rebelbelle13 's review for:

Olive's Ocean by Kevin Henkes

4.75

emotional inspiring reflective sad slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

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 Olive's Ocean is the type of book that I wish I had access to as a child. It's quiet, contemplative, and explores grief both from a distance and up close. As the summer begins, one of Martha's classmates, Olive, is killed in a car accident. Martha didn't know Olive well, but as a twelve year old, Martha has a hard time processing her feelings about it. She imagines what Olive's life must have been like, and regrets not befriending the lonely girl before her untimely passing. When she goes to Cape Cod for her week long yearly summer retreat, she discovers what it means to develop feelings for someone, and have her trust broken. She has deep conversations with her elderly grandmother, and finds solace in the ocean waves and beach. She is starting to become her own person, apart from her family, and begins to understand what that feels and looks like. The atmosphere and emotions feel rather like Nina LaCour's We Are Okay- and I would encourage older readers who loved this novel to read that one next.
While most loose ends were tied up, I really wish there was more. I understand why this won an award, and I would absolutely recommend this to anyone who is looking for a book that breaches the hard topic of death at a young age, or likes to explore grief in a quiet, atmospheric, emotional way.