LITTLE WOMEN by Louisa May Alcott

LITTLE WOMEN by Louisa May Alcott **** - Two classics in one month? Aren’t you proud of me? Little Women part one follows the childhoods of four iconic sisters, Amy, Beth, Jo, and Meg. Part two follows the girls as they grow up, get married, travel, have children, and continue to be in each other’s daily lives.

This beautiful story, written in 1868, is told in a tone that is incredibly modern for the mid-19th century. Alcott does a wondrous job developing the characters of these girls and their friends, creating remarkably relatable situations, humorous dialogue, and sweet vignettes. I fell in love with this family, as I’m sure most everyone who has read this book has too. It felt almost like I was watching an old black and white tv show, where each episode (or chapter) depicted another day in the lives of America’s favorite sisters. This was a charming read, and undoubtedly at the top of the list for my favorite classics so far.

What I loved: the character development was superior to anything else I’ve read. Each girl had their flaw (blatantly spelled out for you in the first chapter), and they purposefully and steadily worked towards remedying those faults throughout the course of this lengthy story. The scenes were charming and sweet, the friendships genuine and endearing, and the small-scale storylines were captivating.

What I didn’t love: Let’s talk about Mrs. March - Marmee. She’s too pure, I almost couldn’t stand it. I need each character to have some level of fault, flaw, or negativity. Don’t tell me that she “had an anger issue that is now completely resolved and barely rears its head once in the course of fifteen years”. That was my one bone to pick with this novel. I also completely realize that this was written to be young adult fiction for the time, and I think it does a lovely job of encompassing all of the most innocent and endearing qualities of a good YA novel. Each chapter felt like it was teaching me a lesson about how to be a good girl and clearly delineated the difference between right and wrong. This being an entirely character-driven novel in my eyes, I definitely wasn’t completely enthralled the entire time. The ending moved forward at a much quicker pace but part 1 was a time-consuming read for me.

All in all, this feel-good, light-hearted novel deserves all the love it gets in today’s literature hall of fame, and I can absolutely see myself picking this one up on a rainy day and reading a few chapters for a bit of sweet, nostalgic, comfort-reading.