Sunday, March 17, 2013

ARE YOU LISTENING? A WEEK IN WINTER: A REVIEW AND GIVEAWAY

WELCOME TO BOOKIN' WITH BINGO'S" 
ARE YOU LISTENING? DAY"
I AM EXCITED TO ANNOUNCE TODAY'S
AUDIO BOOK CHOICE....

PERFECT FOR ST. PATRICK'S DAY!
 
GIVEAWAY ENDED
A WEEK IN WINTER
BY MAEVE BINCHY
READ BY ROSALYN LANDOR 

ABOUT THE AUDIO BOOK:
Stoneybridge is a small town on the west coast of Ireland where all the families know one another. When Chicky Starr decides to take an old, decaying mansion set high on the cliffs overlooking the windswept Atlantic Ocean and turn it into a restful place for a holiday by the sea, everyone thinks she is crazy. Helped by Rigger (a bad boy turned good who is handy around the house) and Orla, her niece (a whiz at business), Chicky is finally ready to welcome the first guests to Stone House’s big warm kitchen, log fires, and understated elegant bedrooms. John, the American movie star, thinks he has arrived incognito; Winnie and Lillian are forced into taking a holiday together; Nicola and Henry, husband and wife, have been shaken by seeing too much death practicing medicine; Anders hates his father’s business, but has a real talent for music; Miss Nell Howe, a retired schoolteacher, criticizes everything and leaves a day early, much to everyone’s relief; the Walls are disappointed to have won this second-prize holiday in a contest where first prize was Paris; and Freda, the librarian, is afraid of her own psychic visions.
           
Sharing a week with this unlikely cast of characters is pure joy, full of Maeve’s trademark warmth and humor. Once again, she embraces us with her grand storytelling.

AN EXCERPT FROM A WEEK IN WINTER:
Chicky

Everyone had their own job to do on the Ryans’ farm in Stoneybridge. The boys helped their father in the fields, mending fences, bringing the cows back to be milked, digging drills of potatoes; Mary fed the calves, Kathleen baked the bread, and Geraldine did the hens.

Not that they ever called her Geraldine—she was “Chicky” as far back as anyone could remember. A serious little girl pouring out meal for the baby chickens or collecting the fresh eggs each day, always saying “chuck, chuck, chuck” soothingly into the feathers as she worked. Chicky had names for all the hens, and no one could tell her when one had been taken to provide a Sunday lunch. They always pretended it was a shop chicken, but Chicky always knew.

Stoneybridge was a paradise for children during the summer, but summer in the West of Ireland was short, and most of the time it was wet and wild and lonely on the Atlantic coast. Still, there were caves to explore, cliffs to climb, birds’ nests to discover, and wild sheep with great curly horns to investigate. And then there was Stone House. Chicky loved to play in its huge overgrown garden. Sometimes the Miss Sheedys, three sisters who owned the house and were ancient, let her play at dressing up in their old clothes.
To finish reading this excerpt, visit the Random House website HERE. 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
MAEVE BINCHY was born in Dublin, and went to school at the Holy Child Convent in Killiney. She took a history degree at UCD and taught in various girls' schools, writing travel articles in the long summer holidays. In 1969 she joined the Irish Times and for many years she was based in London writing humorous columns from all over the world. She was the author of five collections of short stories as well as twelve novels including Circle of Friends, The Copper Beech, Tara Road, Evening Class and The Glass Lake. Maeve Binchy died in July 2012 and is survived by her husband, the writer Gordon Snell.


Dun Laoghaire, Co. Dublin


Shortly before she died in July 2012, Maeve had finished
her last novel, A Week in Winter. It is now published in 
the UK and Ireland, and will be available in Canada, 
Australia and New Zealand in November. US publication
is scheduled for spring, and translations around the 
world will follow in the course of 2013.
 Maeve Binchy
1940-2012
 
A FEW OF MAEVE BINCHY BOOKS...HOW MANY HAVE YOU READ?

 
  
MY THOUGHTS/REVIEW:
In master storyteller fashion, A WEEK IN WINTER, Maeve Binchey’s last novel, fans are once again taken back to Ireland for a warm, character driven delightful tale. Geraldine "Chicky” Starr despondently returns from New York to her home in Ireland, following an embarrassingly failed relationship. Not wanting to let her family know of her disgrace, she visits yearly while meanwhile honing her cooking and hosting skills in classes in New York in between visits.

After several years of “vacationing” in Ireland, Chicky finds herself a job at a boarding house in Stoneybridge, a small town on the west coast of Ireland. Much to her surprise, Chicky loves it all so much that she decides she wants to finally return for good to build her future there. She buys Stone House from Miss Queenie Sheedy with plans on turning it into a guest hotel. Perched on a high cliff, the rotting mansion overlooks the Atlantic Ocean and could be a perfect holiday inn for vacations by the sea IF Chicky can renovate it before it tumbles into the sea.

With the help of Chicky’s niece, Orla, and Rigger, a handy man type, work begins and soon Stone House is ready to greet guests. In traditional Maeve Binchey style, each guests comes complete with a story of their own to tell. From the Walls who are less than thrilled with their second-prize holiday at Stone House because the first prize was to be in Paris; to John, the movie star trying to stay unrecognized; to the retired school teacher, Miss Nell, who complains about everything, these and other wonderful characters are woven into A WEEK IN WINTER to create one grand and delightful story. Each character finds their stay to be life-changing in some way and their presence in turn, adds to Chicky’s life in one way or another.

Maeve Binchey’s final book will stay with me a long time as the characters reflect her warm and compassionate writing. Her style of story telling will probably never be replicated but thankfully, we have her legacy in all her books to look back upon and remember.
 
GIVEAWAY
THANKS TO RICHARD AND THE GOOD PEOPLE
AT RANDOM HOUSE AUDIO BOOKS, I HAVE ONE
COPY OF THIS WONDERFUL MAEVE BINCHY,
AUDIO BOOK, A WEEK IN WINTER,
TO GIVE AWAY TO A LUCKY FOLLOWER 
  
--U.S. RESIDENTS ONLY
--NO P. O. BOXES, PLEASE
--INCLUDE EMAIL ADDRESS IN COMMENT
--ALL COMMENTS MUST BE SEPARATE IN
 

ORDER TO COUNT AS MORE THAN ONE ENTRY
 
HOW TO ENTER:
+1 ENTRY: COMMENT ON SOMETHING YOU FOUND INTERESTING ABOUT A WEEK IN WINTER THAT WOULD MAKE YOU WANT TO WIN THIS AUDIO BOOK 

+1 MORE ENTRY: BLOG OR TWEET ABOUT THIS GIVEAWAY AND LEAVE A LINK I CAN FOLLOW IN THE ENTRY 

+1 MORE ENTRY: COMMENT ON SOMETHING YOU FIND INTERESTING WHEN VISITING MAEVE BINCHY'S WEBSITE HERE
 
+1 MORE ENTRY: COMMENT ON ONE OTHER CURRENT GIVEAWAY YOU HAVE ENTERED ON MY BLOG. IF YOU ENTERED MORE THAN ONE, YOU CAN COMMENT ON EACH ON SEPARATELY AND GAIN MORE ENTRIES THAT WAY 

+1 MORE ENTRY: COMMENT ON ONE WAY YOU FOLLOW MY BLOG. IF YOU FOLLOW MORE THAN ONE WAY, YOU CAN COMMENT SEPARATELY AND EACH WILL COUNT AS AN ENTRY
 
GIVEAWAY ENDS AT
 6 PM, EST, APRIL 4

 

139 comments:

bermudaonion said...

I'd like to win this because I've enjoyed Binchy's work in the past. Thanks for the giveaway! milou2ster(at)gmail.com

debbie said...

I have always wanted to go to Ireland, so I enjoy reading books that are set there.
twoofakind12@yahoo.com

debbie said...

I am a email subscriber.
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debbie said...

I entered wave goodbye.
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debbie said...

I entered bowled over.
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Pamela Keener said...

This book has been on my tbr list.
I love Maeve's books
pk4290(at)comcast(dot)net

traveler said...

Always a pleasure to enjoy Maeve Binchy's wonderful novels. saubleb(at)gmail(dot)com

traveler said...

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Carol N Wong said...

I have loved Maeve Binchy's books ever since I was sick and my husbamd bought me one to cheer me up! Would really love to win this audio book.

Carol Wong

Carol N Wong said...

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Carol N Wong said...

I looked at all the titles of the books that she has written. I believe that they are written with her heart. I would have like to thank her in person for writing them and sharing her love.

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Carol N Wong said...

I entered the giveaway for "The Girl in the Wall".


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Tina said...

Never read a Maeve Binchy book I didn't LOVE. and now to have this available in audio - my favorite format- I'm thrilled. What a perfect St. Paddy's day gift.
tbranco24@gmail.com

Carol N Wong said...

I follow your blog with Facebook.


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Tina said...

I almost cried when I saw the beautiful last words from Maeve Binchy on her website. What a remarkable writer to recognize that all of us, her readers, felt like friends with her.
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Tina said...

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Tina said...

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Carol N Wong said...

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Tina said...

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Tina said...

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Carol N Wong said...

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Tina said...

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Carol N Wong said...

I follow your blog with an e-mail conscription.


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Carol N Wong said...

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petite said...

This book sounds memorable. elliotbencan(at)hotmail(dot)com

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petite said...

Maeve Binchy's books are soothing. elliotbencan(at)hotmail(dot)com

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Unknown said...

I would love to win this book because it sounds very interesting. Please enter me in contest. I am a follower and email subscriber. Tore923@aol.com

Sue Farrell said...

I would like to listen to this because it is the last Mauve Binchy book.
suefarrell.farrell@gmail.com

Sue Farrell said...

I am an email subscriber.
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Sue Farrell said...

I follow on GFC as Suekey.
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Sue Farrell said...

I entered Trouble in the Tarot.
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Sue Farrell said...

I entered Wave.
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Sue Farrell said...

I entered Louder Than Words.
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MRWriter said...

I'm a Maeve Bichy fan and since this is her last novel, I'd like to read it to honor her memory.

AlexDean03(at)yahoo.com

MRWriter said...

She was married to writer, Gordon Snell and lived in Ireland.

AlexDean03(at)yahoo.com

Margie said...

I see that this book is high on the NY Times Bestseller list. I've never read her, but I think maybe I should. This sounds like an intriguing book with memorable characters.
mtakala1 AT yahoo DOT com

Margie said...

From the website...
I think she would have been pleased with the reception of this final novel.
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entered Wave
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Becky said...

I hated reading that Binchy is deceased. Love her stories! Will savor this one since it is her last.

Margie said...

entered Exposure
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LAMusing said...

I've enjoyed other books she's written so I'd love to read this one
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holdenj said...

I've read a handful of her books and would love to read/listen to this last story. Thanks!
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holdenj said...

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Unknown said...

Oh this sounds fun! I have not read or heard of her stories before and this novel would be a treat! :)
Thanks for the chance!
~Mippy :)
bunnysmip (AT) gmail (DOT) com

Unknown said...

I tweeted!
https://twitter.com/MippyFoofalina/status/318019688137375745
Thanks for the chance!
~Mippy :)
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Unknown said...

From her website she comes across very genuine and good hearted. It's a shame she is gone now. :( I'd like to read some of her other works as well as this one.
Thanks for the chance!
~Mippy :)
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Unknown said...

I entered to win Manuscript found in Accra
Thanks for the chance!
~Mippy :)
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Unknown said...

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Thanks for the chance!
~Mippy :)
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Unknown said...

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Thanks for the chance!
~Mippy :)
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Unknown said...

I follow via Rss in Google reader
Thanks for the chance!
~Mippy :)
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Unknown said...

I follow via Facebook
Thanks for the chance!
~Mippy :)
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Unknown said...

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Thanks for the chance!
~Mippy :)
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Margie said...

entered And Then I Found You
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Alysia said...

I haven't read a book by this author but she has been on my TBR for over a year now. This would be the perfect chance to say I have read one of her books.

And I have always wanted to visit Ireland and all the castles there.

Alysia
littlepocketbooks at gmail dot com

Alysia said...

I visited her site and was shocked to see she passed away last year. :( R.I.P. That is so cute her mom wanted her to be a doctor.

Alysia
littlepocketbooks at gmail dot com

Alysia said...

I'm a GFC follower
Your now on my Feedly
Alysia
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Margie said...

entered There Was an Old Woman
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Margie said...

entered House at the End of Hope Street
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