Evening Class (Tape)

Binchy tells her story from the viewpoints of eight different characters and rewards both them and us with happy endings after the requisite rocky road. Listening to a novel by Maeve Binchy is like catching up with old friends--you know everything will turn out fine in the end, but you're still interested in how things get that way. Kate Binchy's light and lilting voice shifts effortlessly to capture the essence of both major and minor characters. Her Italian pronunciation is entirely credible and her reading brings an extra dimension to this charming story. --Sarah Crawford

Basically, I enjoyed it while I was reading it, but when I thought about it afterwards, there was nothing special about it at all.


Pure feel good escapism. not her best but still a great read   August 6, 1999
 5 out of 6 found this review helpful

Yet again another great book from Binchy - if not her best. Another host of different characters all looking for some diifering type of fulfilment from the Italian evening classes which bring them all closer together and manages to resolve some, if not all of their problems. The only criticism I have of this book is that the characters are a little two dimensional - a function I think of concentrating on so many different people within the space of one mid length story - there simply is not enough time. I still feel that the character and story development and degree of reality in Circle of Friends makes this book in comparison a poorer relation.


Very readable, warm and entertaining   May 25, 1999
 4 out of 5 found this review helpful

This is a lovely book, well written and enthralling like all of Minchy's books. However it is a little unusual in that it starts off so sadly - I was in tears at the end of the 1st chapter - tears of loss for the character whose life she was describing, but I am pleased to advise that all comes well as the novel progresses. I always think a book is magnificent if it can make you laugh or cry, and this does both. It is a lovely book