Every Father with Daughters Should Read...

“I know they will remember all I said to them, that they will be loving children to you, will do their duty faithfully, fight their bosom enemies bravely, and conquer themselves so beautifully that when I come back to them I may be fonder and prouder than ever of my little women." Mr. March

Happy Holidays 1000 Bookies! I hope everyone had a great holiday and I wish you a healthy and productive New Year!  I wish you a New Year where you make the time to read. 

The next stop on the 1000 Books to Read Before You Die is a classic tale of love, family and loss, Little Women by Louisa May Alcott.  I chose to read this timeless novel because of the release of the new film. I wanted to be able to compare the classic book with the latest movie.  I thoroughly enjoyed reading Little Women.  As the father of three daughters and the uncle of several nieces I recommend to any father or uncle with young ladies in their lives to read Little Women. The story has an innocent, whimsical quality but is tempered by the sadness of loss.  The four March Sisters (Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy) are delightful characters and have become among the most famous sisters throughout literature.

The book was written in two parts and originally published separately in the late 1860s, so there is a dividing line in the story.  Little Women is a semi-autobiographical story based on the Alcott Family.  Louisa May Alcott was one of four sisters born to educated and progressive parents.  Louisa studied under the tutelage of a number of the most brilliant names of the time period who also were friends of her parents.  Those names include the great transcendental leaders of the day--Thoreau, Emerson and Hawthorne.  The Alcott family were obviously socially broadminded for the time.  For example, the family home, Orchard House, was a station on the underground railroad and the family hosted the great abolitionist, Frederick Douglas, at their home.  Alcott served as a nurse in Washington during the Civil War where she contracted typhoid fever.  While never marrying, Louisa based the character of Laurie on a romance she had in Europe with a Polish Count.  Alcott continued the March Sisters story in Little Men and Jo’s Boys.  I look forward to reading and discussing both novels.

The story centers on the four March Sisters, who each have a distinctive and memorable personality.  Margaret or Meg, as she is called, is the oldest March sister who enjoys society and the finer luxuries in life.  Considered the prettiest, she falls in love with Laurie’s tutor, John Brooke.  Josephine or Jo is the next oldest.  Based on Alcott herself, Jo is the headstrong sister who wants to obtain a career in a man’s world and become an author.  Jo is opinionated, rowdy and a tomboy.  Beth is the next sister in line—she is sweet and sensitive.  Beth is the musician of the family which charms their neighbor, Mr. Laurence.  Beth is the tragic character who in the first part of the story contracts Scarlett Fever and then passes away in the second part of the book.  Last but not least is the youngest March sister Amy, she is almost a compilation of all the sisters—she is pretty, prideful and has an artistic streak. Amy is able to do a grand tour of Europe.

As a father and an uncle, when reading this novel, I thought about “My Little Women”.  Rachael, Erica, Ashley and Lillian are the girls whom I looked for the qualities of the March Girls.  Ashley reminded me of both Beth and Amy.  Lillian reminds me of Beth, Amy and Jo.  Erica is totally Meg with some Jo mixed in.  My Rachael possesses some of the great qualities of Jo.  But we all look for the qualities of great characters in ourselves and those around us. \

Little Women begins on Christmas Eve, a sad Christmas because Mr. March is far away, serving as a chaplain in the army during the Civil War.  Mr. March sends a letter asking his girls to act like little women in his absence.  The girls take their Christmas breakfast and their small gifts and give them to a poor neighbor family.  This act of kindness brings the March Family in contact with Mr. Laurence next store who is wealthy and raising his grandson Theodore.  Teddy/Laurie as he is known becomes a boon companion to the March Girls, eventually marrying one.  The book travails their growing up and finding love.  There are some iconic scenes including the scene where Jo cuts her hair to obtain money for her mother to take the train to Washington, DC to visit their father when he was sick. 

Little Women has an illustrious career on the big screen with several adaptions with many famous actresses playing the memorable characters.  Kathrine Hepburn and Winona Ryder are famous for portraying Jo.  However, a parade of stars have come through the classic including Elizabeth Taylor, Joan Bennett, Gabriel Byrne, Christian Bale, Emma Watson, Willian Shatner, Mary Wickes, Laura Dern, Susan Sarandon, Susan Dey, Dorothy McGuire, Meryl Streep, Meredith Baxter, Timothee Chalamet and Saoirse Ronan.  One family movie night please obtain one of the many versions, pop some popcorn and enjoy. 

I highly recommend you pick up a copy of Little Women either for yourself or the women in your life.  Keep Reading my friends!!!!