Starred review from July 4, 2022
Strout follows up Oh William! with a captivating entry in the Lucy Barton series. This time, Lucy decamps to rural Maine during the first year of the Covid lockdown. At the pandemic’s onset in 2020, Lucy’s philandering ex-husband and longtime friend, William, whisks her away from New York City to a rental house in coastal Maine. He may have self-centered ulterior motives beyond his assertion that he’s trying to save her life, but they are not readily transparent for most of the narrative. Personal and public events intrude during the lockdown as the pair develop a “strange compatibility” while attempting to comprehend the new normal. Their two daughters each face a crisis in their marriage; William contacts his once unknown half sister, Lois Bubar, and reveals a life-threatening medical condition; and the country roils from George Floyd’s murder and the insurrection on January 6. Bleak memories of Lucy’s impoverished childhood and of her recently deceased husband surface in shattering flashbacks. Loneliness, grief, longing, and loss pervade intertwined family stories as Lucy and William attempt to create new friendships in an initially hostile town. What emerges is a prime testament to the characters’ resilience. With Lucy Barton, Strout continues to draw from a deep well. Agent: Molly Friedrich, Friedrich Agency.
June 10, 2024
Lucy Barton returns to narrate her life experience as she and her family navigate the challenges of the COVID pandemic. Lucy's ex-husband, William, whisks her away from the city to a seaside cottage in Maine, where they rekindle their relationship and make an unexpected investment in their future. As Lucy's daughters ride out the lockdowns and restrictions, they also face challenges and make decisions, not unlike the ones Lucy has made in her own life. With time on their hands for introspection, Lucy and her daughters come to understand that life is a series of events with multiple outcomes and consequences. Lucy is an author who thinks and acts like one, contemplating each nuance and situational setting she encounters. Readers will recognize some familiar characters from Strout's (Oh William!) other works to help Lucy maneuver through this new phase in her life. Narrator Kimberly Farr's breathy, thoughtful reading perfectly channels Lucy's personality, but listeners may want to speed up the recording to bring up the overly languid pace. VERDICT: A definite listen for fans of Lucy Barton and her family, though new listeners may want to catch up in order to understand the backstories of other characters in the book.--Laura Brosie
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