Olive Kitteridge is back and just as cantankerous as ever in Elizabeth Strout’s new book, “Olive, Again.” I was a huge fan of “Olive Kitteridge” and this sequel does not disappoint—if anything, I thought it was even better. Picking up approximately where the earlier book left off and told in the same interwoven story style, “Olive, Again” delves into the lives of the inhabitants of Crosby, Maine—a teenager struggling with the death of her father; a woman battling cancer; a family finding reconciliation after a shocking revelation; a poet battling depression. Strout’s gift is in portraying the grace and dignity of these seemingly ordinary lives in a way that spotlights the universality and humanness of their struggles. But the star of the show, without a doubt, is Olive, whose brusque, straightforward and often difficult personality belies her bedrock decency. As she deals with her son Christopher, with her neighbors, and with the indignities inherent in getting old, Olive is always a joy, and her relationship with Jack Kennison, who opens the novel, is a delight. If you’ve read and enjoyed “Olive Kitteridge,” this book is a must read. If you haven’t, “Olive, Again” can stand alone, but you might want to start with the earlier book just to get the full scope of Olive’s story, as there are a few references made to events from it that will have more emotional resonance if you do. Highly recommended.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House for providing me with an ARC of this title in return for my honest review. I loved every page.

#oliveagain @NetGalley amazing book that ties together 1st novel and the great Olive. Remarkable once again how @elizabethstrout builds a full novel w a cherrypicker’s eye. Genius.

Olive, Again is the sequel to Olive Kitteridge. The story follows Olive, and other characters, from Crosby, Maine as they survive life's joys and heartbreaks. There are 13 stories that are loosely woven together into a tapestry of Olive's lifetime. The writing is evocative and poignant. Olive is a difficult woman, but Stout allows us to witness her heart and mind change as she endures tragedies and disappointments, but also love and acceptance.
Well worth a read.

This is an ARC book from Netgalley-Years pass by and Olive Kitteridge gets with Jack Henneson after their spouses die. She discovers how bad she treated her husband and son thru the years and was trying to turn things around especially with people she knows because of the way she talked to them. As she ages and runs into the people she knows the story of each of their lives are unfolded and told how they are living now. Olive tries to figure out what was wrong with her life.

I loved this book so so excited to visit with Olive again older remarried to a man named Jack ,the same quirky bossy Olive but just maybe a little kinder.Love reading about her neighbors friends far and near.The whole community each character comes alive I feel like I know them their families troubles.Elizabeth Strout has written another superb novel she is one of my favorite authors and this is one of my favorite books of the year.#netgalley #randomhouse,

I was thrilled to see that there was a sequel to olive kitredge. She was a character i was not finished with. I don’t think I’ve ever read a book this quickly. I’m only sad that I can’t tell friends to immediately go buy it because it won’t be out for months.

I love Olive Kitteridge. There, I said it. While I can't QUITE give this five stars, it is definitely a strong four or four-and-a-half. In the first book, I kind of thought she was horrible...has she changed or have I? Both I think...Olive is older and more reflective...she is still telling it like it is, offending people and suffering private hurts, but she is also showing more open-mindedness, more vulnerability and I love the combination. Such a wonderful quick and easy read, but so thought-provoking on themes of family, aging, love later in life and contemplating our own mortality. If you have not read Olive Kitteridge, you must -- and then follow it up with this. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

I read all of Strout’s work after reading Olive Kitterage and so was anxious to read Olive, Again. The style of writing and the character development are great. This is Olive growing older, experiencing more, living more. Of course the other stories within Olive’s, loosely connecting to Olive are also well written and very good.

Elizabeth Strout's Olive Kitteridge is a formidable character whose vulnerability is demonstrated through her observations and exploration of life. Told through a collection of short stories or scenic snapshots that may or may not include Kitteridge, the culmination of the tales shows how they inter-relate. Once again, Strout has beautifully written a book that addresses the mystery of life from a most unlikely viewpoint.

Olive Kitteridge is one of the great curmudgeons in modern literature. With her judgmental nature and direct, plain-spoken manner borne of her upbringing in a small town in coastal Maine, she instantly became a character who readers could relate to, if not exactly ever come to like. Olive said and did things that we all probably want to say or do ourselves on occasion, but usually never end up having the courage to try. In <i>Olive Kitteridge</i>, Elizabeth Strout’s perceptive and melancholy novel in which Olive is introduced to the world, the author offers a truly affecting character study of an aging woman attempting to make sense of her own life as well as the impact that she has on the lives of the people around her.

That background is important to understand because with <i>Olive, Again</i>, Strout picks up Olive’s history roughly where the first book ended. Written about a decade after the original, this sequel is also structured as a series of interconnected short narratives, some involving Olive as the main focal point and others in which she is a minor presence in someone else’s story. To be sure, though, this is very much Olive’s tale, as from the outset we find her widowed by her first husband Henry and retired from a career as a middle school math teacher. The book then relates the main events in her life over the next few decades, including a second marriage, a deepening relationship with her estranged son, and an ultimate move into a rest home as her health begins to fail. As before, much of this development involves some heartbreaking themes, such as suicides, failed marriages, dementia, professional betrayal, and the like.

For those who loved <i>Olive Kitteridge</i>—and I am definitely in that camp—this new book is a most welcome chance to deepen our understanding of a complex, flawed, and very human character. Olive still has many of the same rough edges and she remains her own worst enemy when it comes to interacting with friends, former students, and strangers alike. But, I also found her to be far more empathetic this time around and, dare I say it, even a little more humorous than before. The word “mellow” should never be used to describe Olive, but she is definitely moving in that direction. Of course, all of this is to the author’s great credit; Strout is a truly gifted writer whose deep insights into human nature—particularly with respect to the aging process—are captured so beautifully on every page. I am not sure if we have now seen the last of Olive, but it has been an absolute pleasure to accompany her on her journey to this point.

“Hell’s Bells” & “Good Godfrey” it’s “Olive, Again” in all her irascible glory. My affection for this character was born when I read “Olive Kitteridge” several years ago. This book is also written in an interlinking short story form. I found myself dragging my feet a bit toward the end not wanting the stories to end. Prickly but practical you would want Olive to be on your side when in need. Need I say that I absolutely loved this book?

I heard so much about the first book that I was very interested in this one. I enjoyed it, and cheered for Olive in most circumstances. I think her lack of filters and her honesty were refreshing. There were so many stories within the story - in which Olive always makes an appearance, and usually makes a positive contribution - so many, in fact, that I found the book a little disjointed and hard to follow. I didn't read it in one sitting, so I was constantly picking it up and putting it down, and found it difficult to keep the characters straight, but maybe that is my fault. Three and a half stars for me
As for enjoyable books about elders, I enjoyed much more the Arthur Trulove series by Elizabeth Berg.
I received an advanced copy of this book from Random House through NetGalley

Olive Again is the continuing story of Olive Kitteridge, the original title for which Ms. Strout won a Pulitzer. Set in Crosby, Maine, Olive becomes a less curmudgeon individual and actually begins to like herself and her now deceased husband. Perhaps it is husband number two which causes this shift. Very differently written, but entertaining none the less.

I’m not quite sure what to write about this book or how to describe it. First, I should say that I liked this book. I was glad to see Olive Kitteridge reappear as I quite enjoyed this author’s first book, Olive Kitteridge. Olive, herself, is hard to describe. She is at once a curmudgeon and yet, upon reflection, she will feel quite kindly toward a person or a situation. This author perfectly describes one getting older; their feelings, regrets and sorrows. When it comes to making the reader feel loneliness thought her characters—Olive or Jack—she nails it. If I could, just once, pick the perfect word to fit a situation like Elizabeth Strout can, I would be a happy camper.

Olive, Again is a worthy sequel to Strout’s 2008 Pulitzer Prize winning Olive Kitteridge. Here we find Olive older, but still as difficult, as prickly, as infuriating as ever – even as she is also, by turns, kind and wise. It is difficult to talk about these thirteen linked stories without giving too much away, but I will say that it was satisfying to see Olive gain some measure of happiness following her husband Henry’s death in the first book. I especially liked "Pedicure" and "The Poet." Strout’s greatest strengths as a writer are her beautiful prose and insight into human nature, and both are showcased here. Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an advance copy.

This book is the sequel to Olive Kitteridge, which I hadn’t read, but had watched the HBO mini series staring Frances McDormand. I was fascinated by her character, who is both endearing and infuriating. She doesn’t hold back from speaking her mind, which made me laugh and shake my head throughout. But there is also a softer side to her, in how she cares for the sick or shows compassion to troubled young people.

I am not normally drawn to short stories, but Elizabeth Strout masterfully weaves in the lives of different town folks (set in Crosby, Maine); and there is a natural progression, with Olive as the anchor between stories. Each story is raw, genuine and honest with characters who are so relatable. All and all an enjoyable read by an author who has the ability to make you reflect on life’s meaning.

Thank you, NetGalley, for the pleasure of Olive, Again. This read was completed without beginning with #1, Olive Kitteridge. I had no trouble following the story, gaining background, or understanding Olive. I am looking forward to back-tracking and reading Olive Kitteridge.

Forced into a a life post-Henry, Olive Kitteridge of Crosby, Maine finds herself in a second marriage and grapples with relationships with those around her. Olive is not easy to like or understand, yet her quirks make her . . . . well, Olive. She is offensive yet compassionate. Gruff yet empathetic. Snobbish yet grounded. Quite rough around the edges, she is redemptive when it really matters.

I really loved Olive when she was simply with a person and without being able to console, consider, or verbally empathize, she simply said things like, "Hell of a thing it is," or "Hell of a mess to be in." She makes a simple "it is what it is" situation feel like empathy by just being present when least expected.

Many moments in Olive, Again were sad and many were laugh out loud funny. The author does a fantastic job of letting people be people - terrible flaws and all - without causing the reader to dislike the characters over it. Most of all, Olive.

Welcome back, Olive Kitteridge. So very glad you made a return appearance. As quirky and socially backward as ever, but with a sense of purpose and speaking the truth when others can't or won't, Olive navigates aging, a new man in her life, and shares stories of the characters, young and old, who cross her path. Written with descriptive prose that enables the reader to see the people and the scenes described, Elizabeth Strout gives us the special gift of more time spent with Olive. Savor it.

This book is a big time winner! From the first page, I could not put it down. It's superbly written with vivid descriptions and a fantastic story.

I sat and devoured this sequel to Olive Kittredge in an evening. Elizabeth Strout returns to explore the lives of the residents of Crosby, Maine through loss, pain, longing, and death and a reminder that we are, fundamentally, alone. Secrets abound, and we're taken into the confidences of children and adults alike while treated to luminous musings, such as when Suzanne says to her lawyer, Bernie: "I think our job - maybe even our duty - is to - " Her voice became calm, adultlike. "To bear the burden of the mystery with as much grace as we can." Gorgeous stuff. Brava - another winner!