The Blogging from A to Z April Challenge  is for bloggers who wish to participate by publishing a blog post every day in April except for Sundays. Each blog post will focus on a letter of the alphabet. For example April 1 will be A, April 2 will be B and on it goes. By the end of April, a blog post for every letter of the alphabet will have been posted. My theme for 2023 is Book Reviews.

You can read my reviews without worrying about spoilers. My reviews are quite brief and I give away nothing more than you would read on the back cover or on Goodreads.

OH WILLIAM!
BY
ELIZABETH STROUT

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

SUMMARY

“Lucy Barton is a writer, but her ex-husband, William, remains a hard man to read. William, she confesses, has always been a mystery to me. Another mystery is why the two have remained connected after all these years. They just are.

So Lucy is both surprised and not surprised when William asks her to join him on a trip to investigate a recently uncovered family secret—one of those secrets that rearrange everything we think we know about the people closest to us. What happens next is nothing less than another example of what Hilary Mantel has called Elizabeth Strout’s “perfect attunement to the human condition.” There are fears and insecurities, simple joys and acts of tenderness, and revelations about affairs and other spouses, parents and their children. On every page of this exquisite novel we learn more about the quiet forces that hold us together—even after we’ve grown apart.

At the heart of this story is the indomitable voice of Lucy Barton, who offers a profound, lasting reflection on the very nature of existence. “This is the way of life,” Lucy says: “the many things we do not know until it is too late.” – Goodreads

Published in 2021. 240 pages

MY THOUGHTS

This is a quite a short novel, but that doesn’t at all detract from it’s substance, or my enjoyment of the story. Elizabeth Strout has created characters who are flawed, and are totally relatable. The story of Lucy who is in her sixties, is also the story of her ex husband William. Lucy and William have been divorced for years, but have remained friends. This is a lovely story about relationships, the worries of ageing, memories, family, and the thoughts we have that worry us.

Perhaps it’s because Lucy and William are very close in age to me, but I really did identify with these characters. I felt their pain and their joy. I also understood the importance of their memories to them, at this stage of their lives. Perhaps this was also due to the excellent writing of the author.

I didn’t realise until I finished Oh William! that it is book three in the Lucy Barton series. Not having read the first two, didn’t make Oh William! any less enjoyable. However, I now have the other three books on my TBR list. Below is a photo of the books in order.

Image – Penguin Publishing

All books that I review have been purchased by me or borrowed from the library, unless otherwise stated.

Star Rating 

Please note that my star rating system isn’t at all based on literary merit, but is based on my enjoyment for the book.
For me a book that gets five stars, is a book that I really enjoyed, and found difficult to put down.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️Unputdownable. Would definitely read again
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️Fantastic read. Not to be missed.
⭐️⭐️⭐️Enjoyable read. Would recommend.
⭐️⭐️Wouldn’t read again
⭐️Don’t recommend this book again

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Images and author information: Goodreads

You can find my other blogs here:
Next Phase In Fitness & Life and Tracking Down The Family

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