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3.68 AVERAGE
3.68 AVERAGE
Having not read Little Women, it is difficult for me to comment on that angle. However, I did not care for this book very much. I felt that everything that Mr. March did was justified because of who he was and that is just not realistic. While reading, I doubted some of the historical accuracy with the associations with people such as RWE etc.. however upon doing a little digging I was interested to find that these were actually legit events. Anywho, not my favorite. I would actually have probably abandoned this midway had it not been for a book club.
I was entranced by the story, the pre and during civil war narratives. But, this story mostly could have been about anyone and in not sure saying the it was the March father made it any more relatable.
So far I’ve loved everything I’ve read from Geraldine Brooks’s pen, from People of the Book to Horse. My love does not stop here. As a fan of Little Women and someone very familiar with the book and every film/TV adaptation, I found this little book incredible and I really appreciated the new perspective of the story I know so well.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Tells the story the largely absent patriarch of the March family from "Little Women," who is away serving as a Union army chaplain during the American Civil War. A beautifully written, heartbreaking story that gives a new perspective on a classic.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Slavery, War
If I had seen this was a Pulitzer Prize-winner, I would have known not to read it. Unfortunately, I made that discovery too late.
This book has its merit as a Civil War book. As a Little Women story, though?
Mr. March has an affair. Mrs. March physically assaults multiple people. Like, what? The whole time I was discovering new and interesting things to be disappointed in. Not a very pleasant experience.
This book has its merit as a Civil War book. As a Little Women story, though?
Mr. March has an affair. Mrs. March physically assaults multiple people. Like, what? The whole time I was discovering new and interesting things to be disappointed in. Not a very pleasant experience.
It took me a while to get into it. It is from the perspective of the father from the book "Little Women".
Really I give it 3.5 stars. Most of the book is in Mr. March (the absent father in Little Women--based on Bronson Alcott)voice; a small section at the end is told from Marmee's point of view.
The story follows March's experience in the Civil War (as imagined by Brooks), and his trying to come to terms with his involvement with John Brown, and what is responsibility is in terms of fighting slavery.
I liked reading about his and Marmee's life, as that is seen in Little Women purely through the eyes of Jo--it's interesting to imagine them as adults. In Little Women, it was often mentioned that Marmee had to work very hard to control her temper--but that was always hard for me to believe. In 'March' you get a picture of a young woman driven by her involvement in the abolition movement. And here, it was a little hard for me to believe that she was as temperamental as she's portrayed.
The story follows March's experience in the Civil War (as imagined by Brooks), and his trying to come to terms with his involvement with John Brown, and what is responsibility is in terms of fighting slavery.
I liked reading about his and Marmee's life, as that is seen in Little Women purely through the eyes of Jo--it's interesting to imagine them as adults. In Little Women, it was often mentioned that Marmee had to work very hard to control her temper--but that was always hard for me to believe. In 'March' you get a picture of a young woman driven by her involvement in the abolition movement. And here, it was a little hard for me to believe that she was as temperamental as she's portrayed.
I was wary of starting this book as I have never read Little Women. Fortunately my sketchy understanding of the plot was sufficient for reading this, though I'm sure I'd have gotten more out of it if I were more familiar with Little Women. It's not often I enjoy so much a book featuring a main character I don't really like too well. Definitely a good read on many levels.
I kind of can't help taking away a star for the genre of books that use characters of another author's creation. That aside, it took me a while to get into this book. The first 2/3 were slow. When the action picked up, the book got better. Maybe I would add another 1/2 star back since the author is married to Tony Horwitz ;>).