February book: Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout

Olive Kitteridge 
by Elizabeth Strout



(discussion leader: Gypsy)





Some background links to get you started:

• The author's website page for the book
• A review by Louisa Thomas in The NY Times
• An article on NPR - Who says you have to like a character? 
• "'Emotional wallop' secures Pulitzer for Elizabeth Strout" by Alison Flood in The Guardian
• A review by Jana Siciliano at bookreporter.com
• The HBO website for the TV series of Olive Kitteridge

What we discussed about the book:
- how is generational conflict highlighted?
- is there a generational change in parenting and relationships?
- how do approaches to mental illness change between the generations
- how is suspense built through the structure of these 13 stories?
- in what ways is Olive essential as the link?
-What was it with the donuts?
- the themes of suicide, eating disorders 'we're all starving', hunger, death, aging, flawed relationships
- how sad was the wedding story?
- was Christopher's father ineffective?
- small town life and the interconnected-ness of such communities
- how painful would it have been for Olive to revisit the house they'd built for Christopher?
- why does Henry tolerate and stand by Olive? Does he believe that commitment is for life?
- Was Olive actually overweight or was she just a large woman?
- Olive's propensity to save younger people. Why?
- how does Olive's interaction with Jack Kennison reflect change in her personality?
- do we allow people to be sad?

Ratings:
Range: 8 to 9
Average: 8.28