If your typewriter could speak, what would it say? What if your typewriter could type back everything that has ever been typed into it? This is the premise of the middle grade novel Olivetti by Ali Millington (Feiwel & Friends; March 2024).
Olivetti is told from two perspectives, that of Olivetti the typewriter himself and that of twelve-year-old Ernest Brindle, a lonely boy who would rather read the dictionary than talk to other people. When the Brindle’s mother (Beatrice) disappers, this hits him the hardest. The search for Beatrice and the understanding and acceptance of “Everything That Happened” is the reason Olivetti joins in the family conversation of trying to find her.
It sounds like a ridiculous premise, but somehow the author pulls it off. When Beatrice sells the typewriter to a pawn shop, Olivetti ends up being a key part of Ernest’s journey to acceptance. Olivetti’s narration is snarky and Ernest’s is sincere, so the alternating narrations provide never a dull moment. Ernest’s budding friendship with Quinn, the daughter of the pawn shop’s owner, adds another dynamic to the story and contributes to the ultimate resolution.
At one point in the book, Olivettis shares some insight that Ernest’s mother once said. She said that strength isn’t about what you can do. It’s about what you can endure. And this really is the theme for the entire book, although this ultimate acceptance recognized by the family.
Olivetti had a lot at stake, as he disobeys the “typewriter rule” of don’t communicate with the humans. But Olivetti recognizes the power of words, especially those that had been typed into him. The father, Felix Brindle, says at one point that words could have changed everything if only they were remembered. This recognition is why Olivetti the typewriter feels the need to help the family that he loves come back together again.
There’s another really sweet play on words, and that’s where they end when Olivetti realizes that he has been used as a pawn in the game. Just like a pawn in chess is sometimes sacrificed in order to win the game, Olivetti has literally been sold to the pawn shop and become a “pawn” in the solving of the mystery of Beatrice’s disappearance.
By the end, Ernest learns what it means to have a friend and to be a friend, as well as how to depend on other people again even after their family has gone through a difficult time. Spoiler: The terrible thing is dealing with the mother’s cancer. I feel this is important to know in order to see what ages can deal with the themes of the book. This is a tramua that needs acceptance; not one that resulted from physical violence or an accident from an outside force.
Olivetti is written with really fun attitude and tone since it is narrated for part of it by an actual typewriter. Even as the people in the story change, the typewriter also changes to as he learns from his experience. It sounds like a silly premise but the resulting middle grade novel is fun as well as meaningful. I can see Olivetti becoming a children’s classic as others come to read this sweet book.
