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The Copper Beech  By  cover art

The Copper Beech

By: Maeve Binchy
Narrated by: Fionnula Flanagan
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Publisher's summary

New York Times best seller

The Copper Beech is as soothing as a cup of tea.” (People)

In the little Irish town of Shancarrig, the young people carve their initials - and those of their loves - into the copper beech tree in front of the schoolhouse. But not even Father Gunn, the parish priest, who knows most of what goes on behind Shancarrig’s closed doors, or Dr. Jims, the village doctor, who knows all the rest, realize that not everything in the placid village is what it seems.

Unexpected passions and fears are bringing together many lives, such as the sensitive new priest and Miss Ross, the slight, beautiful schoolteacher...Leonora, the privileged daughter of the town’s richest family, and Foxy Dunne, whose father did time in jail...and Nessa Ryan, whose parents run Ryan’s Hotel, and two very different young men.

For now the secrets in Shancarrig’s shadows are starting to be revealed, from innocent vanities and hidden loves to crimes of the heart...and even to murder.

Praise for The Copper Beech

“A book with a difference...You’ll take it home to lend to your best friend.” (The New York Times Book Review)

“Binchy makes you laugh, cry, and care. Her warmth and sympathy render the daily struggles of ordinary people heroic and turn storytelling into art.” (San Francisco Chronicle)

“The Copper Beech finds author Maeve Binchy at her Irish storytelling best!” (Cleveland Plain Dealer)

©1992 Maeve Binchy (P)1992 Bantam Doubleday Dell Audio Publishing, Bantam Doubleday Dell Audio Publishing, A Division of Random House, Inc.

What listeners say about The Copper Beech

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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SLOW

What did you like best about The Copper Beech? What did you like least?

UNDERSTANDING

Has The Copper Beech turned you off from other books in this genre?

NO

What didn’t you like about Fionnula Flanagan’s performance?

SHE WAS GOOD

Do you think The Copper Beech needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?

YES I DO, IT ENDED QUICKLY

Any additional comments?

I DID NOT CARE FOR THE BOOK AT ALL

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Gotta Love Maeve Binchy

I am still getting over the fact that we are never going to have a new Maeve Binchy book. I just love her writing. It's storytelling that's seems a bit old-fashioned at first, but yet draws you in. While the books that are set in Dublin are more contemporary than this one, I still like this one too. It's just too bad this one is abridged. I actually listened to the unabridged version several years ago and it was a great listen. Go for the whole book is my advice.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

pretty good

the audio was a quite tinny, and hard to get used to. once I got over that, it was a nkce story. not Binchy's best, but enjoyable nonetheless

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Lovely

Classic Maeve Binchy. Several short stories that weave together. Heartwarming. You feel like you are there.

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  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

TOO MUCH

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

Narrator speaks with such a heavy brog, I couldn't not understand her.

Would you ever listen to anything by Maeve Binchy again?

NO!

If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from The Copper Beech?

The narrator made it too hard to follow the story line.

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