Opening Lines: Like many others, I did not see it coming. But William is a scientist, and he saw it coming; he saw it sooner than I did, is what I mean. Like many others, I did not see another Lucy book coming! But, in the end, I was glad. Lucy by the Sea brings … Continue reading Lucy by the Sea | Elizabeth Strout #USAfiction
I would like to say a few things about my first husband, William. Laura Linney played Lucy Barton in a one woman show, first in London, then on Broadway. A comment during rehearsal one day about William (Lucy's first husband), made Elizabeth Strout realise that William had his own story. I'd love to know what … Continue reading Oh William! | Elizabeth Strout #USAfiction
Tommy Guptill had once owned a dairy farm, which he'd inherited from his father, and which was about two miles from the town of Amgash, Illinois. Oh my, the good folk of Amgash, Illinois are an unhappy bunch. Thank goodness it is a fictional town! Poverty, illness, domestic abuse, divorce, PTSD, secrets and affairs are … Continue reading Anything Is Possible | Elizabeth Strout #USAfiction
There was a time, and it was many years ago now, when I had to stay in hospital for almost nine weeks. When planning my summer holiday reading, I wanted a mix of books. I wanted short stories, I wanted some Australian authors, particularly Gen IV Australian Women Writers, I wanted a Japanese book, a … Continue reading My Name is Lucy Barton | Elizabeth Strout #USAfiction
In some ways this will be the easiest book response I've ever written. Quite simply, Olive, Again is all the same wonderfulness that was Olive Kitteridge. If you loved the first Olive; you will adore the second. I don't want to say too much so as not to spoil your own reading experience. Except that Strout … Continue reading Olive, Again by Elizabeth Strout #USfiction
My Name is Lucy Barton might seem like just another simple mother/daughter story, but like all of Elizabeth Strout's stories there is much more going on under the surface than first meets the eye. Lucy Barton is in hospital for an extended medical procedure. Her husband, busy with his work and their two young girls, arranges … Continue reading My Name is Lucy Barton by Elizabeth Strout
I've read so many varied reviews of Olive Kitteridge over the years, that I knew that this was probably going to be a 'love it or hate it' kind of book. Given my enjoyment of Strout's The Burgess Boys, I was expecting to love it. Here was another story with all my favourite themes - … Continue reading Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout
I've been wanting to read Olive Kitteridge for some time now. It's still sitting in my TBR pile, but it's moved up to the top now that I've finished The Burgess Boys. A tale of two brothers, a sister, a small country town in Maine and a pig's head. Relationships explored, exposed and analysed in … Continue reading The Burgess Boys | Elizabeth Strout #USfiction
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