Mastics-Moriches-Shirley Community Library Reader Advisory Blog: New HBO Series Based on Book

Olive Kitteridge, the new HBO mini-series starring Frances Mcdormand and Richard Jenkins is based on the 2009 Pulitzer Prize winning book of the same name by Elizabeth Strout.

The larger-than-life world of Olive Kitteridge, a retired school teacher and unofficial town crier in a small coastal town in Maine, is revealed in a series of luminous stories that explore her diverse roles in many lives, including a lounge singer haunted by a past love, a young man grieving over his lost mother, her stoic husband, and her own resentful son.

"A perfectly balanced portrait of the human condition, encompassing plenty of anger, cruelty and loss without ever losing sight of the equally powerful presences of tenderness, shared pursuits and lifelong loyalty." (Kirkus Reviews)

Here is one of the HBO mini-series trailers for Olive Kitteridge:

Thinking of making this one of your book club picks? Author Elizabeth Strout offers Olive Kitteridge readers a list of "Questions for Discussion" on her website (www.elizabethstrout.com) and LitLovers.com offers their own Olive Kitteridge book club discussion questions here.

Being Mortal by Atul Gawande

Genre: Adult Non-Fiction
Rating: 5 out of 5

"Being Mortal is about the limitations of what modern medicine can provide for people as their lives draw to a close. Gawande argues that the objective of medicine should not merely be treatment and survival; medical care should also ensure dignity in death and having control over one's final moments. He argues that instead of aggressively fighting the inescapable realities of aging, we should ask the hard questions of ourselves and our loved ones -- What makes life worth living? When should we try to extend our lives, and when should we choose a better quality of our remaining days over extending their quantity?

This book is difficult to read. Not because of the way Gawande writes -- his style is highly engaging, and he never lapses into excessively scientific jargon or overly simplistic explanations -- but because of the tough subject matter. Gawande draws on his own experiences as a doctor and peppers his book with honest and humane stories of his patients, friends, and family; the stories he tells make the book more accessible, and also more heartbreaking. (And that's not a bad thing.)

No one likes to think about their loved ones', or their own, impending mortality. But it's important to have these hard conversations, because as Gawande says, "endings matter." - Amanda

New HBO Series Based on Book

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