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3.68 AVERAGE
3.68 AVERAGE
March by Geraldine Brooks~
In 1861 Mr. March sets off to join the Civil War as chaplain in an effort to help the cause and offer solace to those in need. His story is told from past to present, written through letters to his loved ones and experienced in the day to day. During the year he will face many challenges, find lost love, become the teacher he had always dreamed of being, see death in many forms and finally find the strength to fight the cowardice within himself. Through it all his wife and their little women wait patiently for him to return to home.
Written as a sort of prequel to the well known “Little Women”, this book explains what the father was up to when he was away. While I enjoyed the story and the history of the Civil War, I also at times felt that this Mr. March didn’t exactly fit the one in the original version. His attitude towards his family was loving and also infuriating as his behavior in one chapter was just not what you’d expect. But above it all what truly made the book a worthy read is the relationship he builds with the former slaves and how he sees them as equals. I wish others during that time had the same empathy and love for others as he did.
In 1861 Mr. March sets off to join the Civil War as chaplain in an effort to help the cause and offer solace to those in need. His story is told from past to present, written through letters to his loved ones and experienced in the day to day. During the year he will face many challenges, find lost love, become the teacher he had always dreamed of being, see death in many forms and finally find the strength to fight the cowardice within himself. Through it all his wife and their little women wait patiently for him to return to home.
Written as a sort of prequel to the well known “Little Women”, this book explains what the father was up to when he was away. While I enjoyed the story and the history of the Civil War, I also at times felt that this Mr. March didn’t exactly fit the one in the original version. His attitude towards his family was loving and also infuriating as his behavior in one chapter was just not what you’d expect. But above it all what truly made the book a worthy read is the relationship he builds with the former slaves and how he sees them as equals. I wish others during that time had the same empathy and love for others as he did.
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I enjoyed listening to this book on CD. Although I found the main character, Mr. March (father to the girls in the book "Little Women") to be a bit of a zealot at the beginning, I felt my attitude changing toward him as the story progressed. His experiences during the civil war (fictional, but loosely based on the life of Louisa May Alcott's own father)were vividly portrayed by author Geraldine Brooks and I felt true sympathy for the minor characters as well. Many good questions were raised about human suffering, heroism, cowardice, tolerance and idealism.
Magnificent tale of Mr. March (of Little Women), and the world of Alcott's life: Thoreau, Emerson, abolition, the civil war, love and redemption. A masterpiece.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This is one of my new favorite books. It's been a while since I so completely connected with a character...especially a middle-aged man character. Brooks digs deep into the heart of her semi-fictional protagonist and demands that I as a reader do the same kind of soul-searching. Her writing also illustrates how easy it is to misunderstand our fellow humans, even those we love deeply. Not to mention the fascinating element of history entwined in this fabulous tale. Read it.
Now this is how to tell a good story! I think Geraldine Brooks is one of my very favorite authors. This story, of what happens to the father in Little Women while he's away from his family, is nuanced, has great character development, and is told in a realistic setting.
My favorite part of the book may have been the first half or so, where we see Chaplain March through his own eyes, in which he's trying the very best he can to be a good person, but also through the eyes of others, where he seems a bit out of touch. I think Brooks does a brilliant job of showing how we all justify our actions and believe that we are truly being good people, and yet how our best intentions may be misinterpreted by others or might simply be extremely annoying. Her telling of the story through the husband and wife's eyes is also masterfully done, with each partner thinking the other one believes one thing when really the exact opposite is true. Somehow she also manages to show one character's slow evolution, not only through the story telling (where I might have missed it because the changes were gradual), but also through another character's reaction to the time-altered person or to a situation in which their own views are not nuanced by experience.
I loved this book and wish Geraldine Brooks could write as quickly as I can read. Her books are masterpieces.
My favorite part of the book may have been the first half or so, where we see Chaplain March through his own eyes, in which he's trying the very best he can to be a good person, but also through the eyes of others, where he seems a bit out of touch. I think Brooks does a brilliant job of showing how we all justify our actions and believe that we are truly being good people, and yet how our best intentions may be misinterpreted by others or might simply be extremely annoying. Her telling of the story through the husband and wife's eyes is also masterfully done, with each partner thinking the other one believes one thing when really the exact opposite is true. Somehow she also manages to show one character's slow evolution, not only through the story telling (where I might have missed it because the changes were gradual), but also through another character's reaction to the time-altered person or to a situation in which their own views are not nuanced by experience.
I loved this book and wish Geraldine Brooks could write as quickly as I can read. Her books are masterpieces.
emotional
reflective
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
A heavy book. I had a hard time getting into it at the beginning - I found March difficult to like, and the present day story was less engaging to me. The complexities around slavery from the perspective of a white man were interesting later on, and Part Two’s exploration of marriage and frustrations with morals versus obligations were interesting as well. Not sure I can say I completely enjoyed the book, but definitely will be thinking about it for a while yet.