March

I wish that I could remember the first time that I read Little Women. I know I was very young, and it wasn't the original, but the Great Animated Classic's version (loved those!). I read Louisa May Alcott's version in junior high, and I was hooked. Since then, I must have re-read it a hundred times (okay, so probably not a hundred, but enough). If I absolutely had to choose one favorite book, Little Women might be it. My teacher recommended March to me when we were off on a book-loving tangent one day. She said that if I loved Little Women, that I would love March as well. She leant it to me, and here we are.
It's the story of the patriach of the March family. Which in itself is an interesting idea, and something that I'm sure most Little Women fans have not thought much about (myself included). It tells the story of how he met Marmee, and how their family lost their fortune, as well as what Mr. March was doing while Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy were being ingrained into our hearts.
Dealing with the civil war, March also deals with slavery and issues of race. We learn that a young Marmee worked passionately with the underground railroad, and continued this work with her girls. It gave dimension to one of my favorite families, bringing Mr. March, and Marmee, to life and putting a new perspective on Alcotts story. And it made me cry. And we know I'm a sucker for a book that makes me cry.That being said, it also stays true to the original version. Little Women was based so much on Louisa May Alcott's life, and Geraldine Brooks clearly did her research to continue that. The writing is also fantastic. If you're a fan of Little Women, I highly recommend this book. And if for some unexplainable reason you have never read it, I suggest you start there!