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lo_ferrara's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
5.0
Minor: Eating disorder
maddiela's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Moderate: Infertility and Pregnancy
Minor: Panic attacks/disorders and Eating disorder
catsy2022's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Olive is a contemporary fiction about the expectation of motherhood on women as they get older. Olivia (Olive) is friends with three other women, Cecily, Bee and Isla, each through different stages of their lives ending when they're 33ish. Cecily is a new mother at 28, Bee has three kids and Isla is trying for a child with her husband, Mike, via IVF. Outlier Olive doesn't want children and feels isolated from her friends as they reach different milestones.
This book was pretty light in plot given the circumstances. It's more of a slice of life, the characters each go through fights and trials as they try to understand each other. It was a nice read but didn't show me any other perspectives I didn't already have. The background breakup of Jacob and Olive was used to contrast how busy people get and how self-focused we all get as we get older, in that months have passed before anyone has any capacity to ask Olive about her life.
Kind of relatable and a little sad.
Worth a read if you're in this genre focus but nothing groundbreaking. I also found the characters real and enjoyable but like all contemporary fiction now you notice they all have high paying highly flexible jobs that allow them to achieve all their goals. Real people aren't all like that.
Graphic: Infertility and Pregnancy
Moderate: Infidelity
Minor: Death and Eating disorder
emce821's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Moderate: Infertility and Pregnancy
Minor: Eating disorder and Death of parent
katharina90's review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
3.5
-don't want kids
-want kids but are struggling with infertility
-have kids and are struggling postpartum or have regrets
-have kids and are thriving
-are estranged from their adult children
-etc.
Didn't love the characters. Each of the four friends was self-involved and either judgmental or inconsiderate of others in the friend group.
A missed opportunity to write about women who meet their friends where they are, with curiosity and an open mind, and a willingness to be supportive even when they don't immediately understand the other person's choices or struggles.
Moderate: Infertility, Pregnancy, and Mental illness
Minor: Infidelity, Panic attacks/disorders, Abortion, and Eating disorder
michellek's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Graphic: Infertility, Pregnancy, Eating disorder, Infidelity, and Panic attacks/disorders
franzi_'s review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Moderate: Death, Alcohol, Pregnancy, and Infertility
Minor: Vomit, Misogyny, Injury/Injury detail, Eating disorder, and Panic attacks/disorders
katharina_s's review
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Alcohol, Pregnancy, Infertility, and Sexism
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Medical content, Death, Transphobia, Injury/Injury detail, and Death of parent
Minor: Eating disorder and Blood
emmasrambles's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Minor: Eating disorder, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Pregnancy, Mental illness, and Infertility
laurataylor's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Chronic illness, Death, Panic attacks/disorders, Pregnancy, Alcohol, Death of parent, Eating disorder, Grief, Infertility, and Infidelity