My Name Is Lucy Barton

This is what happens when you love a book an author has written: None of her subsequent books measure up. I adored Olive Kitteridge. I liked Burgess Boys. I tolerated this latest book.

I'll just go ahead and say it: This book read like a first draft. I had glimmers of happy reading this book. But it needed work and somebody decided it was finished. Big mistake.

If you want to know more, here's a little plot summary: Lucy Barton grew up poor, without good relationships with her parents. She gets an opportunity to connect with her mother when Lucy ends up in the hospital.

Nice idea for a plot, I thought, but the book needed more work to really touch me. Perhaps I need to start a new category of books: Books that Need Revision.