While I was re-shelving books at work the other day I thought of a dozen things I wanted to talk to you about, but do I remember any of them now that I am home at my computer? Do I hell!
We evidently have a friendly library spirit and/or helpful library patron, and by both of those tactful terms I mean we have someone who is leaving us Pointed Corrections, but those Corrections are Correct, so it’s hard to be critical. The other day, for example, I found a parenting book set flat on the shelf near the travel guides. I picked it up with a contented/irritated sigh (there is almost nothing in this life I love as much as putting a lost book back where it belongs, but I am still theoretically opposed to people putting books in the wrong place; but back to the first point, if someone IS going to put something down in the wrong place, putting it flat on the shelf is absolutely great because then I notice it and can put it where it belongs, so I do approve of that)—but then noticed the number on the spine WOULD put it smack in the middle of the travel guides. But…it was a parenting book, and not a travel-related one. Further investigation revealed the spine sticker was incorrect, something that hardly ever happens because the people who put spine stickers on books are the most meticulous people I have ever known. I don’t know how long it would have taken us to discover it if someone hadn’t set the book aside like that.
I mentioned this on Twitter but I think not on here: my brother is an extra in the 2019 Meryl Streep / Emma Watson / Saoirse Ronan / Laura Dern version of Little Women. He’s the flute-player in the wedding scene, and I went to the movie knowing he DID appear in it for a brief moment, and I kept my eyes wide open and did not blink at all during the wedding scene, and I did not see him. His wife’s entire family went, though, and they ALL saw him, so! Flute-player! Wedding scene! My brother! Good luck!
I thought this movie version of Little Women was really good for someone who has read/loved the book Little Women, but I didn’t feel like it would be as good a fit for my family members, who have not read the book. The movie is like a series of “Hey, remember this?” and “Remember THIS?!”—without actually showing the details of each THIS. And it switches back and forth between Past and Future, which can get a little confusing even if you are like me and have read the book many, many times.
And so we are getting the family ready to see the movie. Paul still reads to Henry each night, so he is going to read him Little Women next. And in the meantime, we have watched the 1994 Winona Ryder / Susan Sarandon movie version of Little Women, which I had never seen; and also the 2017 miniseries starring Maya Hawke who, amazingly to me, is the child of Ethan Hawke and Uma Thurman. I remember reading the issue of People magazine that mentioned her birth. And now here she is, being Jo.
Of the three versions of Little Women I have seen (1994, 2017, 2019), my favorite is the 2017, in large part because as a miniseries it has more TIME so it covers more STUFF. But also because I was distracted by the versions with familiar actors. I kept seeing Hermione instead of Meg, and Winona Ryder instead of Jo, and Susan Sarandon / Laura Dern instead of Marmee. (And BOB ODENKIRK instead of Mr. March, what the HECK.)
It’s been interesting to see which movies (I’m going to refer to all three as “movies,” for simplicity) leave out which parts of the book. The book is like a dozen movies, so SOME things have to be left out. It seems like there is general agreement to be brief with Meg’s married storyline. One movie told the silk dress / greatcoat story, and one referred briefly to the jam story, but none of them did the husband-brings-home-friend-unexpectedly story. Amy’s limes ALWAYS make it in. Burning the book / falling through the ice is always in. Marmee’s temper is always in, but with more/less time devoted to it. There is always the story of the piano, but told differently. The Professor Bhaer storyline is VERY DIFFERENT in each movie; I can’t remember for sure, but I think all three incorporate an umbrella, but not in the same way the book did. More like they’re saying “Remember there was an umbrella?” Laurie shaming Meg is overdone in one version, skipped in another, dealt with oddly in a third. Laurie’s bad behavior is underplayed in all three, though one version does address it a little.
I have enjoyed all three versions very much, and now want to re-read the book.
I haven’t seen the 2017 version and I like but don’t love the W Ryder version but I loved this movie. My husband loves movies but never read the book and he loved the movie too. I loved the music, the costumes, the whole thing, but I loved most how I didn’t want to murder Amy and Beth for the first time.
I took my 10 year old daughter to see the newest movie, and she said it was, “Better than Star Wars.”
Not sure why this made me feel so victorious, but it nevertheless did. Take that, husband!
(I like a Star War fine. It’s fine.)
Then we watched the BBC miniseries. I hope she’ll read the book with me next!
Took my 12 year old to see it in the theater, and the hadn’t yet read the book. She was tween-mortified that I was on the edge of tears or silently crying for most of it.
My Little Women story…I got a set of four books “for girls” when I turned nine. (Little Women, Black Beauty, A Little Princess, Secret Garden.) I read Little Women Cover to cover for 10 years. Memorized passages. Dropped it in the bath. Loved it beyond measure. Then one day I realized my copy was abridged. All four sisters make it to the end in my copy. That first read of an unabridged copy was ROUGH. 😢
Ohhhhh noooooooooooooo
This just happened to my ten year old, I got her the abridged, junior version, and she loved it. I asked her how she felt about the very sad thing that happens and she was clueless! I can’t believe they approved leaving that huge part of the story out!
I absolutely LOVED the new movie. Wept the whole way through. My original favorite version is the 1949 movie with Janet Leigh as Jo and Elizabeth Taylor as Amy. I had it on VHS as a little girl and just loved it. Handsomest Laurie, hands down.
Oh dear. Janet Leigh plays Meg, not Jo. My bad.
My favorite version as well!
I loved that the end of the new movie, when Jo is negotiating the sale of her book, reflected Louisa May Alcott’s experience!
I was so caught up in the movie that I forgot to watch for your brother; I guess I’ll need to see it again so I can rectify that mistake 😁!
There was a miniseries version in 1978, and I want everyone to go look it up for the sheer joy of the cast.
OH EM GEE.
William SHATNER as Prof. Bhaer?
Jan Brady as Beth?
I kinda want to see this now, but I am also kinda terrified. I wonder if my library has it on DVD?
I looked for your brother, too, and couldn’t spot him either.
I was the only one of my family who’d read the book (I used to teach it in a class on Growing Up Female). The rest of them said it was a little hard to follow at first, but they got the hang of the time switches eventually. I really liked that aspect of it, the way it allowed for interesting juxtapositions.
I just watched the 2017 with my mom! I really like how they make Mr. Brooke and Mr. Bhaer believably attractive. The whole thing is so enjoyable.
This is exciting because I homeschool and too my daughter to see the new movie but we should watch them all to compare. Are they streaming?
I love Little Women, and agree all the version have definite pros and cons. I think this last Greta Gerwig one was excellent, and yet I still agree that it would be very difficult to follow for newbies. And also, BOB ODENKIRK has got to be the weirdest, most jolting casting of all time.
BOB ODENKIRK WTF?
A deep, deep dive into the LW universe from one of my favorite YouTubers.
https://www.wbur.org/artery/2019/12/24/concord-little-women-louisa-may-alcott
There’s a still photo of the wedding towards the bottom of the page…is the tall guy directly behind Saoirse Ronan your brother?
Sadly no, because that would have been AWESOME
I haven’t seen the most recent version, nor the miniseries with Maya Hawke, so can’t really comment. But I like the idea of the miniseries better… Also Maya Hawke played Robin in the 3rd season of Stranger Things (the girl who worked the ice cream store with Dustin).
Re: abridged versions, the excellent book Meg Jo Beth Amy explained why that happens. The book was written in 2 parts (even before sequels Little Men and Jo’s Boys). The first half was called Little Women, and nothing sad happens. Not even a poorly thought out marriage proposal. That all comes in book 2, which is OFTEN packaged as part of a complete Little Women but in Britain and sometimes in the states sold separately as Good Wives.
You can see a presentation by the author of that book, Anne Boyd Rioux, at the Concord library here:
“Adapting Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women from 1912 to 2019”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aj0TeI5JxaI&fbclid=IwAR2j2xR0AwFohdVFK1yWKYuYeZw46ylDebuYg_IWBvcY2JwGRebBfMjtCj8
A lot of the things mentioned here are covered in her talk. (I attended this and it was really interesting — and I often approach talks like this with the enthusiasm of a bored teenager).
Newest version, best ever bc TIMOTHÉE CHALAMET!!!!!!
I’m a costume designer so I’m apt to nit-pick period films. Despite some strong performances, I just couldn’t get past the historical inaccuracies. Every time I got caught up in the story I’d be snapped out of it again by some mistake or mis-guided choice. It was shot beautifully, though. I want to see the 1994 film again, to compare the two.
I read Little Women probably a hundred times when I was a kid, no exaggeration. I loved that book. I re-read it just before we went to the movie and oh, I loved the movie. I love the 1990s version as well but this was entirely different for me. It was really stunning, I thought, so beautiful and a little bit dark. I have MUCH TO SAY but no time so…I loved it. I thought it was very true to the book and I love how they jumped around time-wise. My husband went with me and was very confused. I think it’s better for Big Fans Of Little Women than the general population.
Proud mom moment when my 5yo daughter (no intro to Little Women) blurted our, “Oh, no! The best sister died!” when Beth passed.
I’ve never read the book or seen any of these movies and I can’t tell if I want to or not at this point.
@BKC-Oh my gosh-Black Beauty!! A favorite of my preteen self. I read that book so much the spine fell apart!! So many feelings about that book.
So, I must admit-I will fix shelves in my own library when things are out of place. I will preface my obsession by saying I had previously worked at that library, and I do know the Dewey Decimal System! When I see a book out of place, I have to put it in order. We have carts in my library saying “please don’t reshelve, put your book here!”-but I see people pulling books out and putting them back willy nilly. I feel like they think they are helping, but it makes things so much more difficult when the books aren’t where they should be!
Wow!! I found the BBC version on Amazon Prime and have been watching it, and it is FANTASTIC! I love all of the actors, and I love that it’s nice and long and so is able to include more of the story! It has edged out the 1994 version to become my new favorite, although I will still happily watch all 3 versions. Thank you for mentioning it!