Children's booksChildren's books This article is more than 9 years old

Little Women by Louisa May Alcott - review

This article is more than 9 years old'I felt rather lonely after the March sisters had gone as I loved their spirit and felt as if I was almost one of them, which is a clear sign of this book's greatness'

Louisa May Alcott, Little Women (Oxford World's Classics)

Four sisters: Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy March, are part of a poor but loving family. With their father off to war they have only their mother left to encourage them to be the best version of themselves at all times. As they go through love and loss they truly do learn to become 'little women'.

I found myself, after reading the last line twice over just to check, satisfied yet in want of more. It was a refreshing read that made me care for the sisters and left me wanting to know what led Alcott to write this simple masterpiece. As all well-known books do, it had a fair few morals that, although made the characters seem a bit too perfect to be real, were reasonable and made me want to make up for my faults (of which there are many).

Alcott's writing was elegant yet poignant and haunting at moments, and perfect for the era it was set in, whilst the sister's personalities were intricately described throughout the whole book. It gave you a sense of what it was like to be a normal family in the 1800's and subtly showed the feelings of each character.

However, I have a few complaints. I found myself scanning the book and not actually reading it at times and reading other books because of its slow plot. There aren't many exciting events to keep the reader hooked throughout. I also at times found the characters annoyingly perfect and would have liked just a couple more arguments.

All in all though, I felt rather lonely after the March sisters had gone as I loved their spirit and felt as if I was almost one of them, which is a clear sign of this book's greatness. I know I will remember this book for years to come and it will always feel as if it were almost yesterday that I read it, as it is a book to treasure and keep on a dusty bookshelf to pass on for generations.

Buy this book at the Guardian Bookshop

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