Minding Frankie

If you are a fan, this is yet another fine example of her craft. At all times Maeve is optimistic. I listen because I know there will be the best ending there can be. She does not shrink from the hard fact of modern life but if there is a positive spin, it will be there. Thank you Maeve for continuing the stories of an Ireland we wish we could visit and people we would love to meet.

At the beginning I was restless, waiting for the author to get to the meat of the story. She goes to great lengths to describe the backgrounds of each character. But then I decided to relax and let the book unfold as it was written...then, I began to love it. When I wasn't listening, I would feel like I was missing something like my keys, glasses, something important...but no, I was missing my friends from Chestnut Court and Dublin, Ireland. This to me is the sign of a great book. It had pulled me so far into the lives of these characters, I did not see myself as separate from them.

The narrator is excellent. The Irish accent makes things that much better.
If you love stories about tragedies bringing people together, mixed with humor and small town charm, where everyone seems to know eachother....this book is for you!

The story wanders a little, but it is another entertaining story from Ms. Binchy. She is a wonderful storyteller!

Loved this book, the characters are still dancing around in my mind. Read "Scarlet Feather" first if you can because some of the characters pop up again in this book a little older and wiser

I couldn't get past the first half hour.I could tell in that short time that the story was shaping up to be contrived, with details wrapped up in an obvious way. Wasted my $...

I enjoyed this book but maybe not as much as some of her others. it was just okay.

Minding Frankie is a wonderful read, filled with Maeve Binchy's signature characters - there is no way not to love them.

I think I'll place Author Binchy at the bottom of my wish list. It was a pinball of characters and subplots. The story line too fragmented with new characters popping up continually. It's hard to keep track of 20+ individuals. Sile Bermingham scores high. I would be pleased to listen to another reading.

Frustration!

I am a longtime Maeve Binchy fan, but I couldn't finish listening to this. The narrator was utterly distracting. Even while reading passages of dialogue from characters expressing clear delight, she sounded depressed. When she gave the young Australian man an upspeak, I turned it off for good. (Why did she do that? Does she consider that to be an integral part of the Aussie accent? I couldn't tell if it was an attempt at character development or just a jab at Australians.)

The book itself was classic Binchy, with solid character development that leaves you constantly wondering what the characters are up to when you're not with them, and loads of characters from other books, a treat for those of us familiar with her work and hungry for an update from old friends. Although it's become a bit formulaic, I will continue to be a fan of her books - in print.

I was annoyed by the narrator.. She had a horrible lisp and I found it so annoying. If I hadn't paid for the book and liked Binchey so much I wouldn't have finished it. I didn't love the characters the way I did in some of her other books. Maybe I am just getting bored with this author. She had been one of my favorites but this book is not. I would recommend trying some of her others rather than this one.

Speech therapy! Seriously, I hated this narrator. Binche's daughter I believe narrated some of her other books and she was far superior.