I have just finished a rereading (a reskimming is perhaps more accurate) of Little Women. It is one of the most popular books among young women and has been remade for the screen at least 5 times by my count, perhaps more.
It’s a childish story in many ways, though it touches on sorrow that most children nowadays would likely be unprepared for. I enjoyed the read for I have long cherished, not the particulars of the story, but rather the way in which each little woman found happiness.
As a girl first reading the book, I could imagine nothing as wonderful as falling in love with a poor scholar, as did Meg and Jo, or ending up—a happy surprise—married to a boy I had long known but never expected to love, as did Amy.
I was young then, reading my book in a tiny church way up in the mountains where my parents were helping build a fireplace, nursing an arm so stupidly swollen from a bee sting you might have thought I was allergic (though I am not). At the time, Little Women was one of the longest books I had read and I was very proud of myself.
The magic of Little Women is very simple. Nowadays, books seem to be all about the tomboy trying to make her own way in the world—and Jo certainly does try to make her own way, but soon enough finds out that it is not as great as she thought it would be.
What makes the story endure is the tender love among the girls and their mother and father. A happy family is a rare thing and it has always been so.
To see Mrs. March faithfully adoring her husband though he lost their money by lending to a friend who defaulted on the loan; to see sisters overcoming simple squabbles to become the best of friends; to watch as they hold one another up in the loss of a precious daughter and sister—these are common felicities that many families miss.
Little Women is far from my favorite book, but it holds a charm that makes it endure because it speaks of a family walking in devotion to God and one another. Consistently, Mrs. March reminds her daughters that, when troubles come or sins tempt, they must rely on their Heavenly Father for strength to see them through.
What’s missing from most books these days? Most books, at least those written for young women, are about finding happiness, finally getting with your true love, breaking barriers to become who you “truly are,” etc. But most of these books have no answers for the girl who doesn’t get her true love or suddenly become an amazing superstar like the character in a book.
Little Women offers something just a bit more. Even though most of the girls end up where they want to be, life isn’t perfect. Meg and her husband are poor; Amy’s daughter ends up sickly; Mr. and Mrs. March always mourn the loss of their daughter, Beth. In the middle, though, they can be happy together, because they have God watching over them and family to take care of them.
Life isn’t going to be easy and magical all the time, and I appreciate that Miss Alcott reminds us that, even so, if we have God and a family to rely on–biological or not–we can, as the song says, “muddle through somehow.”