‘Olive Kitteridge’ (2008) and ‘Olive, Again’ (2019) by Elizabeth Strout
‘Olive Kitteridge’ directed by Lisa Cholodenko (HBO mini-series ,2014)
How many books really stick in the mind? Frequently, I struggle to recollect plots and characters of novels I know I have read, even those I have enjoyed.
I first read ‘Olive Kitteridge’ soon after it earned Elizabeth Strout the Pulitzer Prize in 2009 and casually decided to re-read it after watching the excellent HBO TV series based on the novel.
I immediately continued to the follow up, ‘Olive, Again’ and feel now slightly bereft that this is the end of her story (unless Strout decides to write about the first 60 years of her life!)
I was struck by just how much I had forgotten or completely overlooked in the original novel. In revisiting it, the theme of ageing now resonated more fully with my own life. There’s quite a difference between reading this book in middle-age and now I am at an age (approaching 65) regarded by institutions and individuals as officially old. You can soften this with terms like ‘silver surfers’ or speak in terms of the ‘third age’ but the hard truth is that I am (if I’m lucky) entering the last couple of decades of my life.
As I get older, mortality is no longer an abstract concept but a harsh reality. This is the first full year without my mother who died on Christmas Day 2021 aged 93 (my father passed away in 1986 aged 60).
The transience and fragility of life is beautifully and accurately rendered of Strout’s novels. Inevitably, this means that the older the reader, the greater its degree of recognition and resonance. I completely empathized with one minor character (Jane Houlton in ‘Winter Concert’) when she thinks to herself “that one of those things about getting older was knowing that so many moments weren’t just moments, they were gifts”.
Strout doesn’t ,however, regard ageing as a cause for celebration, nor does she paint life as a bed of roses. Loss, longing and grief are recurring emotions for the majority of her characters. In both Olive novels there are numerous examples of characters struggling with suicidal or self-destructive tendencies. Olive has good reason to tune in to such people as own father killed himself with a shotgun and also, having outlived two husbands, she knows the truth of the lines in Philip Larkin’s chilling poem, Aubade: “Being brave lets no one off the grave/ Death is no different whined at than withstood.”
Olive is in her late 60s when the story begins, having retired as a high school math teacher. Her husband Henry (also retired) is one year younger. Olive is 83 by the end of the second novel. Set in the fictional town of Crosby in Maine, each of the two novels consists of 13 interrelated short stories in which Olive Kitteridge is the constant presence even though she makes only a cameo appearance in many of the stories.
What makes the books so marvellous and profoundly moving is that the reader ends up getting an understanding what makes Olive Kitteridge tick, perhaps sometimes even better than she does herself. This does not mean we are expected to admire or endorse everything she does. Far from it. She is strong-willed but can often be cruel, snobbish and petty. During one interview, Elizabeth Strout admits that Olive is “a piece of work” but rightly points out that she has many admirable traits too.
‘Cantankerous’ is an adjective frequently used to describe Olive’s character, denoting that many see her as Ill-tempered , quarrelsome, disagreeable and difficult to handle. I see her as plain-spoken, undiplomatic and stubborn but , while she doesn’t suffer fools gladly, she is also compassionate and supportive towards those with psychological or health problems.
Her dislike of what she regards as lily-livered politeness is evident in her brisk practicality in actions and manners. She admires honesty in others even when it means admitting failure or weakness. I think what makes her such an appealing character is her awareness of “the essential loneliness of people”, including within herself.
Her directness is often seen as rude although, paradoxically, she hates people who use cuss words. Part of her personality stems from her own fear of not being a good enough wife and mother : “maybe she hated the scared part of herself”. The following passage sums up the complexity of her outlook on life:
“Olive’s private view is that life depends on what she thinks of as “big bursts” and “little bursts”. Big bursts are things like marriage and children, intimacies that keep you afloat, but these big bursts hold dangerous unseen currents. Which is why you need little bursts as well: a friendly clerk at Bradlee’s , let’s say, or the waitress at Dunkin’ Donuts who knows how to make your coffee. Tricky business, really.”
The HBO is a short cut entry point into the world of Olive Kitteridge with Frances McDormand making a perfect Olive and Richard Jenkins and Bill Murray bringing the characters of Henry Kitteridge and Jack Kennison to life.
However, for the complete picture and for a much deeper experience, Elizabeth Strout’s masterly novels are unmissable. Indeed, they are so great that I may just have to read then both again!
