Little Women the Movie

I decided the 5 Minutes for Books book club on Louisa May Alcott was the perfect excuse to indulge in a "girl" movie. So I searched my library's on-line catalog to see if I could bring it home for free.

Low and behold I found not one version of "Little Women" but four (and brought home two)!

1. 1933 by Radio Pictures, produced by David O. Selznik. Starring Katharine Hepburn. Winner of the 1933 Oscar for Best Screenplay (Adaptation).

2. 1949 by MGM Pictures. Starring Elizabeth Taylor. Winner of the 1950 Oscar for Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Color.

3. 1978 NBC Universal. Winner of 1979 Outstanding Art Direction for a Series. Nominated for 1979 Golden Globe Best Motion Picture Made for TV.

4. 1994 Columbia Pictures. Nominated for 1995 Best Actress in a Leading Role - Winona Ryder.

I watched the 1978 NBC version first.

It's long. REALLY long. I didn't realize it was a mini-series, though that became apparent when I saw the breaks where commercials should have been. The case says it's 194 minutes long (almost 3.5 hours!). Truly over an hour too long.

I also found it hard to disconnect the actresses/actors from other roles they've played. For example:

• Meredith Baxter Birney (Meg) - Michael J. Fox's t.v. mom!
• Susan Dey (Jo) - The Partridge Family
• Eve Plumb (Beth) - Jan Brady!
• Robert Young (Grandfather Laurence) - Father Knows Best
• William Shatner (Professor Bauer) - Captain Kirk!!!
• John de Lancie (Amy's love interest) - "Q"!!

Honestly, William Shatner as a German professor was just too much for me. Once he came on the screen I just couldn't get into the movie.

The movie as a whole really felt melodramatic to me. I'm all for drama but Beth's death lasted over 30 minutes. It was all a bit much for me.

My recommendation: Skip the 1978 Television movie.

Next I watched the 1949 MGM Version. I'm so glad I watched it last so that its story is what's in my mind!

Once again big-name actresses were used but this time I didn't have any mental connections with them. Other than Elizabeth Taylor, who I didn't really enjoy in this film but more because I don't enjoy the character of Amy.

One detail I found interesting is that the March home in this film is identical to Orchard House. So much so that William (6 years old) wandered in, watched for a few minutes and asked about the house being the one we toured.

Another detail is that they switched Amy and Beth in the age order. Apparently the girl that wanted to use for Beth was younger than Elizabeth Taylor so they just switched them. Annoying, but I can live with it.

Overall I enjoyed this version MUCH better than the 1978 one. But, I think that in both movies the producers/writers try to include too much of the first part of the book and not enough of the second part. Beth seems to take a long time to die but Jo's love for "her Professor" kind of springs out of nowhere.

Now I'm wondering if I should bring home the other 2 movies for comparision. Purely for research purposes of course. Not because I enjoy a girly movie every once in a while. {grinning}

My recommendation: Watch the 1949 version.

What do you think? Which Little Women Movie is your favorite?

*** This post is included in a series on Louisa May Alcott.

Little Women the Musical

As I searched my library catalog for the "Little Women" movie I stumbled across "Little Women the Musical."

I had no idea someone had made a musical of Louisa May Alcott's beloved book!

According to the blog, the Broadway production appears to have toured from about August 2005 to August 2006. I didn't take the time to read through the blog but it is full of pictures of the cast and crew.

I recently listened to the original Broadway cast recording on CD. It made me want to go see a Broadway show!! I always enjoy a good musical.

Though I enjoyed the music on the CD, I found it difficult to follow the story. No dialogue is included so if you aren't familiar with the novel already you will be totally lost by song number 3.

From what I could gather, the musical begins with Jo in New York rejected. She then starts writing and flashbacks to the "good" years before she left home. During the flashback we hear several songs of her dramatic over-the-top early writings. Then we are brought back to her present and find her at home in Concord, Massachusetts.

In all honesty, I didn't enjoy this CD as a representation of "Little Women." Too much liberty was taken with the story for my liking. And the songs just don't fit with the personality of Jo March.

But, if your library happens to have a copy you can listen to for free then go for it! If nothing else, it'll make you dance around the house (or wish you could dance, depending on your dancing abilities).

Had you heard of Little Women the Musical before? Did you see it on tour?

*** This post is included in a series on Louisa May Alcott.

Happy Birthday, Jennifer!

Happy Birthday, Jennifer!!!

Because I am a slacker sister-in-law and NEVER get a card mailed in time for Jennifer's birthday, I'm writing this post to make up for yet another late card.

In August Stephen (my brother) and Jennifer came from Arkansas to visit us. We met Addi for the first time, they met Sam for the first time, we celebrated Ellie's 3rd birthday AND we went to the zoo.

It was a fun time!

Here we are trying to get 5 children and 4 adults to all look at the camera at the same time. Impossible! And yes, Ben has a scraped forehead and nose. He had a bicycle accident a few days before. Funny thing, he was wearing his helmet at the time.

Can anything be cuter than these two cheerleaders? I don't think so either!! :)

Happy birthday, Jenn!

We hope your day is filled with fun, food and family!! Maybe we can celebrate with you next year.

"Louisa: The Life of Louisa May Alcott" by Yona Zeldis McDonough

On a recent trip to our local library I saw "Louisa: The Life of Louisa May Alcott" by Yona Zeldis McDonough on display. Knowing that the 5 Minutes for Books Louisa May Alcott book club was coming up, I dropped the book into my already stuffed book bag and brought it home.

This biography tells the life story of Louisa May beginning from her birth to her death. Several snapshots of her childhood are included such as weekly family pillow fights and being rescued from the Boston Commons frog pond by a black boy. Her myriad of jobs are also described; from teacher to housemaid to Civil War nurse and, finally, to author.

Along with the simple telling of Louisa's life the book includes some of her quotes, two of her earliest poems, facts about the Alcott family and a short bibliography. It's definitely not your typical children's picture book.

My children (1-6 years) are still a little young for this book but children (especially girls) in 4-8 grades would probably enjoy it. I can see it being a good introduction to the biography genre or a valuable resource after reading some of Miss Alcott's books.

While writing this review I read the website of the author Yona Zeldis McDonough. Under her biography section she had this to say:

"...when you are reader, you just need to read. Sometimes you read books that change your life, like OF MICE AND MEN, which I read--and adored-- when I was in sixth grade. Other times, you read the latest adventures of Betty and Veronica. You’ll read a three-day old newspaper or the back of the cereal box if that’s all that there is available, because readers just need to read."

I couldn't agree with her more!! "Louisa" is my first introduction to Ms. McDonough. I'm definitely interested in reading more of her books. I recommend you do the same.

*** This post is included in a series on Louisa May Alcott.

"Jack and Jill" by Louisa May Alcott

"Jack and Jill went up a hill to fetch a pail of water. Jack fell down and broke his crown and Jill came tumbling after."

So goes the old nursery rhyme and the main characters of "Jack and Jill" by Louisa May Alcott. The two children, friends in a small town, start the story sledding during Christmas vacation.

Unfortunately, they are a little too daring on the sled and each end up with an injury that keeps them out of school for months. The remainder of the story recounts their activities and the lessons they learn as they heal.

I found this book fascinating to read after I toured Miss Alcott's home, Orchard House. Three things in this story really struck me: the children learn moral lessons and improve their characters by the end of the story; the mothers decide to home school the children even when they are healed; the children write and perform plays and skits while making their own entertainment.

I've mentioned before that I prefer old children's books. The children in these books usually mature due to natural consequences of their "adventures." I SO prefer this to modern stories with whiny, smart-mouthed kids! Apparently Miss Alcott (and her father) also believed children should develop moral characters along with their academic work.

The knowledge that Miss Alcott's father was a teacher who promoted educational philosophies unheard of in his day helped me understand her motivation at having the mothers in this story choose to home school. She used the two mothers as a means of promoting some of her father's ideas. As a home school mom, I was especially intrigued by the description of their lessons which sound a lot like Charlotte Mason's philosophy!

I also learned at the Orchard House that Miss Alcott and her sisters often wrote and performed skits to entertain their parents and guests. It appears that Miss Alcott often drew on her own childhood for writing material. As I recall the sisters of Little Women also performed homemade plays.

I thoroughly enjoyed this fun little story. I'm sure boys and girls of all ages would like reading about the trials and successes of Jack and Jill as they heal from their injuries and the poor character qualities that caused them.

*** This post is included in a series on Louisa May Alcott.

Orchard House: Home of Louisa May Alcott

After living in New England for 12 years, I finally decided this was the year to see Orchard House, the family home of Louisa May Alcott.

So when my Mom visited in August we packed up the family and drove to Concord, Massachusetts. I had no idea how much American and literary history is packed in that small town!!

Guided tours are available of the Orchard House for a fee. Of course we handed over our Mom's money and joined a tour. In hindsight, I should have suggested Joel and the kids play outside or in the grassy field across the street. Will was very interested in the tour but little hands are inclined to touch and that was specifically forbidden. I would have enjoyed the tour more if I hadn't been concerned with someone knocking over a priceless antique!

Even with the distraction of 4 small children I managed to learn a few things from the tour:

• Orchard House is where Miss Alcott wrote her popular book "Little Women." Today the house is owned by a not-for-profit corporation who operates a museum about the Alcott family. In fact, part of the tour includes Miss Alcott's bedroom (upper right windows) where you can see the original desk where she wrote her books (picture taking is not allowed inside so I can't show it to you).


• Louisa and her sisters would write short plays and then perform them for guests. They even had a curtain across a doorway that would be drawn while they ran up the backstairs to change costumes for the next act.


• Bronson Alcott (Louisa's father) was a teacher. He believed everyone, including girls, should be well educated. Many of his ideas were not popular at the time but are taken for granted today.


• Louisa's sister was encouraged to draw and paint anywhere - including the walls of the house. Many of the walls are covered with her drawings.

I couldn't help laughing to myself when the guide drew our attention to an "Order of Indoor Duties" that Mrs. Alcott had written and posted on the wall. She had times for specific chores, school work, walks, and meals. The guide seemed to think this was an oddity as did the rest of the tour group. It made complete sense to me!

I'm glad I can now say I've visited the home of Louisa May Alcott, author of "Little Women." Have you visited Orchard House? If not, put it on your list of things to do in New England!

*** This post is included in a series on Louisa May Alcott.

Louisa May Alcott Series

I have long been a fan of Louisa May Alcott. In fact, I can't remember when I first read her popular novel "Little Women", though I'm sure it was in high school over 16 years ago. (Wow! When did I get old enough to say that?!) "Little Men" and "Jo's Boys" were also quickly read.

Because I'm a fan of Louisa May Alcott, or more accurately "Little Women," I'm excited to join 5 Minutes for Books November book club! On November 3 participants will be linking their reviews of any book by Miss Alcott. It should be fun to read about her lesser known works!

In anticipation of November 3, I have published 5 posts:

• Orchard House: Home of Louisa May Alcott,
• "Jack and Jill" by Louisa May Alcott,
• "Louisa: The Life of Louisa May Alcott" by Yona Zeldis McDonough,
• Little Women the Musical (who knew?!!!),
• Little Women the Movie (1949, 1978).
  

I hope you enjoy them!