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Amy og Isabelle
Pulitzer Prize winning author Elizabeth Strout’s bestselling and award winning debut, Amy and Isabelle—adapted for television by Oprah Winfrey— evokes a teenager's alienation from her distant mother—and a parent's rage at the discovery of her daughter's sexual secrets.
In most ways, Isabelle and Amy are like any mother and her 16-year-old daughter, a fierce mix of love and loathing exchanged in their every glance. That they eat, sleep, and work side by side in the gossip-ridden mill town of Shirley Falls—a location fans of Strout will recognize from her critically acclaimed novel, The Burgess Boys—only increases the tension. And just when it appears things can't get any worse, Amy's sexuality begins to unfold, causing a vast and icy rift between mother and daughter that will remain unbridgeable unless Isabelle examines her own secretive and shameful past.
A Reader's Guide is included in the paperback edition of this powerful first novel by the author who brought Olive Kitteridge to millions of readers.
In most ways, Isabelle and Amy are like any mother and her 16-year-old daughter, a fierce mix of love and loathing exchanged in their every glance. That they eat, sleep, and work side by side in the gossip-ridden mill town of Shirley Falls—a location fans of Strout will recognize from her critically acclaimed novel, The Burgess Boys—only increases the tension. And just when it appears things can't get any worse, Amy's sexuality begins to unfold, causing a vast and icy rift between mother and daughter that will remain unbridgeable unless Isabelle examines her own secretive and shameful past.
A Reader's Guide is included in the paperback edition of this powerful first novel by the author who brought Olive Kitteridge to millions of readers.
370 pages, Hardcover
First published July 1, 1998
2279 people are currently reading
20879 people want to read
About the author
Elizabeth Strout
50 books16.1k followersElizabeth Strout is the author of several novels, including: Abide with Me, a national bestseller and BookSense pick, and Amy and Isabelle, which won the Los Angeles Times Art Seidenbaum Award for First Fiction and the Chicago Tribune Heartland Prize, and was a finalist for the PEN/Faulkner Award and the Orange Prize in England. In 2009 she was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for her book Olive Kitteridge. Her short stories have been published in a number of magazines, including The New Yorker. She teaches at the Master of Fine Arts program at Queens University of Charlotte.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 3,169 reviews
October 29, 2021
Reading Road Trip 2020
First stop: Maine
Last summer, as I realized yet again that a road trip across America would not take place (due in part to First Daughter's chronic car sickness and the same daughter's inability to spend 5 minutes in a contained space with Second Daughter), I went into a funk. It has been far too long since I've had a good road trip, and I am determined to see all 50 states of this still-beautiful nation before I die.
But, despite my itch, my reality has informed me that I'm not going anywhere. . . in person. So, why not travel the way I've always traveled best? Through books.
Since this past June, I've been somewhat obsessed with compiling my itinerary. I knew I wanted to start in Maine, I knew I wanted my reading road trip to follow a geographic trail that would make cogent sense in a vehicle, and I knew I wanted to include fiction, middle grades reads, and poetry.
I've bugged many of you on here for titles, especially if you were from a smaller state or an area that has had a smaller output of literature. No offense to any residents of any particular state, but it's a lot easier to find books set in New York than Nebraska, if only due to population.
My impulse to start with Maine was strong; three of my all-time favorite writers have made the setting a famous one for me, despite never having actually traveled to the state. Plus, with its geographic location in the far northeastern corner of the country, it's a great place to begin.
If I were to choose three books that bring the state of Maine to life for me, they would be:
One Man's Meat by E.B. White
Dolores Claiborne by Stephen King
Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout
So, when it came time for me to pack up my car, so to speak, with the necessary gear for the first part of my journey, I labored greatly over who I would choose to start my literary journey. A person can't hardly love E.B. White's writing more than I do, and God knows how many hours I've spent having conversations with Stephen King in my mind (read 85 books every year? really, Steve??), but when I learned that the Amy and Isabelle of Strout's recent Olive, Again were two characters who had been introduced in an earlier novel called Amy and Isabelle, and I didn't yet know them, well. . .
I knew I needed to start with Strout.
Elizabeth Strout excites me more than any writer has since I was first introduced to J.D. Salinger in my youth. Strout's determination to interweave her characters as Salinger once did with the Glass family has pulled all of my attention in her direction. Strout writes like a writer, not a woman or a man, and I would like to hand her hot beverages for the rest of her life, paid only by the promise of her continued career.
Amy and Isabelle is not her best work, but it's a beauty of a book, first published in 1998, and it's another complicated exploration of what we sometimes think of as generational sins. The notion that, despite our best intentions to do things differently than our parents, we very often do the exact same thing, even if we weren't aware of their foibles, even if we aren't biologically related to them.
For any writers reading this review, whether you like Strout's writing or not, there is a foreplay scene in a car, midway through this novel, that is truly one of the best written scenes in all of literary fiction. If you ever wanted to write sex in a more palpable, intoxicating way, I can not recommend this scene more.
So, forget the pre-shrunk t-shirt.
I went to Maine and had the best foreplay. . . ever.
I'll definitely return.
First stop: Maine
Last summer, as I realized yet again that a road trip across America would not take place (due in part to First Daughter's chronic car sickness and the same daughter's inability to spend 5 minutes in a contained space with Second Daughter), I went into a funk. It has been far too long since I've had a good road trip, and I am determined to see all 50 states of this still-beautiful nation before I die.
But, despite my itch, my reality has informed me that I'm not going anywhere. . . in person. So, why not travel the way I've always traveled best? Through books.
Since this past June, I've been somewhat obsessed with compiling my itinerary. I knew I wanted to start in Maine, I knew I wanted my reading road trip to follow a geographic trail that would make cogent sense in a vehicle, and I knew I wanted to include fiction, middle grades reads, and poetry.
I've bugged many of you on here for titles, especially if you were from a smaller state or an area that has had a smaller output of literature. No offense to any residents of any particular state, but it's a lot easier to find books set in New York than Nebraska, if only due to population.
My impulse to start with Maine was strong; three of my all-time favorite writers have made the setting a famous one for me, despite never having actually traveled to the state. Plus, with its geographic location in the far northeastern corner of the country, it's a great place to begin.
If I were to choose three books that bring the state of Maine to life for me, they would be:
One Man's Meat by E.B. White
Dolores Claiborne by Stephen King
Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout
So, when it came time for me to pack up my car, so to speak, with the necessary gear for the first part of my journey, I labored greatly over who I would choose to start my literary journey. A person can't hardly love E.B. White's writing more than I do, and God knows how many hours I've spent having conversations with Stephen King in my mind (read 85 books every year? really, Steve??), but when I learned that the Amy and Isabelle of Strout's recent Olive, Again were two characters who had been introduced in an earlier novel called Amy and Isabelle, and I didn't yet know them, well. . .
I knew I needed to start with Strout.
Elizabeth Strout excites me more than any writer has since I was first introduced to J.D. Salinger in my youth. Strout's determination to interweave her characters as Salinger once did with the Glass family has pulled all of my attention in her direction. Strout writes like a writer, not a woman or a man, and I would like to hand her hot beverages for the rest of her life, paid only by the promise of her continued career.
Amy and Isabelle is not her best work, but it's a beauty of a book, first published in 1998, and it's another complicated exploration of what we sometimes think of as generational sins. The notion that, despite our best intentions to do things differently than our parents, we very often do the exact same thing, even if we weren't aware of their foibles, even if we aren't biologically related to them.
For any writers reading this review, whether you like Strout's writing or not, there is a foreplay scene in a car, midway through this novel, that is truly one of the best written scenes in all of literary fiction. If you ever wanted to write sex in a more palpable, intoxicating way, I can not recommend this scene more.
So, forget the pre-shrunk t-shirt.
I went to Maine and had the best foreplay. . . ever.
I'll definitely return.
June 25, 2016
Loved. Loved. Loved.
I'm already a huge Strout fan and I've been meaning to go back and read this, her first novel. I'm so glad I did. A sure sign of 5 stars for me is when I can hardly read fast enough to devour the writing/storytelling/characters while at the same time never wanting it to end. That was me this morning.
Strout fans will recognize the sense of longing and loneliness in her characters, themes she has continued to explore in her more recent works. I was captivated by the mother-daughter dynamic which propels this novel. She writes from both perspectives with such honesty and integrity that I was convinced I was in both women's minds. Even more astonishing (especially for a first novel), Strout brilliantly introduces and brings to life a host of ancillary characters who populate this small New England town.
I am so impressed that she keeps the central storyline moving while still taking readers down these side paths and dramas. In fact, I think it is this depth and richness of storytelling that makes Strout such a dependable and fulfilling read for me.
Obviously, she was a master novelist from the start. Now I just want more.
I'm already a huge Strout fan and I've been meaning to go back and read this, her first novel. I'm so glad I did. A sure sign of 5 stars for me is when I can hardly read fast enough to devour the writing/storytelling/characters while at the same time never wanting it to end. That was me this morning.
Strout fans will recognize the sense of longing and loneliness in her characters, themes she has continued to explore in her more recent works. I was captivated by the mother-daughter dynamic which propels this novel. She writes from both perspectives with such honesty and integrity that I was convinced I was in both women's minds. Even more astonishing (especially for a first novel), Strout brilliantly introduces and brings to life a host of ancillary characters who populate this small New England town.
I am so impressed that she keeps the central storyline moving while still taking readers down these side paths and dramas. In fact, I think it is this depth and richness of storytelling that makes Strout such a dependable and fulfilling read for me.
Obviously, she was a master novelist from the start. Now I just want more.
September 1, 2022
UN GUSTO SUPERIORE
Elisabeth Shue (Isabelle) e Hanna Hall (Amy) nel TV movie omonimo del 2001.
Si passa da un inverno con cielo plumbeo e pesante che anche a mezzogiorno immerge le camere nel buio, a un'estate in cui la città sembra avvolta da una garza sudicia che ricaccia indietro qualsiasi raggio di sole: è il trionfo dell’assenza di colore.
A meno che non si voglia chiamare colore il marrone del fiume che attraversa la città, con la schiuma giallastra sulle sponde, e il forte odore di zolfo nell’aria.
Martin Donovan interpreta il prof di matematica.
Su uno sfondo del genere, è difficile che caratteri, personalità e comportamenti umani siano netti distinti brillanti, che abbiano risalto individuale: e infatti vige e regna il rimuginio, più dei discorsi contano le parole non dette, trattenute, pensate, conta il flusso di pensieri grigi e avvolti in quella garza sudicia.
Ma quando la neve si scioglie, arriva la primavera e per un breve periodo il verde e i colori dei fiori spiccano: anche tra qualche umano sboccia una primavera, nasce il desiderio.
Amy non rimane inerte.
Si consuma il fatto, comincia l’estate, esplode ‘quel’ caldo che si rimangia ogni colore.
Ancora mamma Isabelle e figlia Amy.
Quell’estate tutte le piante avevano un aspetto avvizzito e scolorito, come quello delle erbacce e dei fiori selvatici che crescono lungo le strade sterrate e vengono coperti da uno strato di polvere; anche se ora era il tempo a fare questo effetto, quel terribile caldo, e quell’umidità, quell’implacabile cielo bianco che si estendeva ovunque sopra le loro teste, e sembrava deciso, in qualche modo, a nascondere alla vista tutti i normali colori del mondo.
Di questo romanzo Niccolò Ammaniti dice:
esistono scrittori che raccontano storie comuni, all’apparenza banali, con una tale intensità da rendere i loro personaggi eroi e simboli del vivere quotidiano.
E dopo aver sintetizzato la trama, aggiunge:
Poteva essere una melassa nauseante. E invece la Strout l’ha evitato.
Non solo l’ha evitato, ma ha realizzato un magnifico esordio (tardivo, aveva 43 anni), secondo me per certi versi superiore al suo libro più celebrato, Olive Kitteridge.
Chiaro che a questo punto proseguirò la conoscenza.
Di Amy & Isabelle colpisce qualcosa che viene da definire urgenza di racconto: una gran voglia di raccontare una storia – una storia che è molte storie – ma comunque 'raccontare' – è come se Strout dicesse “vieni qui, siediti, ascolta, ti racconto una storia…C’era una volta…”
Non mi meraviglia affatto che in una recente intervista al buon Antonio Monda, Strout abbia confessato il suo amore per Elena Ferrante: gli ultimi due romanzi di Ferrante, i primi due capitoli della trilogia (che però avrà quattro episodi), presentano la stessa urgenza, la stessa fame di racconto, la stessa smania d’essere ascoltati e compresi, le stesse vite intrecciate e intessute delle vite di cento altri.
Infatti, mi sa che io non so cosa sia una ‘scrittura cristallina’, come viene definita quella di Strout in quarta di copertina: a me sembra soprattutto una scrittura ‘pochi cazzi’, una scrittura ‘pane al pane e vino al vino’, ottimamente efficace, ben centrata, senza dispersioni.
Ma con una sapienza e un controllo, già nel suo esordio, che le permettono di affrontare e descrivere particolari che da altre mani sarebbero inaccettabili.
”Oscuri segreti” è il titolo adottato dalla distribuzione italiana, che come la maggior parte delle distribuzioni cinematografiche rivela doti di fantasia ingegnosa nel cambiare titoli rendendoli mediamente più insulsi e simili l’uno all’altro.
Noto l’assenza di computer, qui si batte a macchina, si stenografa piuttosto. Neppure cellulari, ovviamente. In che tempo siamo? È il tempo della provincia, un tempo senza tempo anche quando è attuale.
Siamo in un luogo classico della narrativa americana: quello della provincia, della ordinary people, dei drammi da interno, dell’epica della “piccola città”, sempre uguale, dove anche il cambiamento non cambia davvero nulla, non raggiunge oltre il singolo.
Anche il fatto non è un fattaccio, non è una tragedia: nella storia tra la sedicenne Amy e il quarantenne professor Robertson non c’è nulla di traumatico e violento, è qualcosa che può far parte della crescita di una ragazza, e Strout è ben attenta a non calcare le tinte.
Poi arriva il momento dell’agnizione.
Poteva essere una melassa nauseante, come dice Ammaniti: è tutt’altro, è sempre grande narrativa.
L’unico modo per mangiare un elefante è un boccone alla volta, dice Isabelle, e scrive Elizabeth. Chiara metafora esistenziale: per quante ferite ci siano, per quanto i sogni siano da tempo svaniti, per quanto il presente sia banale e senza colore, la redenzione passa attraverso una vita vissuta attimo per attimo.
O come avrebbe detto Claudio Rocchi, vivi la vita vivendo la vita
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UOSsE...
La regia è di Lloyd Kramer.
Elisabeth Shue (Isabelle) e Hanna Hall (Amy) nel TV movie omonimo del 2001.
Si passa da un inverno con cielo plumbeo e pesante che anche a mezzogiorno immerge le camere nel buio, a un'estate in cui la città sembra avvolta da una garza sudicia che ricaccia indietro qualsiasi raggio di sole: è il trionfo dell’assenza di colore.
A meno che non si voglia chiamare colore il marrone del fiume che attraversa la città, con la schiuma giallastra sulle sponde, e il forte odore di zolfo nell’aria.
Martin Donovan interpreta il prof di matematica.
Su uno sfondo del genere, è difficile che caratteri, personalità e comportamenti umani siano netti distinti brillanti, che abbiano risalto individuale: e infatti vige e regna il rimuginio, più dei discorsi contano le parole non dette, trattenute, pensate, conta il flusso di pensieri grigi e avvolti in quella garza sudicia.
Ma quando la neve si scioglie, arriva la primavera e per un breve periodo il verde e i colori dei fiori spiccano: anche tra qualche umano sboccia una primavera, nasce il desiderio.
Amy non rimane inerte.
Si consuma il fatto, comincia l’estate, esplode ‘quel’ caldo che si rimangia ogni colore.
Ancora mamma Isabelle e figlia Amy.
Quell’estate tutte le piante avevano un aspetto avvizzito e scolorito, come quello delle erbacce e dei fiori selvatici che crescono lungo le strade sterrate e vengono coperti da uno strato di polvere; anche se ora era il tempo a fare questo effetto, quel terribile caldo, e quell’umidità, quell’implacabile cielo bianco che si estendeva ovunque sopra le loro teste, e sembrava deciso, in qualche modo, a nascondere alla vista tutti i normali colori del mondo.
Di questo romanzo Niccolò Ammaniti dice:
esistono scrittori che raccontano storie comuni, all’apparenza banali, con una tale intensità da rendere i loro personaggi eroi e simboli del vivere quotidiano.
E dopo aver sintetizzato la trama, aggiunge:
Poteva essere una melassa nauseante. E invece la Strout l’ha evitato.
Non solo l’ha evitato, ma ha realizzato un magnifico esordio (tardivo, aveva 43 anni), secondo me per certi versi superiore al suo libro più celebrato, Olive Kitteridge.
Chiaro che a questo punto proseguirò la conoscenza.
Di Amy & Isabelle colpisce qualcosa che viene da definire urgenza di racconto: una gran voglia di raccontare una storia – una storia che è molte storie – ma comunque 'raccontare' – è come se Strout dicesse “vieni qui, siediti, ascolta, ti racconto una storia…C’era una volta…”
Non mi meraviglia affatto che in una recente intervista al buon Antonio Monda, Strout abbia confessato il suo amore per Elena Ferrante: gli ultimi due romanzi di Ferrante, i primi due capitoli della trilogia (che però avrà quattro episodi), presentano la stessa urgenza, la stessa fame di racconto, la stessa smania d’essere ascoltati e compresi, le stesse vite intrecciate e intessute delle vite di cento altri.
Infatti, mi sa che io non so cosa sia una ‘scrittura cristallina’, come viene definita quella di Strout in quarta di copertina: a me sembra soprattutto una scrittura ‘pochi cazzi’, una scrittura ‘pane al pane e vino al vino’, ottimamente efficace, ben centrata, senza dispersioni.
Ma con una sapienza e un controllo, già nel suo esordio, che le permettono di affrontare e descrivere particolari che da altre mani sarebbero inaccettabili.
”Oscuri segreti” è il titolo adottato dalla distribuzione italiana, che come la maggior parte delle distribuzioni cinematografiche rivela doti di fantasia ingegnosa nel cambiare titoli rendendoli mediamente più insulsi e simili l’uno all’altro.
Noto l’assenza di computer, qui si batte a macchina, si stenografa piuttosto. Neppure cellulari, ovviamente. In che tempo siamo? È il tempo della provincia, un tempo senza tempo anche quando è attuale.
Siamo in un luogo classico della narrativa americana: quello della provincia, della ordinary people, dei drammi da interno, dell’epica della “piccola città”, sempre uguale, dove anche il cambiamento non cambia davvero nulla, non raggiunge oltre il singolo.
Anche il fatto non è un fattaccio, non è una tragedia: nella storia tra la sedicenne Amy e il quarantenne professor Robertson non c’è nulla di traumatico e violento, è qualcosa che può far parte della crescita di una ragazza, e Strout è ben attenta a non calcare le tinte.
Poi arriva il momento dell’agnizione.
Poteva essere una melassa nauseante, come dice Ammaniti: è tutt’altro, è sempre grande narrativa.
L’unico modo per mangiare un elefante è un boccone alla volta, dice Isabelle, e scrive Elizabeth. Chiara metafora esistenziale: per quante ferite ci siano, per quanto i sogni siano da tempo svaniti, per quanto il presente sia banale e senza colore, la redenzione passa attraverso una vita vissuta attimo per attimo.
O come avrebbe detto Claudio Rocchi, vivi la vita vivendo la vita
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UOSsE...
La regia è di Lloyd Kramer.
June 30, 2024
Amy and Isabelle by Elizabeth Strout was such a wonderful experience.
I am finding it difficult to write this review, because I have so many feelings about both characters (Amy and Isabelle), it’s hard to know where to start. Strout has done her usual trick of building up her characters in front of our very own eyes, just at the right speed – so we are spoon fed – bit by bit, and we end up with a total person by the end of the story. These two characters are very, very real.
Amy is sixteen-years old, and full of attitude and mood. There is so much she dislikes about her mother, it’s often unpleasant – but we get to feel for her, her struggle to be a grown up and be accepted. She’s in that abyss between being a child and an adult – most of us can remember how hard that was.
Isabelle, Amy's mother, is such a complex character – she is so ashamed to be her. It is so sad. The poor thing never thinks she’s good enough, she’s like a frightened bird. Isabelle doesn’t really fit in with the women at work, the gaggle of typists who argue, laugh and bitch amongst each other. (Fat Bev is HILARIOUS!!). Isabelle has a particularly sad obsession with her boss, Mr Avery – god knows why, he appears to be such an officious, particular, petty man. She pines for any interaction with him. Amy spends some time working at the office during her school holidays.
Now the story takes off with Amy’s encounter with Mr Robertson, a relief teacher. She has a crush on him, and in time it is reciprocated – in a fashion. They do end up having some sort of liaison. There is fallout. But Strout handles this totally inappropriate encounter with such skill, it’s not as appalling as it should be. I really don’t know how to feel about it – is this the way the famous story Lolita is written? A book I have steered clear of because of the subject matter – thinking it might be unpleasant, uncomfortable. Should a relationship like this be written in such a passionate way?
Apart from the heavy subject matter, there is plenty of humour here. As mentioned before, Fat Bev is hilarious – and I reckon she has a heart of gold. Dottie too – she has her fair share of drama to handle. But Fat Bev and Dottie, both have an impact on Isabelle’s life which is quite revealing. The dynamics of the office ladies where often my favourite bits - always interesting.
There is so much going on in this brilliant story, a short review does it no justice to it at all. I knew this would be good because I love the author – and it certainly was.
5 Stars
Cheers Mark
President of the Australian, Elizabeth Strout Fanciers Club
Cairns, North Queensland, Australia
I am finding it difficult to write this review, because I have so many feelings about both characters (Amy and Isabelle), it’s hard to know where to start. Strout has done her usual trick of building up her characters in front of our very own eyes, just at the right speed – so we are spoon fed – bit by bit, and we end up with a total person by the end of the story. These two characters are very, very real.
Amy is sixteen-years old, and full of attitude and mood. There is so much she dislikes about her mother, it’s often unpleasant – but we get to feel for her, her struggle to be a grown up and be accepted. She’s in that abyss between being a child and an adult – most of us can remember how hard that was.
Isabelle, Amy's mother, is such a complex character – she is so ashamed to be her. It is so sad. The poor thing never thinks she’s good enough, she’s like a frightened bird. Isabelle doesn’t really fit in with the women at work, the gaggle of typists who argue, laugh and bitch amongst each other. (Fat Bev is HILARIOUS!!). Isabelle has a particularly sad obsession with her boss, Mr Avery – god knows why, he appears to be such an officious, particular, petty man. She pines for any interaction with him. Amy spends some time working at the office during her school holidays.
Now the story takes off with Amy’s encounter with Mr Robertson, a relief teacher. She has a crush on him, and in time it is reciprocated – in a fashion. They do end up having some sort of liaison. There is fallout. But Strout handles this totally inappropriate encounter with such skill, it’s not as appalling as it should be. I really don’t know how to feel about it – is this the way the famous story Lolita is written? A book I have steered clear of because of the subject matter – thinking it might be unpleasant, uncomfortable. Should a relationship like this be written in such a passionate way?
Apart from the heavy subject matter, there is plenty of humour here. As mentioned before, Fat Bev is hilarious – and I reckon she has a heart of gold. Dottie too – she has her fair share of drama to handle. But Fat Bev and Dottie, both have an impact on Isabelle’s life which is quite revealing. The dynamics of the office ladies where often my favourite bits - always interesting.
There is so much going on in this brilliant story, a short review does it no justice to it at all. I knew this would be good because I love the author – and it certainly was.
5 Stars
Cheers Mark
President of the Australian, Elizabeth Strout Fanciers Club
Cairns, North Queensland, Australia
October 6, 2022
4+
“All the love in the world couldn’t prevent the awful truth: You passed on who you were.”
Mother and daughter relationships can be difficult during the teen years even in the best of circumstances. These relationships have increased difficulty when there is no father and/or no honesty. Enter sixteen-year-old Amy and her insecure mother, Isabelle. Two likable characters, two good people, but two lonely souls unable to meaningfully communicate with each other, show compassion or love. Yet, I could feel their love for each other, that love they were unable to express.
Elizabeth Strout skillfully builds the tension between this mother and daughter. The flood waters were coming, the dam was ready to break, I could feel it, hear the crash. (My mind is on flooding due to the recent wrath of Ian.) This same tension could be felt by the inhabitants of this town of Shirley Falls as they endured day after day of stifling heat rising to what seemed to be the boiling point.
I felt Strout WAS Amy, WAS Isabelle or at least in their heads. They were so real, so alive. Amy, so sheltered, exposed to the world, to sex, to desire and deceit, pulling away from her mother. Isabelle, so frightened by life, pulling back. Their relationship with each other and with the people of this New England town was so poignant, heart-wrenching, and often amusing, although I often wanted to scream at Isabelle, ignite some emotional warmth and affection. She was flawed but so pathetically human. Can anyone do this better than Strout?
I loved this debut novel as I have loved the five more recent Strout novels. There was just one thing that prevented me from giving this 5 stars. I don’t want to be specific and possibly ruin it for those who have yet to savor it. Something that happened early on in the novel and reappeared near the end seemed forced, unnecessary, and bothersome to me. It by no means diminished my enjoyment, it just rang a bell of improbability in my head. That bell never rang in subsequent Strout books.
“A terrible thing to wait for a letter; each day formed around the morning of hopefulness and the evening’s fog of disappointment. It was a wound, the disappointment, inflicted every afternoon at the same time.”
"You took the kindness offered, let it seep as far in as it could go, and the remaining dark crevices you carried around with you, knowing that over time they may change into something almost bearable.”
“All the love in the world couldn’t prevent the awful truth: You passed on who you were.”
Mother and daughter relationships can be difficult during the teen years even in the best of circumstances. These relationships have increased difficulty when there is no father and/or no honesty. Enter sixteen-year-old Amy and her insecure mother, Isabelle. Two likable characters, two good people, but two lonely souls unable to meaningfully communicate with each other, show compassion or love. Yet, I could feel their love for each other, that love they were unable to express.
Elizabeth Strout skillfully builds the tension between this mother and daughter. The flood waters were coming, the dam was ready to break, I could feel it, hear the crash. (My mind is on flooding due to the recent wrath of Ian.) This same tension could be felt by the inhabitants of this town of Shirley Falls as they endured day after day of stifling heat rising to what seemed to be the boiling point.
I felt Strout WAS Amy, WAS Isabelle or at least in their heads. They were so real, so alive. Amy, so sheltered, exposed to the world, to sex, to desire and deceit, pulling away from her mother. Isabelle, so frightened by life, pulling back. Their relationship with each other and with the people of this New England town was so poignant, heart-wrenching, and often amusing, although I often wanted to scream at Isabelle, ignite some emotional warmth and affection. She was flawed but so pathetically human. Can anyone do this better than Strout?
I loved this debut novel as I have loved the five more recent Strout novels. There was just one thing that prevented me from giving this 5 stars. I don’t want to be specific and possibly ruin it for those who have yet to savor it. Something that happened early on in the novel and reappeared near the end seemed forced, unnecessary, and bothersome to me. It by no means diminished my enjoyment, it just rang a bell of improbability in my head. That bell never rang in subsequent Strout books.
“A terrible thing to wait for a letter; each day formed around the morning of hopefulness and the evening’s fog of disappointment. It was a wound, the disappointment, inflicted every afternoon at the same time.”
"You took the kindness offered, let it seep as far in as it could go, and the remaining dark crevices you carried around with you, knowing that over time they may change into something almost bearable.”
Read
June 9, 2007One of the best books I've ever read--beautifully composed and executed. My husband hesitated when I told him to read it. "Are you sure this isn't a women's book?" he asked. I assured him it wasn't, he did read it, and he saw what I meant. Though nearly all the characters are women, and a mother-daughter relationship is at the heart of the novel, the book touches on the universal instead: the relationships between parents and children, the difficulties of communicating with those we love best. Amy and Isabelle is a reminder that great novels don't need to be sweeping epics in far-away lands.
January 29, 2019
An excellent novel. The characters feel real, their emotions cleverly eked out and the social observations are sharp.
Isabelle Goodrow moved to Shirley Falls with her baby daughter, Amy, 15 years earlier. She moved there to start afresh, knowing no one.
The story is told by Isabelle & Amy during a stifling hot summer in this small New England town.
Isabelle has a secretarial job in the office of the town mill, she keeps her distance from her colleagues and she has a misguided ‘crush’ on her boss. Her interactions with others is stilted and awkward.
Amy and her only friend Stacy, meet before school and at breaks to smoke in the woods. She is a quiet, withdrawn student interested in literature and poetry. She becomes aware and confused by sexual feelings, when relief teacher Mr Robertson joins the school.
There were some awkward moments in the story but the overriding feeling that I got from the book was positive. People don’t always judge you, the way you think they do, and people can be kind and supportive.
I loved the way the smallest worries, that I’m sure we all have, were spot on.
I took a while to get around to reading this, as I was not totally bowled over by the author’s other book, Olive Kitteridge, but I’m so glad I did. I realise now what a fab author she is and I’m now looking forward to Elizabeth Strout’s other novels.
Isabelle Goodrow moved to Shirley Falls with her baby daughter, Amy, 15 years earlier. She moved there to start afresh, knowing no one.
The story is told by Isabelle & Amy during a stifling hot summer in this small New England town.
Isabelle has a secretarial job in the office of the town mill, she keeps her distance from her colleagues and she has a misguided ‘crush’ on her boss. Her interactions with others is stilted and awkward.
Amy and her only friend Stacy, meet before school and at breaks to smoke in the woods. She is a quiet, withdrawn student interested in literature and poetry. She becomes aware and confused by sexual feelings, when relief teacher Mr Robertson joins the school.
There were some awkward moments in the story but the overriding feeling that I got from the book was positive. People don’t always judge you, the way you think they do, and people can be kind and supportive.
I loved the way the smallest worries, that I’m sure we all have, were spot on.
I took a while to get around to reading this, as I was not totally bowled over by the author’s other book, Olive Kitteridge, but I’m so glad I did. I realise now what a fab author she is and I’m now looking forward to Elizabeth Strout’s other novels.
June 21, 2016
It's an excruciatingly hot summer.....so hot crops aren't growing.
Amy and her mother Isabelle are working together at the local Mill Factory, in New England, doing office work.
The mill ladies each have their concerns-stress-and secrets...and sorrows. One lady is having an affair. Another is fighting cancer...another is very out spoken about 'too much'.
Amy becomes entangled in a sticky position with her substitute teacher ...one that will jeopardize a smooth free-flowing relationship with her mother. Isabelle is single -and socially awkward, and sometimes downright embarrassing, whereas Amy is much more confident in who she is. It's not like Amy has lots of friends - but she does have one close friend - Stacy....( a girl whom she shares rebellious acts).
This novel gets inside women's heads...
At its core it's a complex story about a mother and daughter...and how secrets are damaging.....but it's also about how women connect to other women.
Weaknesses are exposed....
Realistic in nature....
Sad....but in the end hopeful.
Elizabeth Strout shows so much compassion and tenderness to her characters.
This was her first book...which proves this Pulitzer Prize winner ( Olive Kitteridge), was a 'winner' from the start of her career.
Amy and her mother Isabelle are working together at the local Mill Factory, in New England, doing office work.
The mill ladies each have their concerns-stress-and secrets...and sorrows. One lady is having an affair. Another is fighting cancer...another is very out spoken about 'too much'.
Amy becomes entangled in a sticky position with her substitute teacher ...one that will jeopardize a smooth free-flowing relationship with her mother. Isabelle is single -and socially awkward, and sometimes downright embarrassing, whereas Amy is much more confident in who she is. It's not like Amy has lots of friends - but she does have one close friend - Stacy....( a girl whom she shares rebellious acts).
This novel gets inside women's heads...
At its core it's a complex story about a mother and daughter...and how secrets are damaging.....but it's also about how women connect to other women.
Weaknesses are exposed....
Realistic in nature....
Sad....but in the end hopeful.
Elizabeth Strout shows so much compassion and tenderness to her characters.
This was her first book...which proves this Pulitzer Prize winner ( Olive Kitteridge), was a 'winner' from the start of her career.
January 3, 2021
Review also published to blog: https://books-are-a-girls-best-friend...
Actions and Reactions.
Secrets and Lies.
Mothers and Daughters.
Husbands and Wives.
Isabelle Goodrow is a prim and proper woman. To her, appearances are everything. As a mother, she is quite reserved. Her daughter Amy longs for something more.
When Amy finds it, she becomes, shall we say, unfettered.
Amy, entangled with someone older, someone inappropriate, somehow who most certainly should know better.
An awkward situation, discovered. Isabelle beside herself, angry and desperate.
Actions, of course, have ramifications as both Isabelle and Amy soon devise.
Amy and Isabelle are not alone. Many folks in the town of Shirley Falls are keeping secrets of course, and they too suffer the consequences.
Oh, the complicated relationship between a mother and daughter.
Oh, how well Elizabeth Strout delves into the different facets of interpersonal relationships as a whole.
Though “Amy and Isabelle” was not my favorite of Elizabeth Strout’s novels, I enjoyed certain aspects of it and appreciated the complexities of all of the personalities within this book and how each was impacted by the decisions they made. Having read all but one other of Ms. Strout’s novels, I am anxiously awaiting her next release. 3.5 Stars
Published on Goodreads on 1.3.21
Actions and Reactions.
Secrets and Lies.
Mothers and Daughters.
Husbands and Wives.
Isabelle Goodrow is a prim and proper woman. To her, appearances are everything. As a mother, she is quite reserved. Her daughter Amy longs for something more.
When Amy finds it, she becomes, shall we say, unfettered.
Amy, entangled with someone older, someone inappropriate, somehow who most certainly should know better.
An awkward situation, discovered. Isabelle beside herself, angry and desperate.
Actions, of course, have ramifications as both Isabelle and Amy soon devise.
Amy and Isabelle are not alone. Many folks in the town of Shirley Falls are keeping secrets of course, and they too suffer the consequences.
Oh, the complicated relationship between a mother and daughter.
Oh, how well Elizabeth Strout delves into the different facets of interpersonal relationships as a whole.
Though “Amy and Isabelle” was not my favorite of Elizabeth Strout’s novels, I enjoyed certain aspects of it and appreciated the complexities of all of the personalities within this book and how each was impacted by the decisions they made. Having read all but one other of Ms. Strout’s novels, I am anxiously awaiting her next release. 3.5 Stars
Published on Goodreads on 1.3.21
February 17, 2019
I find it somewhat obscene that this was a debut.
October 9, 2019
***NO SPOILERS***
A ruminative story about loneliness, missed opportunities, envy, yearning, and hope set in a small New England town, Amy and Isabelle focuses on the complex relationship between an unassuming mother and her reticent teenage daughter. Amy is the obedient, respectful daughter until her 40-something substitute math teacher begins molesting her regularly. When Isabelle finds out, mother and daughter find their relationship suddenly strained and tense. Seemingly for the first time, Amy feels deep resentment, even hatred, toward her mother, and surprisingly, Isabelle realizes she feels similarly toward Amy.
Strout divided the narrative into two sections, with one focusing on Isabelle and the other on Amy. This can work very nicely, allowing each character to become properly fleshed out, and that happens here. Isabelle and Amy are both multi-dimensional, with complicated feelings--mainly their vulnerabilities and respective disappointments--coloring everyday goings-on.
What doesn’t work so well is Isabelle’s story; it has less spark than Amy’s. Where Amy’s is scandalous and bold, Isabelle’s is limp and depressed. Each character’s story mainly unfolds in the settings they spend the most time in. For Isabelle, this is a secretarial job in a mill. For Amy, this is in the local high school and all that concerns the school. There’s not much of interest to say about a workaday secretarial job. A high school, though...there’s life there, and natural drama. Strout did try to infuse drama into Isabelle’s work setting via a cast of co-workers who sit around and gossip, but the gossip is inane and the co-workers uninteresting. Meanwhile, back in Amy’s world, the story is taking a shocking turn.
There’s heartbreak in Amy and Isabelle. This is something Strout did well; she made this book very much a feeling book. Best of all, she concluded it with a quiet kind of happily ever after: a conclusion promising hope and huge possibility. It ends on just the right note.
A ruminative story about loneliness, missed opportunities, envy, yearning, and hope set in a small New England town, Amy and Isabelle focuses on the complex relationship between an unassuming mother and her reticent teenage daughter. Amy is the obedient, respectful daughter until her 40-something substitute math teacher begins molesting her regularly. When Isabelle finds out, mother and daughter find their relationship suddenly strained and tense. Seemingly for the first time, Amy feels deep resentment, even hatred, toward her mother, and surprisingly, Isabelle realizes she feels similarly toward Amy.
Strout divided the narrative into two sections, with one focusing on Isabelle and the other on Amy. This can work very nicely, allowing each character to become properly fleshed out, and that happens here. Isabelle and Amy are both multi-dimensional, with complicated feelings--mainly their vulnerabilities and respective disappointments--coloring everyday goings-on.
What doesn’t work so well is Isabelle’s story; it has less spark than Amy’s. Where Amy’s is scandalous and bold, Isabelle’s is limp and depressed. Each character’s story mainly unfolds in the settings they spend the most time in. For Isabelle, this is a secretarial job in a mill. For Amy, this is in the local high school and all that concerns the school. There’s not much of interest to say about a workaday secretarial job. A high school, though...there’s life there, and natural drama. Strout did try to infuse drama into Isabelle’s work setting via a cast of co-workers who sit around and gossip, but the gossip is inane and the co-workers uninteresting. Meanwhile, back in Amy’s world, the story is taking a shocking turn.
There’s heartbreak in Amy and Isabelle. This is something Strout did well; she made this book very much a feeling book. Best of all, she concluded it with a quiet kind of happily ever after: a conclusion promising hope and huge possibility. It ends on just the right note.
October 9, 2022
Amy and Isabelle is, in my opinion… I know, I know… I’m biased. Everyone knows I’m Elizabeth Strout’s number one fan, etc, etc.
But seriously, guys, the characterisation in this one is out of this world. And even better, not only do I feel like I know these people but I also feel like I just came back from Shirley Falls, Maine.
No, I’m not going to tell you that this is a perfect novel, because it isn’t.
I think it could’ve been slightly shorter, it didn’t need so many side characters, and, I also think it lost a bit of momentum two thirds of the way through.
There was also, plot wise, a “weird coincidence” that has been bothering me since I finished the book. I’m not even sure what it is, but it feels like a stone in my shoe. Ouch!
Anyway, I loved this novel.
I was all in from the start; completely mesmerised by Amy and Isabelle.
I devoured it.
Couldn’t get enough of it.
I’m telling you, guys, this is the big deal where good characterisation is concerned.
I’m definitely going full stars.
I don’t care about perfection.
Who needs perfection anyway?
First published in 1998, Elizabeth Strout’s debut is a hot coal of a book.
But seriously, guys, the characterisation in this one is out of this world. And even better, not only do I feel like I know these people but I also feel like I just came back from Shirley Falls, Maine.
No, I’m not going to tell you that this is a perfect novel, because it isn’t.
I think it could’ve been slightly shorter, it didn’t need so many side characters, and, I also think it lost a bit of momentum two thirds of the way through.
There was also, plot wise, a “weird coincidence” that has been bothering me since I finished the book. I’m not even sure what it is, but it feels like a stone in my shoe. Ouch!
Anyway, I loved this novel.
I was all in from the start; completely mesmerised by Amy and Isabelle.
I devoured it.
Couldn’t get enough of it.
I’m telling you, guys, this is the big deal where good characterisation is concerned.
I’m definitely going full stars.
I don’t care about perfection.
Who needs perfection anyway?
First published in 1998, Elizabeth Strout’s debut is a hot coal of a book.
January 28, 2016
2.5 stars
I've read every book Strout has published and especially enjoyed Olive Kitteridge and her newest, My Name is Lucy Barton. In this book, Strout writes beautifully, as always, but I didn't care for the plot or the pacing. The story bogged down in the middle with the minutia and meaningless conversations of small-town life. Pages and pages of it.
The graphic sexual details of the relationship between the teacher and Amy were, in my opinion, gratuitous and unnecessary for the story. I wasn't satisfied with the resolution to this man's crimes, but maybe that was indicative of the times.
I did enjoy the exploration of mother-daughter and female co-worker relationships. She captures the complexities of relationships, if a bit stereotypically. Thankfully, it's not a mother-daughter relationship I can relate to since the one I have with my own daughter is very close and mutually supportive. This mother is a strange one for sure.
The overriding theme that everybody has a story to tell behind the facade they present to the world, and secrets can damage relationships, are good ones but it took until the last 1/4 of the book for the payoff. Even then, I found the ending unrealistic and unsatisfying. The lack of a likable or sympathetic character made me not really care what happened to any of them.
I nearly abandoned the book and while I'm glad I read it to complete my reading of Strout's back list I can't really recommend it.
I've read every book Strout has published and especially enjoyed Olive Kitteridge and her newest, My Name is Lucy Barton. In this book, Strout writes beautifully, as always, but I didn't care for the plot or the pacing. The story bogged down in the middle with the minutia and meaningless conversations of small-town life. Pages and pages of it.
The graphic sexual details of the relationship between the teacher and Amy were, in my opinion, gratuitous and unnecessary for the story. I wasn't satisfied with the resolution to this man's crimes, but maybe that was indicative of the times.
I did enjoy the exploration of mother-daughter and female co-worker relationships. She captures the complexities of relationships, if a bit stereotypically. Thankfully, it's not a mother-daughter relationship I can relate to since the one I have with my own daughter is very close and mutually supportive. This mother is a strange one for sure.
The overriding theme that everybody has a story to tell behind the facade they present to the world, and secrets can damage relationships, are good ones but it took until the last 1/4 of the book for the payoff. Even then, I found the ending unrealistic and unsatisfying. The lack of a likable or sympathetic character made me not really care what happened to any of them.
I nearly abandoned the book and while I'm glad I read it to complete my reading of Strout's back list I can't really recommend it.
February 6, 2016
Closely observed and nuanced. One of the best books about a mother daughter relationship I've read. Loneliness, isolation, and betrayal are the themes explored. I was often uncomfortable reading parts of this novel because the hunger of these characters to belong makes for heartbreaking moments. I worried for them and then hoped for them.
Recommended.
Recommended.
August 14, 2023
I do love to listen to Elizabeth Strout on audio. The narrator has a knack of converting the author’s style to a voice production. I made the mistake of assuming the narrator of the author’s debut was Kimberly Farr; this was not the case. Stephanie Robert’s did a wonderful job, equally fitting the tone. I will always listen to this author’s books on audio, I enjoy them so much, and my busy life suits the platform.
As a debut, I think this book is fabulous though I didn’t love this title as much as the handful of others I have read. I’m not sure if it was the long-used trope of older men taking advantage of young girls, barely women. It’s abhorrent and seems to be everywhere. As I’ve often said, this is not the book’s issue it is mine, but of course effects my experience. The intertwining of the mother and daughter sharing this same experience is the reason for this subject matter, thus creating this main theme.
This book is about a mother and daughter, and their lack. It’s very sad seeing the disconnect, and the amount of time it takes for realisations to take place, particularly from the mother’s point of view. There is a push pull element of love and hate, which highlights the issue they cannot just ‘be’ with each other, there’s always angst and an unwillingness to let go.
Equally heartbreaking and quite tragic is the mother’s complete lack of self-worth, which she internalises so extremely this is dangerous for her wellbeing, over decades. Her mind does not stop. This is reflected almost comically at her workplace where the cast of characters come to play heavily as her work is her life in a way, not as a source of enjoyment, but a necessary evil that gives her a routine. As is the enamourment of her superior, an older man, who lacks personality and looks. Another dead end.
The women at work form a pivotal aspect of this story, indirectly teaching the mother life lessons, while also getting to know the daughter. I love to love characters, and Fat Bev was one of these, imparting bits of gold here and there. The author has the uncanny ability to talk about the banalities of life contrasting devastating down falls, failures and just simply life stuff. Familial disappointments, community gossip, lunchroom chat, young sex and love, one’s ability to use their bowels satisfactorily, keeping up with the Joneses. The list could go on. She does the preceding in a way that forms a good novel. I don’t think there’s an author quite like it!
I listened to the audio version via the Indyreads platform and the State Library of NSW at 1.25 speed.
As a debut, I think this book is fabulous though I didn’t love this title as much as the handful of others I have read. I’m not sure if it was the long-used trope of older men taking advantage of young girls, barely women. It’s abhorrent and seems to be everywhere. As I’ve often said, this is not the book’s issue it is mine, but of course effects my experience. The intertwining of the mother and daughter sharing this same experience is the reason for this subject matter, thus creating this main theme.
This book is about a mother and daughter, and their lack. It’s very sad seeing the disconnect, and the amount of time it takes for realisations to take place, particularly from the mother’s point of view. There is a push pull element of love and hate, which highlights the issue they cannot just ‘be’ with each other, there’s always angst and an unwillingness to let go.
Equally heartbreaking and quite tragic is the mother’s complete lack of self-worth, which she internalises so extremely this is dangerous for her wellbeing, over decades. Her mind does not stop. This is reflected almost comically at her workplace where the cast of characters come to play heavily as her work is her life in a way, not as a source of enjoyment, but a necessary evil that gives her a routine. As is the enamourment of her superior, an older man, who lacks personality and looks. Another dead end.
The women at work form a pivotal aspect of this story, indirectly teaching the mother life lessons, while also getting to know the daughter. I love to love characters, and Fat Bev was one of these, imparting bits of gold here and there. The author has the uncanny ability to talk about the banalities of life contrasting devastating down falls, failures and just simply life stuff. Familial disappointments, community gossip, lunchroom chat, young sex and love, one’s ability to use their bowels satisfactorily, keeping up with the Joneses. The list could go on. She does the preceding in a way that forms a good novel. I don’t think there’s an author quite like it!
I listened to the audio version via the Indyreads platform and the State Library of NSW at 1.25 speed.
March 21, 2019
Oh, Elizabeth Strout. How do you do it? This is your first novel - is it the first one you ever wrote, or the first one that got published? Surely the latter. I'm sorry that I only give it 4 stars (really 4.5); I would have given it five, but how can I when you also wrote the sublime Olive Kitteridge? Olive Kitteridge, in which I can see the traces of Amy & Isabelle (as well as Anything is Possible): the small town lives intersecting, other people's fascinating stories flashing into the future, and away to the past. This seems like your try-out of that and it nearly, almost, as good as, works.
April 9, 2020
«Un altro splendido giorno è passato»
In un'estate torrida e soffocante scorrono a Shirley Falls, immaginaria cittadina della provincia del New England, lente e monotone le vite di Isabelle e Amy, una madre sola e una figlia adolescente.
Sembrano immobili le vite a Shirley Falls, sembrano seguire ognuna un proprio corso predestinato, un cammino che assomiglia più ad un volo, come quello che tante farfalle fanno ciascuna intorno ad un suo punto immaginario.
Vola intorno a se stessa Isabelle, una donna sfiorita, solitaria, insicura, completamente chiusa agli altri, incapace di un gesto che possa avvicinarla alle colleghe dell'ufficio con le quali condivide da quindici anni la sua vita, come una margherita bruciata dal sole.
Vola intorno a se stessa Amy, che è un bocciolo di rosa ma non ne ha coscienza, solitaria, insicura, incapace di un gesto che possa avvicinarla ai compagni di scuola con i quali condivide le sue giornate, come una rosa che non sa ancora di esserlo.
Vivono insieme, Amy e Isabelle, ma non si conoscono e non sono capaci di guardarsi negli occhi, di parlarsi con il cuore.
Non si accorge Isabelle che Amy sta cambiando, che non è destinata ad appassire rapidamente così come è toccato a lei, ma che è pronta a sbocciare in un'esplosione di colori e profumi, perché sta diventando donna; non si accorge di nulla, Isabelle, finché un avvenimento improvviso e inatteso manderà in frantumi la sua noiosa e opprimente immobilità.
«Solo che era assurdo, era tutto alla rovescia, pensò Isabelle, voltandosi ancora a dare un'occhiata alla figlia, ero io ad avere paura di te.»
Intorno a Amy e Isabelle tutto sembra sospeso e immobile, ma in realtà è solo quello che entrambe credono, così incapaci di volgere il proprio sguardo al di là delle proprie vite, tutto è immobile, tranne la sottile linea nera che le unisce, che le costringe, che le lega l'una all'altra.
«Ad Amy sembrava che una linea nera le tenesse collegate, una linea non più pesante di un tratto di matita, forse, ma una linea che era sempre presente»
Ed è molto bello il momento in cui inizieranno ad accorgersi che non solo nelle proprie vite, ma anche in quelle di Fat Bev, Dottie Brown - colleghe di Isabelle - e in quella di Stacy - compagna di scuola di Amy - tutto è in movimento e che nessuna tra loro è realmente sola; ed è solo da quel momento, quando volgeranno lo sguardo, che inizieranno a mutare e a ricongiungersi agli altri.
Questa svolta coincide nel romanzo con un cambio sul piano narrativo molto intenso; se fino ad allora la storia alterna unicamente le vicende di Amy a quelle di Isabelle, dal momento in cui madre e figlia, ma soprattutto Isabelle, iniziano ad aprirsi ai sentimenti, alle storie e al dolore delle persone che hanno vicine, anche il romanzo inizia a narrare le vicende degli altri personaggi che ruotano intorno a loro, acquistando finalmente una profondità ed una percezione di simultaneità fino a quel momento assente.
È molto bello accorgersi all'improvviso che nessun evento è mai l'unico nella storia di una comunità, o di una famiglia, o di un gruppo di amiche, che mentre Amy scopre un pezzetto di sé Isabelle ne ritrova un altro, che mentre Dottie Brown subisce un'isterectomia Stacy partorisce il suo bambino, che mentre Avery Clark parte per la vacanza sul lago Wally Brown se ne va e che tutte, ma proprio tutte, non sono più farfalle solitarie, ma creature dello stesso mondo.
Elizabeth Strout è bravissima nel descrivere tutto questo e a rendere l'apparente indolenza della piccola città di provincia - che mi ha ricordato per certi aspetti Peyton Place, con i suoi segreti e le sue passioni sommerse - un luogo dove tutto sembra apparente fermo e dove l'assenza di emozioni forti è vera solo in superficie.
In realtà tutti i protagonisti della storia nascondono all'interno un'inquietudine profonda e la loro agitazione è destinata, con o senza violenza, ad uscire dagli argini e a modificare il corso delle loro esistenze.
Qui un'intervista a Elizabeth Strout.
In un'estate torrida e soffocante scorrono a Shirley Falls, immaginaria cittadina della provincia del New England, lente e monotone le vite di Isabelle e Amy, una madre sola e una figlia adolescente.
Sembrano immobili le vite a Shirley Falls, sembrano seguire ognuna un proprio corso predestinato, un cammino che assomiglia più ad un volo, come quello che tante farfalle fanno ciascuna intorno ad un suo punto immaginario.
Vola intorno a se stessa Isabelle, una donna sfiorita, solitaria, insicura, completamente chiusa agli altri, incapace di un gesto che possa avvicinarla alle colleghe dell'ufficio con le quali condivide da quindici anni la sua vita, come una margherita bruciata dal sole.
Vola intorno a se stessa Amy, che è un bocciolo di rosa ma non ne ha coscienza, solitaria, insicura, incapace di un gesto che possa avvicinarla ai compagni di scuola con i quali condivide le sue giornate, come una rosa che non sa ancora di esserlo.
Vivono insieme, Amy e Isabelle, ma non si conoscono e non sono capaci di guardarsi negli occhi, di parlarsi con il cuore.
Non si accorge Isabelle che Amy sta cambiando, che non è destinata ad appassire rapidamente così come è toccato a lei, ma che è pronta a sbocciare in un'esplosione di colori e profumi, perché sta diventando donna; non si accorge di nulla, Isabelle, finché un avvenimento improvviso e inatteso manderà in frantumi la sua noiosa e opprimente immobilità.
«Solo che era assurdo, era tutto alla rovescia, pensò Isabelle, voltandosi ancora a dare un'occhiata alla figlia, ero io ad avere paura di te.»
Intorno a Amy e Isabelle tutto sembra sospeso e immobile, ma in realtà è solo quello che entrambe credono, così incapaci di volgere il proprio sguardo al di là delle proprie vite, tutto è immobile, tranne la sottile linea nera che le unisce, che le costringe, che le lega l'una all'altra.
«Ad Amy sembrava che una linea nera le tenesse collegate, una linea non più pesante di un tratto di matita, forse, ma una linea che era sempre presente»
Ed è molto bello il momento in cui inizieranno ad accorgersi che non solo nelle proprie vite, ma anche in quelle di Fat Bev, Dottie Brown - colleghe di Isabelle - e in quella di Stacy - compagna di scuola di Amy - tutto è in movimento e che nessuna tra loro è realmente sola; ed è solo da quel momento, quando volgeranno lo sguardo, che inizieranno a mutare e a ricongiungersi agli altri.
Questa svolta coincide nel romanzo con un cambio sul piano narrativo molto intenso; se fino ad allora la storia alterna unicamente le vicende di Amy a quelle di Isabelle, dal momento in cui madre e figlia, ma soprattutto Isabelle, iniziano ad aprirsi ai sentimenti, alle storie e al dolore delle persone che hanno vicine, anche il romanzo inizia a narrare le vicende degli altri personaggi che ruotano intorno a loro, acquistando finalmente una profondità ed una percezione di simultaneità fino a quel momento assente.
È molto bello accorgersi all'improvviso che nessun evento è mai l'unico nella storia di una comunità, o di una famiglia, o di un gruppo di amiche, che mentre Amy scopre un pezzetto di sé Isabelle ne ritrova un altro, che mentre Dottie Brown subisce un'isterectomia Stacy partorisce il suo bambino, che mentre Avery Clark parte per la vacanza sul lago Wally Brown se ne va e che tutte, ma proprio tutte, non sono più farfalle solitarie, ma creature dello stesso mondo.
Elizabeth Strout è bravissima nel descrivere tutto questo e a rendere l'apparente indolenza della piccola città di provincia - che mi ha ricordato per certi aspetti Peyton Place, con i suoi segreti e le sue passioni sommerse - un luogo dove tutto sembra apparente fermo e dove l'assenza di emozioni forti è vera solo in superficie.
In realtà tutti i protagonisti della storia nascondono all'interno un'inquietudine profonda e la loro agitazione è destinata, con o senza violenza, ad uscire dagli argini e a modificare il corso delle loro esistenze.
Qui un'intervista a Elizabeth Strout.
May 27, 2018
This was Elizabeth Strout's debut novel, and it's remarkable to see how assured her voice already is. Her trademark ability to document the trials and tribulations of ordinary people is in full flight here, marking her out as a singular talent, long before she went on to win a Pulitzer.
This story focuses on Isabelle, a single mother in the small American town of Shirley Falls, and her sixteen-year-old daughter Amy. Isabelle is self-conscious and lonely, isolating herself from her co-workers at the drab office where she works. Amy is awkward and shy but she is starting to become aware of her own sexuality. We realise early on that their relationship is fraught - something major has occurred in the recent past which has had a profound effect on both of them. And now Amy has been offered a summer job at the same office as her mother, so they will spend every waking minute together. The weeks that follow will change their lives forever.
The thing I like most about Elizabeth Strout's writing is the way she examines the everyday obstacles that we all encounter. All of the people in this novel have some private burden to carry, an overwhelming regret or longing that keeps them awake at night. They lean on one another for comfort and support but there are things they can't even admit to those they hold dearest. Their way of overcoming this secret torment is to battle on, one day at a time, and hope that things will eventually get better:
It's quite a familiar story, yet Strout tells it with such grace and compassion. In her perceptive, unshowy style she explores the anxieties of motherhood and the dizzying possibilities of adolescence. It may be Strout's first novel, but Amy & Isabelle announces a writer of rare emotional intelligence and extraordinary insight.
This story focuses on Isabelle, a single mother in the small American town of Shirley Falls, and her sixteen-year-old daughter Amy. Isabelle is self-conscious and lonely, isolating herself from her co-workers at the drab office where she works. Amy is awkward and shy but she is starting to become aware of her own sexuality. We realise early on that their relationship is fraught - something major has occurred in the recent past which has had a profound effect on both of them. And now Amy has been offered a summer job at the same office as her mother, so they will spend every waking minute together. The weeks that follow will change their lives forever.
The thing I like most about Elizabeth Strout's writing is the way she examines the everyday obstacles that we all encounter. All of the people in this novel have some private burden to carry, an overwhelming regret or longing that keeps them awake at night. They lean on one another for comfort and support but there are things they can't even admit to those they hold dearest. Their way of overcoming this secret torment is to battle on, one day at a time, and hope that things will eventually get better:
"But what could you do? Only keep going. People kept going: they had been doing it for thousands of years. You took the kindness offered, letting it seep as far in as it could go, and the remaining dark crevices you carried around with you, knowing that over time they might change into something bearable."
It's quite a familiar story, yet Strout tells it with such grace and compassion. In her perceptive, unshowy style she explores the anxieties of motherhood and the dizzying possibilities of adolescence. It may be Strout's first novel, but Amy & Isabelle announces a writer of rare emotional intelligence and extraordinary insight.
January 21, 2008
Heartbreakingly real, beautifully written, the relationships in this book will stay with me. This was an intense read and I am filled with both hope and despair for all of these women. A delicate but steely line separates us from joy and can only occasionally be broken, but with a quick flip of the wrist that same line separates us from fear.
My favorite "aha" moment of the book--Isabelle decides to educate herself and starts reading Hamlet but breaks off at the point when he declares "Frailty, thy name is woman." How can he judge his mother for being scared to be a single parent?
Fascinating. Disturbing. Marvelous.
My favorite "aha" moment of the book--Isabelle decides to educate herself and starts reading Hamlet but breaks off at the point when he declares "Frailty, thy name is woman." How can he judge his mother for being scared to be a single parent?
Fascinating. Disturbing. Marvelous.
October 23, 2012
Yes this reads like a soap opera, how else could you hope to portray life in a small New England mill town? It’s pretty typical, everyone knows everyone’s business, social hierarchies are rigid and all ‘outsiders’ are suspect. Timeline is the 70’s but it could just as easily be taking place today.
In her debut novel Strout shows herself a master at building multi-layered characters, warts and all. Amy is a shy, insecure and socially inept teen - the perfect target for a sexual predator. Enter the math teacher, the account of his seduction methods are really chilling; this is one manipulative SOB you’ll want to kill - slowly and painfully. Isabelle’s character is probably the most interesting. Personal secretary to the boss, she’s disdainful of her fellow mill workers, but being a single mom is herself excluded from the town’s white collar elite. And she has her own demons to contend with, self induced loneliness compounded by the realization that her own youth is slipping away. Granted she’s bitter and controlling, but doing her best to raise her daughter well, a daughter whose sexual awakening pushes her over the edge.
Add to this a host of fascinating minor characters each dealing with their own baggage; Dottie and Fat Bev are adorable.
Absorbing, entertaining & believable, this came close to a 5 star rating for me. Dropped a star for 2 reasons 1: the predictability of the ending 2: her decision not to introduce a single likeable / sympathetic male character. Let’s be real Ms. Strout, they do exist:)
In her debut novel Strout shows herself a master at building multi-layered characters, warts and all. Amy is a shy, insecure and socially inept teen - the perfect target for a sexual predator. Enter the math teacher, the account of his seduction methods are really chilling; this is one manipulative SOB you’ll want to kill - slowly and painfully. Isabelle’s character is probably the most interesting. Personal secretary to the boss, she’s disdainful of her fellow mill workers, but being a single mom is herself excluded from the town’s white collar elite. And she has her own demons to contend with, self induced loneliness compounded by the realization that her own youth is slipping away. Granted she’s bitter and controlling, but doing her best to raise her daughter well, a daughter whose sexual awakening pushes her over the edge.
Add to this a host of fascinating minor characters each dealing with their own baggage; Dottie and Fat Bev are adorable.
Absorbing, entertaining & believable, this came close to a 5 star rating for me. Dropped a star for 2 reasons 1: the predictability of the ending 2: her decision not to introduce a single likeable / sympathetic male character. Let’s be real Ms. Strout, they do exist:)
March 19, 2013
Isabelle and Amy, mother and daughter, live in Shirley Falls, a small and quiet little town in Maine where apparently nothing much ever happens. But a lot of its people live in secret turmoil.
Isabelle has had a crush on her married boss for more than 10 years and she feels her life is being wasted away, and secretly, even without daring to articulate the thought, she blames Amy, her 15 years old daughter.
Amy has her own things to deal with. Brought up by her reclusive and unreachable mother, she doesn't have a lot of friends, until she meets her new maths teacher, Mr. Robertson, who starts seeing her for what she is. A very attractive young woman with "horny" needs.
While Isabelle continues deliberately to see Amy as a child, her daughter starts a clandestine and passionate affair with her teacher, becoming more and more estranged from her mother in the process. Two strangers, mother and daughter, living a lie together.
When Isabelle discovers what is going on, her made up life crumbles down and she has to face reality, a deep shock but also an opportunity to see the world for what it really is, and finally, to give it a chance to open up and dare to trust again.
Strout masters her storytelling, mixing some touches of humour with and oppressing sense that something terrible is about to happen. You can feel the characters dreads, you understand all their point of views and suffer along with them. A very human story, could be considered a light reading but if you bother to look closely, you'll see a deeply thread psychological thriller which will touch your inner strings and make you sing mutely.
Buying her next novel right now.
Isabelle has had a crush on her married boss for more than 10 years and she feels her life is being wasted away, and secretly, even without daring to articulate the thought, she blames Amy, her 15 years old daughter.
Amy has her own things to deal with. Brought up by her reclusive and unreachable mother, she doesn't have a lot of friends, until she meets her new maths teacher, Mr. Robertson, who starts seeing her for what she is. A very attractive young woman with "horny" needs.
While Isabelle continues deliberately to see Amy as a child, her daughter starts a clandestine and passionate affair with her teacher, becoming more and more estranged from her mother in the process. Two strangers, mother and daughter, living a lie together.
When Isabelle discovers what is going on, her made up life crumbles down and she has to face reality, a deep shock but also an opportunity to see the world for what it really is, and finally, to give it a chance to open up and dare to trust again.
Strout masters her storytelling, mixing some touches of humour with and oppressing sense that something terrible is about to happen. You can feel the characters dreads, you understand all their point of views and suffer along with them. A very human story, could be considered a light reading but if you bother to look closely, you'll see a deeply thread psychological thriller which will touch your inner strings and make you sing mutely.
Buying her next novel right now.
October 3, 2022
The first Elizabeth Strout novel I read was Olive Kitteridge which was so good that I read most of her other works. Amy and Isabelle is her first novel and it is absolutely magnificent and perhaps the most moving of all her books with incredible writing, unforgettable characters and brilliant insights into the human heart. Easily five stars.
April 3, 2018
4.5 stars. Another great read from this wonderful writer.
January 26, 2018
Ancora una volta accendo cinque stelle per Elizabeth Strout.
Questa è la sua prima pubblicazione, incredibilmente esemplare, assolutamente matura.
Intorno alla storia di una madre (Isabelle) e una figlia adolescente (Amy) si muove un mondo di personaggi minori ma necessari, descritti con perizia sullo sfondo di una piccola città americana di provincia, un ambiente tratteggiato con pennellate sicure. L’attenzione ai particolari apparentemente irrilevanti, ma sui quali si condensano distillati di emozioni, costituisce un marchio di fabbrica della Strout.
Mentre Amy e Isabelle condividono la vita quotidiana nell’intimità forzata di una casa troppo piccola, sentendo controvoglia l’una dell’altra i movimenti e i sospiri, ciascuna di loro abita il proprio universo immaginario, abbeverando con i sogni la solitudine e ingannando con allucinazioni del futuro la paura del presente.Una paura che affonda le sue radici in un passato oscuro, adombrato cioè da segreti inconfessabili.
Qualcosa però succederà. Qualcosa romperà l’illusione di avere costruito intorno ai propri segreti un cerchio di protezione che metta al riparo dagli inevitabili colpi inferti dall’esperienza che fa maturare vita e consapevolezza.
Ma basterà a cambiare Isabelle? A far crescere Amy?
A spezzare il cerchio del destino che sembra perpetuarsi invisibile ma certo?
“Tutto l’amore del mondo era impotente di fronte alla triste verità: tale madre, tale figlia.” Eppure Amy e Isabelle non potrebbero essere più diverse.
Altri eventi, altri drammi si muovono intorno alle due protagoniste, delineando così personaggi memorabili: il professor Robertson, apparentemente accogliente e sicuramente carismatico; Stacey, l’unica amica di Amy, concentrato dell’adolescenza dissolutrice e schifata; Fat Bev, la grassa collega di lavoro di Isabelle, rappresentante di un microcosmo femminile fibrillante, litigioso, ma disponibile all’empatia.
Un piccolo mondo denso e intenso che si muove in un tempo indefinito, alle soglie delle rivoluzioni degli anni 60-70, una storia articolata e avvincente, dove vedremo alcuni nodi sciogliersi e altri rimanere insoluti, così come nella vita normalmente accade.
Questa è la sua prima pubblicazione, incredibilmente esemplare, assolutamente matura.
Intorno alla storia di una madre (Isabelle) e una figlia adolescente (Amy) si muove un mondo di personaggi minori ma necessari, descritti con perizia sullo sfondo di una piccola città americana di provincia, un ambiente tratteggiato con pennellate sicure. L’attenzione ai particolari apparentemente irrilevanti, ma sui quali si condensano distillati di emozioni, costituisce un marchio di fabbrica della Strout.
Mentre Amy e Isabelle condividono la vita quotidiana nell’intimità forzata di una casa troppo piccola, sentendo controvoglia l’una dell’altra i movimenti e i sospiri, ciascuna di loro abita il proprio universo immaginario, abbeverando con i sogni la solitudine e ingannando con allucinazioni del futuro la paura del presente.Una paura che affonda le sue radici in un passato oscuro, adombrato cioè da segreti inconfessabili.
Qualcosa però succederà. Qualcosa romperà l’illusione di avere costruito intorno ai propri segreti un cerchio di protezione che metta al riparo dagli inevitabili colpi inferti dall’esperienza che fa maturare vita e consapevolezza.
Ma basterà a cambiare Isabelle? A far crescere Amy?
A spezzare il cerchio del destino che sembra perpetuarsi invisibile ma certo?
“Tutto l’amore del mondo era impotente di fronte alla triste verità: tale madre, tale figlia.” Eppure Amy e Isabelle non potrebbero essere più diverse.
Altri eventi, altri drammi si muovono intorno alle due protagoniste, delineando così personaggi memorabili: il professor Robertson, apparentemente accogliente e sicuramente carismatico; Stacey, l’unica amica di Amy, concentrato dell’adolescenza dissolutrice e schifata; Fat Bev, la grassa collega di lavoro di Isabelle, rappresentante di un microcosmo femminile fibrillante, litigioso, ma disponibile all’empatia.
Un piccolo mondo denso e intenso che si muove in un tempo indefinito, alle soglie delle rivoluzioni degli anni 60-70, una storia articolata e avvincente, dove vedremo alcuni nodi sciogliersi e altri rimanere insoluti, così come nella vita normalmente accade.
September 2, 2021
«L’unico modo per mangiare un elefante è un boccone per volta»
Ecco un romanzo scritto dannatamente bene da una scrittrice capace di fare letteratura. In tutta la prima parte ci sono aggressività e senso di colpa sottaciute che generano un’elettricità simile a quella che precede un temporale. Il montaggio è particolarmente riuscito, da subito alcune allusioni ad un avvenimento del passato recente di Isabelle e Amy, madre e figlia che vivono in affitto in una piccola casa di Shirley Falls, preparano il lettore al punto di svolta. Occorrerà arrivare alla metà del libro perché esso sia ricostruito precisamente e se ne percepisca tutta l’importanza ai fini narrativi.
Questo è un libro di quasi sole donne, la presenza degli uomini è marginale. Si fa un po’ di fatica con lo stile femminile vero che non è come quello femminile ricreato dalle penne maschili. Credo di avere una predilezione per le donne partorite dagli uomini; quelle vere che scrivono hanno una predisposizione per il dettaglio superfluo (maschilmente superfluo). Esse indugiano dove gli uomini neppure sospettano vi sia materia. Le donne spettegolano, gli uomini smargiassano. Sono categorie grossolane, le sto usando invece di parlare della trama del libro perché è opportuno che chiunque non la conosca legga la storia di queste due donne sorprendendosi del rapporto che intercorre fra loro e soprattutto di ciò che a monte lo ha influenzato una volta per tutte. Potrete provare sorpresa o immedesimazione a seconda del fatto che siate smargiassi o pettegole.
Non voglio fare uno spoiler imperdonabile come quello che Elizabeth Strout ha fatto di Madame Bovary mentre lo faceva leggere a Isabelle. Qualora non abbiate letto quel libro, saltate a piè pari i brani in cui appare il nome “Emma”, se poi come me avete già letto Flaubert e non siete riusciti ad apprezzarlo, chissà che non valutiate l’opportunità di rileggerlo.
In “Amy e Isabelle” ci sono almeno due scene descritte in modo magistrale e coinvolgente, esse nobilitano un impianto ottimo. Eppure, nonostante ciò, non mi è venuto da pensare: “accidenti non vorrei finisse!” Nell’ultima parte soprattutto, in mezzo al convivio delle donne solidali di mezz’età, ho avuto il desiderio di telefonare a Renton e a Franco (a proposito di smargiassi) per un paio di birre che mi togliessero il libro di torno.
Ecco un romanzo scritto dannatamente bene da una scrittrice capace di fare letteratura. In tutta la prima parte ci sono aggressività e senso di colpa sottaciute che generano un’elettricità simile a quella che precede un temporale. Il montaggio è particolarmente riuscito, da subito alcune allusioni ad un avvenimento del passato recente di Isabelle e Amy, madre e figlia che vivono in affitto in una piccola casa di Shirley Falls, preparano il lettore al punto di svolta. Occorrerà arrivare alla metà del libro perché esso sia ricostruito precisamente e se ne percepisca tutta l’importanza ai fini narrativi.
Questo è un libro di quasi sole donne, la presenza degli uomini è marginale. Si fa un po’ di fatica con lo stile femminile vero che non è come quello femminile ricreato dalle penne maschili. Credo di avere una predilezione per le donne partorite dagli uomini; quelle vere che scrivono hanno una predisposizione per il dettaglio superfluo (maschilmente superfluo). Esse indugiano dove gli uomini neppure sospettano vi sia materia. Le donne spettegolano, gli uomini smargiassano. Sono categorie grossolane, le sto usando invece di parlare della trama del libro perché è opportuno che chiunque non la conosca legga la storia di queste due donne sorprendendosi del rapporto che intercorre fra loro e soprattutto di ciò che a monte lo ha influenzato una volta per tutte. Potrete provare sorpresa o immedesimazione a seconda del fatto che siate smargiassi o pettegole.
Non voglio fare uno spoiler imperdonabile come quello che Elizabeth Strout ha fatto di Madame Bovary mentre lo faceva leggere a Isabelle. Qualora non abbiate letto quel libro, saltate a piè pari i brani in cui appare il nome “Emma”, se poi come me avete già letto Flaubert e non siete riusciti ad apprezzarlo, chissà che non valutiate l’opportunità di rileggerlo.
In “Amy e Isabelle” ci sono almeno due scene descritte in modo magistrale e coinvolgente, esse nobilitano un impianto ottimo. Eppure, nonostante ciò, non mi è venuto da pensare: “accidenti non vorrei finisse!” Nell’ultima parte soprattutto, in mezzo al convivio delle donne solidali di mezz’età, ho avuto il desiderio di telefonare a Renton e a Franco (a proposito di smargiassi) per un paio di birre che mi togliessero il libro di torno.
March 18, 2016
“It was terribly hot that summer Mr. Robertson left town, and for a long while the river seemed dead. Just a dead brown snake of a thing lying flat through the center of town, dirty yellow foam collecting at its edge.”
Isabelle is a fairly quiet single parent, working as a secretary in a factory in a relatively small town in New York. Amy is her daughter, a young girl-woman teetering on the verge of becoming a woman. Amy and Isabelle have a relatively quiet home life, although occasionally tense with unvoiced resentments. Isabelle seems to have no one in her life aside from Amy and her boss, who lives larger in Isabelle’s fantasy life with him. Of course, Isabelle could never bring herself to act on such fantasies, she barely even acknowledges as such, limiting herself mostly to thoughts of the better wife she could be, would be.
Amy has one friend, Stacy, a girl who lives life more dangerously than Amy has ever dreamed of. Amy doesn’t dream about any boys, unlike Stacy who has a boyfriend, one she’s even, you know, done that with. Amy only dreams about one guy, the new substitute teacher, who seems to see her as no one else does, makes her feel things no one else ever has.
Not much happens in this small town that goes unnoticed for long, it’s a safe, if sleepy town. Some things just can’t stay hidden, at least not for long. However, as is typically with Elizabeth Strout novels, this is less about what happens than it is about the people. The strength of Amy & Isabelle is in Elizabeth Strout’s ability to create characters so real that you become invested in them, and not just Amy and Isabelle, but the people in their world.
Isabelle is a fairly quiet single parent, working as a secretary in a factory in a relatively small town in New York. Amy is her daughter, a young girl-woman teetering on the verge of becoming a woman. Amy and Isabelle have a relatively quiet home life, although occasionally tense with unvoiced resentments. Isabelle seems to have no one in her life aside from Amy and her boss, who lives larger in Isabelle’s fantasy life with him. Of course, Isabelle could never bring herself to act on such fantasies, she barely even acknowledges as such, limiting herself mostly to thoughts of the better wife she could be, would be.
Amy has one friend, Stacy, a girl who lives life more dangerously than Amy has ever dreamed of. Amy doesn’t dream about any boys, unlike Stacy who has a boyfriend, one she’s even, you know, done that with. Amy only dreams about one guy, the new substitute teacher, who seems to see her as no one else does, makes her feel things no one else ever has.
Not much happens in this small town that goes unnoticed for long, it’s a safe, if sleepy town. Some things just can’t stay hidden, at least not for long. However, as is typically with Elizabeth Strout novels, this is less about what happens than it is about the people. The strength of Amy & Isabelle is in Elizabeth Strout’s ability to create characters so real that you become invested in them, and not just Amy and Isabelle, but the people in their world.
July 17, 2008
This story could have ended halfway through and I would have been content with that. Instead, it went on, way past where I would have expected it to end, and each additional page felt like some secret reward. Strout writes deliberately and without trite language. She's able to masterfully capture the feel of both the single mother and her sordid past as well as the teenage daughter and her sexual awakenings. While predictable in spots (I knew that Isabelle would eventually reveal her past and that it would be somewhat identical to that of her daughter's present), there were a number of twists that were not foreseen (or, rather, a number of false predictions). The final scene between Amy and Mr. Robertson was typical, yet still (I typed stiff, LOL) fresh enough that I had to read it twice before deciding to read it once more. And while teacher-student relationships are wrong, I still found myself hoping that this one would be different, sort of similiar to Amy's slight obsession.
Strout incorporates the New England summer well, presenting it almost as its own character, alongside the small town snobs and busybodies that surround the tangibly difficult relationship between mother and daughter. Amy, in high school, is already at odds with her mother, as well as the world. It isn't until the new teacher takes a special interest in her that Amy blooms (trite as that may sound, it's true). Isabelle grapples with wanting to destroy her daughter, thus ending the possibilities of continually repeating the same pattern, and embracing the child she can still see in her daughter.
Things that I expected to happen but didn't:
Amy and her pregnant friend experimenting sexually.
Mr. Robertson being the local killer.
Amy and Paul driving off in search of Mr. Robertson.
Mrs. Robertson murdered by Amy or Mr. Robertson.
Isabelle to turn into Carrie's mom, or Sibyl's mom or Mommie Dearest.
Amy to commit suicide, Stacy to then take Amy's place with Isabelle.
As I read it, I tried to visualize the characters, cast the movie based-on-the-book, if you will. For Fat Bev, I imagined the housekeeper from Two and a half Men. Mr. Robertson would have been Ryan Gosling, Isabelle Toni Collette. I Googled the book (as I do for almost everything) and was briefly excited to find that a movie had already been made. Then I read the entry at IMDb and found myself awash with disappointment: Oprah Winfrey as executive producer? Elisabeth Shue as Isabelle? Some really old guy as the teacher--as if old teacher and young student isn't played out. I was tickled to find I'd appropriately cast Fat Bev, though. I would gladly read this again, but I'll pass on the made-for-TV movie.
Strout incorporates the New England summer well, presenting it almost as its own character, alongside the small town snobs and busybodies that surround the tangibly difficult relationship between mother and daughter. Amy, in high school, is already at odds with her mother, as well as the world. It isn't until the new teacher takes a special interest in her that Amy blooms (trite as that may sound, it's true). Isabelle grapples with wanting to destroy her daughter, thus ending the possibilities of continually repeating the same pattern, and embracing the child she can still see in her daughter.
Things that I expected to happen but didn't:
Amy and her pregnant friend experimenting sexually.
Mr. Robertson being the local killer.
Amy and Paul driving off in search of Mr. Robertson.
Mrs. Robertson murdered by Amy or Mr. Robertson.
Isabelle to turn into Carrie's mom, or Sibyl's mom or Mommie Dearest.
Amy to commit suicide, Stacy to then take Amy's place with Isabelle.
As I read it, I tried to visualize the characters, cast the movie based-on-the-book, if you will. For Fat Bev, I imagined the housekeeper from Two and a half Men. Mr. Robertson would have been Ryan Gosling, Isabelle Toni Collette. I Googled the book (as I do for almost everything) and was briefly excited to find that a movie had already been made. Then I read the entry at IMDb and found myself awash with disappointment: Oprah Winfrey as executive producer? Elisabeth Shue as Isabelle? Some really old guy as the teacher--as if old teacher and young student isn't played out. I was tickled to find I'd appropriately cast Fat Bev, though. I would gladly read this again, but I'll pass on the made-for-TV movie.
July 10, 2019
“Le vite umane, delicate come stoffa, potevano essere tagliuzzate capricciosamente dalle lame di momenti casuali di egoismo.”
Una cittadina di provincia che gioca a fare la metropoli.
Un regno femminile dove le figure maschili ne escono malconce ed indebolite perché succubi di un istinto sessuale che non sono in grado di dominare.
Un racconto a ritroso che prende avvio in un’estate calda.
Caldissima.
Una temperatura insopportabile.
Le gocce di sudore scorrono copiose e inzuppano le persone che i sentono continuamente a disagio e animate da reciproca ostilità…
Amy la figlia, Isabelle la madre.
Qualcosa si è spezzato nel loro rapporto e il pensiero va a ritroso, alla fine dello scorso inverno quando qualcosa si è alterato.
Qual è il momento in cui la traccia del cordone ombelicale diventa una linea nera?
Soffocante, rigida, plumbea
E’ rintracciabile il momento in cui scopri che hai concentrato tutta la tua vita in una persona che, invece, ti è estranea?
Le paure di una madre possono soffocare.
L’odio di una figlia può essere più tagliente di qualsiasi arma bianca…
Così Madre e Figlia sono due immagini che da sfuocate diventano opache al punto di rendersi irriconoscibili
” Oddio.
L’ultima settimana di giugno, ancora non era passato nemmeno un mese: era allora che la sua vita era andata in mille pezzi. Si era disintegrata. Come se le sue mani, i suoi piedi, le sue gambe fasciate con cura dai collant per tutti questi anni, non fossero stati nient’altro che sabbia.”
Bravissima la Strout a farci entrare in queste vite tormentate tanto dalla solitudine, dal rancore, dalla tristezza e dai rimpianti, quanto dalle emozioni affettive (perché a volte basta un piccolo atto di gentilezza), dai desideri soddisfatti e dalla dolce sensazione di quella che si chiama felicità.
La sua, però, non è solo una visione binoculare, bensì, alza lo sguardo e diventa aerea:
sorvola la cittadina di Shirley Falls e fotografa attimi, momenti, pensieri che ci dicono «così va il mondo»: felicità e disperazione posso risiedere nella stessa strada…
"Se Isabelle Goodrow avesse potuto scoperchiare il tetto di certe case e sbirciare nelle loro profondità domestiche, avrebbe trovato un assortimento di umane sofferenze."
Un esordio felicissimo per quest’autrice.
Una cittadina di provincia che gioca a fare la metropoli.
Un regno femminile dove le figure maschili ne escono malconce ed indebolite perché succubi di un istinto sessuale che non sono in grado di dominare.
Un racconto a ritroso che prende avvio in un’estate calda.
Caldissima.
Una temperatura insopportabile.
Le gocce di sudore scorrono copiose e inzuppano le persone che i sentono continuamente a disagio e animate da reciproca ostilità…
Amy la figlia, Isabelle la madre.
Qualcosa si è spezzato nel loro rapporto e il pensiero va a ritroso, alla fine dello scorso inverno quando qualcosa si è alterato.
Qual è il momento in cui la traccia del cordone ombelicale diventa una linea nera?
Soffocante, rigida, plumbea
E’ rintracciabile il momento in cui scopri che hai concentrato tutta la tua vita in una persona che, invece, ti è estranea?
Le paure di una madre possono soffocare.
L’odio di una figlia può essere più tagliente di qualsiasi arma bianca…
Così Madre e Figlia sono due immagini che da sfuocate diventano opache al punto di rendersi irriconoscibili
” Oddio.
L’ultima settimana di giugno, ancora non era passato nemmeno un mese: era allora che la sua vita era andata in mille pezzi. Si era disintegrata. Come se le sue mani, i suoi piedi, le sue gambe fasciate con cura dai collant per tutti questi anni, non fossero stati nient’altro che sabbia.”
Bravissima la Strout a farci entrare in queste vite tormentate tanto dalla solitudine, dal rancore, dalla tristezza e dai rimpianti, quanto dalle emozioni affettive (perché a volte basta un piccolo atto di gentilezza), dai desideri soddisfatti e dalla dolce sensazione di quella che si chiama felicità.
La sua, però, non è solo una visione binoculare, bensì, alza lo sguardo e diventa aerea:
sorvola la cittadina di Shirley Falls e fotografa attimi, momenti, pensieri che ci dicono «così va il mondo»: felicità e disperazione posso risiedere nella stessa strada…
"Se Isabelle Goodrow avesse potuto scoperchiare il tetto di certe case e sbirciare nelle loro profondità domestiche, avrebbe trovato un assortimento di umane sofferenze."
Un esordio felicissimo per quest’autrice.
November 26, 2025
“It was the air, really—the clear brightness of the air that in the evenings now held the first chilliness of autumn, and brought with it that subtle undercurrent of old longings and new chances which autumn often brings.”
― Elizabeth Strout, Amy and Isabelle
I should have liked this but didn't.
So this is Historical Fiction though the exact time it takes place is not specified. And it is about a mother/daughter relationship. And it takes place in small town Maine. I see many of my GR pals have read this. I wasn't a major fan.
So this book had been on my radar. Yet I did not like it nearly as much as many other reviewers. I didn't hate it. I think it is a perfect example of a book I'd give three stars to. It was just OK for me.
It was a pretty grim story overall. I had thought I would love this and though I loved certain aspects of it..Isabelle learning to read the classics for one..I didn't really get into it all that much.
The mother and daughter have a very complicated relationship and the book is wound with sadness.
I think I liked Isabelle more than Amy although Amy get s into a situation that does inspire empathy.
It is a great example of a book that looks like one's type of book on paper, but when actually read is not.
I found I had to force myself to go on. Like I said, Isabelle's desire to learn to read the classics was my favorite part. I almost felt tenderness toward her. And I was rooting for her!
Amy? I don't know. I felt for her but just never clicked with the story although it is powerful and quite grim.
I had read a book shortly before this that dealt with SOME..not all..but some..of the issues surrounding Amy. It was called "The Ice Cream Girls" by Dorothy Koomson and was quite long. I loved that book but I think going right from that to this may have dampened my enthusiasm a bit since there were some elements that were the same.
So to summarize..not a favorite. It was a pretty bleak story and there isn't any getting around that it was a bit of a let down for me. I am glad to see others who adored this. I would just say it was a decent read but not the book for me.
― Elizabeth Strout, Amy and Isabelle
I should have liked this but didn't.
So this is Historical Fiction though the exact time it takes place is not specified. And it is about a mother/daughter relationship. And it takes place in small town Maine. I see many of my GR pals have read this. I wasn't a major fan.
So this book had been on my radar. Yet I did not like it nearly as much as many other reviewers. I didn't hate it. I think it is a perfect example of a book I'd give three stars to. It was just OK for me.
It was a pretty grim story overall. I had thought I would love this and though I loved certain aspects of it..Isabelle learning to read the classics for one..I didn't really get into it all that much.
The mother and daughter have a very complicated relationship and the book is wound with sadness.
I think I liked Isabelle more than Amy although Amy get s into a situation that does inspire empathy.
It is a great example of a book that looks like one's type of book on paper, but when actually read is not.
I found I had to force myself to go on. Like I said, Isabelle's desire to learn to read the classics was my favorite part. I almost felt tenderness toward her. And I was rooting for her!
Amy? I don't know. I felt for her but just never clicked with the story although it is powerful and quite grim.
I had read a book shortly before this that dealt with SOME..not all..but some..of the issues surrounding Amy. It was called "The Ice Cream Girls" by Dorothy Koomson and was quite long. I loved that book but I think going right from that to this may have dampened my enthusiasm a bit since there were some elements that were the same.
So to summarize..not a favorite. It was a pretty bleak story and there isn't any getting around that it was a bit of a let down for me. I am glad to see others who adored this. I would just say it was a decent read but not the book for me.
November 2, 2017
Il difficile rapporto tra una madre e una figlia incastonato nella vita di un piccolo paese del New England. Nonostante sia il primo romanzo scritto della Strout, la fattura è eccellente. In particolare, i primi due terzi del libro sono costruiti con vera maestria, un andare avanti e indietro nel tempo ben calibrato, in un’estate torrida e umida, che acuisce i contrasti, esaspera i sentimenti e sfianca le resistenze.
Meno convincente la parte finale, ma comunque un gran bel leggere.
Meno convincente la parte finale, ma comunque un gran bel leggere.
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