Olive herself has always been certain that she is 100 correct about everything - although, lately, her certitude has been shaken. Carolyn Adderson really brings this character to life.'Īngie Abdou's comments have been edited and condensed. Elizabeth Strout Collection 2 Books Set: Olive Kitteridge: Olive Kitteridge might be described by some as a battle axe or as brilliantly pushy, by others as the kindest person they had ever met. I think being privy to those very secret private feelings makes the happiness, joy and laughter in other parts feel more real as well. We're let into Ellen's jealousies, regrets, disappointments and her self-loathing - all of those negative emotions that we don't tend to share as humans. ' are let inside in that same way that we are with Olive Kittridge. She's just very angry.' Why you'll love Ellen in Pieces too She often acts in a way that she shouldn't at first. She says herself that anger is her first response to anything. 'Anger is one of Ellen's challenges in Ellen in Pieces. Caroline Adderson: How I wrote Ellen in Pieces You May Also Like Olive Kitteridge Olive Kitteridge 17.00 Olive Kitteridge Olive Kitteridge 44.50 Olive Kitteridge : Fiction Olive Kitteridge.It's interesting that Elizabeth Strout pulls that off.'

Maybe she was even a little bit abusive. She seems to have some pretty nasty lows. We have an idea that her son - her only son who she loves so much - has abandoned her, but as goes on, we get her son's perspective that maybe she wasn't the best mother. 'She's a retired schoolteacher near the end of her life, but her son has left and her marriage doesn't have a lot of energy in it. I guess that's the thing about Olive Kitteridge - I empathize so deeply with her, despite her flaws. I think characters should all be flawed, as all humans are. What does that mean? Do you classify humans as likable and unlikable? That's so simplistic. 'One of my pet peeves is when readers call a character unlikable. The story is set in Maine and follows Olive - a fascinating and often grumpy retired school teacher, who has trouble adapting to the changes in her town and family.Īngie Abdou says if you enjoyed Olive Kitteridge, Ellen in Pieces by Caroline Adderson will make the perfect Canadian companion to Strout's award-winning book. Olive Kitteridge by American author Elizabeth Strout won the 2009 Pultizer Prize for fiction and was adapted into an HBO miniseries starring Frances McDormand.

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