Louisa May Alcott: Little Women

I've made a goal to read every book in my classroom library and write reviews for my students (partially why I resurrected this previously-dead blog). Alphabetically, Alcott was the first one in my library. This book took me F O R E V E R to read because I really struggled to get into it.

Little Women by Louisa May Alcott follows the four March sisters from early adolescence (for the older girls) through adulthood, until all of them are married. Set right around the American Civil War, these four girls grow up and gradually leave the nest. Their mother takes special care to teach them important lessons at each stage of their lives, carefully instructing them on how to be good wives, daughters, and women.

Generally, this book was OK. Here are some things I enjoyed:

I loved the girls' stories once they reached adulthood. I loved their distinct personalities and how they all ended up with the right person in the end.
I loved the way Alcott was able to show us the growth of the girls throughout their lives, and how they matured.

As I said before, I did really struggle to get through this book. Here are somethings that I didn't like:

This book is incredibly preachy. I feel like I've read other things by Alcott that weren't nearly this in-your-face-going-to-preach. Some of her short stories are much more subtle.
This book is a picture of 19th-century morality and very definitive of women's stereotyped roles in the home. Society has definitely changed. I wouldn't consider myself a feminist, but I also am not a stay-at-home mom who has dinner and the house perfect for my husband when he comes home from work. This book is incredibly dated.
This book dragged! I had a hard time getting into it from the start, and their stories as teenagers were boring and overly dramatic. I had to listen to this on Audible because it made it go faster. I couldn't stand reading the paper copy, even though I have at least one copy of this book.
I didn't like Joe's conclusion.
Laurie at the end drove me berserk! I hated the gushy garbage of how he interacted with Amy.

Overall, I rated this book:

3/5 Stars
G

Comments

Brandon Sanderson: The Alloy of Law - Wax and Wayne (Mistborn era 2) book 1

Again, I had this book finished quite some time ago (shortly after finishing The Hero of Ages ) and I just haven't had a lot of time to get to posting my review. I am now about halfway through the next book, and now that the term is over, I'm hoping I will have a little more time to finish that book. The Alloy of Law by Brandon Sanderson introduces Era 2 in the world of Mistborn . No longer does the world of the Final Empire exist, but it has literally been remade by Harmony, or the character of Sazed and the Hero of Ages that readers might recognize from The Hero of Ages . In this world, Waxillium Ladrian is a lawman in the Roughs. At least he was, until his uncle and sister unexpectedly died, and Wax is forced to assume control of the noble house he is now heir to. He finds the city is no less in need of a lawman than the Roughs, and is soon embroiled in the investigation into The Vanishers. Once his fiancee is kidnapped, and his butler tries to blow him up, Wax is fully in

Ruta Sepetys: I Must Betray You

I read this novel for Battle of the Books, but I also wanted to read it. I keep trying Sepetys novels, thinking I'm really going to like them, and then finding myself disappointed. This novel was an exception. This is probably the best Sepetys novel I've read so far. I Must Betray You is the story of Romania behind the Iron Curtain. Christian Florescu is seventeen. His grandfather, an intellectual, questions the current regime, and Christian finds himself agreeing. Romanians are struggling; waiting in long lines hoping for food, spies everywhere, never knowing who's an informer and who isn't. Amidst these tensions, Christian is confronted by an agent of the secret police and blackmailed into informing on Dan Van Dorn, the son of the American Ambassador. Stuck between his beliefs and his fear, Christian does as he's told, hoping that he can dupe the agent. I loved this book, more than any other Sepetys novel I've read. While Sepetys excels at many things in her w

Brandon Sanderson: The Emperor's Soul

As Elantris is probably my favorite Sanderson book of all time, I was excited to see this novella that takes place in the same world. I listened to this on Audible, and it went really quickly (I think it's about 3 hours total). The Emperor's Soul follows the story of Shei, a Forger, who has been arrested for Forging a copy of a painting in the Emperor's palace. Unbeknownst to Shei, the Emperor was injured in an assassination attempt, and his mind was broken. Knowing her great skill, the bureaucrats in charge of the Empire offer her a trade: her life, for a forgery of the Emperor's soul. This feat is nearly impossible, and Shei knows this, but she accepts the chance at freedom. Will Shei actually be able to recreate the Emperor? This novella was beautifully written. I loved Shei's personality, and the conflicts she had with the Empire. I found it fascinating to learn more about her, and her attempts to thwart being manipulated. I thought her story was fascinating i

Books I Read and Other Assorted Oddities

Search This Blog