''The Lilac Bus'' is a collection of eight interrelated

short stories A short story is a piece of prose fiction that typically can be read in one sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the oldest t ...

by the writer

Maeve Binchy Anne Maeve Binchy Snell (28 May 1939Born 1939 as per biography, ''Maeve Binchy'' by Piers Dudgeon, Thomas Dunne Books 2013; (hardcover), pp. 4, 280, 302; (ebook) – 30 July 2012) was an Irish novelist, playwright, short story writer, colum ...

, first published in

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeast A ...

. The stories were republished by Delacorte Press in 1991 together with the earlier 4-story collection, ''Dublin 4'', under the title ''The Lilac Bus: Stories''.

Plot summary

Set in the 1960s and 1970s, the book follows a group of seven people from the fictional village of Rathdoon in West

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

, who all live in

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

and return home each weekend on a lilac-colored minibus. Each chapter focuses on a different character, with events described in a previous chapter making their reappearance with new repercussions.

Themes

The book explores how 20th-century characters with strong Roman Catholic values cope with problems such as alcoholism, homosexuality, unwanted pregnancy, infidelity, drug use, divorce, birth control, and abortion.

TV movie

The book was made into a television movie in 1990, directed by

Giles Foster Giles Foster has been an English television director since 1975, specialising in television dramas. He has also directed in Australia and in Germany (2012-2014). He wrote some television dramas in the 1970s. He is from Bath, Somerset and was ed ...

and starring Con O'Neill,

Stephanie Beacham Stephanie Beacham (born 28 February 1947) is an English television, film, radio and theatre actress. Although she has a wide number of credits to her name, Beacham is best known for for playing Sable Colby in the ABC soap operas ''The Colbys'' ...

, and

Beatie Edney Beatrice Edney (born 23 October 1962) is an English television actress. Born in London, she is the daughter of actress Sylvia Syms and her husband Alan Edney. Her brother is Benjamin Edney and her cousin is musician Nick Webb. Edney first came ...

References

1984 short story collections Irish short story collections Short stories set in Ireland Short stories adapted into films Works by Maeve Binchy {{1980s-story-collection-stub