Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout

Olive Kitteridge is not only a glimpse into the writing of a Pulitzer Prize winner. It's also a glimpse into the life of a real woman -- a retired teacher, a wounded mother, a good friend, an opinionated Democrat, a caring but tired and often inattentive wife. Olive's imperfections are what make her depiction absolutely perfect.

Author Elizabeth Strout invites the reader into Olive's life in a series of short stories. In some, Olive is no more than a minor supporting player. In others, she is the leading woman -- the widow falling in love again, to her own dismay, with a wealthy Republican. Even her name is perfect. Olives come in pale green, dark green, purple, even black. Some olives are small, even skinny; others are big, downright plump. But they all have one thing in common: They're an ingredient that rarely goes unnoticed.

In one story, Olive tells two drug-crazed robbers holding her, her complaining husband Henry and a praying nurse hostage that her husband can't help his constant criticism. He's just like his mother, Olive says. Who hasn't heard our own parents or ourselves say that? And like Olive, who hasn't lived to regret saying something in anger, under stress -- the kind of statement that, while perhaps true, is best left unsaid? Olive is flawed but good, and that's what makes her perfectly real. So are the wonderful stories woven together by Strout.