Anything Is Possible: A Novel
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • An unforgettable cast of small-town characters copes with love and loss in this “compulsively readable” (San Francisco Chronicle) novel from the Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Olive Kitteridge and My Name is Lucy Barton
“This book, this writer, are magnificent.”—Ann Patchett
WINNER OF THE STORY PRIZE • ONE OF BARACK OBAMA’S FAVORITE BOOKS OF THE YEAR • A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR: The New York Times, The Washington Post, USA Today, People, NPR, Entertainment Weekly, Newsday, The Seattle Times, Esquire, The Guardian, Kirkus Reviews, Publishers Weekly
In Anything Is Possible, Elizabeth Strout explores the whole range of human emotion through the intimate dramas of people struggling to understand themselves and others. Here are two sisters: One trades self-respect for a wealthy husband while the other finds in the pages of a book a kindred spirit who changes her life. A grown daughter longs for mother love even as she comes to accept her mother’s happiness in a foreign country. And Lucy Barton returns to visit her siblings after seventeen years of absence.
Reverberating with the deep bonds of family, and the hope that comes with reconciliation, Anything Is Possible “confirms Strout as one of our most grace-filled, and graceful, writers” (The Boston Globe).
“This book, this writer, are magnificent.”—Ann Patchett
WINNER OF THE STORY PRIZE • ONE OF BARACK OBAMA’S FAVORITE BOOKS OF THE YEAR • A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR: The New York Times, The Washington Post, USA Today, People, NPR, Entertainment Weekly, Newsday, The Seattle Times, Esquire, The Guardian, Kirkus Reviews, Publishers Weekly
In Anything Is Possible, Elizabeth Strout explores the whole range of human emotion through the intimate dramas of people struggling to understand themselves and others. Here are two sisters: One trades self-respect for a wealthy husband while the other finds in the pages of a book a kindred spirit who changes her life. A grown daughter longs for mother love even as she comes to accept her mother’s happiness in a foreign country. And Lucy Barton returns to visit her siblings after seventeen years of absence.
Reverberating with the deep bonds of family, and the hope that comes with reconciliation, Anything Is Possible “confirms Strout as one of our most grace-filled, and graceful, writers” (The Boston Globe).
BUY THE BOOK
These clubs recently read this book...
Community Reviews
thenextgoodbook.com
What’s it about?
This series of interconnected stories is set in the Midwest. Elizabeth Strout uses her razor sharp skills to shed light on our shared humanity.
What did it make me think about?
How does Elizabeth Strout keep it so simple and yet impart so many universal truths? She explores in these stories how interconnected we all are, and yet how alone we are as well. How do we connect when we each have such a different sum of experiences?
Should I read it?
This is a beautifully written collection of stories- each story connecting to another. I would highly recommend this book.
Quote-
“It seemed the older he grew- and he had gown old- the more he understood that he could not understand this confusing contest between good and evil, and that maybe people were not meant to understand things here on earth.”
If you like this try-
Levels of Life by Julian Barnes
The Tsar of Love and Techno by Anthony Marra
How to Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia by Moshin Hamid
Our Souls at Night by Kent Haruf
What’s it about?
This series of interconnected stories is set in the Midwest. Elizabeth Strout uses her razor sharp skills to shed light on our shared humanity.
What did it make me think about?
How does Elizabeth Strout keep it so simple and yet impart so many universal truths? She explores in these stories how interconnected we all are, and yet how alone we are as well. How do we connect when we each have such a different sum of experiences?
Should I read it?
This is a beautifully written collection of stories- each story connecting to another. I would highly recommend this book.
Quote-
“It seemed the older he grew- and he had gown old- the more he understood that he could not understand this confusing contest between good and evil, and that maybe people were not meant to understand things here on earth.”
If you like this try-
Levels of Life by Julian Barnes
The Tsar of Love and Techno by Anthony Marra
How to Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia by Moshin Hamid
Our Souls at Night by Kent Haruf
This book takes you on many emotional journeys with several well-drawn characters. I enjoyed this read immensely!
really enjoying this lucy barton series. this one had short stories, mostly about either current or former resident's of lucy's amgash hometown or those with a connection to the bartons. every story was packed with character depth and the stories tied so well together. felt like i was peeping in on the gossip from a small town and its ripple effects to each of the characters in the stories. was also fun to read more detailed and personal accounts from some of the characters that lucy and her mother briefly mention in my name is lucy barton. only complaint is that i wish there were more stories.
I'm a fan of Strout, but this one felt way too disjointed to be called a novel. Some of the characters were captivating, especially in the last chapter. But it wasn't enough to carry the book.
This collection of stories, novellas really, alternately charmed and repelled me. The lives described broke my heart with their trauma and gave me hope that the human spirit can thrive even in the most dire situations. The stories loosely connect people from Lucy Barton’s hometown and reveal secrets hidden even from participants in each tale.
See why thousands of readers are using Bookclubs to stay connected.