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A review by bluestjuice
Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
4.0
So what does one say about such a canon of classic juvenile literature? Whole articles have been written about this topic, and the various subjects here that are worthy of analysis and discussion are copious, but I'm going to focus on only a few points: does it hold up to a 21st-century reader? And do I like it? As to the latter question, the response is a qualified, 'I do, but....' The story is heartwarming, and as I've read it dozens of times over in my childhood, the March family and their antics are like old friends, whom I am glad to revisit repeatedly. Even so, the tone of the book has a preachy, moralistic quality. There are dozens of actual sermons sprinkled in among the narrative, and an allegorical structure mirroring A Pilgrim's Progress throughout the first half of the book that can be a bit heavyhanded, especially to someone who doesn't necessarily espouse the same moral (or religious) views as the author.
However. It's also important to remember, I think, what utter radicals Alcott and her family were, in their time. As a scion of a prominent Transcendentalist family, Alcott was raised to be literate, educated, and countercultural, espousing unusual social views, such as their short-lived stint at communal living, and taking an active role in the prominent social justice causes of their day, including the abolitionist and suffragist movements. These views and values are intricately intertwined with the story, which is itself in many particulars a picturesque painting of activities and struggles which the actual Alcott sisters engaged in during their childhood, and so despite the fact that Alcott was writing here to a very specific commercial audience, with a particular aim in mind, the work has a freshness and an authenticity that does not show up in much other children's literature of the age. The children in this book write plays and newspapers for fun: they hold jobs as teenagers and volunteer their time serving poor immigrant communities. As women they work in nontraditional spheres and form egalitarian marriages, contemplate worldly 'virtues' such as marrying for money only to reject them in favor of other value structures, and occupy intellectual and philosophical spheres that seldom make an appearance in this sort of work, otherwise.
I should take a moment to add that the annotations in this edition were interesting, though only about half of them were truly revelatory to me, while the others explained vocabulary that I was already familiarized with. Also, despite liking this book so much, reading it twice in such short succession is too much. I cannot wait to be done reading it aloud to my daughter, because I am really ready to read something else, now.
However. It's also important to remember, I think, what utter radicals Alcott and her family were, in their time. As a scion of a prominent Transcendentalist family, Alcott was raised to be literate, educated, and countercultural, espousing unusual social views, such as their short-lived stint at communal living, and taking an active role in the prominent social justice causes of their day, including the abolitionist and suffragist movements. These views and values are intricately intertwined with the story, which is itself in many particulars a picturesque painting of activities and struggles which the actual Alcott sisters engaged in during their childhood, and so despite the fact that Alcott was writing here to a very specific commercial audience, with a particular aim in mind, the work has a freshness and an authenticity that does not show up in much other children's literature of the age. The children in this book write plays and newspapers for fun: they hold jobs as teenagers and volunteer their time serving poor immigrant communities. As women they work in nontraditional spheres and form egalitarian marriages, contemplate worldly 'virtues' such as marrying for money only to reject them in favor of other value structures, and occupy intellectual and philosophical spheres that seldom make an appearance in this sort of work, otherwise.
I should take a moment to add that the annotations in this edition were interesting, though only about half of them were truly revelatory to me, while the others explained vocabulary that I was already familiarized with. Also, despite liking this book so much, reading it twice in such short succession is too much. I cannot wait to be done reading it aloud to my daughter, because I am really ready to read something else, now.