Amy and Isabelle

A Novel

By: Elizabeth Strout

Narrated by: Stephanie Roberts

Length: 11 hrs and 27 mins

Publisher's summary

With compassion, humor, and striking insight, Amy and Isabelle explores the secrets of sexuality that jeopardize the love between a mother and her daughter. Amy Goodrow, a shy high school student in a small mill town, falls in love with her math teacher, and together they cross the line between understandable fantasy and disturbing reality. When discovered, this emotional and physical trespass brings disgrace to Amy's mother, Isabelle, and intensifies the shame she feels about her own past. In a fury, she lashes out at her daughter's beauty and then retreats into outraged silence. Amy withdraws, too, and mother and daughter eat, sleep, and even work side by side but remain at a vast, seemingly unbridgeable distance from each other.

This conflict is surrounded by other large and small dramas in the town of Shirley Falls: a teenage pregnancy, a UFO sighting, a missing child, and the trials of Fat Bev, the community's enormous (and enormously funny and compassionate) peacemaker and amateur medical consultant. Keeping Isabelle and Amy as the main focus of her sharp, sympathetic eye, Elizabeth Strout attends to them all. As she does so, she reveals not only her deep affection for her characters, both serious and comic, but her profound wisdom about the human condition in general. She makes us care about these extraordinary ordinary people and makes us hope that they will find a way out of their often self-imposed emotional exile.

©2013 Elizabeth Strout (P)2013 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

"A novel of shining integrity and humor, about the bravery and hard choices of what is called ordinary life." (Alice Munro)

Amy and Isabelle

I read about the story and the synopsis on Amazon. I really enjoyed this book. It’s about a young woman who lives with her mother. They had a very strange relationship. I never knew what was going to happen next. I didn’t like that they left a few loose ends hanging. But, the narrator did such a fabulous job reading the book. There were parts where I laughed, parts that were unexpected, and things that happened that were unfortunate. I don’t want to give the storyline away, but it is a very enjoyable book. It reminded me of my strained relationship with my own mother.

Amazing.

Beautiful story of mother and daughter and life in a small town. I couldn't stop listening to it.

beautiful characters

Where does Amy and Isabelle rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

#1

What was one of the most memorable moments of Amy and Isabelle?

that would be a spoiler

Have you listened to any of Stephanie Roberts’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

excellent reader

If you could take any character from Amy and Isabelle out to dinner, who would it be and why?

Isabelle, I'd like to sit down and talk to her. Or maybe Fat Bev. I liked all the women characters in this book.

Any additional comments?

Elizabeth Strout's characters are so real. Complicated people who do dumb stuff, make mistakes. But they are also capable of love, and those wonderful moments of real human love and insight. I find it easy to identify with all of them.

A wonderful mother/daughter story.

Reminded my of another mother/daughter story "Peyton Place." Highly recommend reading it. And Ms. Strout's story telling is superb!

excellent story, the beginning of my love affair

Elizabeth Strout creates interesting and unforgettable characters. Somehow I had never read her first novel and I'm so glad I finally did! Well written and well performed I found my self re-reading chapters to dive in deeper to the mystery of this small town tale.

Traditional Female Characters

classic female story ...no strong female characters. some Christian sub themes. insights into fear, desire and growth.

A word painter

Would you listen to Amy and Isabelle again? Why?

Yes, I started again from the beginning as soon as I finished. Partly because I had missed some parts when I listened. but also because the characters and the story are multidimensional so you listen differently the second time.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Amy and Isabelle?

When you get to know Isabelle better.

What about Stephanie Roberts’s performance did you like?

She makes perfect voices for the characters.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

No, it's a very non-extreme book. But it is very well written and never boring. It is thoughtful entertainment.

Any additional comments?

I give this five starts not because it is such a special book, it's not. But, as another reviewer out it, Strout has an amazing gift of painting beautiful characters out of highly ordinary people.

Mothers and Daughters

Subtle and true.
The emotions of raising a daughter, coming of age and the secret of fulfillment.
That is a lot to ask of one novel, but it is magnificently delivered in this book.
A masterpiece!

Depressing

Beautifully written and performed, but it is one of the most depressing books I ever read. Such loneliness!

when in doubt, Strout

She's a go-to author for me. This was one of her best. The narrator was particularly good.