Haunting Olivia Summary

I believe Karen Russell’s short stories have a parallel reality much like the world of Peter Pan. Seems that the children in Russell’s stories are far more intelligent and much more capable than the adults. Also, I believe that the character Wallow has an infatuation with death due to the lack of positive role models. Russell’s stories take on a sort of magical realism that seems to be normal to all of her characters. Moreover, in the short story Haunting Olivia, children must deal with tragedy without the guidance of any adult figure. The main character Wallow and his younger brother Timothy only have their grandmother named Granana as a partial adult figure while their parents are away. As a reader we know that Granana is a very stern old woman. We are told that Granana,”lost, like, ninty-two million kids at child birth. All of her brothers died at war. [And] she survived the great depression by stealing radish bulbs from her neighbor’s garden.” (200).
The parents take regular trips to third world counties where, “no children are allowed.”(196). It is inferred that the children lack parental guidance at all times. And also, the children are practically given a free pass to do whatever they want in society. For example, the kids are able to rent a crab sled even after the recent death of their sister. Although many wavers had to be signed to rent the crab sled, the reader can only imagine how slack the rules were before the death of