Tell Me Everything: Oprah's Book Club: A Novel by Elizabeth Strout
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Web ID: 198759744.5 touching stars, rounded up
“And then off they went for their walk. Lucy said, ‘Tell me everything. Tell me every single thing. And don’t leave anything out.’” “It is one more story of an unrecorded life.” This is the first Elizabeth Strout novel I’ve read, and while I felt a bit like I missed the beginning of ‘the movie,’ the book really worked for me. As expected, it had a few ‘sappy’ moments, but it feels honest and true. I enjoyed it enough to go back and read others in the series! While the plot moves steadily forward, the book is mostly a character study. Strout excels at writing vulnerable, interesting, real characters. She delves into how their backgrounds made them who they are – and advocates not judging, when you don’t know their stories. And stories she tells! The stories felt a bit random at first, but I came to realize they are placed with care into the narrative. Main Maine character, Bob Burgess, is a bit too good to be true, always helping others. He goes for walks with his friend, Lucy Barton, who is an excellent listener. They ‘fall in love’ but are married to other people. Bob runs into some challenges and moral dilemmas, but all is well, “because you’re still Bob Burgess. Nothing can take that away.” Who you are matters. I love the moral way Strout resolves this. Dialog always flows smoothly and brings up intriguing questions. Great material for book groups! Trigger warnings – suicide and child sexual abuse are mentioned, but the material is rated PG, nothing graphic. “People suffer. They live, they have hope, they even have love, and they still suffer. Everyone does. Those who think they’ve not suffered are lying to themselves.” Tell me Everything has suffering, but mostly, it has hope, love, and people caring for each other. A treasure. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Another moving, powerful read.
Tell Me Everything is the fifth book in the Amgash series by best-selling, Pulitzer Prize winning American author, Elizabeth Strout. Lucy Barton and her ex-husband Willian Gerhardt have been in Crosby, Maine for two years now, having quit New York City at the start of the pandemic. They have a house, Lucy does some volunteer work and writes in her little studio in town, and William works on developing potato varieties resistant to climate change. Lucy has a close friendship with Bob Burgess, himself returned to Maine from New York City some fifteen years earlier. Bob also does some volunteer work, caring for solitary elders, and a bit of legal work from his office in Shirley Falls, but each looks forward to their regular walks by the river where they talk, Bob smokes an illicit cigarette, and they understand each other very well. All manner of topics are covered: envy, knowing one’s partner, grief, the meaning of life. And about some things: “’Don’t think about it.’ And she smiled at him to indicate their joke about how they both thought of things too much.” Now ninety, Olive Kitteridge is a resident of the Maple Tree Apartments where she makes sure to daily visit her best friend, Isabelle Goodrow, over the bridge in higher care. She’s heard about the author newly come to Crosby, make a point of reading her books, and decides she may have a story that would interest Lucy Barton. She’s initially unimpressed by this mousy-looking little woman, is a little sharp, but that changes as they spend time together. Lucy and Olive begin exchanging stories of what they call unrecorded lives. Sometimes they are interesting, sometimes they seem to lack a point, but Lucy says “People and the lives they lead. That’s the point.” There are stories of family members, townspeople, and acquaintances whose lives contain thwarted love, cruelty, devotion, heartbreak, abuse, harassment, alcoholism, infidelity, sadness, and loneliness, but also beauty. Somewhat in the background of life in Crosby, a woman who notoriously terrified the children when she was on school canteen duty, Gloria Beach goes missing while her youngest son Matthew is out getting groceries. A thorough search yields nothing, and investigations uncover a car hired with a stolen licence and credit card, the owner of which has a very strong alibi. The case goes cold. When a body is found, months later, suspicion hangs over Matthew Beach. His sister, Diana begs Bob to take the case. When the woman’s will is located, it gives Matthew a motive, and it doesn’t help his case that Bob hears several women remark that they couldn’t blame him if he had killed her. Matthew is an enigmatic figure, a talented artist lacking social skills, but Bob is determined to help the man, even if he’s not telling the whole truth. As always, Strout gives the reader a wonderful cast of characters with palpable emotions. Big-hearted Bob Burgess, unaware of his worth, excels at absorbing the suffering of others. In the course of the year, he loses a member of his extended family, almost loses another, tries to broker peace between a father and son, gives over and above care to a needy client, and, almost unwittingly, saves a good friendship from irreparable damage that acting on a crush would have wrought. Lucy is now a grandmother but worries that she has become inconsequential to her daughters, while ageing Olive has lost little of her acerbic wit. Their chats are full of wisdom and insightful observations. Some people depend on a linchpin “I wonder how many people out there are able to be strong—or strong enough— because of the person they’re married to.” Strout nails it on grief: “He was silently catapulted into an entirely new country, one he had never known existed, and it was a country of quietness and solitariness in a way that he could not—quite seriously—believe. A terrible silence seemed to surround him, he could not feel himself fully present in the world… And he understood then that this was a private club, and a quiet one, and no stranger passing him on the street would know that he was a member, just as he would not know if they were a member. He wanted to stop people he saw, older people especially who were walking alone, he wanted to say— Did your spouse die?” Her writing, its quality, style and subject matter, is reminiscent of Sebastian Barry with shades of Anne Tyler. Strout writes about ordinary people leading what they believe are ordinary lives (although there are definitely some quirky ones doing strange things amongst them, like the vet giving a demented dog acupuncture) and she does it with exquisite yet succinct prose. Another moving, powerful read. This unbiased review is from an uncorrected proof copy provided by NetGalley and Penguin UK Viking.
Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Lovely Story Exposing Our Human Fragility
Pulitzer Prize-winning author Elizabeth Strout continues her wonderful, warm, and deeply human Amgash series about life in the small, coastal town of Crosby, Maine with novel #5, TELL ME EVERYTHING. No wonder this is an Oprah Book Club pick! For those who have read all or part of this series, here's a chance to catch up with some of Strout's most beloved characters like Olive Kitteridge, Bob Burgess, Lucy Barton, and Lucy's ex-husband William. Like Jane Austen, Strout skillfully weaves even the mundane aspects of daily lives into compelling fiction. Friendship, frictions within marriage, infatuation, childhood trauma, aging, gossip -- all handled with great compassion and empathy. And simply by witnessing the humanity of these characters, we readers have the chance to see what is really important in life. Strout is an exceptional writer. With believable dialog and concise but powerful descriptions, she crafts such a vivid picture of life in this small Maine town and all the ways its residents impact the lives of one another. Often in ways they don't recognize. It's just a lovely novel full of three dimensional people who are just trying to do their best. Just like the rest of us. I recommend not only the Amgash series, but all her novels -- many of which have received assorted awards. Strout doesn't disappoint.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Joys of friendship
Thanks to NetGalley, Random House, and Elizabeth Strout for allowing me to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review. Back in Maine, Olive Kitteridge, is living in a retirement community and enjoying having friends come to visit, especially Lucy Barton, who is living with her ex-husband, William. Lucy and Olive discuss everyone and everything, especially what it might take to have a happy life. Their friend, Bob Burgess becomes involved in a murder case, which keeps him involved in town business, as well as his daily walks with Lucy. A sweet cast of characters reflect on the meaning of life and how they want to live their lives. This story is full of food for thought, laughter, tears, and anything about life you might be questioning. When I read the last sentence, I smiled and was glad I had read this book. Keep collecting stories Olive Kitteridge.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Compelling Read
This was a very compelling read. The characters were well written and well developed. The author has such a talent with making the mundane worthwhile. This was my second book in this series. I had read Oh, William previously and was not blown away. Now I would really like to read the rest of the series to catch up. Thanks for the ARC, NetGalley.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
LOVED EVERY JUICY WORD!
Elizabeth Strout has another spectacular hit with TELL ME EVERYTHING! Crab Apple Cove meets Fried Green Tomatoes and had me loving every word. Return to Crosby, Maine with Olive Kitteridge, 90 and living in a retirement community, Lucy Barton, fiction writer who lives with her ex-husband, William and Bob Burgess, an attorney at the center of the story. Bob is hired by Matt Beech when he is arrested and charged with the murder of his mother. Matt insists that he did not harm his mother in any way and it’s up to Bob to prove it. Bob, however, is wrestling with problems in his marriage where he and wife Margaret no longer seem to be connecting. His only saving grace is his walks with Lucy Barton. When Lucy is not traversing the town with Bob, she finally meets our good friend, Olive Kittredge who has many stories to tell. There are so many stories! “What does anyone’s life mean?” If the stories don’t get out there, who’s to know? The afternoons the women spend swapping stories become a huge part of Lucy‘s day. And if you have been following beloved Olive over the years, you know that she loves to impart a little gossip now and then. HA I really enjoyed this one and could barely put it down for the necessities in life. I am usually a murder/ mystery or psychological /suspense type of reader but this was truly a breath of fresh air. No surprise that Ms Strout’s descriptions took me right back to the small town of my youth. What a special place to be for a few hours. Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for this ARC opportunity. All opinions are my own and given voluntarily.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Typical Strout
Tell Me Everything By Elizabeth Strout This is a typical Strout book. The writing is beautiful, the story line non-existent. Ms. Strout has written a series of books revolving around a group of characters living in a small town in Maine, or from the area. If you have read any of her previous books, you will recognize them. In this book, the main character is Bob Burgess, husband of Margaret, brother to Susan and Jim, friend to all. Bob is, as Lucy Barton calls him, a sin-eater. He takes upon himself all the angst of those around him and tries to make their lives better. That's just who Bob is. Strout's books present people from the Northeast as depressed, alcoholics, divorced – in short, it seems that none of her characters leads what we would consider a normal life. Set against a backdrop of dismal New England weather, this all seems to fit. They are leading what Lucy Barton calls "unrecorded lives". To me, Strout's books are not novels, so much as they are character studies. There are many story lines that don't seem to go much of anywhere. While there is a theme of sorts – Love, in all its forms, is still Love – and Strout's images are lovely, it seems like a lot of pages written to state the obvious.
Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
This story is like coming home.
I never read the Olive Kitteridge books, but I did read and review My Name Is Lucy Barton. Tell Me Everything revisits all of those characters and I loved it. The added bonus of a murder investigation made it a little different and added a bit of depth to this pleasant story. Lucy and Bob continue to explore their friendship. They are very close, and often read each other’s minds with just a look or sigh. Their walks gain importance and meaning and much is said and not said each time they meet. It’s a time for them to honestly share their feelings and regrets but to Bob, it’s almost an impossible friendship. Can it be more? Should it be more? Lucy is with William and he is with his wife. They begin to walk a very thin line. Lucy, an accomplished writer finally meets Olive, who is residing in a retirement home and lives for the stories she tells, stories of her life, the interactions she’s had with people, and what she observes on a daily basis. At first, Olive isn’t all that impressed with Lucy but as their visits increase, Lucy and Olive look forward to their time together. Story telling is such a cozy way to get to know a person and both Lucy and Olive can tell a story. Olive can be a little grouchy and her internal thoughts, shared with us, can be a little snide or even cruel at times but mildly so. She is a character! Then comes the murder investigation. A woman has died and her adult son is the main suspect. He’s pretty much lived in isolation his entire life. Caring for his mother and not much else. His sister asked for Bob’s help because it’s not looking good for him and she has nowhere else to turn. Bob takes the case and spends much of his days pondering this man’s life. How he’s suffered, quietly, staying to himself. No friends really. No social life at all. It gives Bob food for thought. How should a man live? Tell Me Everything explores many things, but mostly what it means to be a true friend, even if it means possibly letting that person go. These are all good people, doing the best they can, exploring love and loyalty and how it impacts their future. Highly recommend. Now that I’ve met Olive myself I need to read those other books.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com