Reading order
| # | Title | Published | Author | Buy on Amazon |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Maeve’s Diary | 1979 | Maeve Binchy | Buy |
| 2 | Dear Maeve | 1995 | Maeve Binchy | Buy |
| 3 | Aches & Pains | 1999 | Maeve Binchy | Buy |
| 4 | A Time to Dance | 2006 | Maeve Binchy | Buy |
| 5 | The Maeve Binchy Writers’ Club | 2008 | Maeve Binchy | Buy |
Maeve Binchy’s non-fiction spans nearly three decades, from Maeve’s Diary in 1979 to The Maeve Binchy Writers’ Club in 2008. Binchy was one of Ireland’s most popular novelists, known for warm, character-driven fiction like Circle of Friends, Tara Road, and Light a Penny Candle. Her non-fiction shows the same friendly, accessible voice in a different context.
Maeve’s Diary (1979) collects early personal writing. Dear Maeve (1995) gathers responses from her advice column in The Irish Times, where she answered readers’ questions with humor and common sense. Aches & Pains (1999) is a funny look at the indignities of getting older. A Time to Dance (2006) collects shorter personal essays.
The Maeve Binchy Writers’ Club (2008) is the most practical of the five, offering advice to aspiring writers based on Binchy’s own experience building a career from journalism to bestselling fiction. She writes about plot, character, dialogue, and the business of publishing in the direct, encouraging style her readers knew well. For fans of her novels, these non-fiction books offer a chance to spend more time with Binchy’s voice outside the fictional worlds she created.