ELIZABETH STROUT Tell Me Everything. Reviewed by Michael Jongen

Pulitzer-winner Elizabeth Strout explores themes of isolation and connection in her new novel featuring two of her most-loved characters.

Elizabeth Strout, author of Oliver Kitteridge, My Name is Lucy Barton and Oh William! (among others), has an ability to capture her characters’ inner lives in stories that are both intimate and relatable. Her novels feature closely observed interconnected characters, their foibles and sheer ordinariness inviting readers to compare our experiences to theirs.

Strout’s latest novel, Tell Me Everything, takes place in Crosby, Maine, where Lucy Barton has moved during the pandemic with her ex-husband William. Olive Kitteridge is now in a nursing home. Bob Burgess (from Strout’s fourth book, The Burgess Boys) and Lucy become friends with an intensity that impacts Bob in particular. Lucy starts visiting Olive and listening to her stories, which Olive assiduously prepares for her.

Lucy thinks a lot about her friendship with Bob, while sharing a house with William. In this way Strout has brought together the main protagonists of her previous novels.

Lucy Barton had grown up in a small town in Illinois and had lived in New York City her whole adult life; she had never even been a summer person in Maine before arriving here with her ex-husband. Also, Lucy Barton was a fiction writer, and that made people have different feelings; mostly they would have preferred her to go back to New York, but nobody seemed to have anything bad to say about her; and except for her walks along the river with her friend Bob Burgess she was rarely seen.

Lucy is at the centre of the novel. The narrative weaves through her reflections on the past, her relationships with her friends and family, and the stories of the people around her. Her characters intertwine in ways that remind us of the unrecorded lives that shape our universe. Every story, no matter how small, can illuminate the human experience

The setting of Crosby allows Strout to explore themes of connection and isolation through the lives of its inhabitants. The characters’ interactions are deeply influenced by their shared history and intimate knowledge of one another, creating a sense of belonging and familiarity.

Once a month Lucy meets with Olive, who tells her stories of people in the town that Lucy, with her writer’s sensibilities, appreciates. Olive is concerned about her friend in the nursing home who has moved into a higher-care section. She worries that she is boring Lucy, or that Lucy looks down on her.

‘So, Bob, here’s the thing. Olive and I have been telling each other all these stories of unrecorded lives, but what do they mean? At least Diana Beach got to be a good guidance counselor. And yet still – I don’t know. I keep thinking these days about all these people, and people we don’t even know, and their lives are unrecorded. But what does anyone’s life mean?’

Lucy and Bob take walks to a point along the river where they share their thoughts and secrets while Bob has a sneaky cigarette, hoping his wife won’t smell the smoke on his clothes as he is outdoors. Bob is worried that he is falling in love with Lucy and out of love with his wife Margaret, a local pastor. Lucy and Bob have a deep bond but their intimacy never quite spirals into romance. As they share walks and conversations, they reflect on their lives, fears, and regrets, revealing the complexities of their pasts and the weight of their experiences

The narrative takes a darker turn with the emergence of a shocking crime, a murder investigation that disrupts the community’s tranquillity. Bob becomes the attorney for the defendant, who is accused of faking his mother’s disappearance and murder. Readers familiar with Strout’s novels will be aware of the sense of tragedy that underpins her work and how events can impact on the collective psyche of her characters.

All the elements of the novel are deftly brought together as individuals confront their own lives and relationships. The relationship between Lucy Barton and Bob Burgess in particular is an interesting exploration of connection and understanding.

While Lucy is at the heart of the novel, she is an observer. In the end the novel is about Bob as he deals with his feelings for his wife and takes on the heroic task of representing the man accused of murdering his mother.

While it is wonderful to read more about Olive Kitteridge, she has a more passive role due to her age and limited mobility.

I wondered about recommending this book to anyone who is a stranger to the writing of Elizabeth Strout. However, there is enough backstory to enable a new reader to follow as well as those who have thoroughly invested themselves in Strout’s worlds. I didn’t start reading Strout until Oh William! and quickly read her previous novels in no particular order.

Strout emphasises the importance of connection in a world often marked by isolation, showcasing how even the simplest exchanges can carry profound meaning.

Then Jim pulled an envelope from his pocket. ‘Look what I received in the mail the other day.’ He unfolded the letter that was inside the envelope, and Bob put on his glasses and read ‘Dear Dad,’ and then the page was empty except for at the bottom where it was signed, ‘Love, Larry.’

‘That’s about as good as it gets,’ Bob said.

‘That’s what I thought.’ And Jim returned the letter to his pocket.

For this reader, Elizabeth Strout has joined the pantheon of writers such as Jane Austen and EF Benson whose works I will read again and again. There is a comfort in these characters and a feeling we have much to learn from them. Strout’s novels are more than comedies of manners, but they have much to say about contemporary society. Tell Me Everything is nuanced and reflective with great insight into the complexities of human behaviour. If you have not read Elizabeth Strout before, I recommend this novel and her entire back catalogue.

Elizabeth Strout Tell Me Everything Viking 2024 HB 256pp $34.99

Michael Jongen is a librarian and you can find him as @larrydlibrarian on Instagram and Threads.

You can buy Tell Me Everything from Abbey’s at a 10% discount by quoting the promotion code NEWTOWNREVIEW.

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Tags: Elizabeth | Strout, interconnected novels, Maine, My Name is Lucy Barton, Oh William, Olive Kitteridge, The Burgess Boys, women writers