Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

Oh, how I loved this book. It is truly my type of story (strong female lead, filled with important lessons concerning family, friendship, romance, morality, etc. It even deals with issues of feminism which is also a huge plus for me) and I enjoyed every second of it. I wanted to read it because the new film adaptation with Emma Watson (my queen, hero, etc.) was going to come out soon and I had never read the book before. It is now my favorite classic and I would love to discuss it with anyone who has read it before and loved it as much as I did! And now, onto the review :-)

This novel chronicles the lives of the March Sisters, Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy, and readers catch a glimpse of what life was like in America during the Civil War. The March family is incredibly kind, always helping others and putting themselves last and because of this, they are poor. They get on just fine but they do not live in luxury and this leaves the girls pining for more. As the girls age, they learn more and more to appreciate hard work and enjoy working for the things they want, even though it is sometimes a struggle. Something I love about this book is how relatable, even though it was written in 1868. All of the things the girls learn throughout their childhood are things every person must learn about as they become an adult; the value of money and how important it is to work to name a few. There are so many important lessons to be learned about life that we, as readers, learn through the girls and I really love that about this novel. It is also so beautiful to see how much the sisters care for each other and how much they value family. My family is the most important thing in my life, so it really warms my heart to see how close knit the March family is, as they remind me of myself and my family.

The March family’s eldest sister, Meg, is the one who remembers living in excess before the family lost its wealth. So the newfound poverty is hardest for her to deal with out of the sisters. She is very pretty, causing her to sometimes be conceited and she strives to be beautiful above all else. As a young girl, her greatest ambition is to marry a rich man so that she can never want for anything again. She dreams of living in luxury once again and no longer having to work. As she gets older, though she remains beautiful, she realizes there are more important things in life, such as family and love. Meg ends up falling in love with a poor teacher and their marriage is filled with love and honesty. I love Meg and feel as though I identify with her and Jo the most out of the four sisters. Her growth throughout the story is really beautiful and, because I got so involved in the lives of the characters, I felt really proud of her throughout her character arc.

The second oldest, Jo, is the writer of the bunch. She loves to read and often stays up way past normal hours in order to finish a novel (I can relate)! She struggles with living in a man’s world throughout the story because she doesn't enjoy stereotypical feminine activities and often wishes she could be off fighting in the war with her father. Because of this inner battle between not wanting to conform but also trying to be herself, she finds herself lonely and wanting for love. It isn’t until the end of the story when she realizes that she can do both of these things with the right person. She does find him and we end the novel with her running to tell him she loves him while it’s pouring down rain. Bit of a cliche, but I can’t resist! swoon Readers get to see her write plays for herself and her sisters to perform during childhood and eventually write stories in the hopes of publishing them as a young adult.

Beth, the third oldest sister, is the most pure and kind out of the bunch. Her greatest wish in the world is to have her whole family together, especially since her father is away at war. Her innocence stays with her longer than most, as she continues to play with dolls until the age of 16. We see her suffer from scarlet fever at the age of 13 which leaves her sickly for many years. Unfortunately, Beth is taken from her family at the young age of 16 because she just can’t get over her sickliness. It hurts the family but also helps bring the sisters closer together and appreciate one another more. The best people are the ones that are taken away too soon. Even though she is sick for a time, she never loses her optimism and continues to be the sunshine of the family, always keeping everyone together.

Lastly, the youngest of our sisters is named Amy and she is a very feisty, strong girl. She always wants to be involved with whatever her older sisters are doing and desperately wants to grow up. She, like Meg, loves pretty, beautiful things and wants to become a famous painter in her youth. She, unfortunately, feels the pressure to marry rich in order to provide for her family at a young age. This pressure almost causes her to make the mistake of marrying for money instead of love. Thankfully, she does not do this and instead marries the family’s longtime friend, Laurie. Readers get to watch her grow from a bratty, selfish child into a mature and sophisticated young lady. For me, it was really wonderful to read about her growth as a person.

A few important side characters within this story are the girl’s mother who they call Marmee and the neighbor boy and family friend, Laurie. Marmee is a very strong woman and mother, as she raises four growing girls on her own while their father is off fighting in the war. She helps the sick and wounded soldiers in their town in addition to helping a local family who are even more poor than her family is, out of the kindness of her heart. Her selflessness and want to help others is passed down to her girls, especially Beth, and she couldn’t be more proud. Laurie is a young boy who lives with his grandfather in a huge estate right across from the March’s humble abode. He does not have any siblings, or friends really, and often watches the girls playing, wishing he could be part of it. Jo notices this and befriends him and the rest is history. Both himself and his grandfather become part of their family immediately and play a big role in multiple events that transpire throughout the story. Laurie’s interactions with each of the sisters is very touching because they do not have a brother, so he often plays that role. It is really pure and beautiful to read and I enjoyed this aspect of the story very much also.

And now, I will discuss the infamous love triangle between Jo, Amy and Laurie. Jo and Laurie are the ones who become friends first and once Laurie is introduced to the rest of the family, he is part of the family and they are all close. Laurie begins to have feelings for Jo early on but does not mention them until later in the novel. Once Meg is married, Laurie expresses his love for Jo and she has to explain that she doesn't love him in this way. Heartbroken, Laurie flees to Europe and is away from home for a long time. While Jo begins writing for a newspaper in New York, Amy goes to Europe with their Aunt March. She and Laurie become close and eventually fall in love. First of all, I want to say that I do not believe that the new film adaptation explains this tough relationship well. It makes the situation seem as though there is some underlying regret or hard feelings on Jo and Laurie’s sides which is not the case in the book. Second, it is important to know that Jo is not at all upset that Laurie and Amy find each other and fall in love. She wants Laurie to be in her life and she is glad that he makes her sister happy. I am really glad that the book explains this whole situation clearly, because I can see how people would be upset by this love triangle if they had only watched the film. I love Laurie and I am glad that everyone ends up with their own happy ending. This whole relationship is incredibly special and I would hate for people to get the wrong impression based on the film version.

A big portion of this book discusses “a woman’s place” in society during this time period. It is incredible to me to see such feminist ideas throughout the story as the book was written in the 1860s. Though Meg sort of fits into that female gender stereotype, she is still a strong woman who knows her worth and what she wants. I love this about her because I myself am super feminine and often gravitate to activities within my stereotypical gender role. But, it is simply because I enjoy doing those things best while still being a strong, independent woman in 2020. Jo is the one who discusses issues of feminism most within this work because she is the one who pushes back against the idea that women are only capable of certain things. Because she is a writer, she gets paid less than a man would for her stories and for a while does not publish them under her own name because the subjects she writes about were considered unladylike during this time. It is really wonderful to see her publish a novel towards the end of the story and use her own name because it proves that women can write well-known and loved books just as men can. In addition to this, she also fights the stereotype that a woman must marry. For the majority of the book, she rejects marriage in an attempt to break away from this convention. As she grows older, she becomes lonely and wants to find love but finds herself being a bit stubborn and not wanting to. Luckily, she gets over this when she finds her true love and I couldn’t be more happy for her as I was reading the story. The truest love is when you can both be treated as equals and that is exactly what Jo finds. Lastly, Amy illustrates the situation a lot of women went through during this time period where a woman feels as though she must marry a rich man in order to have a good life. Because women had no real claim to anything of their own during this time period, not even their children, a woman has to choose a man who can provide for them as much as possible since she cannot easily do it for herself. It is incredible to read about these situations and think about how much things have changed. There is still so much progress to be made in the fight for equality for women. But, I am very glad that we have been able to come a long way as a society and no longer treat women so obscenely.

I love this quote and think it really fits in with the ideas I have just mentioned. All of the girls learn to grow and be more self assured and independent as they get older. This quote by Amy really illustrates this:

“I’m not afraid of storms, for I am learning how to sail my ship.”

Through time and personal growth, the girls are no longer afraid of trials and challenges they might face in their lives because they know they will get through them. It is so nice to see them become more self confident while reading this story. As you read, you really become involved in the character’s lives and feel like you’re growing up with them. I love this about books and think that’s part of what makes this book so wonderful.

Final, Personal Opinion of the Book

I absolutely adored this book. It is definitely my kind of book and is now my favorite classic by far! I love the March sisters dearly and I was so sad to reach the end of this novel. Thankfully, I will have it in my heart and mind always and am able to watch the films whenever I please (and reread the book at some point once I have put a significant dent in my to-read list)!

Rating: 5/5 Stars

Because this book moved me so much and became my favorite classic of all, I give it full marks. It is a beautiful story of love, family, friendship, growing up, feminism and so much more. Truly a book everyone should read and I am so glad to have read it this year.

P.S., I haven't watched any of the older adaptations of the film, but I did watch the 2019 version by Greta Gerwig and I loved it!! I absolutely recommend it to all. So good, all of the actors are wonderful and it holds up with the book reasonably well.