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3.81 AVERAGE
3.81 AVERAGE
emotional
funny
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
There is a quiet, subtle beauty to this story. The writing is rich, and I love the idea of examining a character through the eyes of other characters, but the melancholic tone and all the grief and general unhappiness with life was enough to send me into a depressive episode so I had to shelve this one.
I really got a lot out of this book and the message about aging, relationships and community. I like the long view it takes and the way she portrays older characters. The one advice I would give to anyone reading the book is to try to read it in a short period of time because there are so many characters introduced that it is hard to remember them all if you stretch it out over a week or two (at least if your memory is as bad as mine is). I had trouble keeping track which was a little frustrating for me.
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I absolutely loved this novel. Just pitch perfect. First, the method: Olive seen directly (very!) and indirectly and brilliantly executed.
The novel was one of the best studies of middle age, aging, and old age that I’ve ever read.
Already, I can’t wait to reread it.
The novel was one of the best studies of middle age, aging, and old age that I’ve ever read.
Already, I can’t wait to reread it.
adventurous
emotional
funny
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Very fun book with a unique style, where not all chapters are entangled and so involved with Olive, who was a very relatable character.
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The characters and lives of small town America - a reminder of how little we know of each other and how hard true empathy is
I loved this novel. It was such an efficient, understated profile of a character. Every inch of the book was used. It’s called a novel, despite it feeling like short stories; it’s called Olive Kitteridge, despite most of the novel focusing on other characters and situations that have nothing to do with her. In this way, the book signals that the project is to learn what we can learn about Olive given scant resources, like trying to flip a pancake with a butterknife. Perhaps this simulates what the people in Olive’s life had to get used to.
I found the chapters where Olive only appeared for an instant to contain as much information about her as the ones focusing on her entirely. For Olive to know to tell a young, disturbed female student that she’s there to talk offers at least as much knowledge about who Olive is as a chapter where she avoids speaking to her son about her feelings by lashing out at him. In fact, usually, the closer we get to her, the less sympathetic she becomes. The less I want to learn. This novel is a really wonderful affirmation of the strangeness of others, who are no less strange simply because we think we know them.
I found the chapters where Olive only appeared for an instant to contain as much information about her as the ones focusing on her entirely. For Olive to know to tell a young, disturbed female student that she’s there to talk offers at least as much knowledge about who Olive is as a chapter where she avoids speaking to her son about her feelings by lashing out at him. In fact, usually, the closer we get to her, the less sympathetic she becomes. The less I want to learn. This novel is a really wonderful affirmation of the strangeness of others, who are no less strange simply because we think we know them.
challenging
funny
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes