Two For Joy

June 15, 2004
Dublin author (and former librarian) Scanlan (Francesca's Party) has written another winner. Reminiscent of Maeve Binchy's Circle of Friends, this work follows the camaraderie, dramas, and jealousies of a close group of young women in the small town of Kilronan as well as in Dublin. Heather is an unpretentious girl who simply aspires to a meaningful job and a kind "fella." Her cousin Lorna, in contrast, is a "user"-all about appearances and impressing others. Noreen, scarred by past secrets, has recently married workaholic Oliver and is desperate for a baby. The reader is plopped into the middle of an Irish soap opera told through the alternating perspectives of these characters as they move through their domestic dramas. And anxious for each continuing episode, the reader will want to read nonstop. In her usual style, Scanlan contrasts big-city life with village life and takes her heroines' disastrous situations and turns them into opportunities for growth. Highly recommended for public libraries.-Carol J. Bissett, New Braunfels P.L., TX

Copyright 2004 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

June 1, 2004
Noreen and Oliver Flynn's wedding is a big event in the small town of Kilronan outside Dublin, Ireland. Noreen left her successful career as a nurse in London to take care of her dying mother, and consequently met Oliver, a successful builder. Both were lonely, and Noreen, a take-charge kind of woman, asked Oliver to marry her, leaving her uncertain if he would ever have asked her. Cousins Lorna and Heather envy the pageantry of the wedding, and embark on a new life of their own in Dublin. Lorna loves city life, but Heather misses their small town, and problems develop in each of their lives as their expectations are not met. Readers will form an attachment to all of Scanlan's extraordinarily believable characters, making this an exquisite gem of a novel about human foibles and happiness. Scanlan should have wide and increasing appeal as word gets out about her books.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2004, American Library Association.)