Maeve Binchy, a best-selling Irish author whose work includes Circle of Friends and Tara Road, has died. According to her family, Binchy passed away Monday in a Dublin, Ireland hospital after a brief illness. Her husband Gordon Snell was with her when she died. Binchy was 72.
During her nearly 30 year long career, Binchy sold more than 40 million books worldwide. She penned 16 novels, four collections of short stories, a novella and a play. Binchy’s work has been translated into 37 languages. Her most popular work includes Scarlet Feather, Circle of Friends, Tara Road and Light a Penny Candle. Circle of Friends and Tara Road were made into films. Binchy’s last novel, Minding Frankie, was released in 2010.
"She was an outstanding novelist, short story writer and columnist, who engaged millions of people all around the world with her fluent and accessible style," Ireland president Michael D. Higgins said in a statement. "In recent years she showed great courage and thankfully never lost her self-deprecating humor, honesty and remarkable integrity as an artist and human being.”
"We have lost a national treasure," Prime Minister Enda Kenny said.
In addition to her husband, Binchy is survived by a brother and a sister.
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