Louisa May Alcott: An Intimate Anthology

One specific word pops into my head whenever I think of anything Little Women-related: darling. It's a darling story, a cozy tale of a family of girls who are virtuous and kind and lovely and grow up to be virtuouser and kinder and lovelier. Delightful at its best, honestly preachy and draggy at its worst, it's the kind of book you can read at your own pace, finding, more often than not, some little thing to keep your heart warm.

I didn't love Little Women. It was a very moral based read and could be slow at times. Each chapter could stand on it's own with a lesson learned. Now days a woman doesn't need a good marriage to reach true happiness but it was a different time when this story was written and many lessons, like not allowing money to control you, can still apply today. Some chapters I enjoyed more than others. There wasn't much excitement or enthusiasm behind most life events. Maybe this style or writing is what left me less emotionally attached to the four sisters. If I only read the Little Women portion of the book I may have given it four stars on my Goodreads account but I must say I was surprised when what I expected to happen didn't.

I learned, when published, part two was a second book, Good Wives, which continues their story and this is where I struggled. The second half is where the story considerably slows downs. I can't put my finger on what changed. Everything just seemed more mundane. The interesting bits of their lives are farther apart and gets buried. If I was going to rate this portion of the book separately I would give Part two, two stars.

I rated the book three stars out of five stars. If I ever come back to this classic I will not continue past part one.