Elizabeth Strout Books

A collection of short stories by a twentieth-century American master.

In March 2020 Lucy's ex-husband William pleads with her to leave New York and escape to a coastal house he has rented in Maine. Lucy reluctantly agrees, leaving the washing-up in the sink, expecting to be back in a week or two. Weeks turn into months, and it's just Lucy, William, and their complex past together in a little house nestled against the sea. Rich with empathy and a searing clarity, Lucy by the Sea evokes the fragility and uncertainty of the recent past, as well as the possibilities that those long, quiet days can inspire. At the heart of this miraculous novel are the deep human connections that sustain us, even as the world seems to be falling apart.

Set against the backdrop of autumn in Maine, a town lawyer finds himself intertwined in a murder case while forging a deep friendship with acclaimed writer Lucy Barton. As they share walks and discuss their fears and regrets, Lucy connects with the iconic Olive Kitteridge, now in a retirement community. Their afternoons together are filled with storytelling, exploring the lives of those around them, which Olive refers to as "unrecorded lives," ultimately giving new meaning to their experiences and relationships.

An extraordinary new novel by the Pulitzer Prize-winning, Number One New York Times bestselling author of Olive Kitteridge and My Name is Lucy Barton 'A superbly gifted storyteller and a craftswoman in a league of her own' Hilary Mantel Olive, Again follows the blunt, contradictory yet deeply loveable Olive Kitteridge as she grows older, navigating the second half of her life as she comes to terms with the changes - sometimes welcome, sometimes not - in her own existence and in those around her. Olive adjusts to her new life with her second husband, challenges her estranged son and his family to accept him, experiences loss and loneliness, witnesses the triumphs and heartbreaks of her friends and neighbours in the small coastal town of Crosby, Maine - and, finally, opens herself to new lessons about life. 'A powerful storyteller immersed in the nuances of human relationships' Observer 'She gets better with each book' Maggie O'Farrell 'One of America's finest writers' Sunday Times

Haunted by the freak accident that killed their father when they were children, Jim and Bob Burgess escaped from their Maine hometown of Shirley Falls for New York City as soon as they possibly could. Jim, a sleek, successful corporate lawyer, has belittled his bighearted brother their whole lives, and Bob, a legal aid attorney who idolises Jim, has always taken it in his stride. But their long-standing dynamic is upended when their sister, Susan - the sibling who stayed behind - urgently calls them home. Her lonely teenage son, Zach, has landed himself into a world of trouble, and Susan desperately needs their help. And so the Burgess brothers return to the landscape of their childhood, where the long-buried tensions that have shaped and shadowed their relationship begin to surface in unexpected ways that will change them forever.

Presents twenty of the best works of short fiction of the past year from a variety of acclaimed sources.

From the Orange Prize-shortlisted author of AMY & ISABELLE, a deeply moving story of love, abandonment, and the peril of family secrets...

Lucy Barton is a writer, but her ex-husband, William, remains a hard man to read. So Lucy is both surprised and not surprised when William asks her to join him on a trip to investigate a recently uncovered family secret

From the Man Booker Prize longlisted author of My Name is Lucy Barton Isabelle Goodrow has been living in self-imposed exile with her daughter Amy for 15 years. Shamed by her past and her affair with Amy's father she has submerged herself in the routine of her dead-end job and her unrequited love for her boss. But when Amy, frustrated by her quiet and unemotional mother, embarks on an illicit affair with her maths teacher, the disgrace intensifies the shame Isabelle feels about her own past. Throughout one long, sweltering summer as the events of the small town ebb and flow around them Amy and Isabelle exist in silent conflict until a final act leads ultimately to the understanding they both crave.

Acclaimed author Elizabeth Strout gives us thirteen rich, luminous narratives centred on a singular and formidable heroine, Olive Kitteridge.