Maeve Binchy: an Irish passion

iVillage: Are your favourite things in Scarlet Feather?

Maeve Binchy: Yes, indeed. Cathy and Tom, the two young caterers, are full of confidence and energy; they know of every fish that ever swam and a dozen different ways of cooking all of them. They can leave Dublin and be in the countryside in under an hour. They are at ease talking to all kinds of people and feel part of an energetic country that is looking forward with hope.

Watch and learn

iVillage: Do you find that you learn something new with each book? If so, what did you learn writing Scarlet Feather?

Maeve Binchy: That's true: you do learn with each book. In Scarlet Feather I think I learned a lot about cooking because I have two friends who are caterers. And they taught me a lot. I learned what an exhausting career it must be, trying to cope with the tensions and dramas at every catered event. I have new respect for anyone who puts food in front of others for a living.