I'm breaking a personal rule here. I usually blog books that you are likely to find sitting on the shelf. After all, if I hear about a book that sounds really great, I don't want to wait for it. So perhaps the fact that I'm writing about Heart and Soul by Maeve Binchy, even though many people already have it on hold, says something about how much I enjoyed it.
The story starts with Dr. Clara Casey, who has been passed over for a promotion that she thought was hers. Instead, she's given the thankless job of starting up a new (and underfunded) outpatient clinic for heart patients. She's also dealing with two difficult adult daughters and a strained relationship with her former husband. The year that she has committed to the clinic seems to stretch out in front of her with little hope for improvement.
As she hires staff and the clinic begins to see patients, she inadvertently begins to build a community that is a slice of modern Ireland. The Polish immigrant whom Clara hires first is a young woman working too many jobs to count, in the hope of sending money back home to her mother. As the book unfolds, we meet a fascinating cast of characters, including a woman caring for her elderly mother, a priest troubled by a stalker, a nurse with a secret, and a snooty society maven. The interconnected lives of these people bring to mind a small town where everyone knows everyone else--with the good and bad outcomes that are to be expected.
I enjoyed Heart and Soul as an audiobook. Reader Sile Bermingham was brilliant and performed every character with skillful attention to accent and personality. Whatever form you select, Heart and Soul will be worth the wait. (If you want a different take on the new Ireland, try The Deportees and Other Stories by Roddy Doyle, blogged in March.)
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