Strout's writing style gives you an up close and personal - sometimes intimate and uncomfortable - view into the lives of very ordinary people, coping with life's challenges. The short story approach is very effective, but did leave me wanting to know a whole lot more about many of the characters. Olive connects the stories together - playing sometimes a large role or sometimes making just a cameo appearance. Strout's weaving of Olive into the stories in this manner was also very effective. Despite some of the more gloomy, somber themes, I really enjoyed the book as it encouraged a lot of reflection. It was a good book club pick as it elicited a lot of passionate discussion on the main character!