This is a series of short remembrances about five days in a hospital from thirty years earlier. Lucy has a mysterious disease that is keeping her bedridden and her mother comes to visit after they haven't seen or talked to each other for many years. They still talk very little which seems to make sense as there are vague allusions to Lucy being abused as a child. Then the mother goes home and Lucy doesn't see her again until she's dying and her mother basically sends her home. 
 Lucy grew up in extreme poverty as a few incidents relay, but I found it hard to sympathize with her. She talks about love a lot - she loves her doctor, her neighbor, her first lover - but never really shows it in any way. Her attitude toward her husband is affectionate, but they also seem distant with each other. She does seem to love her two daughters but talks about Bloomingdales as their 'home'. 
 It was a hard book for me to understand (or like if I'm honest). I usually enjoy Ms. Strout's books a lot, but there didn't seem to be a lot here. Lucy and the other characters were too remote. The writing is superb and I'll remember several quotes: "Lonely was the first flavor I had tasted in my life, and it was always there, hidden inside the crevices of my mouth, reminding me." That's just lovely. Still, this isn't my favorite book of hers.