Most of us had read some of Elizabeth Strout's previous work, including Olive Kitteridge, and we were eager to dive into her latest novel. Lucy by the Sea is written in the same easy, unadorned language and focuses on the same domestic kind of relationships as appeared in earlier work, but the neat interrelationships and the sparkle in writing were somehow lacking. Maybe we have just heard enough of Strout's fantasy (or maybe real) world of characters. The restaurant, however, was quite enjoyable and we liked most of the dishes we ordered. Our next book is Maggie O'Farrell, The Marriage Portrait. Other titles considered were Eddie Jaku, The Happiest Man on Earth, Jared Diamond, Guns, Germs, and Steel, and Eric Larson, The Devil in the White City. (The bookclub previously read the Diamond and Larson books.) Don is in line to suggest the following book. We plan to meet on June 6.
