Olivia Joules and The Overactive Imagination
Encyclopedia
Olivia Joules is Helen Fielding
's fifth book, a light-hearted spy thriller published in 2004
. It chronicles the adventures of Olivia Joules (birth name Rachel Pixley), a freelance journalist with an "overactive imagination". After meeting the handsome Pierre Feramo, Olivia immediately comes to the conclusion that he is a terrorist and follows him around the world to confirm her suspicions whilst falling for another man.
, Honduras
, and the Sudan
, while he is under the impression that she is falling in love with him.
She is an orphan (at fourteen, her parents and brother were run over by a lorry
while she was buying Cosmopolitan
and candy) and a dropout of Worksop
Comprehensive (apparently a dreary school in the North Midlands of England), and has made up for her lack of university education by learning French
, Spanish
, German
, and Arabic
. In contrast to Bridget Jones
, she is very intelligent, albeit rather paranoid at times, and has a svelte figure. Pierre Feramo seems to be drawn to her because she is English, polite, and very decent.
Pierre Feramo — The extravagantly rich, suave and handsome playboy who seems to be falling in love with Olivia Joules. He whisks Olivia away on extravagant dates in beautiful, luxurious hotels. He is apparently filming a film called Boundaries of Arizona, intended to help young wannabes break into the film industry
. In actuality, he despises Hollywood and all that encompasses it. On one of his dates with Olivia, he tells her of his studies in France
, his studies at Grasse where he became a "nose" for the French perfume
industry. Pierre mentions a father whom he seems to fear and hate (and says nothing about his mother). Later in the book, we discover he is not French (just as Olivia had suspected), and is actually part Arab.
Suraya — A beautiful Indian model
with silky black hair who often accompanies Pierre. She lives with him and becomes jealous when Pierre begins courting Olivia. She has traces of a West Coast
drawl in her voice and Olivia believes she could be English
from the notes of her accent. She behaves in a spoiled, bored manner and is treacherous when she does not get her way.
Morton C. — An intelligent diver
of whom Olivia is quite fond. He is very masculine and self-assured and has a mysterious aura
to him. Olivia befriends him and makes out with him in Honduras, until she becomes suspicious of his behaviour.
Kate O'Neill — A friend of Olivia who is a foreign correspondent for the Sunday Times, a job that Olivia covets. She acts like an older sister to Olivia, always watching out for her and warning her about getting involved with Pierre Feramo.
Kimberley — An acquaintance of Olivia who she meets while in Miami. She is a Hollywood wannabe with "perky breasts and nonexistent hips". She reveals to Olivia that her family is part Italian, part Romanian, and part Cherokee. She seems to want fame desperately and follows Pierre to LA and Honduras, along with others.
Michael Monteroso — An incompetent "facial technician" who charges ridiculous prices for his facial treatments. He gives Olivia a facial before her date, leaving circular red marks all over her face. Michael Monteroso is a real person and is mentioned in Fielding's Acknowledgments.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/arts/3250413.stm, Helen Fielding was inspired for this book by the way the world responded to the September 11 attacks. She once spent some time in the Sudan as a journalist and loved her time there. In light of the invasion of Iraq
, Fielding wondered why they had not sent a female spy in to interview the perpetrator. She felt that women have an air of innocence around them that men lack. Olivia parallels James Bond
in many ways and Fielding was very fond of Ian Fleming
's novels.
Helen Fielding
Helen Fielding is an English novelist and screenwriter, best known as the creator of the fictional character Bridget Jones, a sequence of novels and films that chronicle the life of a thirtysomething single woman in London as she tries to make sense of life and love.Her novels Bridget Jones's...
's fifth book, a light-hearted spy thriller published in 2004
2004 in literature
The year 2004 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:* Canada Reads selects Guy Vanderhaeghe's The Last Crossing to be read across the nation....
. It chronicles the adventures of Olivia Joules (birth name Rachel Pixley), a freelance journalist with an "overactive imagination". After meeting the handsome Pierre Feramo, Olivia immediately comes to the conclusion that he is a terrorist and follows him around the world to confirm her suspicions whilst falling for another man.
Plot introduction
The book delves into the world of espionage as it follows the adventures of freelance journalist-turned spy, Olivia Joules. While covering a face cream launch in Miami, Olivia meets the alluring international playboy, Pierre Feramo. Suspicious that he is an international terrorist, she follows him to Los AngelesLos Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, Honduras
Honduras
Honduras is a republic in Central America. It was previously known as Spanish Honduras to differentiate it from British Honduras, which became the modern-day state of Belize...
, and the Sudan
Sudan
Sudan , officially the Republic of the Sudan , is a country in North Africa, sometimes considered part of the Middle East politically. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, South Sudan to the south, the Central African Republic to the...
, while he is under the impression that she is falling in love with him.
Main characters
Olivia Joules — A young freelance journalist who works for the Sunday Times and Elan International Magazine. While in Miami for the launch of a face cream marketed by Devorée, a celebrity, she meets Pierre Feramo. Something about his looks and mannerisms reminds her of Osama bin Laden, but she is strongly attracted to him and he apparently to her. Soon she is accepting dates with him around the world, trying to find out more about him, while his actions raise her suspiscions.She is an orphan (at fourteen, her parents and brother were run over by a lorry
Lorry
-Transport:* Lorry or truck, a large motor vehicle* Lorry, or a Mine car in USA: an open gondola with a tipping trough* Lorry , a horse-drawn low-loading trolley-In fiction:...
while she was buying Cosmopolitan
Cosmopolitan (magazine)
Cosmopolitan is an international magazine for women. It was first published in 1886 in the United States as a family magazine, was later transformed into a literary magazine and eventually became a women's magazine in the late 1960s...
and candy) and a dropout of Worksop
Worksop
Worksop is the largest town in the Bassetlaw district of Nottinghamshire, England on the River Ryton at the northern edge of Sherwood Forest. It is about east-south-east of the City of Sheffield and its population is estimated to be 39,800...
Comprehensive (apparently a dreary school in the North Midlands of England), and has made up for her lack of university education by learning French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
, German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
, and Arabic
Arabic language
Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...
. In contrast to Bridget Jones
Bridget Jones
Bridget Jones is a franchise based on the fictional character with the same name. English writer Helen Fielding started her Bridget Jones's Diary column in The Independent in 1995, chronicling the life of Bridget Jones as a thirtysomething single woman in London as she tries to make sense of life...
, she is very intelligent, albeit rather paranoid at times, and has a svelte figure. Pierre Feramo seems to be drawn to her because she is English, polite, and very decent.
Pierre Feramo — The extravagantly rich, suave and handsome playboy who seems to be falling in love with Olivia Joules. He whisks Olivia away on extravagant dates in beautiful, luxurious hotels. He is apparently filming a film called Boundaries of Arizona, intended to help young wannabes break into the film industry
Film industry
The film industry consists of the technological and commercial institutions of filmmaking: i.e. film production companies, film studios, cinematography, film production, screenwriting, pre-production, post production, film festivals, distribution; and actors, film directors and other film crew...
. In actuality, he despises Hollywood and all that encompasses it. On one of his dates with Olivia, he tells her of his studies in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, his studies at Grasse where he became a "nose" for the French perfume
Perfume
Perfume is a mixture of fragrant essential oils and/or aroma compounds, fixatives, and solvents used to give the human body, animals, objects, and living spaces "a pleasant scent"...
industry. Pierre mentions a father whom he seems to fear and hate (and says nothing about his mother). Later in the book, we discover he is not French (just as Olivia had suspected), and is actually part Arab.
Suraya — A beautiful Indian model
Model (person)
A model , sometimes called a mannequin, is a person who is employed to display, advertise and promote commercial products or to serve as a subject of works of art....
with silky black hair who often accompanies Pierre. She lives with him and becomes jealous when Pierre begins courting Olivia. She has traces of a West Coast
West Coast of the United States
West Coast or Pacific Coast are terms for the westernmost coastal states of the United States. The term most often refers to the states of California, Oregon, and Washington. Although not part of the contiguous United States, Alaska and Hawaii do border the Pacific Ocean but can't be included in...
drawl in her voice and Olivia believes she could be English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
from the notes of her accent. She behaves in a spoiled, bored manner and is treacherous when she does not get her way.
Morton C. — An intelligent diver
Underwater diving
Underwater diving is the practice of going underwater, either with breathing apparatus or by breath-holding .Recreational diving is a popular activity...
of whom Olivia is quite fond. He is very masculine and self-assured and has a mysterious aura
Aura (paranormal)
In parapsychology and many forms of spiritual practice, an aura is a field of subtle, luminous radiation surrounding a person or object . The depiction of such an aura often connotes a person of particular power or holiness. Sometimes, however, it is said that all living things and all objects...
to him. Olivia befriends him and makes out with him in Honduras, until she becomes suspicious of his behaviour.
Minor characters
Barry Wilkinson Olivia's boss and editor of the Sunday Times. He is very unsympathetic in the way that he never cares if Olivia is hurt, he just wants the story. In the first few lines of the book, we find that he is attracted to Olivia.Kate O'Neill — A friend of Olivia who is a foreign correspondent for the Sunday Times, a job that Olivia covets. She acts like an older sister to Olivia, always watching out for her and warning her about getting involved with Pierre Feramo.
Kimberley — An acquaintance of Olivia who she meets while in Miami. She is a Hollywood wannabe with "perky breasts and nonexistent hips". She reveals to Olivia that her family is part Italian, part Romanian, and part Cherokee. She seems to want fame desperately and follows Pierre to LA and Honduras, along with others.
Michael Monteroso — An incompetent "facial technician" who charges ridiculous prices for his facial treatments. He gives Olivia a facial before her date, leaving circular red marks all over her face. Michael Monteroso is a real person and is mentioned in Fielding's Acknowledgments.
Inspiration
In an interview with BBC NewsBBC News
BBC News is the department of the British Broadcasting Corporation responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs. The department is the world's largest broadcast news organisation and generates about 120 hours of radio and television output each day, as well as online...
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/arts/3250413.stm, Helen Fielding was inspired for this book by the way the world responded to the September 11 attacks. She once spent some time in the Sudan as a journalist and loved her time there. In light of the invasion of Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
, Fielding wondered why they had not sent a female spy in to interview the perpetrator. She felt that women have an air of innocence around them that men lack. Olivia parallels James Bond
James Bond
James Bond, code name 007, is a fictional character created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short story collections. There have been a six other authors who wrote authorised Bond novels or novelizations after Fleming's death in 1964: Kingsley Amis,...
in many ways and Fielding was very fond of Ian Fleming
Ian Fleming
Ian Lancaster Fleming was a British author, journalist and Naval Intelligence Officer.Fleming is best known for creating the fictional British spy James Bond and for a series of twelve novels and nine short stories about the character, one of the biggest-selling series of fictional books of...
's novels.
Trivia
- In the UK edition, there are comic-strip type pictures of Olivia that relate to her espionage activities.
- In many ways (i.e. weight, ideals, actions, possessions) Olivia is the exact opposite of Bridget Jones.
- The novel was inspired by the September 11 attacks.
- Olivia has a list of sixteen "Rules for Living" which include things like "No one is thinking about you. They're thinking of themselves, just like you."