angelreadsthings's review against another edition
4.0
4 1/2 Stars. I felt that this biography gave a very thorough description of Louisa May Alcott's life without adding unwanted detail. I enjoyed reading this biography very much.
plaidpladd's review against another edition
2.0
I guess this was better than a lot of these ancient Newberry winners. A lot of 1930s-style moralizing, though
llkendrick's review against another edition
3.0
This was the 1934 Newbery Medal Winner and is the story of the author of Little Women. I think that she had a very fascinating life but thought the author wrote about it in a boring way. It was fun to see how she mirrored Little Women after her own family, all the famous authors her family was friends with, her part in the Civil War, and how she handled fame. If you are a die-hard Little Women fan, then I would recommend this book to you.
mjfmjfmjf's review against another edition
3.0
Newbery re-read continues. So I've re-read this and still never read anything of Louisa May Alcott - heck I don't think I've even seen any of the movies.
It's a pretty well written biography. Clearly it tries hard to cover the plot of the Louisa's life if not necessarily her inner thoughts. What I don't know is how true it was, and that is the challenge of a non-academic biography. Still it was interesting to see the famous places and names - from Emerson to Thoreau to Hawthorne. And be reminded of the earlier ventures into Utopian communes.
But in the end there was a certain amount of tedium. It's hard to put this high on a list of favored biographies. Perhaps I'll feel differently when I eventually read works by Alcott.
It's a pretty well written biography. Clearly it tries hard to cover the plot of the Louisa's life if not necessarily her inner thoughts. What I don't know is how true it was, and that is the challenge of a non-academic biography. Still it was interesting to see the famous places and names - from Emerson to Thoreau to Hawthorne. And be reminded of the earlier ventures into Utopian communes.
But in the end there was a certain amount of tedium. It's hard to put this high on a list of favored biographies. Perhaps I'll feel differently when I eventually read works by Alcott.
k_lee_reads_it's review against another edition
3.0
Lots of famous people in this. I think I understand transcendentalism better. Also was interesting insight into someone who grew up in New England. As for Louisa, it was a biography that was readable.
danyell919's review against another edition
5.0
The best biographical book I've ever read! It's on the life of Little Women author Louisa May Alcott. Loved it!
letstalkaboutbooksbaybee's review against another edition
3.0
1934 Newbery winner
I think this may be only the second nonfiction title to win the award so far. This is all about the author of Little Women, and while it was east to read and fairly entertaining and informative, I’m not sure I’d recommend it to any kids in my life because honestly I don’t think kids are reading Little Women anymore nor would they care about the author that much lol
I think this may be only the second nonfiction title to win the award so far. This is all about the author of Little Women, and while it was east to read and fairly entertaining and informative, I’m not sure I’d recommend it to any kids in my life because honestly I don’t think kids are reading Little Women anymore nor would they care about the author that much lol
allyoop's review against another edition
2.0
I’m not a big fan of Little Women (heinous, I know), so I wasn’t too excited to be reading a biography of Louisa May Alcott. This read as a pretty disjointed biography on top of that. I get that the information collected was probably a little rough around the edges, but the fact/story aspect was presented a little bizarrely. I found a groove after the book discussed Little Women being written, so I imagine that’s when her life was more accurately documented, and that's when the author had more information to mold. Either way, I didn’t like how the earlier years were done.
This is not a bad book, and I've liked Cornelia Meigs' other works. I'm a more factual person, and I don't get along with biographies that have a fictionalized feel to them.
Spoiler
And the last chapter was cruel in tricking me with a title of “happy endings” (or something like that) and then killing lots of people. Sisters, dads, everybody dies! Happy indeed! Bah.This is not a bad book, and I've liked Cornelia Meigs' other works. I'm a more factual person, and I don't get along with biographies that have a fictionalized feel to them.
zoes_human's review
4.0
I wish I had read this when I was younger. It's a bit sanitized for my adult mind. Nevertheless, as a long-time fan of Little Women and an admirer of Louisa May Alcott, it was a pleasure to read. I enjoyed seeing which parts of one of my favorite books stemmed from real life. I also learned some interesting facts about Ms. Alcott which only served to increase my admiration.
If you have a lover of Little Women in your home, this would be a great book for them. Especially if you're trying to encourage a little reader to branch out into non-fiction.
If you have a lover of Little Women in your home, this would be a great book for them. Especially if you're trying to encourage a little reader to branch out into non-fiction.