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3.68 AVERAGE
3.68 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
slow-paced
I had a hard time deciding between "I liked it" and "really liked it." While reading it, I was pretty engrossed - It's a compelling story, whether you read it for the Civil War context, the Little Women connection, or the love story between March and Marmee. I varied in my perspective, and liked it more or less at times because of that --
As a Civil War novel: I can't comment on the accuracy or her representation of the war, but I felt like the sense of time and place were painted well. Actually, I thought the afterward (full of background on Louisa May Alcott and her family) was the most enlightening part! I am a bit of an eye-roller when it comes to historical fiction, and did have to remind my seething self that the characters are simply spouting conventional wisdom of the time period. This was particularly grating when abolitionists were infantilizing the "children of Africa" or the slave-owners were justifying their position. It's hard to read, even as a history.
As a connection to Little Women: You don't get too much of a tie to the original work, just glimpses through letters and references. It's satisfying to let your own memories of Little Women filter through the text, though, and to have another perspective of the strife of the family.
As a love story: So frustrating! But in the book club tradition, this frustration made it rich for discussion. Members varied widely in their opinion of March, from a self-righteous jerk (me) to a man willing to stand up for what he believed. Despite the sacrifices he foisted upon his family (me again). The lack of understanding between two people so in love makes this a great read, provided you enjoy slamming the book across the room in agony once in a while.
As a Civil War novel: I can't comment on the accuracy or her representation of the war, but I felt like the sense of time and place were painted well. Actually, I thought the afterward (full of background on Louisa May Alcott and her family) was the most enlightening part! I am a bit of an eye-roller when it comes to historical fiction, and did have to remind my seething self that the characters are simply spouting conventional wisdom of the time period. This was particularly grating when abolitionists were infantilizing the "children of Africa" or the slave-owners were justifying their position. It's hard to read, even as a history.
As a connection to Little Women: You don't get too much of a tie to the original work, just glimpses through letters and references. It's satisfying to let your own memories of Little Women filter through the text, though, and to have another perspective of the strife of the family.
As a love story: So frustrating! But in the book club tradition, this frustration made it rich for discussion. Members varied widely in their opinion of March, from a self-righteous jerk (me) to a man willing to stand up for what he believed. Despite the sacrifices he foisted upon his family (me again). The lack of understanding between two people so in love makes this a great read, provided you enjoy slamming the book across the room in agony once in a while.
medium-paced
This is the story of the father from Little Women. It gives an interesting perspective on what his life might have been. I think all of us grew up on Little Women, so it was very easy to like this book right away. The author is very creative to think to write a book from this point of view. It is set during the Civil War, so that history is always interesting to me.
Technically I'm not finished--I got about three-quarters of the way through. But I am now doing what I have never done before: I am putting down this book permanently with no intention of finishing it.
Don't get me wrong, it's very well-written. But I cannot abide the protagonist--a man who is supposed to be admirable, moral, a hero to his wife and daughters. I can't stand him. He is colorless, depressing, and dull. He has absolutely no sense of humor. He's a bore--to both me and the other characters in the book (with the exception of Marmee, seemingly).
Surely there will be many who will say this was the intention of the writing. Perhaps the art of the book was that he is meant to be a good man that no one likes. That's highly possible and even probable.
But I eventually asked myself why I was reading this book, and found no good answer and no good reason to continue.
Don't get me wrong, it's very well-written. But I cannot abide the protagonist--a man who is supposed to be admirable, moral, a hero to his wife and daughters. I can't stand him. He is colorless, depressing, and dull. He has absolutely no sense of humor. He's a bore--to both me and the other characters in the book (with the exception of Marmee, seemingly).
Surely there will be many who will say this was the intention of the writing. Perhaps the art of the book was that he is meant to be a good man that no one likes. That's highly possible and even probable.
But I eventually asked myself why I was reading this book, and found no good answer and no good reason to continue.
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I loved this book! Brooks takes such a fascinating approach to the March family story. I really enjoyed reading about the father and how the family came to be. I'm always hesitant to read books that spin off of classics (such as anything having to do with Pride and Prejudice), but Brooks maintains the integrity of the storyline that Alcott created years ago. Great read!
March is the imagined story of the absent father in Louisa May Alcott's Little Women. I quite enjoyed this book when I was a kid, and so I was interested to read Brooks' imaginings of what Mr. (and Mrs.) March were like. I have to say, it was a bit jarring at first. In Little Women, they are essentially presented as saints. Mr. March is not present in the book as he is away working as a chaplain during the Civil War; even so he as presented as someone who is unable to do any harm. Marmee (Mrs March) is presented as a loving, perfect wife and mother.
(Spoilers coming!)
I didn't expect this to continue in Brooks' novel, but is that ever not the case! March is presented in Brooks' novel as a deeply flawed man, and Marmee has a horrible temper. The two can barely communicate with one another, and there seems to be a lot of pent up frustration in their relationship. The perfection of these two is quickly smashed to bits as we learn that they got pregnant with Meg almost immediately after having met, and we slowly see that March himself is a selfish man who is variously so focused on his own ideals and imperfections that he thinks nothing of his family. I will never look at these two the same way again.
(Spoilers coming!)
I didn't expect this to continue in Brooks' novel, but is that ever not the case! March is presented in Brooks' novel as a deeply flawed man, and Marmee has a horrible temper. The two can barely communicate with one another, and there seems to be a lot of pent up frustration in their relationship. The perfection of these two is quickly smashed to bits as we learn that they got pregnant with Meg almost immediately after having met, and we slowly see that March himself is a selfish man who is variously so focused on his own ideals and imperfections that he thinks nothing of his family. I will never look at these two the same way again.
An amazing book! I reserve 5 star ratings for books I would read again (and again and again). This one falls a little short, but only because I'm not sure I can handle the emotion that comes with the story. This is a beautifully written, haunting novel! For a full review go to my blog: http://confessionsofacontrolfreak.blogspot.com/2010/10/march.html