Amy and Isabelle

Rating:
Summary: An Authentic Exploration of a Mother-Daughter Relationship
Review: "Amy and Isabelle" is the well-crafted story of a single mother Isabelle and her beautiful shy daughter Amy. The story takes place during a sweltering summer in mythical Shirley Falls. (Which reminded me of both Bedford Falls, the setting for "It's a Wonderful Life", and Seneca Falls, the upper New York State town where the first Women's Rights convention was held.) A river passing through Shirley Falls divides it into the "haves" and the "have-nots", and Isabelle has attempted to plant roots on the side with the "haves." After 14 years of trying to fit in, it's time for Isabelle to be honest about herself. Meanwhile, Amy is learning about her sexuality, and her need for love. By the end of the summer when the weather finally breaks, both Isabelle and Amy have had a kind of an awakening. Plenty of other small-town characters, from creepy Mr. Robertson to friendly Fat Bev, Avery Clark and all the church wives, and Amy's pregnant friend Stacy provide color and counterpoint to the main story.

If you're a mother or a daughter or both, like me, you will enjoy this book. I highly recommend it.

Rating:
Summary: Great writing, okay story...
Review: After having this novel sit on my bookshelf for 2 ½ years, I thought it was time to finally read it. And while I can't say I was totally mesmerized by this book, I did enjoy it. However, it isn't the storyline that cinched it for me -- in this case, Elizabeth's Strout exceptional writing talent made Amy and Isabelle a 4-star book.

Sixteen-year-old Amy is disenchanted with high school. Spending her classes in a fog and smoking cigarettes with her pregnant friend, Stacy, during lunch seems about as good as it will get. But when Amy's old math teacher is replaced mid-year with Mr. Robertson, things start to perk up. And when Mr. Robertson starts paying special attention to Amy, the rest of the school year, and ultimately her life, changes forever. Into this mix is Amy's mother, Isabelle, who craves acceptance from her daughter, her boss, and her co-workers at the shoe mill office. And once Amy's secret about Mr. Robertson is out in the open, Isabelle questions herself, her parenting, and her own secrets from her past.

I will admit that the storyline did not grab me like I had hoped. The tone of the story was very mundane, unhappy, and drained of color. However, in some strange way, I ended up liking the book, and I will have to attribute that in part to Elizabeth Strout's excellent writing skills. I would definitely read another book by this author with hopes for storytelling/writing equality.

Rating:
Summary: Merely O.K.
Review: Another take on the traditional mother-daughter struggle. I'm still waiting for a fresh approach!

Rating:
Summary: Beautiful, memorable mother/daughter drama...
Review: This novel is exceptional. Elizabeth Strout manages to take a simple, almost mundane story about a mother and her teenage daughter and turn it into something special. The story takes place in a year in the life of Isabelle, a single mother, and her daughter Amy. Amy falls in love with her math teacher, and mother and daughter are, at least for a while, torn apart due to said feelings. Amy is not the easiest person to deal with, but Isabelle's love and patience make an already wonderful, staggering story truly shine...

The special thing about this novel is the incredible evocative powers Strout has. She is able to, with very few words, bring you to a time and a place, and you are there. That is not to say that the writing is in anyway "sparse". Quite the contrary, this is a rich novel, but without any excess weight. Amy and Isabelle, as characters are completely real, completely believable. Although I do give this novel five stars, it does have a few, minor flaws. Amy never wonders about her father, which I found a little hard to accept. Additionally, sometimes, Strout's involvement of the minor characters seemed a little forced. As a whole, however, this is an outstanding first novel and I look forward to her future works. This is a great book to discuss with other book enthusiasts. I've had this book for quite a while. I don't know why it took me this long to give it a whirl. Highly recommended...

Rating:
Summary: A Good Relationship Book
Review: This was an easy read and a quite good mother-daughter story, taking place in a Maine mill town in the 60s. The mother's and daughter's stories are told in the context of the lives of other people in the community. The two women come to terms with complex changes and events that jeopardize their relationship and threaten to alter it forever.

Strout did a great job of revealing the inner lives of the main characters and allowing the reader to feel empathy for them. Amy was plainly revealed early in the book but it took a while longer to get to *know* Isabelle. I felt that the character portrayal was very realistic and complete, with the exception of Mr. Robertson--I felt that he could have used more development to reveal his motivation.

I thought Strout did an especially good job with Avery---he was so unkind and unfeeling, so uncaring about the effect of forgetting he was supposed to go to Isabelle's. My heart just ached as she got the house ready and waited and waited.

Sometimes Isabelle's pain, about the way her life has evolved, was almost too much to bear. What a sad and empty life she led with no confidantes and her daughter as her only interest.

There were a few loose ends that could certainly have been eliminated, and probably would have made the book flow a little better. Overall, though, it was a good reading experience.