Olive's Ocean

Locations
Call Number: R Newbery Honor 2004, Y Fiction / Henkes, Kevin
On Shelf At: Downtown Library

Location & Checkout Length	Call Number	Checkout Length	Item Status
Downtown Kids Reference 0-week checkout	R Newbery Honor 2004	0-week checkout	Library Use Only
Downtown Kids Books 4-week checkout	Y Fiction / Henkes, Kevin	4-week checkout	On Shelf
Downtown Kids Books 4-week checkout	Y Fiction / Henkes, Kevin	4-week checkout	Due 05-23-2024

Youth level.
On a summer visit to her grandmother's cottage by the ocean, twelve-year-old Martha gains perspective on the death of a classmate, on her relationship with her grandmother, on her feelings for an older boy, and on her plans to be a writer.

COMMUNITY REVIEWS

Great Newbery Read! submitted by ErinDurrett on April 9, 2010, 7:29pm Olive’s Ocean is a fantastic Newbery winner about a twelve year old girl Martha, dealing with the trials of growing up, and with grown up topics. Before Martha and her family leave on their annual trip to see her grandmother, Martha receives an unexpected visitor, Olive’s mother. Olive was a girl in Martha’s class that recently was involved in a horrible car accident and was killed. Mrs. Barstow (Olive’s mother) comes to see Martha and bring her a page in Olive’s diary in which she’s mentioned. Olive, who has never even worked up the nerve to talk to anyone in class, thinks Martha is the nicest girl in their whole grade, wishes to be friends with Martha, see the ocean, and above all else become a novel writer. Martha is surprised by the praise and even more surprised that Olive and she share the same dream. Unable to tell her family or friends about Olive, because she would have to reveal her ambitions, Martha becomes more introverted and internalizes her feelings. Over the course of the visit with her grandmother, she learns a lot about the dynamics of her family. Martha’s father who took time off of a full time job to be a writer makes the realization he’s miserable and wants to go back to work full time. Her brother who she used to be very close with is now growing up too and off playing with his own friends. Martha spends more time with her grandmother, Godbee, who seems to know just what to say to put her at ease. When Martha almost drowns she realizes that if Olive can die at such a young age she can too, which gives her more courage to go after her dreams. That summer, she also deals with her first kiss and a betrayal that hurts her deeply. When Martha arrives home, she brings the ocean, in bottled form, to give to Olive’s mother. Yet when she goes to see Mrs. Barstow, she finds out she’s gone, and that everyone eventually moves on. This was a great read from start to finish. I even read it in one sitting, because I was compelled to find out what happened to Martha.