How can you listen to a book in the middle. This has been happening often with Audible. Is it a function of its having been bought by Amazon? In any event don't buy this book unless you want to waste a credit.

What do you think your next listen will be?

Nothing unless Audible fixes this problem.

Who would you have cast as narrator instead of Sile Bermingham?

How can I tell until I can read the complete book -- Thanks Audible! :-(

What character would you cut from Chestnut Street?

How can I tell until I can read the complete book -- Thanks Audible! :-(

Any additional comments?

What a waste of time.

Not a fan

Kept expecting these short stories to be tied together @ the end.
Sorry to say…happy to have it ended.