Overall, what did you think of Lucy by the Sea? (no spoilers)

Overall, what did you think of Lucy by the Sea? (no spoilers, please)

Elizabeth Strout writes very unusual books. Her characters are not particularly beautiful or rich. Many of them are flaunted. Sometimes, they are not likable.
I'm not sure I like Lucy, and I certainly didn't like Olive Kitteridge!!
Lucy was a victim of her childhood, and I think she never got over that. She did love her daughters and tried to be a good mother.

I loved Olive Kittridge so I was eager to get to know Lucy. I’m torn…there are many things I loved about this book, but overall, I was bored. It was partially due to the subject of the pandemic. I think it’s still all too fresh in our lives to rehash so much of it. I found I didn’t like Lucy or William much.

I didn't read a summary of the novel before I selected it, nor after I was chosen to receive it. Surprise! Had I done so, I'm not sure I would have wanted to read this book. But I am really glad that I did.

I spent a lot of time alone during the pandemic-I was far from my son and other family members. My husband continued to work. We didn't have a "group" to isolate with because of my husband's job. I also kept more to myself than others around me because I was helping some of the older members of my community with grocery shopping and other errands. I wanted to be as careful as possible for their sake. I was in my head a lot-and I covered a very wide range of topics with myself! When I did speak with others, we didn't really talk about all the thoughts we were having. We focused on lighter things. I liked this book because it gave me the opportunity to "hear" what someone else was thinking at this time. I think having been able to do this during the pandemic might have been a meaningful way to process everything that was happening, and I wouldn't have felt so alone and far away from everything else that was going on at the same time.

I like the four Lucy stories. I reread the first three books to remind me of her life. I like the way this book is written. It is like we are always in Lucy’s mind. We know what she is thinking. I am happy of the older woman she became when her childhood was so difficult. I like Lucy!

Beginning of book was unsettling. The "i don't likes" kinda pissed me off (as a former NY'er who thinks more about what she doesn't like vs. what she does...we were all Negative Nancys, you see?). Middle of book, Lucy starts to grow into a human being. Finds nature, figures out what the pandemic was all about, her love for her daughters, Bob, then a studio in which to write...but what a plot for that silly book!
But, the end of the book was also unsettling for me. "Thinking like myself", having to re-negotiate her relationships with her daughters and new self-awareness and lessons sort of learned. Poor William. All he wants to do is connect. Be a man. Keep people safe. Lucy has no outlet into which he can plug himself

And, then, she closes the narrative with the words "sweet and sad earth" made me think that you can take the girl out of the (NY) city but...

Typical NY'er. See previous post!!!

Strout is a master of creating characters who are flawed but deeply understandable as humans. Reading these Lucy books is truly like spending time with friends I love, but who I also find exasperating. Like… not this again! With the addition of philosophical musings about life, choice, time and destiny and beautiful, lyrical writing, I would say I enjoyed reading it, but it does cry out for a final Lucy book, a sequel to this book that is heavily burdened with current politics and pandemic pain.

I was disappointed to find that the book bored me. I have loved her other books and was hoping this would also be great. I didn't realize it was about covid isolation and look back at that time to be frightening and strange. Maybe if I was more distanced from the event, it could play a more background part. Thank you for the opportunity to read it.

I didn't realize this book was about the coronavirus crisis. If I had I would not have selected this book.

Elizabeth Strout has a very distinctive writers voice. I enjoy her books and her characters are very well developed. However, my reading depends on my mood, and if I’m wanting a mystery or thriller, Elizabeth Strout would not be my first choice. I like her books when I am in the mood for a warm-hearted thought-provoking read.

I found the book boring. I did not like her characters. They were not interesting and I also did not like the pandemic theme. I was sick of the pandemic and all the meanness that came out of it. They had a nice situation with not too much hardship so it was difficult to feel bad for them.

I usually don't like relationship stories like this one because they are too much like everyday life and I read to get away from that sometimes. I could not picture her characters at all. They were colorless or uninteresting.

I’ve really enjoyed her previous books, but I’m ambivalent on this one. I found the pandemic experience of Lucy and her family a little annoying actually. My niece worked in a nursing home where people died daily. Lucy’s problems seemed almost trivial to someone dealing with so many relatively sudden and unexpected deaths. I realize my view may be personal, everyone had (and may still have)their own experiences.

Lucy was flawed but don’t many of us have attributes that could be improved. There was bound to be books about the isolation during the pandemic and this is just an insight on how some people coped.

I liked the book. I liked reading about how others managed during the pandemic, and I liked reading about Lucy’s thoughts. She seems to always have an anxious mind. I even liked that Olive Kitteridge was mentioned. Life is so unpredictable and I appreciate that Strout’s stories reflect that.

I have very mixed feelings about the book. At times it was fine being inside Lucy's head and at other times she annoyed me. I found her to be a whiner. How many people were able to leave their home, just pack up and go to a beautiful coastal state, take walks along the water's edge and have a man who can't do enough for you.
Stout's writing in this book was a disappointment but it did set the mood and tone of the story.

I thought Elizabeth Strout's approach to this story creative. To allow yourself to follow someone else's experiences, mostly in terms of thought processes, through the pandemic allows the reader to escape their own thoughts. The reader gets to know Lucy and William in a different albeit significant way...facing and dealing with the pandemic. From the beginning...so much unknown. How we all coped with what we were learning as we went along. What we knew or didn't know. What we did or didn't do. What we believed or didn't believe. But onward we went. Every person was touched differently. In this novel we could see just that. For some this book may be a trigger. For me, it was a view of the pandemic through someone else's eyes...

The writing was superb. I thought the character of Lucy was well developed. I may not always have agreed with Lucy’s thought process but her character was the book. I felt like. The descriptions made me feel I was there in the country setting. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and found it a great story for a horrific period in all our lives.

I'm glad I read it. Strout's books are 'quiet' books to me--subtle characters (often unlikeable and annoying, but 'true to life'!) and minimal plot/action, but they provoke thought and discussion. Having the pandemic so fresh in our minds, it perhaps was a little more 'difficult' to read, as it certainly stirred up a lot of the fear of the unknown we all dealt with!

I haven't read the Lucy books, did read two Olive Kitteridge books and didn't like them. I was ambivalent about this book, but found Lucy's storytelling tedious and couldn't imagine reading a book written by her. If there were an award for creating unlikable characters, Elizabeth Strout would win it.

I agree with Maryanne H. Elizabeth Strout continues to weave characters in an out of all of her stories/novels. I love reading her works. She is a role model for me as a writer as she utilizes interior monologues as a way to let the reader understand the thoughts of particular characters. I agree with Maryanne that the Lucy stories are not done and I hope not.

I agree with pamelak and others. I’ve read all the Lucy books and I so enjoy them. She is flawed! But she sweats buckets of humanity. She is relatable in her small joys and big failures. I learn something about myself whenever I read about Lucy and I thank Ms Strout for writing so brilliantly to bring me a full circle of awareness of myself and the complexities of others.

When I first started the book, I wasn't sure that I'd make it through it. It seemed mundane but the references to the pandemic kept me coming back. I was fortunate to keep my job as was my husband during the pandemic so not a lot was different for us, but less traffic and a change of focus with our jobs. I appreciated stories of others' experiences of that time. Once I felt more immersed in the book, I started to think that anyone's life can be interesting and parts of the book stayed with me after finishing it.

Lucy Barton is a complex character as it is, then to add the pandemic to the mix complicates things even more. Many of her thoughts and actions are history for all of us. As if loneliness wasn't already a problem for many, the pandemic was like another enhancer. I felt many of her thoughts. Social isolating was horrible, just as bad as having to wear masks all the time. City dwellers wanted to move out thinking it would be safer, not so! After reading about all the marital affairs I am now curious how prevalent they were before the pandemic and after all the isolating? And the divorce rates? I liked the book, felt it was sad sometimes, but it was reality!

I read “My Name Is Lucy Barton” and “Oh William” and I think it helped me understand Lucy and William. I like Strout’s writing style. It's very conversational and immediate. As if you were sitting in her living room and she was telling you about her life in little snippets.

I was disappointed. I think Strout "phoned this one in" because it really felt like a quickly written re-hash--same stuff in a different place--of "Oh William!" which I didn't particularly like either. I really enjoyed her Olive books but after this one, will not be reading Strout's books again. (Or maybe I'll just avoid Lucy!)

This is my first Elizabeth Strout book, and I'm headed to the library and bookstore to read more. I loved it. I don't know if I could have read it sooner than now because the events discussed or mentioned in the novel were too close before now. I loved this story about two people (primarily) and how they are thrown together for an extended time, about the everyday stuff and the important stuff that is the everyday stuff of our lives. I loved Lucy's voice. She's a flawed person, to be sure, just as we all are. William's personality reminded me of people I know and love, so while he didn't always come across very well on the page, I could see others in his character. (I'm not referring to his past actions, just his general personality.) This would be a great book club book because there is so much to discuss.

Elizabeth Strout's writing style is unique and highly effective. Lucy's first-person narrative is almost a stream of consciousness approach. She tells us what is happening to her, along with what she thinks and feels about things in a manner that reads like diary entries. She shares her fears, self-doubts, and insecurities, as well as her triumphs. And her humanity shines through. There is a lot of detail about rather mundate aspects of life, but they contribute to the reader's understanding of what Lucy is experiencing. And I appreciate the way Strout makes Lucy consider that her feelings aren't always reliable through the actions and statements of other characters, as when her daughters question things. Or she seemingly casually injects comments and observations from other characters that make Lucy (and the reader) stop and ponder situations, others' motivations, what is best for her, etc. as when Charlene tells her she won't be allowed to volunteer any longer because she does not plan to receive a COVID vaccination. Always woven into Strout's narrative are little nuggets of sheer brilliance and poignancy, and Lucy by the Sea contains several. Strout's books are as much meditations on life as they are fictional stories about the characters she creates. I always enjoy them.