Maeve Binchy (1940-2012) was born in Dublin, worked as a school teacher, Irish
Times columnist, and then as a novelist. Her books, which have been translated into
over forty languages, have been adapted for stage, film and television. A
feature film of her novel ‘Tara Road’ was released in 2005. She lived in
Dalkey, Co Dublin, with her husband, the writer Gordon Snell.
Maeve attended the Merriman Summer School since 1968. ‘A Week in Summer’ is a short story
commissioned by the Merriman Summer School as part of the bi-centenary
celebrations marking Brian Merriman’s life and work in 2005, 200 years after his death.
Maeve Binchy’s short story, which she read aloud, is about an American couple
who came to Lisdoonvarna looking for peace and hoping for a chance to
rejuvenate their marriage. They are plunged into the world of the Midnight Court and, even more importantly, of the hundreds who
attend the Merriman Summer School regularily.They find plenty to admire and
entertain and eventually something to change their lives.
