Having picked up the novel Oh, William cold, I didn't realize that it is a kind of sequel to two earlier novels by Elizabeth Strout, My Name is Lucy Barton (2016), in which Lucy is the narrator, and also a character in her novel Anything is Possible (2017). Despite reading some reviews that suggested that my lack of context might be a problem reading Oh, William without having read the other two novels, I feel that the book is quite readable without the prior context and if anything, it made for a subtler read in which I had to surmise a lot of context and history from brief allusions. At any rate, Oh, William is a beautifully written book about Lucy's complex emotional landscape and her complicated feelings toward her ex-first husband William Gerhardt. There's also a lot in the novel about Lucy's own attempts to create a safe identity for herself, overcoming a difficult childhood and various emotional attachments over her life. It's a quiet book, full of contemplation but with moments of intensity and even occasional humor.
Click here for a review of the book from NY Times: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/10/18/books/review/oh-william-elizabeth-strout.html
