In the end, of course, it is Olive Kitteridge who tells it like it is. However, before that happens, you do get to spend an entire wonderful year with Bob Burgess and his dear friend, Lucy Barton. Elizabeth Strout’s poignant new novel, Tell Me Everything, is a faultless examination of people and all their complexities and connections. It is an utter joy to read.

We arrive back in Maine as autumn begins and travel through the year with Lucy and Bob as they meet each week for a walk to their favourite bench. This walk and friendship become Bob’s favourite time; with Lucy he feels seen, heard, and, most importantly, understood. His year is turning into a busy one with his wife, the town pastor, having work issues, his family suffering and, as the town lawyer, he has taken on a heartbreaking murder investigation. Meanwhile, Lucy finally has become friends with Olive, now living in a retirement village and still sharp as a tack. The women discuss unrecorded lives – people they knew and how their lives went this way or that.

Strout’s superpower as a writer is to ensure everyone unites on some level without extra romance or fuss. I adore the way she unveils a curious detail to create extra pathos when needed. Her writing is seamless, dignified and inviting. I found her last novel, Lucy by the Sea, to be perfectly timed as an account of the fear, anxiety and pain caused by the global pandemic. This novel proves that Strout is still looking after her readers. Tell Me Everything examines our ability to find hope in one another. It is about the love we hold, and it shows that sometimes, most times, this is all we need.

And yes, you can enjoy this novel without having read any of her others, but why would you?