However, even with that said, Olive Kitteridge is a brilliantly written novel. Strout very cleverly constructed the book from a series of stories, all about Crosby, Maine and the people who live there. Each story centers on a new character, but each story intersects in some way with Olive Kitteridge herself. Olive, a retired junior high school teacher, seems to know everyone in the town whether because she taught the person, the person was at one time in her school, or because it's just a small town and everyone pretty much knows everybody else.
I was hooked on the book in chapter one, when Olive's husband Henry takes center stage. This is a rather ingenious chapter because it is through Henry that we form our first opinions of Olive, and for me they were not the best. I did, however, adore her sweet husband, Henry, the pharmacist who just loved everyone and wanted to take care of the entire town. The tone for the entire book is set in this first chapter, called "Pharmacy," and it is a slow, somber tone. The tone never changes, in my opinion, until the very last chapter, where a bit of hope is breathed into Olive's life and you think things might actually be OK for our friend Olive.
I was warned by the friend who suggested this book to me that the prevalent themes in the book included suicide and death (I will also include the theme of sadness from dealing with every day life) so I knew this wasn't going to be a feel-good, happy-go-lucky sort of book when I picked it up. However, I had no idea that that there wasn't going to be any happiness at all. Even a wedding is portrayed as a sad event. My goodness. Such despair.
But, my friends, that is the point. With sadness and despair comes reflection--upon your life, other people's lives, your hopes and dreams, your marriage, your children...you name it. And Olive did. She did a lot of thinking. And as a result, so did I. And I bet every other person who read this book did the exact same thing. It's hard not to. You read about people's hardships and you instantly become grateful for your own life. I did. Yet, at the same time, the idea that life can change in an instant becomes ever more obvious and frightening. It did for Olive. Her life changed several times in an instant. I am 43 and terrified that I will one day have to live without my family. It happened to Olive. It can happen to me. Or you, dear reader. (At one point in reading this book, I closed it, closed my eyes and said a prayer, hoping that I will one day die before Rob. The thought of living without him is excruciating. I can't even imagine trying to get out of bed each day knowing that he's not with me any longer.)
Yet at the end of the book, there is hope for Olive, and I suppose hope for us all. Hope in the form of Jack Kennison. You'll have to read it to see what I mean.
I don't think I will be reading Olive Kitteridge again. (Unless I am feeling down on my luck and need to feel that there are people worse off than me in the world.) But, I can see exactly why it won the Pulitzer. It's quite real and everyone can take something from it into their own lives. I will take the gratitude I have for my husband and my girls and will move on to a new, happier book.
Happy reading, everyone!
:) Dodie
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