crizzle's review
4.0
The last essay on Amy was worth it all! What a great analysis of her character development from girl to woman! My mind is fully changed on Amy. I will now know her as the most misunderstood sister. Her good turns in life aren’t just luck and she isn’t selfish; she’s a hard worker with her goals ever in her mind. Last sentence of the book sums it up: “Amy is the modern woman, the thoughtful feminist; the sister who stays true to herself, learns to navigate her social world, gains a wisdom and self-knowledge different from that of her sisters, and is more like what we aim to be today.”
The essay on Beth was my least favorite. I did find the first on Meg interesting with the “frock consciousness” stuff by Virginia Woolf (what we wear expresses who we think we are or wish to be, while also affecting what others think about us, “a curious feedback loop of self-perception”).
A must-read for any Little Women reader, but I think even better is “Meg, Jo, Beth, Amy: The Story of Little Women and Why it Still Matters”.
The essay on Beth was my least favorite. I did find the first on Meg interesting with the “frock consciousness” stuff by Virginia Woolf (what we wear expresses who we think we are or wish to be, while also affecting what others think about us, “a curious feedback loop of self-perception”).
A must-read for any Little Women reader, but I think even better is “Meg, Jo, Beth, Amy: The Story of Little Women and Why it Still Matters”.
carasara's review
Full disclosure- I did not finish Jane Smiley's essay, which is a meditation on motherhood and what SHE would do if Amy were her child, which I found extremely boring. The other three are fine, nothing earth shattering.
_meganno's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Medical content and Medical trauma
Moderate: Death
bookpossum's review
3.0
An enjoyable read. I liked the chapter on Amy by Jane Smiley best of all as she wrote about the development of the character rather than about herself. The other three writers tended to write about themselves in relation to their chosen character.
diyashasen's review
informative
medium-paced
3.25
Despite always aspiring to be a Jo (and sometimes a Beth), I’m definitely more of a Meg or Amy… so it was interesting to read each author’s interpretations and relationships with the more ancillary March sisters.
Unsurprisingly, Carmen Maria Machado’s was easily my favourite, but Jenny Zhang’s essay was pretty notable (I would definitely say the most relatable). Jane Smiley writes well, but she gives a lot more credit to Amy’s agency as a ‘feminist heroine’ than I think is deserved. In fact, I wish all of the authors (with the exception of Machado) spent more time delving into the archetypes of ‘older sister’, ‘middle child’ and ‘younger sister’.
A lovely collection of essays for die-hard Little Women fans such as myself; I’m tempted to visit the Orchard House again this winter after this read!
Unsurprisingly, Carmen Maria Machado’s was easily my favourite, but Jenny Zhang’s essay was pretty notable (I would definitely say the most relatable). Jane Smiley writes well, but she gives a lot more credit to Amy’s agency as a ‘feminist heroine’ than I think is deserved. In fact, I wish all of the authors (with the exception of Machado) spent more time delving into the archetypes of ‘older sister’, ‘middle child’ and ‘younger sister’.
A lovely collection of essays for die-hard Little Women fans such as myself; I’m tempted to visit the Orchard House again this winter after this read!
msmandrake's review against another edition
2.0
Yeah, well this was okay, just like two stars say. The first essay was fine, the second I started to bog down on, the third was full of medical horror stories...lose me quickly with that, and by the fourth I was just beaten down, okay, whatever. These are fictional characters, y'all. (Yes, I know it is semi-autobiographical.) Now I get that reading this as a child is a different experience then reading it as an adult. Knowing about the life of Louisa May Alcott adds a totally different dimension, sure, but she was writing to sell books and she WAS a woman of her time, no matter how "forward thinking" or "oppressed and constrained" she was, and she was trying to sell books and please publishers and an audience and make money, so all this speculation and analyzation and comparing of oneselves to the characters makes me a little crabby, I guess. Also makes me think of those annoying quizzes, Which Sex In the City/Harry Potter/Disney Princess are YOU?
maaaans's review
3.0
The first three essays are fantastic, but the last one really drags on without any of the personal connections or feminist critique that make the collection with reading. It’s disappointing since I appreciate nuanced takes on Amy March. But if you exclude it, the rest of the collection deserves four stars.
nosherbetlemons's review against another edition
4.0
A nostalgic set of essays on each March sister, and a trip down memory lane for me!