Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

The final book for Classics month!

I went into this novel imagining it might read like a sisterly bond persevering over anything but what I got was actually a very important, timeless message about family. This was a heart-warming book that dragged tears out of me, laughter and lessons a-plenty. I couldn't recommend it more.

The Main Plot

Our main plot begins in the 1860's, Massachusetts, during a civil war. We meet our four Marsh sisters: Margaret, Josephine, Beth and Amy (from eldest to youngest), and they range in ages from mid-teens to early teens. They live with their mother, Mrs Marsh, and work hard while their father is away at war. There's an instant vibe given to the Marsh family and it's respect and working together with a can-do attitude.

The Marsh women are in the Christmas period and Mrs Marsh has strong moral values - this leads the little women to giving their Christmas breakfast away to a very poor family with many children. They end up having a loving Christmas dinner instead, after celebrating very special gifts from their mother which put them each on a special, individual path to becoming a lady and making the most of herself. This, while their father is sadly away.

An introduction of some neighbours being Mr Laurence, an old man from extreme wealth, and his teenage grandson Laurie sees our story move quickly forward as the little women form bonds with their neighbours and even family, friend and lovers overseas!

Due to the way the book was written, there isn't too much more I can go into, lest I spoil the story! But all in all this book is about how these four sisters overcome adversity, mistakes and embarrassment in order to grow up, find love and their individual place in the world. So let's move on...

The Pros and The Cons

➕At first I was very confused as to why each chapter seemed to tell a different story but also felt very similar to all the other chapters, until I watched an episode of The Simpsons one night and realised that the chapters in Part One of the book are set out very much like episodes of these types of TV shows; the characters go on an adventure, learn a lesson and in the end they sit in their home with their mother and exclaim what they've learnt and promise to be, for example, less selfish, more grateful, more ladylike, and humble, just to name a few. I actually enjoyed this style of chapter because even though the story did move forward it was an entertaining way to lay out the girls' experiences and their education through these circumstances.

➕I loved the family and their dynamic; they work together, they lean on one another, they advise each other and no matter what they always come back as one unit. The main message that I found in this story was that family is so important, and it's a timeless lesson to us all. I just fell in love with this beautiful little family, I almost wish there was a sequel so I could carry on reading about what happened to the Little Women after the ending!

➖When I first picked up this book in Waterstones I was sure I'd be able to finish it in a week; it looked no bigger than the books I read every week but boy, was I wrong. The text inside this novel was smaller than most and more of the page was covered. This review was actually pushed back a week because no matter how much I thought I read each day (often spending hours upon hours) I would take a look at where my bookmark would move to and feel like it had barely moved at all! This lack of progress felt frustrating at times, even though I was enjoying the story itself.

➕I enjoyed how this read tackled the issue of women finding their own voice and going against the norm (and enforced) of what was expected from women back in the 1860's, in America, no less. Jo (Josephine) was the boyish sister who wanted to act more like a man. She enjoyed her beauty and his femininity however felt she rather enjoyed acting like a boy and through many an aunt and friend telling her this wasn't the proper way, she stuck to her confidence and with her sisters' backup, this is how she found her way.

I'm going to give Little Women a 5/5! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Even though the lack of visible progress killed my motivation with this book sometimes, the story is fantastically warm and funny, full of tales of young girls growing up and finding their way with each others' help. I really couldn't recommend this book any more!