Scan barcode
cathd80's review against another edition
3.0
Meg & Jo is exactly what you would hope for in a modern retelling of Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women. The characters are just as remembered, but living contemporary lives. Meg still lives in North Carolina where they grew up, living happily with her husband and twins. Jo lives in NYC, working as a food blogger and in a restaurant with a chef named Eric. But life is not that simple. Meg is the dutiful wife and daughter, but the weight of always being there for everyone, especially after their mother becomes sick, starts to overwhelm her. Jo struggles with the fact that all her education and writing has not brought her the career of her dreams. Nor can she commit in her personal life.
Which is all you need to know about the plot. Suffice it to say, author Virginia Kantra, honors the past, but brings forth a very real present to this group of characters. It’s still light reading with a bit of a romance-y feel, but she explores marriage in unexpected ways I greatly appreciated. Especially as I found them so problematic in the original. Even better, there will be a second novel, focused solely on Beth and Amy.
Which is all you need to know about the plot. Suffice it to say, author Virginia Kantra, honors the past, but brings forth a very real present to this group of characters. It’s still light reading with a bit of a romance-y feel, but she explores marriage in unexpected ways I greatly appreciated. Especially as I found them so problematic in the original. Even better, there will be a second novel, focused solely on Beth and Amy.
mizele20's review against another edition
3.0
Surprisingly, I enjoyed this book. I expected not to, but I felt that her take on the 4 sisters was clever and she provided some interesting twists.
sryoung's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
life_full_ofbooks's review against another edition
1.0
This book proves that you shouldn’t fix what isn’t broken. Little Women is my favorite classic novel. I have read the book multiple times and I have seen every version of the movie. When I saw there was a modern retelling as a book I jumped in excitement.
This book failed on so many levels. As the title depicts we only get Meg & Jo’s stories. Meg is 2 dimensional at best. It seemed like author was trying too hard to portray Meg as she was from the original but she comes across as much weaker than her 1800’s counterpart. Jo has always been my favorite character. Out of all 4 sisters she’s the one I’ve always wanted to be, but not this version of her. It felt like certain things were happening because the author wanted them to, not because of Jo’s actions. Abby (aka Momma, or Marmee to us traditionalists) is stubborn and I didn’t see any of the qualities in her that I loved from the original, and the author’s portrayal of Dr. March was an absolute joke. The best character in this book is Jo’s boss but even he is missing the qualities that Fritz had in the original book.
I get that this book is based on the original but there are enough scenes from the original book recreated for the modern day that I just expected the characters to live up to the ones I hold so dearly in my heart. I was so excited to read the sequel Beth & Amy but after this I think I’ll skip it and just read the original again.
This book failed on so many levels. As the title depicts we only get Meg & Jo’s stories. Meg is 2 dimensional at best. It seemed like author was trying too hard to portray Meg as she was from the original but she comes across as much weaker than her 1800’s counterpart. Jo has always been my favorite character. Out of all 4 sisters she’s the one I’ve always wanted to be, but not this version of her. It felt like certain things were happening because the author wanted them to, not because of Jo’s actions. Abby (aka Momma, or Marmee to us traditionalists) is stubborn and I didn’t see any of the qualities in her that I loved from the original, and the author’s portrayal of Dr. March was an absolute joke. The best character in this book is Jo’s boss but even he is missing the qualities that Fritz had in the original book.
I get that this book is based on the original but there are enough scenes from the original book recreated for the modern day that I just expected the characters to live up to the ones I hold so dearly in my heart. I was so excited to read the sequel Beth & Amy but after this I think I’ll skip it and just read the original again.
megs_s's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
bookapotamus's review against another edition
4.0
I love the story of the March sisters. And I’m always up for a good retelling of any of my favorite childhood reads. Little Women was something my mom introduced me to at a very young age and I’ve read it so many times and have pretty much seen every film adaptation. I’m definitely a Jo, and I was super exited to dive into this one and see what she could be up to in modern day times.
I didn’t really go into it with any expectations, as I appreciate changes to storylines to show what one would imagine the characters could be like now. And it was fun for sure! There were times it felt a bit slow and I easily got tired of the father’s storyline and wish he hadn’t had such a major part (he made me SO MAD), but the sisterly love is still there! The differences between the girls is just as distinct as you’d want them to be, and seeing them come together despite them, is just as satisfying as the original!
The personalities of all the ladies is by far my favorite part of these four sisters and always will be. The story is heartwarming and for me it was a very refreshing take on Little Women. Virginia Kantra did a great job and I commend her bravery for taking on such a beloved Classic! I’m excited to read the upcoming story of Beth & Amy!
I didn’t really go into it with any expectations, as I appreciate changes to storylines to show what one would imagine the characters could be like now. And it was fun for sure! There were times it felt a bit slow and I easily got tired of the father’s storyline and wish he hadn’t had such a major part (he made me SO MAD), but the sisterly love is still there! The differences between the girls is just as distinct as you’d want them to be, and seeing them come together despite them, is just as satisfying as the original!
The personalities of all the ladies is by far my favorite part of these four sisters and always will be. The story is heartwarming and for me it was a very refreshing take on Little Women. Virginia Kantra did a great job and I commend her bravery for taking on such a beloved Classic! I’m excited to read the upcoming story of Beth & Amy!
stucknbooks14's review against another edition
3.0
Because of my love for Little Women, I went into this with high expectations. And that wasn't fair of me. I can't remember the last time it took me this long to complete a book. I just never felt like "I need to finish this." I was almost always annoyed with Meg. Caught myself rolling my eyes a few times; as a mom and as a daughter. I didn't feel that way with Meg in Little Women. I was so happy with the way Jo was portrayed in this version.
mhoffrob's review against another edition
3.0
A quick and easy read; somewhat predictable and trite. The author reimagines the March sisters into the modern era, with their father having left in their youth to become a army chaplain during the Iraq war. Now Amy, Beth, Jo and Meg are grown women, and living lives spread far fro home. Over the course of a few months, they return home for holidays and illnesses, and learn that they have all grown and changed, their typical family roles are reversing and changing. Agin, predicatble in many ways, but enjoyable.