pre-read.

3/31/2024: forever going to love and adore little women like no other!
rtc (if i can finish my 10 other reviews first)

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¡Terminada la relectura!
He vuelto a caer rendida ante la capacidad de la señora Alcott para emocionar a los lectores hasta límites insospechados.
Cierto es que a veces el tono moralizante puede chocar (sobretodo porque muchas de las lecciones que intenta enseñar la autora no tienen sentido hoy en día), pero hay que ver más allá...
Mujercitas es un libro enternecedor, divertido y sorprendente del que nunca me cansaré.

Pd. SIGO ODIANDO A AMY CON TODA MI ALMA
PD2. Aquí mi vieja reseña del 2011... Sigo pensando exactamente lo mismo: http://cronicasenferrocarril.blogspot...

Please note that this review covers the second half of "Little Women" that is often published separately as "Good Wives".

✒️Oh goodness, how to review Little Women? I think the strongest testament to show my love for this story is that I have enjoyed it countless times, both as a book and some of the (many) film adaptations and I have never tired of it. Each time it continues to mean a great deal to me.
I want to watch more of the film versions, as I enjoy seeing the different takes on the story. While I do look forward to seeing the latest by Greta Gerwig, it's the 1949 version I am most interested in -- I so want to see Elizabeth Taylor as Amy. All the stills that I have seen match very well with my mental image of that character.

The 1994 version is the one I have watched the most, and it is also through watching it that I discovered that Little Women (the book) is often split into two halves. I watched the first half of that movie happily, and the jump forward in time and the events that followed utterly shocked me! To learn there was more to the story than I had realised was both exciting and terrible, because I was completely unprepared for poor Beth's fate. Claire Danes has the ability to make me cry in almost anything, but here I sat and sobbed with alarming intensity. I still struggle with that scene. With Beth in general, because I tend to love her too much, and always find it difficult when the time comes.

For the most part, I consider this to be a perfect book. Somehow it works, even when it feels a little heavy on the lessons and morals. I enjoy the discussions on religion, even if I don't always agree with them. I love getting this beautiful insight into America from so long ago. As well as an entertaining story, it's a great history lesson. In the entire book, there is only one sentence that I could have done without:
"Haughty English, lively French, sober Germans, handsome Spaniards, ugly Russians, meek Jews, free-and-easy Americans..." --- the generalisations for each country are a little annoying, but it's the descriptions of Russians and Jews that I find most bothersome. While the book mentions often the many good points of America and being American, this is one of the few times when that attitude feels xenophobic, rather than a display of pride for the place one is from. However, this is the only line that really got under my skin in this way. Perhaps I'm being overly sensitive, or reading too much into it, but I couldn't quite let it go as I read on.

I liked listening to the author sing the praises of her home country, and felt I learned a lot from those descriptions, even if I didn't exactly share her enthusiasm for them. For the most part the things she talks so fondly of lacked appeal, not because of their American-ness, but because of the time period. For all that I appreciated that the girls were able to work, I cannot see the characters as having the kind of freedom they sometimes think they do. They are still heavily constrained by circumstance and gender. Jo and Amy of course provide a fascinating insight into these restraints, and the ambition they each show makes for informative and insightful reading.

"But, you see, Jo wasn't a heroine, she was only a struggling human girl like hundreds of others, and she just acted out her nature, being sad, cross, listless, or energetic, as the mood suggested."

Of course I love Jo, as so many do. But I also feel like Amy doesn't always get her share of the praise. Yes, she does a terrible thing by burning Jo's manuscript, but she was a child, and families are full of contrasting personalities that don't always get along but love each other anyway. Her character growth was much more interesting to me this time around than I ever remember it being before. She strives for so much, and grows into a rather likeable, only slightly vain, young woman. I think I like her more with each read.

Jo will always be my favourite I think, but I also realised this time around that aside from a love of books and writing, I have little in common with her. I admire her brashness, her way of defying convention and expectations, how she manages to not care about the things that don't matter (most of the time anyway) but I don't really share these qualities. I can see why Katharine Hepburn was such a good Jo -- there are a lot of similarities between character and actress. With both, I see a figure I like, and am drawn to, but not one I want to emulate.

Beth I've already covered a bit, but I do love her. I can relate to her timidity, and also the moments when she can be unexpectedly bold. The chapter Beth's Secret had me in tears, as did her death. It always does, and even though I now know to expect it, I am never ready for it.

Meg is a sweet girl that I can never quite invest in as much as her three sisters. I did find her yearning to have more, to not be poor, to have pretty dresses and an easier life completely understandable, but of the quartet, she is the one who most wants to be a wife and mother, and I am less drawn to that. I did appreciate the chapter where she struggles to find the balance between giving attention to her children without completely ignoring her husband, something that I'm sure will always be a tricky thing to manage, to those that it applies to, but I can't say I love her as I love the others. I like what she brings to the family, and I appreciate her placid kindness and her devotion to her family, but that's about it.

I adore dear Laurie, but I've never felt he was right for Jo. I know that many people vehemently disagree with me here, as they have every right to do, but I just can't see them as a married couple. I think he is much more suited to Amy. He and Jo are a good pair, but not in a romantic sense. It's a big leap from friendship to marriage, and I think the fears Jo relays to her mother all make perfect sense.

As is probably clear, I much prefer Jo's Professor. I'm very taken with him and heartily approve of their marriage. I think he understands Jo in a way that Laurie doesn't and he is my favourite of all the suitors. If I had to marry any of the husbands of the March sisters, I would pick him in a heartbeat. I know Laurie is young and handsome and rich, but he isn't the Professor.

This novel is a delight to read over the Christmas period. There is the obvious reason--the lovely Christmas scenes, but I also found that during the busyness of the holidays, this was a peaceful retreat from a time of year that I tend to find a bit stressful and overwhelming. As ever I can't help envying the winter scenes depicted-- I associate snow with Christmas, though I have never experienced it! It's nice to read about chilly weather when the days are stifling hot and drag on an hour or two too long.

I want to read more about Louisa May Alcott and the writing of her timeless novel. I have a few books related to the topic on my to-read shelf, but have yet to obtain copies. I will aim for 2021 in regards to this, but it's a loose goal as my list of books to buy is always well beyond my means! I will be reading the next two books in this series for the first time very soon and look forward to them. Whether they will become favourites as well remains to be seen, but Little Women continues to hold up as well as ever, and I will likely return to it many more times in the future.

This is a beautiful classic embedding everlasting wisdom whilst it allows its reading enthusiasts participate in the joyous as well as sorrowful moments of four sisters.

Elaborating the emotional process of becoming adults, the book inevitably holds a mirror that reflects one’s personal growth.

I have come across that most of my bookish friends identify themselves with Jo. First, I was also convinced that her character is aimed for me until I realised that I may have elements of every sister depending on the situation I face.

Cheers to all who pave the way for others to make their own choices in life!

Btw: I have just watched the screen adaptation with Susan Sarandon, Winona Ryder, Kirsten Dunst and Christian Bale. Quite a neat movie, but it would have been dull, if I hadn’t read the book.

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There is much to enjoy in 'Little Women', especially if you prefer the values of life taught in conservative religious daycare centers, gentle reader.

Marmee March, who is obviously a fertility goddess, raises four young human girls - Margaret (16), Jo (15), Beth (12) and Amy (9) - by herself during the Civil War. Chaplain March, rumored to be the human father of the four girls but who I believe is actually a zombie or a holy ghost, has volunteered to serve President Lincoln's troops by ministering to the soldiers at the warfront while his wife and children soldier on in genteel poverty in Massachusetts, taking jobs such as governess or companion to elderly rich people.

Each girl has a distinct personality at the start, unfortunately. But by the last page, having learned in depth the housecleaning and cooking skills allowed 19th-century females to learn, as well as in finishing up the rest of their meager basic education filtered through Christian values into a loving acceptance of their erasure as individual personas, they all successfully transition into modest obedient self-effacing wives and mothers. One is fortunate to find a position as a trophy wife, while another becomes a proliferate baby maker. Last but not least, it appears one of the women may become a respectable daycare operator, specializing in the emasculation of males. I do not want to speak too much about the one who escaped this Utopia. That was sad.

Whilst I do recall reading this as a young child I could remember little about the characters and the story-line so felt I was revisiting both something beloved and viewing it with fresh and excited eyes.

This felt like a series of short stories involving the March sisters, bound into a longer narrative. Whilst each sister is dissimilar in temperament and personality they all share the closest of bonds, and reading of their shared happiness and sorrows made this an altogether adorable reading experience. I didn't expect this to be as poignant and whimsical as it was and each of the nostalgic adventures recounted had me feeling like an honorary March sister, so inclusive was the style of writing and the lovable nature of the characters within.

Each of these tales had a moralistic edge that made this suitable for younger readers, but not off-putting to an older or modern-day readership. I whole-heartedly enjoyed this, and the warm, fuzzy feelings it evoked, and am glad I have revisited something so special.

Little Woman is a book that I have read again and again, since I was a child and every time it seems a little new. The story is about four sisters with human faults. They try to do what is right, fail, and keep at it as they are all strong and independent. The pages of this book are full of honesty, love, kindness, and tolerance pervade.
I can only give one recommendation: just start the book, it will be finished automatically.

i just bought this one and i'm excited, yay me

Veamos, entiendo que se escribió en 1868, de verdad que lo entiendo. Soy muy consciente de la época y del rol de la mujer en ese momento. Pero Jane Eyre es previo a esos años y es algo por completo diferente. No los voy a comparar porque no es justo, son historias distintas. Solo quería ejemplificar que aun dentro del rol de la mujer en ese momento, se podía hacer algo que no fuera tan moralista.

La historia narra la vida de las hermanas March a lo largo de los años desde que son adolescentes, casi niñas, hasta que están casadas y con hijos.

Sé que me demoré mucho en leer este libro, pero la verdad es que mientras la primera mitad fue divertida la segunda se me hizo eterna y aburrida. Terminé leyendo en diagonal porque ya no aguantaba más y solo quería terminarlo. No digo que el libro sea malo, sino que para mí en este momento fue demasiado aburrido. Es que en realidad el libro no tiene trama, es la historia de las hermanas creciendo, aprendiendo y enamorándose y eso está bien. Es perfectamente válido.

Adoro la relación de hermanas, el cariño que se tenían y que tenían con Laurie y su abuelo. Me pareció muy tierno todo y adorable. Es muy lindo que el eje del libro fuera la relación de hermanas de ellas, algo que se suele dejar de lado por el amor, que fue más o menos lo que sucede al final cuando cada una está por su lado, quizá por eso me gustó mucho menos.

El libro es bueno. Muestra relaciones sanas y muy bonitas, ya sea de familia y de pareja. Es cierto que por momentos parece romantizar un montón la pobreza y la vida simple. A lo que se suma el tono moralizador que tiene el libro y parece ser una biblia de como ser una buena mujer en el sXIX, aprender a respetar al esposo, a ser buena madre, a aceptar la pobreza y sacar el mejor lado de ella. Creo que eso es lo que más me chocó, repito que entiendo el año en el que está escrito, pero es tan evidente que es un libro para mujeres para que sean felices con lo que tienen y aprendan a ser buenas madres y esposas que no puedo evitar molestarme.

Incluso con Jo, que es esta chica liberal y con pensamientos modernos todo el final, todo el tema de que está sola, de que su sueño no se cumple, y termina casada con un hombre que le dobla la edad y es pobre, pero ¡vaya! está enamorada... No lo sé. De verdad lo detesté, creo que me gustaba más en las películas, ahí era más soportable, pero aquí no. Por momentos incluso me daba la sensación de que la autora intentaba decir que no deberíamos ser como Jo, porque al final miren como terminó. Jo siempre era la torpe, la fea, la que no podía controlar la lengua, la menos femenina. Vamos, que es el estereotipo de feminista que la gente tiene.

Sí, detesto a Amy, pero como personaje me gusta. De hecho, cuando Amy decide que tiene que casarse con alguien con dinero para mantener a sus hermanas lo encuentro super noble. Amy adoraba el status quo de esa época, le encantaba ser mujer y los roles creados para ella, pero al mismo tiempo era inteligente y fría al respecto. Incluso con su sueño sobre ser artista, encuentro notablemente ambicioso que decidiera que las opciones eran ser una genia o ser mediocre. Suena tonto o drástico, pero era su sueño y ella lo quería en su máximo esplendor o no lo quería. Y me gusta eso.

Por cierto, encuentro terrible que ninguna de las hermanas consiguiera su sueño y que eso al final se usara como moraleja de que eran sueños infantiles y que lo importante era lo que tenían ahora... FAMILIA. Sí, Jo y Amy dicen que quieren seguir intentando vivir su sueño de alguna manera, pero me sigue pareciendo terrible.

Sé que estoy sonando sumamente amargada y drástica porque al final el libro tiene más de 150 años y no puedo andar pidiendo feminismo en obras así cuando otras modernas todavía son increíblemente machistas. Lo sé. LO SÉ. Sin embargo, he leído grandes personajes femeninos en obras de Shakespeare, está la maravillosa Jane Eyre, están las obras de Jane Austen. Entonces, tampoco era pedir mucho que este libro me diera algo un poco más moderno, pero solo era una obra moralista sobre lo bueno que es el trabajo bien hecho, la romantización de la pobreza, como ser madre es lo mejor de la vida de la mujer, sobre los roles de la esposa y sobre como algunos sueños no son tan importantes cuando se tiene familia.

***FIRST ALL TIME FAVOURITE read in 2024***

Thinking about the number of books I DNFed before picking up this book, I was so sure that this book will be either one of the DNFs or will actually surprise me. Guess which one it is!

I, for sure, can say that this story is not fictional. The characters are too real and the way they are talking is more realistic than most nonfiction books/memoirs. Yes, you can try it for yourself if you haven’t read this book yet.

There are two parts of Little Women. I have chosen the complete one to read and yes, I think I have done the right thing as now I am an adult who accepts people and situations as they are. Because if I weren’t, I would just be happy reading the first part. If you want an happy ending to the story, I would suggest you to read the first part ONLY. It has 23 chapters and it has a very wholesome happy ending. The young girls and their mother struggled a lot as their father is away at war. However, everything comes together towards the end and everyone’s content. The characters and the reader too I am saying. Yes, until this part can be considered as a whole complete book.

If you are someone like me who just doesn’t need the fluff and happy endings when we know the characters are struggling as much as they are realistic, I would totally recommend you read the second part as well.

You will cry for one character. And then, the dam breaks and you will cry for every character in the book thinking about this character.

The second part of the book has some heavy trigger regarding loss of family and grief. I got triggered as I wasn’t expecting it and I had a difficult time completing the book as and when it happened.

I would tell you not to pick up Little Women just because it is widely read or popular and it is so many people’s favourite. But read it when you want to read something realistic, ugly or beautiful when it comes to real life and if you want to feel connected with someone whose priorities change as we grow up and grow older.

Even though I expected to like this book when I read it, I never thought the book would turn out like how it is. Guess I was pretty ignorant regardless of how many people have discussed about it for decades now. I stuck with my reading values and haven’t even tried to know what the book is about even though it was everywhere! This has made all the difference I feel!


I cannot choose a favourite character as I find all the characters pretty realistic and well written. However, I would love to know more about Meg and Beth. The first and the third sisters.

The book is mostly from the perspectives of Jo and Amy, the second and the fourth sisters.

Their personalities are so different yet so similar in how straightforward and realistic they are.

I love their mother so much. She’s the perfect comforting soft character who everyone can rely on but she’s also someone who demands love and respect at the same time. I wish there are more parts featuring the father. This is the only character which seems somehow fictional in the entire book.

(Am I writing an essay here?!!!! I didn’t want to yet I want to say so much!!!!!)

Coming to the love interest, as much as we do not want them to be realistic and boring (yes, I mentioned it!), the guy seems to be pretty clueless when it comes to what Jo means when she’s pretty expressive of what she says or does when it comes to the relationship (yes, she is the main character when it comes to the romance parts yet she isn’t there when it comes to this part, if you know what I mean!). I can relate so much with her when she says those words expressing herself clearly and what she feels about the guy TO THE GUY.

I love this book more so because of the honest ways the characters express themselves. There’s no room for misunderstandings or miscommunication. This I truly appreciate.

(Damn I am tired typing all this and trying to breath easier with all the emotional damage the book did to me with its last few hundred pages… I will continue when I get better)

As I'm finding with a lot of the classics this is way too long! Cut it in half and it would be a really good book. I'm glad I've read it and it's definitely one of the better classics, just a little to long winded. My advice - watch the film!

Little Women remains to this day one of the books I have, curiously, read the most. And I'm not ashamed to state this. Why should I be? The notion that certain films or books are 'chick-lit' is one so alien to my mind. They may be geared at specific audiences mostly, but any strong work of art will appeal to any individual - or rather can appeal to any individual - person.

I don't know what it is about Little Women that made me so attracted to it. Perhaps it was the characterisation in the women in the book at the age of ten. Maybe something in my childish mind told me that independent and restrained elegance in female characters was something to be admired when it could be created in fiction - when I say restrained elegance I mean the wisdom of modesty. Something about the girls - Jo, Meg, Beth and Amy - appealed to me, something told me that they were well crafted characters.

Who can explain why any fictional book touches anyone? Who can define how we class things such as quality or beauty? It seems to be something subconscious, something picked up both culturally and individually. To me, Little Women was, and because of fond memories still is, a work of pure art. It has its rough patches no doubt but it kept drawing me back in with the tales of women discovering their paths in life and ultimately a romance. Some might find this an overly sympathetic or sappy book. I'm not here to say it isn't. But it touched me in a particular way and that is what I'm hear to state. Think of me as someone who has had an experience with a novel - for it is the nature of humanity to aim to share experience.

I'll always describe myself as a romantic at heart, in the sense that I'm an idealist, that I hold to ideals and to the belief that people can be better. Age and time have perhaps developed me into more of a cynical idealist but a part of me is strongly romantic deep down. It is the poetic side of me, the writer side of me, the side that wants to break free of conventions and try to find the words to explain what I so clumsily cannot. It is that part of me that was awakened by such literature as this - I must admit that delving into something like Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret might have stunted such development however.

Somewhere in a distant time a copy of Little Women floats. It has paper browned through the constant touching of grubby little fingers; pages crumpled and worn with regular turning (or heaven forbid - leaving it with the spine open on a chair); and there are unidentifiable food stains on several pages. It may not have been the greatest of copies, certainly nothing extraordinary about it, but it was my copy. And it was a copy well loved. And it was the extra love that added an aura of romance and a boundless love to it. And it is to this image, lost in the vortex of space and time, that I return to when I think of this novel.