Pogo-stick time in Maine!

OMG OMG OMG! I grabbed my pogo stick for this one, I guarantee you! The terrain is rough because the story takes place in a house on a cliff in Maine, so I have to watch the road here to make sure I don’t go flying off the edge. Speaking of edges, this book is the opposite of edgy. It’s low-key to the nth degree, but I loved it. I always proclaim, rather proudly and loudly, that I don’t like quiet books, and look, here I am, pogo-sticking away!

COVID has just hit New York City, and Lucy’s ex, William, has whisked her off to Maine to hide out with her. They’re both around 70, so getting away from the virus is a good idea. Basically we’re stuck in the house with them, except for short walks, and an occasional socially-distanced visit with local friends and with their two daughters in Connecticut. We’re stuck in the house but we’re also stuck in Lucy’s head, and it’s both comfy and illuminating there. Strout manages to make the mundane so fascinating. Lucy is a keen observer of what’s happening with the people around her, but her real claim to fame is her ability to analyze her own feelings. She is wise and relatable. Strout really knows how to go deep into someone’s psyche.

Strout is one of my favorite authors. The funny thing is, her writing style always takes me a little while to get used to. Her sentences are simple and there’s sort of a monotone going on. The book is pretty damn quiet, but the smothered tone somehow makes the emotions stand out more; it’s a cover for all the feelings that are in the lines and between them. At first I was antsy to speed up the voice. Spit it out, hurry it up, match the pace of my chatterbox inside me, please! My brain feels animated, Lucy’s seems coated in Valium. But after a while, I was mesmerized. Nevermind that the characters are passive—which I usually can’t stand. I started to settle into the style. I even started to see the world through Lucy’s eyes, and I heard her voice in my head! I mean, I really heard her voice—so much that I realized I was channeling Strout, thinking sentences aloud in my head that sounded just like Lucy’s. Strout has said, as did Lucy, that she always wants to know what it feels like to be another person. Well, she sure made me feel like Lucy! (Of course, I was a little schizo for a while! LOL, no biggie!)

Strout’s secret sauce, I think, is her ability to show Lucy’s feelings instead of telling us about them. And Lucy talks like we’re sitting there with her. She often opens with phrases like, “I will tell you this,” which is cozy and personal. Lucy is so likeable, so smart, so real. There’s always melancholy but at the same time there is zest. She looks at her mistakes and her reasons for choices, and she doesn’t cut herself any slack. Her insight just blows me away. She talks about loneliness, death, regret, and how hard it is to know another human.

It didn’t hurt that I could relate so much to the story. First, there’s COVID, and Strout really has the picture down pat. Lucky for me, I find stories about COVID to be cathartic, not overly depressing. I was constantly nodding my head, saying yes, that’s exactly how it was as COVID began. Second, Lucy is an old fart like I am. And like me, she has two grown daughters, she hangs out with her ex, and she worries a lot about all three of them.

This book, unlike her others, is topical. The backdrop is COVID, and she also makes a few references to current events, like the election and January 6th. Funny coincidence: I ran across her mention of the attack on the Capitol on the same day the hearings started and I began watching. Strange!

This is the third Lucy novel—the first two are My Name Is Lucy Barton and Oh, William. There’s also a collection of short stories, Anything Is Possible, where Lucy takes the stage a lot. Lucy By the Sea works fine as a stand-alone, but it’s enhanced bigtime if you’ve read about Lucy before. A few characters from past books make appearances, and it’s a kick to see them again.

Well, I think I’ve reached my allotted time for gushing. Bottom line: Strout lovers will be in heaven, and newbies will be awed, I suspect, when they get their hands on this book. Line up for this one!

Thanks to NetGalley for the advance copy.

Are we ready for a book about 2020 yet? Do I want to read about an unexciting family and what it was like for them to live through the early days of the pandemic? The George Floyd incident and the resulting unrest? The election? The events of January 6th? The divisiveness caused by all of these things and THEN the vaccine controversies?

The answer is no. I do not. To me this was a lazy subject chosen by an incredibly gifted writer. But it is too soon. The wounds are still too fresh. And the pandemic is not over. I know people who have Covid right now. It's far from over. (What's next? A book about the fallout of the Ukranian/Russian war and monkey pox?)

Let's let the dust settle first. These last two years have been incredibly tumultuous. All of us have been affected.

This is a subject that needed to be shelved for a few more years. I didn't enjoy it at all.

This is the best book I have read this year! I would like to be friends with Lucy and share experiences with her.
Her experiences during the recent pandemic crystalized and helped me assess my feelings and responses.
Her characters are familiar, family and friends that have appeared in most of her books. Even William is back!
Read it.

i really liked this book surprisingly
usually middle-aged women litfic is not up my alley but this is a really interesting and non-obnoxious look at the pandemic and the way it affected modern life
elizabeth strout is really good at writing super simple scenes but imbuing them with a lot of meaning and emotion and i felt that this book was a truthful depiction of pandemic life

Thanks for the free digital book PRH International in exchange for my honest review. #PRHInternationalPartner #ad #prhinternational

Lucy by the sea is a novel about Lucy Barton and a follow-up on My Name is Lucy Barton, Anything is Possible, Oh William!. But you don't necessarily need to read those first to appreciate this book.

Elizabeth Strout is one of my favorite authors because her writing is simple (as in readable), beautiful, raw, heartfelt, and above all human.

After reading a fictional novel about the pandemic earlier this year, I felt it wasn't a pleasant topic to read about yet. It was a stressful time for most of us, and we are all happy all is back to normal. But this book felt like an older friend was catching up with me, sharing her very personal stories with me during that time. There are no dramatic ICU scenes in this book for example.

Lucy Barton is a widow, and right before the pandemic starts, her ex-husband William decides to take her away from unsafe New York to Maine. Lucy talks about her relationship with her late husband, David, and ex William. But the book is also about uncertainty, feeling lost, grief, her life in New York, her daughters, and her reflections on the past which will always be with her no matter her age or location.

There are several moments in the book where Lucy cries out to the ''nice mother'' she made up, which were genuinely touching. It shows that no matter our age, we still can feel lost; we still need a mom figure from time to time.

Another memorable scene is the policeman she watches in his car. She wonders what it's like to be a policeman. I feel that makes writing and reading such a beautiful experience. To be able to experience someone else's life.

''Mom, I am so confused! And the nice mother I had made up said, I know you are, Lucy. But it will work out. You just hang tight, honey, that's all you need to do.''

Also, can we talk about the ending? Is there going to be another Lucy and William book? Are Becka and Chrissy right?

Elizabeth Strout continues Lucy Barton's story as she passes the year of lock down with her first husband William. The elephant in the room for the reader is, have you read all of Strout's other books? Not just the three earlier Lucy books, but also the Olive Kitteridge books, and The Burgess Boys. Because Lucy by the Sea is so enriched by the knowledge of the characters' backstories, I can't imagine starting here. Specific to . . . by the Sea is the very accurate depiction of the restrictions and fears of Covid, how we lived and coped, or didn't. Highly recommended. But do yourself a favor and read them all, and throw in Amy and Isabelle and Abide with Me.

Elizabeth Strout is a queen.
I’ve connected with Lucy in all of the books about her, not because I shared her unique experiences, but because Lucy, as in the previous books, is introspective and so honest. Throughout the story it felt as if I was listening to an old friend.
I saw an older, more wiser, but maybe a more vulnerable Lucy.

I feel as though I wrote this book, or at least offered Elizabeth Strout my journals and anxieties over the course of the Covid pandemic. The fears that Lucy faced and lived through are reminiscent of the fears that we all dealt with when this horrible, horrible disease first surfaced and spread. This really is not a scary account of the pandemic, rather a reminder of the fear of the unknown that each of us most likely felt in the beginning and as it steam-rolled. I applaud Ms. Strout for writing such a realistic account of a two-year period that made us stop in our tracks, worry endlessly about ourselves and others, and learn to deal with a virus that will most likely be around for a long long time. Lucy is a sentimental character...easy to like, easy to relate to and easy to worry about. Thankfully there are people in her circle who love, encourage and protect her. At the end of the day, isn't that what we all crave when life takes us down an unknown path?

In the early days of the pandemic, Lucy’s ex, William, says they must get out of NYC to stay safe, and takes her to a house in Maine. He encourages their daughters to leave as well; one does, and the other stays for awhile. Lucy reflects on many things, among them her terrible childhood, friendships, her ex’s affairs, and her worry about her daughters. A quote I particularly liked about her role in their lives was “and then I remembered that one time when I was pregnant with Chrissy, I had looked down at my big stomach and thought: Whoever you are you do not belong to me. My job is to help you get into this world but you do not belong to me.” Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC.

I received a free Advanced Reading Copy via NetGalley in exchange for a complete and honest review.

One of the best books I've read in a long while.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ ½
Genre: Literary Fiction

The world is going into a lockdown. Lucy Barton is terrified of the pandemic and what is happening around her. At first, she is unable to understand the severity of the situation. Her ex-husband William is so concerned about her and about their two daughters. He asks her to join him and go to Maine where they will be isolated from everybody else. There, Lucy will have to live and adapt to her new situation but at the same time remember about the past with her husband and children.

This is the first book I read by Elizabeth Strouth. I’m so glad that I have read it. Her writing is so beautiful and flawless. Although the pandemic is the main catalyst of this story, it is not the main purpose or subject of the story. Lucy by the Sea is a beautiful story about isolation and loneliness. You don’t need to be alone to feel lonely, sometimes you can have many people around you and you will still feel lonely. The story is rich with such subjects that are discussed in a very subtle manner using prose that is quite lyrical.

Marriage, divorce, infidelity, miscarriage, love, loss, isolation, and fear are some of the subjects and situations the author exquisitely included in her story. Lucy living by the sea in itself was a metaphoric image of the protagonist’s life. Her life and relationships with her husbands and daughters were sometimes as calm as the sea and at other times turbulent as the waves on a stormy day.

I had no idea that this was a sequel to another book that the author has written “My Name is Lucy Barton”. I’m not sure if one will miss any particular thing by reading this book because it felt to me like a standalone book. I did not notice any shortcomings when it came to the characters. They were all well-developed and fleshed out. I loved this book and would highly recommend it if you are OK with the trigger warnings. I’m looking forward to reading more books by the author in the future.

Many thanks to the publisher Random House Publishing Group - Random House and NetGalley for providing me with an advance reader copy of this book.

A quick, immersive, & thoughtful read, perfect for fans of literary fiction.

Previously familiarity with the Lucy Barton books would be helpful, but not 100% necessary.

Lucy is back and this time she's dealing with the pandemic, which is handled very sensitively by Strout. (I would have expected nothing less.) Lucy's personal relationships are relatable and her thought processes and innermost feelings are conveyed beautifully.

While I very much enjoyed LUCY BY THE SEA, I hope Strout will plow some new ground with her next novel and introduce us to new characters.

In the latest installment of Lucy Barton's story, her ex-husband has whisked her away from NYC to Maine during the beginning of the pandemic. Lucy comes to life once more and I will never tire of reading about her.

I just loved this book!! I caught up with the other Lucy Barton books before reading the latest installment so I was able to keep track of all the connections. This book was told entirely from Lucy’s POV but we also got snippets about other characters, including Olive Kitteridge! I love how even a short story from a previous collection repeatedly ties in to the entire community of characters along the way.

In this installment, Lucy continues processing David’s passing, further examines the state of her relationship with her daughters, and has to make some decisions about her relationship with William. At the beginning of the book, William and Lucy escape NYC before the first Covid wave and begin to establish a new life in coastal Maine. I know some people aren’t ready to read pandemic based stories yet since we’re still living it in the moment, but this book was so profound and captured the experience so well. There was so much uncertainty about what would happen to us and the world at large. Every decision we made had unknown consequences.

Elizabeth Strout is our modern day Virginia Wolf. Lucy’s stream of consciousness always runs the gamut. While it might seem that she expresses herself too simply at times, I was often shocked by how profound all of these statements were. They crept up on you slowly and continued to resonate long after you put the book down. This volume felt like an ending but I sincerely hope that’s not the case and we will continue to follow these characters for years to come! 🤞

*Thanks to the author, Random House & NetGalley for this advance reader copy for review.

Elizabeth Strout is great at capturing the human experience, and writing about the pandemic is no different. Lucy Barton is back managing the early days of the coronavirus pandemic with William, and her observations are what most of us felt and seen during that fragile time. I devoured this in a few days and didn’t want “Lucy by the Sea” to end.

Beautiful book filled with humanity and grace. One of the best writers of our times has written another winner.

I will never NOT want to know how Lucy Barton is handling current events, and even though I was worried it was "too soon" for a covid-experience book, looking back at the first year of the pandemic and all the rest that accompanied it through Lucy's eyes was thought provoking and insightful as ever.

To say that Elizabeth Strout has a way with words is an understatement. Her poignant and powerful phrasing left me wanting to write down her words, but my desire to continue reading was stronger. So, no, I never did write down anything.

Lucy Barton narrates this story as she leaves NYC for Maine with her ex-husband William. It's the early days of the pandemic and while we know how this all unfolds, it's interesting to read a story through the eyes of someone who has no clue what the pandemic will bring.

Some might say that the storyline is slow going, but I savored every observation, fear, and joy of Lucy's -- never wanting her story to end. Masterful writing. as always from Elizabeth Strout.

I want to thank #NetGalley and Random House for this electronic ARC of #LucybytheSea.

"Lucy by the Sea" is the fourth entry in Elizabeth Strout's collection of novels concerning Lucy Barton and the fictional town of Amgash. At the onset of the COVID pandemic, Lucy moves with her ex-husband William to Maine, where they live out lockdown, separated from their daughters, who have moved to Connecticut. As a disclaimer: I read these four novels back-to-back, and my weariness now that I have finished them all is definitely related to this process. My reaction to this book would probably be different if I had read each one when it was released, as I imagine many of Strout's readers have.

It was hard for me to get really invested in most of the book—I think because I'm a bit burned out on this set of characters at this point. I don't think it's poorly written at all, but I also think Strout's focus is more on content than its delivery, so the prose is not the kind that I really love. The larger-scale issue I have with the prose is just that certain phrases come up time and time again—a sort of vocal quirk that made Lucy very unique in "My Name is Lucy Barton" but I have kind of grown tired of ("What I mean is," and "I mean," in general, exclamations of "Oh [someone]," for example). I'm just feeling a bit overloaded on this particular voice.

My tiring of these characters is exacerbated by the fact that certain events seem to get rehashed constantly: in every book, it seems we need to be reintroduced to core events (e.g. Lucy staying after school to sleep by the radiator because she is cold), most of which were originally detailed in "My Name is Lucy Barton." I understand that it could be important to make these books approachable to newcomers at any point in the series, and I think they are! I just also think they could have been approachable without this level of repetition.

The portrayal of the pandemic is good, and fairly accurate to how I think many people lived it. I think that will be a selling point for this one, especially because Elizabeth Strout seems to have a gift for connecting with a very large audience—making a wide variety of people feel heard. Late in the book, Lucy tries to understand the political turmoil America finds itself in (e.g. anti-mask/vaccine folks, the support for Trump, who is not named but easily identifiable) and I do believe she hits the nail on the head: that so many of these people are angry and feel condescended to by others. I don't think Strout goes too far by any stretch in her sympathy for these people—Lucy notes parallels to her own life in poverty and the condescension she has suffered, and she notes that she understands—but I also question how much sympathy I have for them. At the very least, it's something to think about.

All in all, I think the book will be appreciated by those who enjoyed the previous novels, and I think like the others, it will make a lot of people feel seen and heard. It did not personally resonate with me very much, but that's okay! Not everything has to.

While initially I was put off by this privileged family, I soon was able to relate to their relationships. Not everyone had the ability to go to family second homes or go to homes in Maine. It was the struggles to continue to communicate and relate as a family that struck me. The themes of loss permeated this book. It could have been life, love, baby, spouse, sibling or friend. We all continue to experience these feelings.
As we realize the pandemic is not really over. We will continue to experience the anxieties that have come forth. Ms Stout certainly deals with this subject