Little Women
Style: Classic
Attitude: Edifying
Age Range: Pre Teens+
Period: Late 19th C
Synopsis:
Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy March are girls growing into young ladies in the late 19th century. Their father has gone to fight in the Civil War and they are in the care of their mother and Hannah the maid. They befriend the old gentleman next door and his grandson of their age.
Notes:
One can see why this book and its successors occupies a place in children's literature. It espouses countless virtues while leaving the girls believable creatures, each with her own faults which she fights. Nonetheless it is unlikely to be readily accepted by any child today since attitudes to children and to girls in particular have changed so much. For that reason it is likely to be read as a literary curiosity, and more's the pity, since the ideals suggested are no less valid today for the most part.
Tuesday 1st January 2002