The Return Journey - Maeve Binchy

The Return Journey is a collection of short stories by Irish author Maeve Binchy. Each story brings us a tale of travel and an insight into characters and scenarios in true Binchy style. There's the business trip in the company of a mistress that doesn't go as planned, a case of swapped luggage, an affair between friends, and a charming house sitter who changes life at home in unthinkable ways. As always, the tales are both heartwarming and heart wrenching; the reader can't help but have a sense of empathy for the characters and their situations. A most enjoyable read and a light escape.

My reading of fiction has taken a dramatic dive in recent months for a couple of reasons. Firstly, my job requires a fair amount of reading and research, which is enjoyable, but leaves little time or concentration for reading for pleasure. Also, we are lucky enough to have access to a great library at work, but all the titles are non-fiction - a good way to dive into biographies and other topics of interest but again leaving less room for fiction. I try to alternate between reading fiction and non-fiction (usually biographies and memoirs) books but, admittedly, am usually reading several titles simultaneously so this doesn't always work out so cleanly. However, I'm determined to get back into enjoying more fiction in 2011 and attacking my ever-growing TBR list.