"Little Women" has always been one of my favorite books. During my childhood, I devoured every book I could find by Louisa May Alcott and did a term paper on her in high school (it was about how much her actual life parallels her book, "Little Women"). When I read the premise of "The Other Alcott", I was so excited to read more about my beloved Alcott family!
"The Other Alcott" by Elise Hooper is about May Alcott, Louisa May Alcott's younger sister. In Louisa's book "Little Women", the character Amy is modeled after May Alcott. Amy is not always portrayed in the best light and is often the least liked sister. May is in fact much more than just the spoiled, selfish Amy. May Alcott is a brilliant artist and reaches her own level of fame and moves among the inner circle of artists of her time.
This book is a fascinating look at life through May's perspective. The story takes place after "Little Women" is published. The Alcotts are often close to poverty and Louisa and May struggle to provide for themselves and their family. It is still not conventional for women to be artists or to remain unmarried--but both Louisa and May follow this less traveled path. Throughout the story we see May rise as a talented artist and how she has to work hard to make her own way and not just be known as the "other Alcott.” May struggles with the constant balance between creating art to make money and being true to herself and doing what she loves. Ms. Hooper incorporates minute historical detail and draws the reader into the world of art during this time period. There are beautiful and vivid descriptions of all the places May visits, such as Paris and England. I love that the book includes special content, including some of May's artwork and illustrations.
The characters of May and Louisa are so well done that I felt like I knew them personally. I love getting to see a different side of these characters. I was surprised that Louisa didn't actually want to write "Little Women" or those types of stories and she didn't like the fame her stories brought. May's character is very optimistic and very different from Louisa’s. Louisa and May do have a difficult relationship, but at the end of the day, May misses Louisa, still wants her approval, and wants to be able to share her successes with her. This is a beautiful picture of family ties and how sometimes only family can fully appreciate your triumphs because they know where you once were and how far you've come. May's journey helps her appreciate Louisa better and she realizes the sisters have more in common than they originally thought.
Content: I give this book a PG-13 rating. There is the use of some minor swear words. There is a character that falls in love with a married man. There is a scene where May is painting a nude model. Some side characters are homosexual. There are the implications that a character sleeps with her husband and a scene of the married couple lying in bed.
Rating: I give this book 4.5 stars.
Genre: This book is Historical Fiction
I want to thank Elise Hooper, William Morrow and Harper Collins for the complimentary copy of this book for review. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I express in this review are my own. This is in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s CFR 16, Part 255.
About the Author:
Although a New Englander by birth (and at heart), Elise now lives with her husband and two young daughters within stone-skipping distance of the Pacific Northwest’s Puget Sound. When she’s not writing, she’s in her classroom making American history and literature interesting for high school students. Want to try your hand at creating a pitch for Shark Tank: Colonial America Edition? Stop by her classroom.Click here to visit the author's website
Click here to purchase the book
No comments:
Post a Comment