Reviews

Mi è piaciuto molto questo libro, ancor più perché ho cominciato a leggerlo senza aspettarmi niente, senza stare troppo a guardare trama e recensioni.
Mi sono piaciuti molto sia la struttura che la scrittura: il libro è un romanzo composto da racconti, che si svolgono in una cittadina del Maine, dove tutti si conoscono e tutti hanno i loro segreti. Ogni racconto ha un suo protagonista ma costante è la figura di Olive Kitteridge, una scorbutica e burbera maestra, dotata di una grande sensibilità che non riesce a manifestare però nei confronti della sua famiglia. O la si ama o la si odia.
Ho adorato il modo in cui la Strout descrive i suoi personaggi e gli eventi che li circondano, una scrittura evocativa che non ci dice troppo ma che ci lascia intendere tutto. Consigliato!

stephaniesteen73's review against another edition

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4.0

Humans are complex emotional creatures and this novel portays this beautifully. Olive Kitteridge is not a character I will soon forget!

karoliinatuomivaara's review against another edition

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medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character

3.0

lynnylooloo's review against another edition

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challenging emotional funny reflective relaxing 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

4.5

laurenmichellebrock's review

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5.0

Olive Kitteridge is a kind of novel-short story collection hybrid. Told through the tales of the townspeople of Colby, Maine, Olive finds herself on the minds of more people than she may have realized or even liked. She’s terrifying in her emotional abrasiveness, which causes more than enough grief for those close to her, but still she has vulnerabilities that make her relatable, if not frustrating. The writing brings nuance and beauty to a series of stories fraught with the exhaustion and complexities of the mundane.

genorgana's review against another edition

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5.0

Both book and miniseries are excellent and unique storytelling experiences.

bhnmt61's review

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3.0

There were moments in the first two thirds of this book when I loved it. Strout tells the story of Olive Kitteridge by parceling out stories, some of them about Olive, some of them where Olive appears only as a minor character or even just a mention. I was thoroughly absorbed. Olive seems so unlikeable, but then you’d see some other aspect of her or her history and realize it wasn’t that simple.

But the last few chapters killed it for me. *minor spoilers ahead, no specifics* I so badly wanted her to connect with someone, anyone, but not a character Strout pulled out of a hat at the last minute. I actually wanted it to be the bratty step-grandson-I thought they might have found a kindred spirit in each other. They could be each other's grumpy champion. But it was not to be. The ending is almost cheesy. Wait, did she really mean to give crusty, grumpy-but-good-intentions Olive a wealthy white hero? Did she think this through?

Also, I don’t want to give any spoilers, but with only a couple of tiny tweaks that last chapter would be creepy, not satisfying, and it wasn’t very satisfying anyway. I wasn't sure until the last couple of paragraphs which way she was going with that. Disappointing. Could be a two-star read, but I'm still giving it three because a couple of the stories along the way were compelling.

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