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3.68 AVERAGE
3.68 AVERAGE
adventurous
emotional
reflective
medium-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:
Yes
I felt this was well balanced in showing the complexity of beliefs for many in the US Civil War. It wasn’t just good side v. bad side; it also revealed a lot of the grey side. Plus, any chance re-enter the world of Little Women is a win for me.
The book [b:Little Women|1934|Little Women|Louisa May Alcott|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1562690475l/1934._SY75_.jpg|3244642] by [a:Louisa May Alcott|1315|Louisa May Alcott|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1200326665p2/1315.jpg] is a classic that tells of the women of the March family. The father in the story is a minor character as he is away at war.
This book tells his story, predominantly during his time away at war but some background of his youth.
+++
I liked this book. Though I admit that i have not read the inspiration book, but have seen many movie adaptations. I can see why this won a Pulitzer.
I can also see why many do not like this book, especially how the main character comes across as naive and idealistic. But honestly I found that a believable thing for a man raised in the North turned chaplain during the antebellum and war times of the United States.
This book tells his story, predominantly during his time away at war but some background of his youth.
+++
I liked this book. Though I admit that i have not read the inspiration book, but have seen many movie adaptations. I can see why this won a Pulitzer.
I can also see why many do not like this book, especially how the main character comes across as naive and idealistic. But honestly I found that a believable thing for a man raised in the North turned chaplain during the antebellum and war times of the United States.
Geraldine Brooks invents the absent story of the father's time in the Civil War while the Little Women are fending for themselves in Concord. The author's inspiration for the story was Louisa May Alcott's philosopher father, Bronson. Brooks has Mr. March as a chaplain in the Union army observing the horrors of human capacity, but ignoring them to find the beauty in his surroundings lifting the spirits of his wife and four daughters. The end chapters are written from Marmee March's prospective when she finds out the truth of her husband's journey compared to the relative fluff of what he reported in his letters. Her reaction to his understandable lies is passionate, genuine and beautifully written. I will come back to more of Geraldine Brooks' work.
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
I love this author. It was interesting to read a man's perspective after her enthralling woman's perspective in A Year of Wonders.
I loved the "behind the scenes" feel of this story, because I already know the March women so well.
I loved the "behind the scenes" feel of this story, because I already know the March women so well.
adventurous
dark
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This is not one of my favorite Brooks novels and I didn’t like the main character. Didn’t enjoy and want to savor this one. Just wanted to finish it.
I have to think about this not just I regard to the story itself, which was beautifully written, but how it changed the story of Little Women. Another reviewer critiqued it in terms of standard civil war topics covered, but I appreciated that it portrayed the Civil War as complex. Not all Northerners were abolitionist savior s of a race. It still has me thinking the next morning, so that is a review!
A beautiful (and heartbreaking) civil war novel, told primarily from the perspective of the Reverend March, best known as the father of the Little Women. One of the best books I've read in a while.
I tried to like this book. But I just couldn't get into the March character and the plot was tedious. Brooks won the Pulitzer for this...perhaps that should have been a clue as to how boring it really was. No desire to read anything more by this author.