And so it begins

This year I entered the Elizabeth Strout universe by reading her most famous novel, Pulitzer Prize winning Olive Kitteridge (2008), followed by her most recent novel, Tell Me Everything (2024). I greatly enjoyed both novels and soon discovered that Strout has created a whole world of interlinked stories to explore. So, I have gone back to the start to where it all began, her debut novel.

Amy and Isabelle (1998) tells the story of a relationship between single mother and her teenage daughter over a long, hot summer in New England. Isabelle Goodrow lives in a tiny rental house at the edge of the town of Shirley Falls. She works at the local mill where she does not really know how to engage with her fellow workers, and has a secret longing for her boss. She is a devoted member of her congregation and a good soul. Isabelle longs for a social life of her own, yet has put all her energy into raising her daughter Amy. But there is tension in the house, with Amy and Isabelle unable to communicate and frustrations growing. Fortunately Isabelle has secured a summer job for Amy at the mill, so she can keep an eye on her daughter. 

We flashback to what has happened over the past few months, and how the two have drifted apart. Aged almost sixteen, Amy is thinking about being a teacher when she finishes high school. She spends much of her time hanging out with her best friend Stacy, secretly smoking cigarettes, and talking about Stacy's boyfriend. Amy is shy, hiding behind a mane of wavy blond hair. She has never had a boyfriend and has few friends, other than the rambunctious Stacy. 

The arrival of a substitute math teacher, Mr Robertson, has brought Amy out of her shell. She forms a crush on the married teacher which distracts her from her schoolwork and causes her to act out of character. As her relationship with Mr Robertson becomes closer, she begins lying to her mother about her whereabouts. Things reach a boiling point between Amy and Isabelle, when Amy's sexual secrets are discovered, and it is a hard road back for their relationship to recover.

Strout has an incredible ability to realistically portray the ordinary, mundane business of life - work, family, church, school. She dishes out the backstory of various characters in delicious morsels, building well rounded individuals that the reader cannot help but be intrigued by. I particularly loved the development of Isabelle's character - her attempts at self-development through reading, the befriending of colleagues at the mill, her fear of scandal, and the realisation that the object of her desire is not so desirable. 

I have met Isabelle Goodrow before, in Tell Me Everything, set decades after Amy and Isabelle, she is the bestfriend of Olive Kitteridge. In this later novel we find out more about what happened between the mother-daughter duo after the original story ended. 

Having now read three of Strout's novels, I completely understand her popularity and critical acclaim. I cannot wait to explore the other books in this series.

My reviews of other books by Elizabeth Strout are available on this blog:

• Olive Kitteridge (2008)
• Tell Me Everything (2024)