I haven't read Little Women yet, but this contemporary retelling, focusing on older sisters Meg and Jo, appealed to me anyway! Meg and Jo are now grown adults leading very different lives - Meg is a stay-at-home mom in North Carolina and Jo is a line cook and secret food blogger in NYC. However, when their mother gets sick, all the sisters come home to help.
I really enjoyed Kantra's writing; it's very readable and relatable. The story is told from the alternating POVs of sisters Meg and Jo, with appearances by their younger sisters. I loved Jo's story - trying to make it as a journalist in NYC, she ends up falling for her chef boss who doesn't know she's also a food blogger. However, I felt her "friendship" with childhood friend Trey was poorly explained and executed. Meg frustrated me a bit - she's the type of person that would rather do everything herself because she doesn't trust anyone else. I felt so bad for her husband! As much as I loved the March sisters and mother, their father made me angry - he does important work, but neglects his own family. Overall, though, a great story about family! 4 stars
In this anthology, 10 authors re-imagine the legendary character of Elizabeth Bennet in a series of sequels, prequels, and retellings. Even though I'm normally not a fan of short stories, I can't resist a good P&P retelling!
I wish there had been more variety in the stories. A couple of them felt like they could have been chapters in the original story (Darcy fighting Wickham, Elizabeth touring Pemberley). A couple took place in the times right before or right after the events of P&P. I wish there had been more stories set in different times and places; to me, those were more creative and interesting. Elizabeth as an electrical engineering student in the 80s; Elizabeth as a stage actress in the 1920s; and Elizabeth and Darcy going on a blind date in the present day - these stories show how timeless the classic really is. While the writing was generally good in all the stories, none really stood out to me as completely amazing. I often seem to have this issue with short story collections, though. However, if you're a P&P fan, you might want to give this one a chance. 3.5 stars
It's been a long while since I read Little Women (or saw an adaptation), but I was curious about this book. It's an interesting choice to focus on two of the characters, and I love that Jo is reimagined as a blogger.
ReplyDeleteI'm pretty sure the next book will focus on the other two sisters!
DeleteBoth of these sound good, but I really like the sound of Meg & Jo. I'll have to add that one to my TBR list! I have always loved the character of Jo.
ReplyDeleteAwesome, I hope you enjoy it!
DeleteInteresting that Kantra chose to focus on only two of the March sisters. I love that Jo is a blogger. What a perfect, modern twist on the original.
ReplyDeleteI agree!
DeleteI'm so glad you enjoyed Meg & Jo. I really liked that one too, especially the idea of Jo as a blogger. I completely agree about the father too. I was not a big fan of his.
ReplyDeleteI know the work he did was important, but he seemed to care about everything else more than his family!
DeleteThese two are very interesting and very different retellings. I like parts of both, but anything being retold with Elizabeth Bennett is a winner for me. Never been quite the fan of Little Women.
ReplyDeleteYes, Elizabeth is quite the amazing character and it's always interesting to see her story retold.
DeleteMeg and Jo looks really good! There's a different retelling called Jo & Laurie that I really want to read!
ReplyDeleteI have that one on my TBR, too!
DeleteThat's cool that you were able to enjoy the retelling even without having read the original for the first one! And I can see why you liked the stories set in different times or places, I generally enjoy those kinds of retellings too :-)
ReplyDeleteRight? I love seeing stories translated into new settings.
DeleteI saw the new Little Women adaption and I think that's just part of Meg's personality. I find it interesting that the author chose to focus on just Meg and Jo and Jo want's to write about food. I have the classic Little Women on my list of books to read for this summer. Meg and Jo might be a stop I take if I need more Little Women.
ReplyDeleteThat's unfortunate that there were so many that felt similar in the P&P anthology. I think I would rather read a novel. I want to read Longbourn by Jo Baker which is the servants perspective in P&P.
I haven't read Little Women yet, either, but I have a copy on my shelf!
DeleteI've actually read Longbourn, but I don't remember too much of it!