Olive, Again

It took me a while to settle into Olive, Again by Elizabeth Strout, even though I couldn’t wait to read it after finishing Olive Kitteridge. One of the things I love about the Olive books is that it’s not just her story, but an amalgamation of intersecting lives in the fictional town of Crosby, Maine. Some of the chapters revolve around characters who have just a passing acquaintance with Olive and others who have deeper connections to her. It was interestingi to see who would be the focus of the next chapter and how Olive would turn up in their narrative.

Added Bonus 2/26/22: As an end-of-February-vacation treat for myself, I purchased the HBO miniseries on Amazon Prime and enjoyed every second of the four-episode, on-screen version of Olive’s adventures. Loved the casting, especially Bill Murray as Jack Kennison!

Oh, William

Reading Oh, William by Elizabeth Strout made my head hurt. I think it’s the character, Lucy Barton, who is telling the story that makes me want to step in front of a moving train. It was a quick read though.

So there’s that.

I read it in less than a week, after completing Olive Kitteridge, and waiting for Olive Again. But it still left me shaking my head. 

On a side note, Lisa really liked it. I can’t imagine why, but she says she like Strout’s writing style. I think the author’s voice in Oh, William was very different from that in Olive Kitteridge, too conversational, full of run-on sentences and rambling thoughts. Too distracting for me to work up the energy to give a shit about the weird-ass relationship between Lucy and Oh William.