Thank you for the comments about Olive not being likeable. I read (actually listened to it as an audio) this last year, and really didn't like Olive at all. So much so that I put the book down about 2/3 of the way thru. So I decided to do a re-read in a discussion setting to see if I was missing something. I'm looking forward to reading hardcopy this time to see how this formidable lady comes across second time around. Remember Lincoln is reputed to have said something like 'I don't like that person very much. I must get to know him better.'

I just finished the first story, Pharmacy, and found it to be wonderful. Olive came across as abrasive in this story, but not in such a way that was out of character or unbelievable. As a wife and mother, I can understand her feelings about how she does everything and no one helps. I think the feeling is universal, but is not something expressed out loud in an abrasive way by all women.

I don't mind reading books with an unlikable main character. Reading books about people like me who share the same values and lifestyle as me would be boring. I value books that take me to different times and places, even if I meet disagreeable people along the way.

A couple of books that I have read with unlikable main characters are Rebecca, Loving Frank, and A Ship Made of Paper.

Sorry! I had trouble posting a comment yesterday and when the posting worked today, it posted all attempts! Please delete all but one.

Thanks.

No problem, Laura! Perhaps our system was sleeping and didn't hear you the first time.

I agree with Laura about "Loving Frank," which was another one of my favorite books I read last year. I found myself getting very frustrated with Mamah and Frank; wanted to take Mamah out for coffee and talk some sense into her at times! Hmm, is this my year for unlikable protagonists?

Welcome, Tina. Glad you're joining us to give "Olive" another chance.

I just finished "Olive" and found myself saying "but she was just trying to do her best" numerous times and also about other characters in the book.
Liked it much more than I expected to after reading some of the reviews.

I had a little trouble getting into the book, but that is due to the kind of reading I do...mostly for my work, teaching. But once I did get into the groove of this particular book, and having read past the "assignment," I find Olive not to be as unlikable as thought...in fact I like her very much. She is a mirror to the community that reflects back to them/it their unlikableness. The others project onto her who they are in their moments of being human--they themselves not very likable. She proves this valor, for me, by not caring about "just for show" things. If she was a shallow person, I would find her unlikable. She leans toward the real in her communications and her mental chat, for the most part, she keeps to herself. She does not suffer fools at some levels. She cares about others in her own way--and has proved that on several occasions. I find her courageous even... especially with the potential suicide. Throughout the book, so far, there are patches of vagaries, things not quite explained, hinted at, and part of that vagueness is why Olive is the way she is towards others. That is a question I wonder about. But for the most part, I find her to be a mirror to her community, and people don't always appreciate seeing themselves in that light...

Well, I've finished the first two stories, and WOW am I glad I'm re-reading. Last year, when I read this, I wasn't feeling well at all, and I think my own irritations with life got magnified by Olive's. I now see her more as a stoic figure, putting up with the others in her life. She's coming across as more perseptive about other's feelings also.

I think if I had Henry just strolling in every evening to eat dinner and not offering to help (did he ever do the dishes?) I'd be a tad chilly also.

I am enjoying seeing how others see her--it's really helped improve my views.

I agree with Rhea that Olive doesn't seem totally unlikeable, although in the 1st chapter, "Pharmacy," she is definitely rude and somewhat cruel, especially to her husband Henry. I was astounded to read that Henry felt "To leave Olive was as unthinkable as sawing off his leg" and wondered when the author would explain why! Olive is honest to a fault and doesn't like small talk. For example, in the chapter "A Little Burst" Olive tells us she is like her son Chris who "can't stand the blah-blah-blah." But we find out later in "Starving" that Olive has a soft and sympathetic side. I have known some people like Olive who tell the truth as they see it without worrying about hurt feelings. I see Olive as a complex and wonderfully interesting character. I have to admit I jumped right into this book and couldn't put it down from page one!

I find it interesting that so many people have found Olive "unlikeable." Not just in these postings, but others I have spoken with who read the book had some strong negative reactions to her. Should books always be written about sweet, loveable, well-behaved people? I may not have alway agreed with her choices and observations, but I found her so completely understandable. By the end of the book, I actually did like her a lot.

I find it interesting that so many people have found Olive "unlikeable." Not just in these postings, but others I have spoken with who read the book had some strong negative reactions to her. Should books always be written about sweet, loveable, well-behaved people? I may not have alway agreed with her choices and observations, but I found her so completely understandable. By the end of the book, I actually liked her a lot.

Olive is a good example of why we shouldn't judge a person based on a single view. Everyone, includng our fictional Olive, is many faceted. Strout does a fine job in developing Olive's character over the course of the 13 stories. I think the part of this book that I have enjoyed so much is the use of language and writing style.

I would have to say that short stories are one of my favorite forms of literature. When you are really good at your craft you can make a story "live" in a very small space. I haven't read other works by Strout, but I do think that she has certainly mastered the art of bringing life to a short story! I think that now I will certainly read her novels. If the writing is on par with this collection, I am in for a real treat!

Stop by this blog yesterday and your comments peaked my interest. I found a web site that allowed for a taste ( excerpt in chapter 1) of this remarkable book. I'm hooked and can't wait to purchase a copy.
Thanks,
Bill Legere

I enjoyed reading Olive Kitteridge, and felt it was an interesting approach to character study with its short-story structure.

However, I don't know that I can point to anything about it that makes it particularly a Maine story. I mean, did it have to be set in Maine, or could it have been just as effective a novel set in some other rural location?

I lived for several years in the mid-coast area and the character of Olive just doesn't ring true to me (based on my own personal relationships with several retirement age people in that area): bitter about how her life turned out, resentful of her son, seemingly "running out the clock" on life.

I am glad the novel ends on a positive note in the last story, with Olive able to achieve a modicum of contentment and gratitude in her life.

My second reading has been awesome. I'm so impressed by the writing and character development that it's been difficult for me to get specific about the stories and the individuals. I feel like I know several Olives: Strong women who have weathered a host of troubles, some of their own making, who endured in marriages that younger women might have walked away from because deep down there was love on both sides altho both partners came from backgrounds where verbalizing emotions was not encouraged.

I wonder if anyone has listened to the audio version of Olive, as I did? It was wonderful! The reader captured the various Maine accents very well, especially the voices of Olive and Henry. I also read reviews and was skeptical about a book that had a caustic main character. However I liked Olive (most of the time) because she had no pretenses. I hope to use this book with my high school book club, and will be interested in how teens react to both Olive, and the book. Great selection.

Mary -- Could you tell us who reads the audio version?

NPR featured 'Olive Kitteridge' in its 'You Must Read This' segment on All Things Considered the day after Christmas. (http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=97941739)

Reviewer Melissa Bank wrote:

"If I sound insane about this book, it's because I am. I'm willing to do almost anything to get you to read it. Not because the book deserves to be read though it does but because if you're like me, Olive Kitteridge is the book you're always looking for:

"It's a book that prevents you from going to sleep at a reasonable hour, that lifts you up and out of the subway, that gives you a double life to lead and changes the life you're in.

"Olive Kitteridge is a book that will remind you of how much you love to read."

I waited to comment on Olive Kitteridge until I had finished reading the book. I found the book to be quite dark and at times felt like a voyeur looking deep inside other peoples' lives.

Like many of you, my initial reaction to Olive was pretty negative, but as the stories unfolded, I found myself feeling great symapthy for her. She seemed to me, a person of immense suppressed emotion who was only waiting for an encounter from someone or something in her life to give her a meaningful existence. Her acceptance of her son's treatment of her was heart wrenching for me to read--an example of her longing for love.

In so many of the stories, she was seen to have some positive, if brief, influence on other people--a former student, a grieving widdow, a young person haunted by a father's suicide. For these reasons, I found myself wishing for Olive's chance at happiness.

I waited to comment on Olive Kitteridge until I had finished reading the book. I found the book to be quite dark and at times felt like a voyeur looking deep inside other peoples' lives.

Like many of you, my initial reaction to Olive was pretty negative, but as the stories unfolded, I found myself feeling great symapthy for her. She seemed to me, a person of immense suppressed emotion who was only waiting for an encounter from someone or something in her life to give her a meaningful existence. Her acceptance of her son's treatment of her was heart wrenching for me to read--an example of her longing for love.

In so many of the stories, she was seen to have some positive, if brief, influence on other people--a former student, a grieving widdow, a young person haunted by a father's suicide. For these reasons, I found myself wishing for Olive's chance at happiness.