Nothing But Reading Challenges discussion

This topic is open for discussion of Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout




Book Synopsis:
In a voice more powerful and compassionate than ever before, New York Times bestselling author Elizabeth Strout binds together thirteen rich, luminous narratives into a book with the heft of a novel, through the presence of one larger-than-life, unforgettable character: Olive Kitteridge.

At the edge of the continent, Crosby, Maine, may seem like nowhere, but seen through this brilliant writer’s eyes, it’s in essence the whole world, and the lives that are lived there are filled with all of the grand human drama–desire, despair, jealousy, hope, and love.

At times stern, at other times patient, at times perceptive, at other times in sad denial, Olive Kitteridge, a retired schoolteacher, deplores the changes in her little town and in the world at large, but she doesn’t always recognize the changes in those around her: a lounge musician haunted by a past romance: a former student who has lost the will to live: Olive’s own adult child, who feels tyrannized by her irrational sensitivities; and Henry, who finds his loyalty to his marriage both a blessing and a curse.

As the townspeople grapple with their problems, mild and dire, Olive is brought to a deeper understanding of herself and her life–sometimes painfully, but always with ruthless honesty. Olive Kitteridge offers profound insights into the human condition–its conflicts, its tragedies and joys, and the endurance it requires.

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Cool....discuss with me please! lol

I was going to say I'll start this tomorrow but it already is tomorrow here. I'll post some thoughts this evening. Good to see you enjoyed it.

I can't believe it's December.

I would get to it later if I can.

I'm going to read this one, but I won't be able to start until the weekend.

I'm in

Well I've read the first chapter. It's intriguing but I can't see where it's going. I'm finding the time jumps a bit challenging, anyone else feeling the same? Why do people stay together when they're not happy?

I think in this particular book and style of writing, you definitely don't see where it is leading you, intriguing like you say. I'll go ahead and use a spoiler (view spoiler)[I think that Henry obviously is a Protestant who doesn't believe in divorce but I think really deep down he does loves Olive. How could he ever stand her or either he is a true blue masochist! But I don't think so because he finds in Denise that need to feel happy, to feel needed, I think the lack of that from Olive pushes him on to find it. I think truthfully that Olive is the woman who reminds himself of his mother who was very critical of him. We don't know much about his mother except just a line or two and clearly it shaped Henry. Seems like he is trying to undo the damage done. An interesting start I think. I haven't known too many people who were truly unhappy and stayed together except....perhaps my own parents!

I think in my mother's generation they were more apt to stay together than get a divorce, sad but true. (hide spoiler)]

I've read the first 5 stories (up to 'A Different Road'). I'm not quite sure what I think about the book so far. On one hand the writing is good and I've been interested in the characters and what will happen in each story but on the other I'm not a big fan of short stories and I do feel that just as I am getting to know a character we move on plus I'm finding it a bit depressing. Is anyone happy? I'm finding it quite draining probably because it feels so realistic.

Pigletto wrote: "I've read the first 5 stories (up to 'A Different Road'). I'm not quite sure what I think about the book so far. On one hand the writing is good and I've been interested in the characters and what ..."

I am not a fan of short stories as well....in fact I believe that I have never ever completed a short story book. But....this book is well worth it, believe me. I am currently watching the mini-series for the second time and it is quite good, I do recommend reading the book first. Yes, it is realistic and depressing but it has many gems within. I would say take it more in chunks and view it more of a literary view.

Thoughts on stories read so far:

Pharmacy (view spoiler)[Henry doesn't seem too happy in his marriage. I felt that he wants the vibrancy of Olive but also the stability of Denise. Olive didn't come across as a particularly nice person in this story. (hide spoiler)]

Incoming Tide(view spoiler)[This put a whole new light on Olive. She seemed to be quite perceptive and empathetic towards Kevin's situation. I really wanted to know if Kevin and Patty are saved and if Kevin is able to manage his depression better. (hide spoiler)]

The Piano Player(view spoiler)[I really liked reading this one. It felt more contained. Not much of Olive though. I hope that Angela doesn't go back to her married lover. I was surprised when it was revealed that she is the one that is abusing her mother. I know there were issues in the past but at some point you have to take responsibility for your own life. (hide spoiler)]

A Little Burst (view spoiler)[First story from Olive's point of view. I felt bad for her but wondered if her problems with her new daughter-in-law somewhat stem from them being similar forceful characters. I did like Olive but it's pretty petty of her to take her daughter-in-law's things. (hide spoiler)]

Starving (view spoiler)[Another man not happy in his marriage. The story of the young girl was sad but it was nice to see Olive, Harmon and Daisy all care for her so much. I wonder if Harmon would leave his wife for Daisy or whether he would just carry on with the affair. (hide spoiler)]

A Different Road (view spoiler)[This was a bit confusing with the several swaps in time with little notice. A very frightening event that has taken it's toll on both Olive and Henry. I wonder if they will be able to mend their relationship. I think Henry took it harder because he is such a warm and welcoming man. Olive seems to be more cynical about life and people. (hide spoiler)]

Winter Concert (view spoiler)[Not much happened in this one nor was there much about Olive or Henry. So, Bob had an affair? If so they seemed to have managed to get into a good relationship again (well, before the revelation of his visit to her). (hide spoiler)]

I've just finished 'tulips' but she is talking about Louise Larkin. What did she do? I've forgotten

Clare wrote: "I've just finished 'tulips' but she is talking about Louise Larkin. What did she do? I've forgotten"

I'm a bit confused as Louise is only mentioned in Tulips. Are you thinking she was mentioned previously?

(view spoiler)[So, from what I can gather. Louise's son killed a woman by stabing her 29 times and is in prison. Louise has been getting shock treatments and possibly other psychological treatments but whether this is solely due to a breakdown with regards to what happened with her son or whether she had issues before is not clear.

Louise seems to be very unreliable on what she says about her husband as she is being very protective about her son and wants any blame to fall on her husband and not on her or her son. She also seems quite nasty but again it's not clear if she has always been like this or not.

It was very sad about Henry. It brings it home how quickly these things happen. (hide spoiler)]

Basket of Trips (view spoiler)[More sadness. Olive is pretty lost without Henry and I'm angry at Christopher for not coming home more. I didn't like Kerry. I'm not sure whether she did believe that Marlene knew or whether she was just trying to clear her conscience. (hide spoiler)]

Ship in a Bottle (view spoiler)[I wasn't so keen on this story. I think it lost a lot by being from the point of view of a child. There seemed as if there was a lot going on in the family that she was not aware of and undercurrents that she was not able to pick up or understand due to her age. (hide spoiler)]

Security (view spoiler)[An interesting story featuring Olive. I would like to see a story with her son Christopher as a narrator. (hide spoiler)]

Sorry I have gone mia during your discussion Piletto, been busy with all kinds of "stuff" lol....and my BRs.

I agree on (view spoiler)[Kerry really seemed condescending in a passive way though. I also couldn't quite figure out Christopher but I think when a parent is dealing with health issues and a child is an adult with their own life, the parent a lot of times gets looked over. What a shame.

It would have put an interesting perspective if there was a story with Christopher as the narrator, I agree, that would have been very smart of the author. (hide spoiler)]

Margaret wrote: "Sorry I have gone mia during your discussion Piletto, been busy with all kinds of "stuff" lol....and my BRs."

Tell me about it. I've had to pull out of a couple of BRs I wanted to do just because I was trying to commit myself to too many. I'm also not used to reading several books at a time.

(view spoiler)[It seemed to me that Christopher was having a hard time seeing his father so helpless and that's why he didn't stay longer but after Security I think something happened with Olive. It was weird that she got so upset about the butterscotch stain that she wanted to go home. (hide spoiler)]

Criminal (view spoiler)[I found Rebecca kind of annoying. Her boyfriend was annoying too. He seemed pretty patronising towards Rebecca. This wasn't one of my favourites I kept wanting Rebecca to get a backbone. (hide spoiler)]

River (view spoiler)[Olive seems to be learning a bit about herself and how she has acted in the past. It left me with hope that her new relationship with Jack will go well. I found it funny when Olive was on the phone to her son and her friend and kept telling them they were wrong and thinking 'what an idiot' when they could see what she could not. (hide spoiler)]

Overall I liked the book but didn't love it. The writing was good and the characters well drawn. Olive especially felt like a real person with all her faults but many good points as well. I still wish there had been a chapter narrated by her son as I feel we could have learned a lot more about Olive if we had been able to see things from his point of view.

I think that each person's story could be developed into a novel of it's own which is good but also the main reason why I didn't love the book. I was frustrated that I was left with so many questions about what happened to these people. I kept hoping that we'd get more information about what happened to them.

I also found this to be a pretty depressing book. My enjoyment if it was lessened because of this - this is the time of year I often read lighter and happier books. I'm glad that things were looking better for Olive at the end.

I think that I loved it more than you and this is coming from a person who does not read a book full of short stories! Of course this one was different because it circled around our main couple.

I don't recommend watching the miniseries unless you are prepared for some more depression :) I like to get into the raw emotion of life but I do have my limits. lol You have to admit though the ending was great, well, at least to me it was. I agree though, a chapter from the son's viewpoint would have been brilliant.

(view spoiler)[I think the part where Olive freaks out over the butterscotch scene was because she was feeling especially old and it symbolized just that. Her son and wife not even bothering to let her know that she had a glob running down her front. I think I would have been upset. There was a lot in that scene, her being upset over Henry and what was happening with him her being out of place at her son's house. The oddity of the whole situation really drove home that she is out of sorts and old! (hide spoiler)]

I was a bit disappointed with the book. I too felt there were too many unanswered questions about the other characters. I'm not sure I liked Olive either. I'm glad that it ended positively for her though. Not one of my favorites.

I wondered if I would have liked her better/rooted for her more if the first story had been from her point of view. I liked Henry and Olive seemed so hard on him in that first story that it was hard to like her. Even when she is so nice to Kevin in the second story I kept thinking why can't you be like that with your own husband. Maybe if I had got to know a bit about her before seeing her through Henry's eyes I would have felt more sympathy for her.

I just finished the story, Pharmacy here are my thoughts

(view spoiler)[ Ouch. This was a painful story for me to read. The only good thing about the story is that it was short. It just seemed like a bunch of grumpy old people bitching and out each other. It really was a mind numbing read for me. (hide spoiler)]

My thoughts about the story, Incoming Tide

(view spoiler)[ I was able to tolerate this story more. I liked the how she described the whole water scene, how he was saving her. The imagery is real nice and the atmosphere of this story. She wanted to live. :) That's more positive. In how she left the story open at the end like that. I like her skirt drifting like seaweed. I was able to visualize the story. (hide spoiler)]

My thought about the story The Piano Player,

(view spoiler)[ Out of the three stories I have read so far this one is my favorite. Angela is very messed up. So what if her mother did tricks, she was able to keep food in their bellies. I didn't like Angela very much, she just felt sorry for herself and never wants to better herself. I wonder if she will tell them about how she likes to squeeze her mothers arms like that or just say that her mother has bruises on them, kind of shifting the blame to the workers there. Not right. She claims that she will not sleep with her married lover but I'm pretty sure she will. She's too weak of a person, but they left us with some hope. I just don't trust her. (hide spoiler)]

My thoughts about the story, A Little Burst

(view spoiler)[ Wow, Olive is a horrible person. I can't stand people like her. They are the worst kind of people, just snakes. No wonder Henry was getting depressed. Married to someone like her would make me depressed too. She is so judgmental and crazy making. Horrible person. (hide spoiler)]

My thoughts about the story, Starving

(view spoiler)[This is a smart story. I like it even more than the other stories. Not only does Olive show a caring side of her but this has a great title that can have two different meanings. Starving because the girl has starved herself. Starving because his marriage is starving. That his love is with his long time "f-buddy". He loves Daisy and I can't help to be happy for them both. It's so tricky, his wife will be shattered but like the story says, their love is starved. (hide spoiler)]

My thought about the story, A Different Road

(view spoiler)[
This is a complex story of the ugliness a relationship can have. Olive of course has a lot of anger in her and she is a reactor. She is one of those people that doesn't have a good emotional grown, most likely from her father killing himself. It takes one little thing and she blows up. It's ugly and she was only aware of it now because her husband and that night of being hostage brought it out. She has a lot of emotional growth to do but since she's so old that seems less likely. She will just drive everyone away. (hide spoiler)]

Pigletto wrote: "I wondered if I would have liked her better/rooted for her more if the first story had been from her point of view. I liked Henry and Olive seemed so hard on him in that first story that it was har..."

I really agree with you about this. That first story really made me not like her much. Not at all but now as the stories are going on, you see why the way she is. She isn't that likeable but the stories are more interesting. There are a lot of depth to them.

My thoughts about the story, Winter Concert

(view spoiler)[
Aww, this one is so sad. I wonder why he had an affair and so late in life. It seems like their relationship was strong at first but then perhaps he tried more after his one time affair. It just shows us not to judge others, sometime they know more than what we know what is happening in our own lives. How she just went on and on about families, the kids, and claiming she knew more, when others knew of her husbands affair. It's kind of sad how people will stay in something because they feel they have invested too much time into it. (hide spoiler)]

My thoughts about the story, Tulips

(view spoiler)[ How tragic life can be. Your only child moving away with his new wife, then divorces and stays away. Husband's health declining. The tragic life of neighbors. Getting old sucks. It's just a reminder to be thankful for the people and things going well in your life. Keep that gratitude list going. (hide spoiler)]

I agree keep that gratitude list going :) I have talked with so many different older people at various ages and there are the sad, broken down ones and there are the happy go lucky ones. I plan on being one of those grateful happy go lucky ones. :) This book sure drives that desire in.

The trick is not to take things forgranted. Olive did that with Henry and was always carping at him but then missed him terribly when he had the stroke.

yep, value what you have when you have it :)