Abide with Me

A most amazing book! Loved it from beginning to end.

Elizabeth Strout is an author that has written only three books and I can't wait until she writes her fourth. "Abide with Me" is full of characters that exhibit human qualities that are both good and bad. I loved every page and was sad to see it end.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

First Read For This Author

I kept reading this book expecting everything to come together in a neat little bow in the end. I thought the entire book was disjointed and the ending was such a let down. Too much was left hanging.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Loved it just as much as her first book

I just love the way Elizabeth Strout writes. The way she constructs sentences, the way she describes things, it's all just beautiful. I loved Amy & Isabelle and was the slightest bit hesitant to read Abide with Me b/c I am Jewish and feared I wouldn't be able to relate to it, but I'm so glad I did decide to read it. I didn't want it to end I wanted to read on and on about these people and what happened to their lives.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

One of the best I've read recently

I had tears streaming down my cheeks by the end. I didn't find it slow-paced at all. I thought her characterizations were wonderful. I had wonderful visual images of everyone. It's ultimately very uplifting in its message of love and acceptance. My favorite line in the book is when Tyler responds to Connie's remark about coming from a family of sinners: 'Oh, Connie - we all do.' It has some similarities to Amy and Isabelle. I love how she shows that everyone is imperfect, everyone is a sinner, yet we're all capable and deserving of both kindness and forgiveness.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

My New Favorite Author

I began to read this book reluctantly, fearing it would be too 'religious' and the characters not at all realistic. I was so wrong! Almost immediately I was drawn into the book by Strout's compellingly graceful style. Then I became enthralled with each of the characters, who were so fully developed and engaging. Tyler struggled with human flaws as a 'man of the cloth' and Lauren was decidedly not a stereotypical minister's wife. They and all the other characters seemed totally human and real. This book is among the very best I've ever read, and I now look forward to reading her first novel, Amy and Isabelle.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Not sure what to say about this one

I liked this book, though I found myself feeling frustrated with Tyler throughout the entire thing. I kept thinking that I should have been feeling more sympathetic towards him than I actually did. I suppose it was difficult to accept how disconnected he seemed from his daughter, especially since she needed him so much.

I think the most distracting thing, though, was the way his wife's character seemed to change as the novel progressed, and not in a good way. She first came across as strong-willed and interesting. Later, she seemed to be nothing more than a shallow spendthrift and petty thief. It was odd.

Still worth reading, though.

I like Abide with Me even more than Olive Kitteridge

One of my favorite novels, Abide With Me has characters I still think about. More important, it asks questions about faith, religion, community and more and comes up with original answers that transcend cliche. Corny as it sounds, Abide with Me lifts the reader in the same way the hymn of the title might.

Rainy Day Read

If you have a few hours to invest in the story, you will find enough to keep you busy for a weekend at the beach.

Pregnant and reading

i liked this book .... it did start out slow but then it gets to the point where you want to know more about Tylers wife and how sweet it is that he protects his daughter from being an outcast. It was hard to put down after about the third chapter.I also liked how Tyler may have been a minister but after the death of his wife he finds himself back trying to find the god he onced believed in

Okay, but no Amy & Isabelle

My expectations were high because I loved Amy & Isabelle so much. The book was a little slow, and the resolution was not satisfactory. Very average read

not all the great

The book was slow and hard to get through. The last two chapter were the only ones that seemed to move and a decent pace.

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Not the best.

I found the book to be an easy read but disappointing slow with no decent resolution. Characters pop in and out of the story without an explanation as to why they are their in the first place. Tyler's depression places the reader in the unique position of wanting to jump into the book and slapping some sense into him. Parts of the book seem to be written to be purposely vague. The ending attempts to wrap up the whole story but by the time the reader finishes the book it becomes not much more than an easy attempt to add some sense of closure to a story with too many holes. The author's attempt to explain the book offered no insight and left me wondering exactly what she was talking about.

WHAT A DISAPPOINTMENT

I loved Amy & Isabelle and decided to read this one. It was boring and droll. The book just plodded along with nothing exciting going on. The charaters weren't interesting enough for me to finish it and dropped the book at page 60.

A Novel Of Rare Quality

From the first page I found myself riveted by the extraordinary beauty of the world Elizabeth Strout conveys in ABIDE WITH ME. It is so carefully and precisely seen and so eloquently written, the characters are so true and vivid, that it just blew me away. There were times I had to put the book down because I found Katherine, the little girl's, plight too upsetting for a moment, or Tyler, the minister's, grief too painful. Then again, I couldn't stop reading it. This novel is right up there with AMY AND ISABEL and beyond.

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