Strout’s short stories are about various people in the community of Amgash in the Mid West. She explores what it is like for those who have left and return to visit (like Lucy Barton) as well as what it is like for those people who have never lived away from the town. She is equally sharp in delving into the motivations and ways of thinking in such small communities. Yes, they might be described as tightly-knitted but Strout is able to tease out the sometimes disturbing threads of this “fabric” and show the patterns of love and hate.

It was good to meet up with Lucy Barton from her previous book, who is now a successful novelist who has got through the “crisis” of her eponymously titled book.

Strout is so “truthful” in her writing. She is able to examine the compassion that Tommy feels towards the “damaged” Pete, albeit with a whiff of unwillingness. She writes about love and passion :
“Annie wondered at this, that her brother and sister…had never known the passion that caused a person to risk everything they had…simply to be near the white dazzle of the sun that somehow for those moments seemed to leave the earth behind”

Then again she is able to look at the secrets and the dark corners of the human psyche in an unflinching way “her family was encased in shame” … “had grown up on shame: it was the nutrient of their soil”

This examination is almost Shakespearian although she is describing individuals in a small town. She is able to dissect the contradictions we all contain and how these “leak” from our unconscious sometimes into our actions.


What an author ! There are few of her calibre writing now.

Connected short stories are a particular favourite of mine - so I only have myself to blame for not having started reading Elizabeth Strout's books earlier. And after this absolutely brilliant book I feel a bit stupid. Because I totally, 100 % adored this - and I think I would have liked it even more, had I read her other books first. There are connections there that I would have enjoyed more and scenes that I am sure would have been even more poignant. This is the only reason why I rated the book with four instead of five stars - because it could have been better if I had known some characters differently. I will remedy this as soon as possible though and buy the rest of her books.

Elizabeth Strout has a way of creating brilliance out of ordinary situations and and she tells the stories' of ordinary, real, believable characters. The stories that worked best for me were mostly the ones where nothing drastic happens and you still leave the characters feeling like you know them, know their souls, and - because there is an underlying sadness in every single story - know their pain. But even though the stories told are sad there is a hopefulness here, an inkling of a chance of everything turning out fine in the end.

Human connection is at the core of this novel and I absolutely loved it for this. Elizabeth Strout excels in depicting families - in all their glory and disfunction and it feels immensely real and relatable. Short stories are a difficult medium to pull this off with, and she does it with an incredible talent.

....I think I have just talked myself into giving this book five stars after all. Bloody brilliant.

This is a sister book to 'My name is Lucy Barton', it develops the characters who feature in the conversations between Lucy and her mother. I had read 'My name..' so I did have an idea of how Lucy fitted in with the small town and its people. However I did still find it a struggle to keep up with who was who, and who had done what and who was harboring a grudge.

Characters are sympathetically portrayed and the descriptions of small town life are excellent. It was a warm and comforting read. I almost felt the need to draw up a town family tree to pin down how everyone fitted together, and it is this confusion that has left me feeling 'not quite sure' about the book. I enjoyed it, but I was frustrated. Maybe I am not meant to read short stories!

Awww....

This book is remarkable, the last moments of it are so heartfelt. The best ending; one of hope and genuine happiness.

I liked this book, as unusual as I found it. I liked the characters, their reflections on the ways of the world they grew up in, their childhoods, and the dreams of youth. There was this confidence and assurance that I admired in them. The integrity in their honest lives and the lessons they had come to learn through their struggles.

This book, I'd say, begins with Lucy Barton. She was raised in poverty but, became this great success. She returns to her roots, to visit and see the world she abandoned in her pursuit of a better life. I plan to read the first for this book: My name is Lucy Barton, perhaps then some riddles would be solved- particularly my questions regarding her childhood.

The reason I gave this novel three stars was because the ARC copy I received didn't seem completely finished. I found that the chapters were loosely connected, they didn't flow smoothly, some characters didn't seem to serve any purpose to the novel, and others weren't explored enough. Again, Lucy comes to mind and Patty too.

I recommend you read the first book if you want to be able to better understand and appreciate this book.

For me, the underlying message of this book is that we can overcome the situations we are born into, just as we can fall from them. I guess, I'd describe it as an anti fatalistic novel that delves into feelings of nostalgia and the significance of family. Yeah, that doesn't sound pretentious at all.

I received this book through NetGalley.

We return to the home town of the heroine of Strout's last book, "My Name is Lucy Barton,"and in a series of linked stories we hear more about some of the characters mentioned (and sometimes gossiped about) by Lucy and her mother. These are beautiful vignettes of ordinary people, their quiet joys and pain, loves and disappointments, and each section observes key moments that somehow define or reveal deep truths about their lives. We even meet Lucy herself again, further on in life, but still being drawn back to the inescapable ties to her childhood, despite her best efforts to leave it far behind. Strout is a genius at portraying profound observations about people, places and situations in just a few lines, and she never fails to leave me moved and absorbed. I hope this is not her last visit to Amgash, Illinois, or ours.

This is a marvelous book about human nature in all its forms. Strout's simple and direct style is one of my favorites. The book is structured into linked stories from Lucy Barton's town, a colourful mix of individuals with all sorts of lives and regrets mostly, looking for forgiveness and peace of mind. Strout has such a devout sense of reality, through all her words and phrases. I had the same feelings after reading My Name is Lucy Barton. Strout's books may point towards growing up, yet highligting the importance of education and a simple life. Thanks to Netgalley for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review

A brilliant linked collection of stories, perfect for fans of 'My Name is Lucy Barton'. I really liked 'Windmills' and its main character Patty Nicely - one couldn't help but feel so sorry for her after the incident with the girl. In 'Mississippi Mary', there is great poignancy between Mary, residing in Italy, and her visiting daughter Angelina. 'Sister' shows what can happen between a very successful sibling, Lucy Barton, and her less-privileged brother and sister - but also how tables can turn quite unexpectedly.

I loved this collection and believe Elizabeth Astro to be a much-needed voice of 21st Century American literature.

Companion to novel to Lucy Barton, this is a series of vignettes based on the characters Lucy knew in her home town. Apart from knowing Lucy the one thing they seem to have in common is misery, often exacerbated by a dysfunctional sex life. The episode with each character is so short that it's difficult to engage with them, just as you are getting to know them Strout jumps to the next one and rarely returns to follow up. I found the novel ultimately disappointing with a slightly unpleasant aftertaste that there are so many unhappy people in one small town.

Every single story was captivating. Strout effortlessly links each story together in a beautifully fluid manner.

It's good to be reminded that we never really know what is going on in someone else's life when we are on the outside looking in. Strout helps the reader climb in through a window and become ensconced in the life of the character.

I have only recently discovered Elizabeth Strout but have found a new favourite author, so I was delighted to receive an advance copy of this to read - thank you Net Galley.

This collection of stories echoes her earlier book - My Name is Lucy Barton - and we get to meet many characters from Lucy's memories in the hospital. The characters are so carefully and truthfully written that it's possible to believe we could travel to Illinois and meet them all. Love, loss, and living are the themes Elizabeth Strout deals with so sensitively and eloquently. I found myself re-reading certain sentences, such is the depth with which she manages to infuse just a few words. I cannot praise or recommend these enough and only wish I had her gift of language to be able to convey its excellence.

Many people have recommended I read Elizabeth Strout's novels. I now know why.
This book is strangely compelling, characters that feel real, living varied lives but all interlinked.
It didn't matter that I had not read the previous novels, there was just enough back story provided for explanation.
I was fully drawn in by the writing and characters and was sorry when I reached the end of the book.
I will now be seeking out Strout's other books.

Anything is Possible is a companion piece to My Name is Lucy Barton, in the first novel we are given glimpses of Lucy's past, the poverty she and her family endured and the small town from which she fled. Now Lucy is a well known author and she is returning home to visit her brother Pete. However, this is a novel not only about Lucy, it is about the people who knew the Barton's, it is about their way of life then and now, it is about relationships, kindness, forgiveness, remembrance and also about the darker side of life, judging others, mean spiritedness, jealousy, trauma and all that makes us human.

Strout has a gift of telling a multilayered story simply, effectively, emotionally and beautifully. Her plotting flows like a skater on ice, leading us gently through her novel and her narrative although easy to read delves deep into what makes us human.

It's curiously satisfying to come across Lucy Barton and other characters, discussed by Lucy and her mother, as you read this companion to "My Name is Lucy Barton". The short stories or episodes interweave the characters, revealing mores sides to each individuals story. Poverty, loss and family ties are common themes. These imagined characters feel all too real as a result. Really beautiful writing that is sometimes unbearably painful to read.

I can't thank Penguin Books (UK) enough for the opportunity to read this wonderful book.

There is so much to admire in Elizabeth Strout’s writing, it’s hard to do it justice. This is a series of stories linked with each other and with her previous novel My Name is Lucy Barton through superbly realistic characters. Narrated in the third person (as opposed to the first person of the earlier book), it is chock-full of dialogue and the author excels at this - dialogue, reaction and even the tiniest gesture all convey the deep emotion at the heart of their stories. My heart breaks for all of them - mothers and daughters, brothers and sisters, husbands and wives - torn apart or running away from each other, isolated in their new lives, hurting in many cases, yet still linked at an unspoken level. Unspoken that is until one day the floodgates open and their emotions spill out in an unspeakably poignant set of vignettes. Powerful writing and not a wasted word in fewer than 300 pages. I’ll be recommending this to everyone I know.