Book Quiz with 10 questions about Author

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Books Quiz - Author - Maeve Binchy (Questions)

Travel to small Irish towns through Maeve Binchy’s stories. This quiz checks how well you know her warm characters, relationships and everyday dramas.

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Fascinating Fact:

Best known titles include Circle of Friends, Tara Road, Echoes and Scarlet Feather, several of which were adapted for film or television.

In Specialist Books, this quiz focuses on Maeve Binchy, an Irish writer of gentle but honest stories. Her novels follow everyday people facing big choices, family tensions and new beginnings.

Key Terms

Contemporary fiction: Stories set in recent times, often dealing with modern life, work and relationships.
Character-driven novel: A story where the main interest is how people think, feel and change, not just what happens.
Setting: The place and time in which a story happens, such as a village, city or holiday resort.

Frequently Asked Questions (Click to see answers)

Who was Maeve Binchy and what did she write?

Maeve Binchy was an Irish novelist, short story writer and journalist. She wrote popular books about ordinary people, often set in Ireland, including several bestsellers.

Why are Maeve Binchy’s novels popular with readers?

Readers value her novels because the characters feel real, the emotions are recognisable and the stories show both the comfort and the pressures of family and community life.

Do I need to read Maeve Binchy’s books in order?

Most of her books can be read on their own. Some share locations or minor characters, but you do not usually need to follow a strict reading order.

Try These Related Quizzes

Before becoming a full-time writer, Binchy was a journalist on which newspaper?

[ ]	The Irish Mail
[ ]	The Irish Post
[ ]	The Irish Telegraph
[ ]	The Irish Times

What is the title of Binchy's first novel, published in 1982?

[ ]	Light a New Candle
[ ]	Light an Old Candle
[ ]	Light a Penny Candle
[ ]	Light a Twopenny Candle

Binchy's novel Tara Road features two women, who have never met, who trade houses. One is Irish; what nationality is the other?

[ ]	American
[ ]	Canadian
[ ]	English
[ ]	Scottish

In which Binchy novel does the glamorous Helen marry Martin, though still pining for Louis?

[ ]	The Glass Lake
[ ]	The Glass Pond
[ ]	The Glass River
[ ]	The Glass Stream

The 1997 novel Evening Class features a group of students studying what?

[ ]	French
[ ]	Italian
[ ]	Spanish
[ ]	Turkish

Which 1988 novel centres around an anniversary party?

[ ]	Silver Wedding
[ ]	Ruby Wedding
[ ]	Golden Wedding
[ ]	Diamond Wedding

Who played Marilyn in the 2005 version of Tara Road?

[ ]	Brenda Fricker
[ ]	Keira Knightley
[ ]	Andie McDowell
[ ]	Emma Thompson

Minnie Driver played Bernadette 'Benny' Hogan in a 1995 film version of which Binchy novel?

[ ]	Circle of Fame
[ ]	Circle of Fire
[ ]	Circle of Forgiveness
[ ]	Circle of Friends

What colour is the bus in the title of Binchy's 1984 short story collection?

[ ]	Indigo
[ ]	Lavender
[ ]	Lilac
[ ]	Violet

10.

Binchy was born in which small town near Dublin?

[ ]	Dalkey
[ ]	Doolin
[ ]	Drogheda
[ ]	Dundrum

Books Quiz - Author - Maeve Binchy (Answers)

Before becoming a full-time writer, Binchy was a journalist on which newspaper?

[ ]	The Irish Mail
[ ]	The Irish Post
[ ]	The Irish Telegraph
[x]	The Irish Times

As well as being a journalist, Maeve also worked as a teacher of history, Latin and French

What is the title of Binchy's first novel, published in 1982?

[ ]	Light a New Candle
[ ]	Light an Old Candle
[x]	Light a Penny Candle
[ ]	Light a Twopenny Candle

Before Light a Penny Candle Maeve had had two books of short stories published - Central Line in 1978 and Victoria Line in 1980

Binchy's novel Tara Road features two women, who have never met, who trade houses. One is Irish; what nationality is the other?

[x]	American
[ ]	Canadian
[ ]	English
[ ]	Scottish

Tara Road was made into a film in 2005 in which Maeve Binchy can be seen in the first scene at Colm's restaurant

In which Binchy novel does the glamorous Helen marry Martin, though still pining for Louis?

[x]	The Glass Lake
[ ]	The Glass Pond
[ ]	The Glass River
[ ]	The Glass Stream

It's set in the Irish village of Lough Glass

The 1997 novel Evening Class features a group of students studying what?

[ ]	French
[x]	Italian
[ ]	Spanish
[ ]	Turkish

The setting is the Mountainview School, Dublin

Which 1988 novel centres around an anniversary party?

[x]	Silver Wedding
[ ]	Ruby Wedding
[ ]	Golden Wedding
[ ]	Diamond Wedding

Silver Wedding tells the story of Deirdre and Desmond Doyle, their family and friends and some guilty secrets

Who played Marilyn in the 2005 version of Tara Road?

[ ]	Brenda Fricker
[ ]	Keira Knightley
[x]	Andie McDowell
[ ]	Emma Thompson

Brenda Fricker is in the film but she plays Mona, not Marilyn

Minnie Driver played Bernadette 'Benny' Hogan in a 1995 film version of which Binchy novel?

[ ]	Circle of Fame
[ ]	Circle of Fire
[ ]	Circle of Forgiveness
[x]	Circle of Friends

Driver put on 30 lbs for the role