Novelist Maeve Binchy at a Dublin book signing in 2006. Photo via Wikimedia Commons
Irish best-selling novelist Maeve Binchy died in hospital last night after a short illness at the age of 72, and fans of the Dalkey-born writer have taken to Twitter to express their condolences.
More than 40m of Binchy’s books have been sold worldwide and have been translated into 42 languages and even been made into film, such as Circle of Friends in 1995.
Binchy is survived by her husband, writer Gordon Snell.
Novellist Patricia Scanlan on RTÉ’s Morning Ireland described Binchy as having been extremely generous to aspiring writers and Binchy herself, on her website, welcomed hearing from readers.
“My health isn’t so good these days and I can’t travel around to meet people the way I used to,” Binchy had written on her website. “But I’m always delighted to hear from readers, even if it takes me awhile to reply.”
Binchy’s fans have been paying tribute to her on Twitter:
