Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout

Thirteen inter-twined tales from present a portrait of ordinary coastal Mainers living lives of quiet grief intermingled with flashes of human connection. The opening Pharmacy focuses on terse, dry junior high-school teacher Olive Kitteridge and her gregarious pharmacist husband, Henry, both of whom have survived the loss of a psychologically damaged parent, and both of whom suffer painful attractions to co-workers. 

When you click on the 1 star reviews on Amazon, they definitely capture my feelings and puzzlement on how this book could have generated so much interest

I found the characters to be grating.  Olive was so miserable, Henry was mousy, Denise was naive -- and all were very dysfunctional.  Thankfully, I don't know anyone like these people so, none of the characters seem real. 

Rating: 1 Do NOT Recommend