(10/22/2023)
This is my first Elizabeth Strout book, and I loved it. I don't know if I could have read it sooner than now - I needed some time and space from the events in the book in order to really enjoy this one. I loved this story about two people who are thrown together for an extended time. It's a story about nothing and everything. It's about long-term relationships, mothers and daughters, politics (only lightly alluded to), disagreeing without being disagreeable, forgiveness, maturity, how we deal with stress. 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.