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ashleylchen's review against another edition
3.0
A well written retelling of Little Women set in a different time period. The concept was good but a bit poorly executed in my opinion. There was too much going on yet nothing happened aside from Amy & Laurie’s “timeline”.
emuhly's review against another edition
5.0
finally someone had the courage to write jo as what she truly is: a lesbian ❤️ / 5 stars
c_morali's review against another edition
2.0
Far from the worst Little Women adaptation I've read, probably because it felt more like a fanfiction than a rewrite (like Meg & Jo did). If I had found this on AO3 under "ww2 AU" I wouldn't have blinked an eye. Unfortunately that does show a bit in some of the plot devices. It's not well-researched historical fiction, and it's glaring sometimes. I was at the point where I was rolling my eyes every time somebody said fella. The 40s slang was just grating after a while, and there are some things that just felt implausible (17 year old coming up with a plan and managing to join a Clubmobile?). There were other areas that just needed MORE. Like, was Beth ghost-writing the poems? A supernatural element could have been really fun, but instead it just felt underexplained. Charlie's journalistic mission was a little scattered and underexplained.
Actually, what this reminded me of the most is RPGs that I did in middle school with my writing group, where we were corresponding via email and writing our own plot lines that sometimes overlapped. It's fun, it's fresh, but it isn't always consistent and it does feel disjointed at times.
Things I loved:
The structure and co-writing meant each sister had a distinct voice, which was lovely.
QUEER JO MARCH. QUEER JO MARCH.
Actually, what this reminded me of the most is RPGs that I did in middle school with my writing group, where we were corresponding via email and writing our own plot lines that sometimes overlapped. It's fun, it's fresh, but it isn't always consistent and it does feel disjointed at times.
Things I loved:
The structure and co-writing meant each sister had a distinct voice, which was lovely.
QUEER JO MARCH. QUEER JO MARCH.
ngreader's review against another edition
4.0
An excellent adaption of "Little Women" that held true of the original source material. I wished for a slightly different ending with Jo and the rest of the family but overall, I would recommend this to any fans of the OG source.
Spoiler
contains mentions of kissing, death, lesbian Josheepishreader's review against another edition
5.0
One of the best books I have ever had the pleasure to read.
ohhannebea's review against another edition
4.0
This best part of this book was that Amy, Meg, and Jo all missed they way things were before they all got separated and they will never ever have what they once had. I am a big fan of Amy March I felt that this novel did her some Justice.
theoglibrarianmom's review against another edition
5.0
I am always here for a reimagining of such a beloved classic as Little Women and this one DELIVERED.
caylieratzlaff's review against another edition
3.0
Thanks NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC of this novel. 3/5 stars.
I loved Little Women. I remember reading it in 4th grade and being completely floored by it. I love the vibes and the romance and the nature of the March siblings. I felt a connection to Jo and Amy and Meg and Beth -- but especially Jo. I was SO excited to read this reimagining of the book along with a different time period -- WW2 -- that is one of my favorites to read. I wanted to read more about Meg and John, and Jo, and Amy and Laurie (god, I love Laurie) and how Beth's death was portrayed with verse in her chapter POVs...but for it being as LONG as it is...nothing happened?
Nothing happened that was exciting or plot worthy, which I guess is on par with it representing Little Women...but it just...didn't have anything that kept me wanting to read it? Jo's storyline did make me happy, as it made her queer (WOOT WOOT) which is honestly pretty easy to imagine. Meg's storyline fell flat with her pining for John and dealing with grief, but it felt very out of character. I liked Amy's story with a secret identity and going to London (and how her and Laurie got together)...but I wanted the sisterhood vibes...not all of them mad and grieving and ignoring one another.
It was good. I enjoyed it as a fan of historical fiction and also Little Women...but it was unnecessarily long.
I loved Little Women. I remember reading it in 4th grade and being completely floored by it. I love the vibes and the romance and the nature of the March siblings. I felt a connection to Jo and Amy and Meg and Beth -- but especially Jo. I was SO excited to read this reimagining of the book along with a different time period -- WW2 -- that is one of my favorites to read. I wanted to read more about Meg and John, and Jo, and Amy and Laurie (god, I love Laurie) and how Beth's death was portrayed with verse in her chapter POVs...but for it being as LONG as it is...nothing happened?
Nothing happened that was exciting or plot worthy, which I guess is on par with it representing Little Women...but it just...didn't have anything that kept me wanting to read it? Jo's storyline did make me happy, as it made her queer (WOOT WOOT) which is honestly pretty easy to imagine. Meg's storyline fell flat with her pining for John and dealing with grief, but it felt very out of character. I liked Amy's story with a secret identity and going to London (and how her and Laurie got together)...but I wanted the sisterhood vibes...not all of them mad and grieving and ignoring one another.
It was good. I enjoyed it as a fan of historical fiction and also Little Women...but it was unnecessarily long.
notinjersey's review against another edition
4.0
Great or Nothing is a unique retelling of Little Women set in the WWII time period. Beth has passed away and the sisters each set off in different directions to do what they can in the war effort. Each sisters’ voice is written by one of the authors, and Beth’s parts are told in verse, as a narrator who is looking over the lives of her sisters. I enjoyed following each of the sisters in her own stories. I appreciated how the Jo / Laurie / Amy story was enhanced, explaining why Jo didn’t love him, the reason he actually proposed to her, and giving him and Amy a believable story in which she wasn’t a second choice to Jo. Meanwhile, Jo meets someone else and learns more about herself. The war is somewhat of a background to the sisters’ stories, though Amy interacts with soldiers and there is anti-Japanese racism experienced.
hamckeon's review against another edition
5.0
I loved everything about this reimagining of Little Women. I especially found the Laurie/Amy storyline to be well done.