Lucy By The Sea is the fourth book in the Amgash series by best-selling, Pulitzer Prize winning American author, Elizabeth Strout. In early 2020, Lucy Barton’s ex-husband, parasitologist William Gerhardt is deeply concerned about the new virus spreading around the world. He urges his daughters to leave New York City for somewhere safer. Chrissie and her asthmatic husband, Michael readily take his advice, heading to his parents’ house in Connecticut.

Becka and Trey are resistant, opting to stay. Lucy feels sure he’s overreacting, but allows him to sweep her up and drive them both to a vacant house his friend, Bob Burgess is managing in the little town of Crosby in coastal Maine. They self-isolate for two weeks. Initially, Lucy isn’t impressed by the house or the town, where out-of-towners, especially New Yorkers, are not welcome.

Gradually, the idea of working from home, masks and social distancing is accepted. They spend their time walking, and have books, games and puzzles at their disposal. Lucy starts off rather petulant, her priorities a bit skewed, and is often vocal about it to William: “I hate this kind of thing” to which he calmly replies “Lucy, we’re in lockdown, stop hating everything.” But she does find herself worrying about those friends and acquaintances left behind in NYC, and those essential and emergency workers she sees on the TV news who are exposed daily to the virus.

Lucy observes “Even as all of this went on, even with the knowledge that my doctor had said it would be a year, I still did not… I don’t know how to say it, but my mind was having trouble taking things in. it was as though each day was like a huge stretch of ice I had to walk over. And in the ice were small trees stuck there and twigs, this is the only way I can describe it, as though the world had become a different landscape and I had to make it through each day without knowing when it would stop, and it seemed it would not stop, so I felt a great uneasiness”, something that will resonate with many who experienced the pandemic.

After a while, Lucy finds herself taking pleasure in nature: sunsets, a robin’s egg, dandelions, the view of the islands, thunderstorms, sea creatures, autumn colours. Separated from their former lives, it’s a time of reflection, connection and reconnection: they get to know some neighbours, volunteers, and Bob and his wife. They share worries over their daughters, and discover things about themselves.

Initially blocked, when she observes some teens and a policeman while they are out on a jaunt, “I wondered, What is it like to be a policeman, especially now, these days? What is it like to be you? This is the question that has made me a writer; always a deep desire to know what it feels like to be a different person.” She begins writing again.

And Lucy finds some empathy for certain reviled protestors: “I suddenly felt that I saw what these people were feeling. They had been made to feel poorly about themselves, they were looked at with disdain, and they could no longer stand it.”

Strout gives her characters palpable emotions, wise words and insightful observations. While Lucy admits to self-interest leading her to do something of which she’s not proud, she also details the compassion she encounters. And of the many kindnesses Lucy mentions, some from unexpected quarters, outstanding for her is William, infinitely kind, perceptive and resourceful. Olive Kitteridge gets a mention as an acquaintance of someone she meets.

Strout’s writing, its quality, style and subject matter, is reminiscent of Sebastian Barry with shades of Anne Tyler. Strout writes about ordinary people leading what they believe are ordinary lives (although there are definitely some quirky ones doing strange things amongst them, and life in a pandemic is far from ordinary) and she does it with exquisite yet succinct prose. Such a moving, powerful read.