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Overview
Overview
WINNER OF THE PULITZER PRIZE - THE EMMY AWARD-WINNING HBO MINISERIES STARRING FRANCES MCDORMAND, RICHARD JENKINS, AND BILL MURRAY 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. NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR BY
People - USA Today - The Atlantic - The Washington Post Book World - Seattle Post-Intelligencer - Entertainment Weekly - The Christian Science Monitor - San Francisco Chronicle - Salon - San Antonio Express-News - Chicago Tribune - The Wall Street Journal "Perceptive, deeply empathetic . . . Olive is the axis around which these thirteen complex, relentlessly human narratives spin themselves into Elizabeth Strout's unforgettable novel in stories."--O: The Oprah Magazine "Fiction lovers, remember this name: Olive Kitteridge. . . . You'll never forget her. . . . Elizabeth Strout] constructs her stories with rich irony and moments of genuine surprise and intense emotion. . . . Glorious, powerful stuff."--USA Today "Funny, wicked and remorseful, Mrs. Kitteridge is a compelling life force, a red-blooded original. When she's not onstage, we look forward to her return. The book is a page-turner because of her."--San Francisco Chronicle "Olive Kitteridge still lingers in memory like a treasured photograph."--Seattle Post-Intelligencer "Rarely does a story collection pack such a gutsy emotional punch."--Entertainment Weekly "Strout animates the ordinary with astonishing force. . . . She] makes us experience not only the terrors of change but also the terrifying hope that change can bring: she plunges us into these churning waters and we come up gasping for air."--The New Yorker
People - USA Today - The Atlantic - The Washington Post Book World - Seattle Post-Intelligencer - Entertainment Weekly - The Christian Science Monitor - San Francisco Chronicle - Salon - San Antonio Express-News - Chicago Tribune - The Wall Street Journal "Perceptive, deeply empathetic . . . Olive is the axis around which these thirteen complex, relentlessly human narratives spin themselves into Elizabeth Strout's unforgettable novel in stories."--O: The Oprah Magazine "Fiction lovers, remember this name: Olive Kitteridge. . . . You'll never forget her. . . . Elizabeth Strout] constructs her stories with rich irony and moments of genuine surprise and intense emotion. . . . Glorious, powerful stuff."--USA Today "Funny, wicked and remorseful, Mrs. Kitteridge is a compelling life force, a red-blooded original. When she's not onstage, we look forward to her return. The book is a page-turner because of her."--San Francisco Chronicle "Olive Kitteridge still lingers in memory like a treasured photograph."--Seattle Post-Intelligencer "Rarely does a story collection pack such a gutsy emotional punch."--Entertainment Weekly "Strout animates the ordinary with astonishing force. . . . She] makes us experience not only the terrors of change but also the terrifying hope that change can bring: she plunges us into these churning waters and we come up gasping for air."--The New Yorker
- Format: TradePaperback
- Author: Strout, Elizabeth
- ISBN: 9780812971835
- Condition: Used
- Dimensions: 7.80 x 0.90
- Number Of Pages: 286
- Publication Year: 2008
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Well-written, insightful, poignant.
Elizabeth S. - 2 years 6 months agoIn Olive Kitteridge, Elizabeth Strout has mastered the craft of novel-in-stories form. It's a quiet book-ordinary people living ordinary lives in a small town in Maine-that addresses common themes of family relationships, aging, grief, disappointment, loneliness and death. At the outset, it's hard to imagine that a retired schoolteacher in Maine is interesting enough to justify an entire novel. However, seen through the eyes of nearly unrelated characters, Strout paints a portrait of Olive that is as complex as it is expansive. Olive isn't likeable and she doesn't fit in. But make no mistake, Olive Kitteridge is entirely loveable. And in loving Olive, you can have nothing but the utmost respect and admiration for a writer who can capture so much truth and insight without an ounce of sentimentality.
HPB Staff Review -
OLIVE KITTERIDGE
Rosemarie A. - 4 years 5 months agoA look at a difficult personality, who is nonetheless interesting to know. Olive’s outlook on life is unique.
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Who really is Olive Kitteridge?
Greta Z. - 5 years 11 months agoIt was interesting. Olive did not see herself as others saw her. She could be rather brutal. At the same time, she did try to be kind to certain people. As she aged, she did begin to get a better handle on who she was and how she effected people.
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Well written, poor story line
Ke'La P. - 6 years 2 months agoI picked this book because I wanted to read the sequels that is on Oprah's bookclub list. It was an okay read. This story really lacks a purpose I felt. It was not really building up to anything or telling a great story. I was waiting to get pulled in, but I don't feel like I ever did.