Thank you to Random House and NetGalley for allowing me to read and review an ARC of Oh William! by Elizabeth Strout.
“But who ever really knows the experience of another?”
Lucy, the narrator and first wife of William —“William is the only person I feel safe with. He is the only home I ever had.”
This novel is a psychological study of Lucy and William. It shows the effects of their sad early years on their future lives.
I found the characters dull and pathetic! William couldn’t even wear his khaki pants long enough!
I cannot recommend this book. Publication date is October 19, 2021.

I really wanted to like this book, but it boils down to the fact that I am just tired of Strout’s writing style After liking the Olive books a lot, I am not at all fond of Lucy Barton - both this one and My Name is Lucy Barton. Though the title is Oh William, it really is more about Lucy and she is not a likable character. The dialogue is very stream of consciousness where she goes on and on and on about her marriages, her daughters, her parents and more! There really is no plot except for the last quarter of the book where she travels with her ex husband, William, to Maine to explore his roots and discover if he truly has the half-sister he just learned about. This was by far the most interesting part of the book for me and I found it rather touching. Still, the book was boring and lacking in substance! Thank you NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this before publication in exchange for an honest review.

This book is definitely unique. The writing style is not something I'm used to seeing. In the book the main character would often tell a story, then follow it up with "I mean....., I guess that's what I'm trying to say" I found that a little odd, but I think it was a way to show us how unsure Lucy was in her thinking and thought processes. She never quite seemed sure of herself, except she was sure that David was the love of her life. Her relationship with her parents, with William (Oh, William), with Caroline, and her daughters were all pretty unsure. Poor Lucy second guessed everything she did and everything she thought. This is an in-depth view of her "unsureness" Very interested book.

I enjoyed this novel. I can handle a book that makes me think and feel, one that challenges the amount of empathy you are willing to give to others, to yourself. If you are craving a lot of thrills and action on your mental screen when you read . . .  this one might not be for you.

It’s been a long time since I have enjoyed a good play. I think this monologue/dialogue-driven story would make an excellent stage presentation.

I don’t know if anyone else is a fan of In Treatment on HBO, but this had that same voyeuristic vibe to it. One where you witness intimate conversations that we can have with ourselves, the thoughts, the feelings, and the phobias we might only dare to share with a therapist. Listening to the kinds of deep self explorative talk that can lead a person to stunning realizations, to epiphany after epiphany.

Its delivery is both simplistic and cerebral which can be a hard combination to pull off . . . well, a standing “Oh” to Elizabeth Strout.

Now I need to get my hands on a copy of Olive Kitteridge because I enjoyed this one so much.

I'd like to thank the author, NetGalley, and Random House for allowing me to read an advanced copy of Oh William! for an honest review.

I read this book in one day. Elizabeth Strout is a marvelous writer and I love Lucy Barton-I reread ANYTHING CAN HAPPEN. Lucy is now in her 60s, her second husband has died and she has been thinking a lot about her first husband, William. They are still good friends. Estelle, his third wife, gives him Ancestry.com for his birthday and he discovers his mother had another child.
Lucy is supportive, but then so is William. I loved it. I may have to reread MY NAME IS LUCY BARTON again.

I received a copy of this novel from the publisher via NetGalley.

I have read each of the novels in this Amgash series, although I have only vague memories now of the first two. This was beautifully written and very hard to review somehow. It concerned Lucy's on-going friendship with her first husband William, the father of her children. It was less sad than the first two books I think, with Lucy more at peace and settled into her identity. The reminiscences about her teacher Miss Nash made me cry.

Lucy Barton's life is examined and expanded in this continuation of the story that began with the publication of My Name is Lucy Barton. Now we are immersed in Lucy's later life when she has long been divorced from William and recently widowed by David. Her complexities are revealed through her relationships with them, as well as other family members. At his request, she sets off on a road trip with William who is reluctantly delving into secrets from his past and wants her support. Lucy's first person narrative is ostensibly about William. and her conversational tone includes readers in the journey even as we recognize how much her observations reveal about herself. As a Mainer I was interested in her descriptions of "The County," which I found both accurate and amusing. This novel stands alone, but readers of Strout's earlier works will be delighted by the added richness of Oh William.

Thank you for such a insightful, thought provoking book! Lucy is back in the company of her former husband William and does not disappoint as they travel around trying to figure out the secrets of life. You will be reflecting on your own after this one! Oh, William!

This book is a treasure. It’s about the relationship between a woman and her ex-husband, both in their early 70’s and living in NYC. That actually sums it up although it’s about so much more. I’ve only read one other book by Elizabeth Strout, Olive Kitteridge, which I loved. And I loved this one as well so I plan on checking out her other titles ASAP. Even after only reading two of her books I see that she writes about women and marriage and relationships and mothers and daughters in such a way that makes me want to highlight a sentence or two every few pages. Her writing is brilliant, I don’t know how else to say it.I know this book won’t be for everyone, the pace is slow nothing much really ‘happens’ and there’s nothing particularly interesting about any of the characters. A lesser writer couldn’t have pulled off a book like this. Also, I read so many thrillers and dramas where I’m always trying to figure out the twist so for a good part of the book I kept wondering when the twist was coming. Once I stopped doing this it really came together for me and I couldn’t stop reading until I finished it. The story of William and Lucy will stay with me for a long time. If they make a movie out of this book I 100% see Harrison Ford and Helen Maureen as the leads. *thank you to NetGalley for providing me with a free ebook in exchange for an honest review”’

Strout at her masterful best. Deep thanks to Netgalley and Random House for the opportunity to read an ARC. Deceptively light, poetry as prose, beautiful writing: Strout has brought back the honest and insightful Lucy Barton as she explores a later part of her life. William is her ex-husband, father of her beloved daughters. She joins William on a journey to investigate a mystery of his past and in the process explores her life and all lives. "I am not invisible no matter how deeply I feel that I am." This book is a quick and wonderful read and this deft beautiful prose has profound depths. It is a book to be read and re-read and another masterful, lovely book from Strout who continues to explore her fictional characters and create more exquisite fiction. An exceptional book from an exceptional writer

This book was good, not great. It wasn't quite plotless but it really did take place in Lucy's mind and wasn't based on the actions of any of the characters. The relationships, however, were meaningful and the emotions that those relationships generated -- spouses and children and a other tangential characters -- make up the heart of this book. Pulling at heartstrings, real, genuine relationships deliver meaning. Not tremendously compelling, but there is certainly pathos delivered.

Excellent and thought provoking. How we’ll do we know ourselves, or others? How much do we understand? A provocative read.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this Kindle ARC. Oh, Elizabeth Strout! I absolutely LOVED this story and Ms. Strout's gentle prose. Oh, William! is a follow up to My Name is Lucy Barton and is about Lucy and her ex-husband, with whom she has two adult daughters. I've enjoyed the majority of Ms. Strout's books but this one really struck a chord with me. Lucy's beloved second husband, David, has died and she is still struggling with the grief of that loss. William, who is remarried to Estelle, is still "William" - seeing other women, and making Lucy shake her head and say "Oh, William" in her head every time William does something that Lucy dislikes. When William's wife leaves him, he and Lucy travel to Maine to uncover some of William's family secrets. Interwoven interactions with their daughters, a trip together and discovering why or why not they should be together, Lucy and William's story is one of Ms. Strout's best stories.

Elizabeth Strout creates characters like no one else. They are real and flawed and relatable and I was so happy to read another book with Lucy Barton as the first person narrator. There isn't anything about this book that I didn't love, from the voice of Lucy to her relationship with her ex-husband William to their visit to the small towns of Maine. Highly recommended for Elizabeth Strout fans, which everyone should be! I was provided with a copy of this book from NetGalley for an honest review.

I think I might be a tad biased because I love everything that Elizabeth Strout writes, but I truly loved this book. With Oh William we get a deeper look into Lucy Barton and her relationship with her first husband and their children. The relationship between family members is tense with betrayal, grief, and secrets, but what makes the story so engaging is to see how each of the characters works through their relationship to find something that works for them. I feel like Oh William showed a really different side of Lucy than the previous book. The writing is beautiful and fans of her previous writing will not be disappointed by this one.

What I mean is I loved this book.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.

A huge thank you to Netgalley for this ARC of Oh William! by Elizabeth Strout. This the third book in the Lucy Barton series. It can definitely be read as a standalone, which is one of the beauties of Strout's novels. This book explores the relationship of Lucy and her ex-husband, William. They have maintained a good relationship over the years, however William has remained somewhat of a mystery to Lucy. William uncovers a family secret and invites Lucy to accompany him on a trip to learn more about his discovery. It's this trip where Strout's talent truly shines. She is a master at writing about relationships and people in general. She catches nuances and is able to transcribe them in to beautiful novels. I highly recommend this book and absolutely anything Elizabeth Strout writes.

I have found a new favourite author and a new favourite character.
The prose was so beautiful and yet so ordinary if that makes any sense. I felt like we could have been two women chatting over a cup of coffee or a glass of wine meeting every so often so catch up. Where oh where have I been that I have never heard of Elizabeth Strout before. I have already downloaded her previous books so I can enjoy many more hours with Lucy. When people say books are “unputdownable”, it usually refers to a psychological thriller but this was just a flow of Lucy’s thoughts and feelings and memories and I honestly couldn’t get enough of this wonderful well written marvellous book.
Many thanks to NetGalley for this ARC

Oh, William, continues the story of Lucy Barton. Lucy’s second husband has died and her first husband, William, asks for her to help him with some new developments in his upbringing that he uncovered through an online hereditary site. The story is told in Lucy’s point of view. Lucy and William have been divorced for awhile but they are friends and still have a great understanding of each other. Lucy’s perspective on her life as she looks back is very good!

A short, sweet book in the series. Lovely writing and insights, essentially just stream of consciousness bouncing back and forth on Lucy's head and what she observes in the world around her and in her own heart.

The third “ installment” in the Lucy Barton trilogy, and to my mind the best. The William in the title is a former husband, with whom she shares 2 daughters.The book is about him, but equally about her, their early lives that made them who they are,their weaknesses, their strengths, their fears, their failures.I’m certain that every reader will see some of these emotions reflected in themselves in some part of the book.It is a very “ human” story, really about insights into all of the emotions people will feel at some point in their lives.A short read but with a lot to ponder. Highly recommend it.