My Name is Lucy Barton

I recently listened to a novel for the first time and I found the experience delightful. I’ve taken up crocheting and I can’t really watch anything while doing it and need to be able to start and stop easily to count stitches, so I decided to give an audo book a whirl. I’ve read several of Elizabeth Strout’s books, and figured they’d make good audio experiences, so I checked out My Name is Lucy Barton and it was indeed enjoyable to listen to.

Lucy Barton tells the story of being in an extended hospital stay and having her mother, who she is not close to, come to visit her. She also tells the story of her life, her marriage, her children, and her writing. But it was the story of her relationship with her mother that I could relate to. Her mother travels from rural Illinois to stay in the hospital with her for a visit. They tip toe around the real things Lucy would love to know about her mom and instead talk about the people Lucy knew growing up, and the community in which her mother still lives.

Strout’s characters are always interesting, she has a way of creating people who I feel like I could meet walking down the street either where I live or where I grew up. And Lucy Barton and her mother are the same. But in this relationship I saw echos of my own relationship with my mother. I laughed out loud several times and paused to think as well. And I’ll admit it, it was lovely to have a story read to me.