Customer Reviews

Star Sullivan: Quick Read (Quick Reads)

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is a good short story. The novella is only 106 pages (with very large print!) and although it was great to hear the characters through Maeve Binchy's literary voice - that wonderful Irish brogue, the story just wasn't long enough to give you a chance to really get into it.

This is the story of Star Sullivan, the youngest daughter in a family of four children. Perhaps it's her youth that makes her feel the way that she does - she just wants everybody to be happy. She's also very worried - she worries about her father's gambling, her mother's long work hours, one brother's criminal tendencies and the other's restless ambition. She also worries about her sister, who's showing signs of developing an eating disorder.

Then a new family moves in next door and Star meets Laddy, a handsome older guy that she falls for. Laddy doesn't really seem to notice but as time goes by, Star gets the opportunity to become his ally by covering for him to the police, when he was doing her brother a favor that could have gotten them both in big trouble. Unfortunately, by helping him out, she gives everyone the wrong impression about their relationship and suddenly, folks start to worry about Star! Laddy, wanting to pay her back for helping him, comes up with a plan that can make things better for her family. Despite his best intentions, while in the process of trying to make Star happy, Laddy finds trouble coming his way. Even though Star only wants the best for everyone, she learns that life isn't scripted, and that she can only control her own actions. We get to watch Star become her own woman and look on she learns to put life and other people's problems into perspective.

This was a charming little tale that ended far too soon, but it was worth reading and Maeve Binchy fans will enjoy it.

I do like Maeve Binchy's realism, and I understand that being realistic means that not all stories have traditional happy endings, and sometimes people are both less and more than we want them to be. That being said, this was an introduction to some of the most unpleasant people I wouldn't really want to meet, and while there is some change and character growth, the ending just isn't good enough to justify living through all the misery that leads up to it. I can't recommend this book to any of my kids, which I have never failed to do with any other Maeve Binchy book.

a mini-maeve but still packed full of what i love her for. can finish this at your day at the beach.

This is part of a series of "quick reads" so didn't really have long to draw the reader in, and it failed to hook me.

It has the same assortment of characters that Binchy usually serves up and the same type of family entanglements but it lacks her normal warmth.

I think that is because the novella is propelled forward by events and activities, rather than character development, so the change in tone in the final chapters seems like a rush to end.
Star's change is out of nowhere and lacks the satisfaction I normally get when I see Binchy's characters transform and grow. I'd skip this and pick up one of her novels instead.