friends of library sale - tbr.

Oppem, the Bookcrosser who previously journaled this book, passed away on June 23, 2012. I had the privilege of meeting her dear family and "catching" her large collection of registered books. I'm very excited to see this wishlist book!

ETA--Feb. 2014: I've just read another copy of this and wanted to add my thoughts to this JE as well.

Book Description: "As the North reels under a series of unexpected defeats during the dark first year of the Civil War, one man leaves behind his family to aid the Union cause. His experiences will utterly change his marriage and challenge his most ardently held beliefs. From Louisa May Alcott's beloved classic, Little Women, Geraldine Brooks has taken the character of the absent father, Mr. March, who has gone off to war, leaving his wife and daughters to make do in mean times. From vibrant New England to the sensuous antebellum South, March adds adult resonance to Alcott's optimistic children's novel. A lushly written, wholly original tale steeped in the details of another time, March secures Geraldine Brooks's placed as a renowned author of historical fiction."

What an excellent story! While I definitely have my gripes about this one, overall it was just great.

Right around page 40, I stopped reading, closed the book, and wrote the following: "I must decide if I want to go on with the story. If I do, it will forever taint the innocent and peaceful joy that comes from enjoying, Little Women, one of my favorite stories." Whew! I didn't have a clue how right on I was---but I decided to keep reading and am so glad I did!

I absolutely loved the character of March---truly a good and kind man who really did love his family and fellow man, putting their best interests before his own. One scene where I didn't agree with him, but still respected him, was on the Canning plantation when he first has words with Canning about the treatment of the Negro workers. These scenes were eye-opening. March seemed starry-eyed and ignorant and it was easy for me to sympathize with Canning's point of view---especially after finishing the story and seeing that he was right to take some of the actions that he did.

Also loved how Brooks weaved in some of the other historical figures of the day. Shout out to Thoreau---yay! And Hawthorne---even better!

I did NOT like the way Marmee was portrayed. Not one bit. This fiery-tempered, self-pitying Marmee is not the same that Alcott described. I've been through a lot of the same things this Marmee had---much worse, in fact---and I still couldn't sympathize with her unrelenting self-pity. Brooks purposefully made this endearing character so unlikeable---why? A read through her afterword might hold the clue, but it seems she may have had her own ax to grind and used Marmee to do it. Not impressed. Not one bit.

Also, I don't like that Brooks made "Marmee" the nickname that everyone had used for her since childhood. Marmee was the daughters' name for their mama---why would they call her by her first name but use "father" for their dad? I think Brooks should have left that one alone, as well.

It will be awhile before I can read my beloved classic again---I don't want the screwy fake Marmee character messing up the story for me. However, I hope I will remember this excellent portrait of Mr. March and think of him in a deeper way when he's mentioned in Little Women.

Sending this wishlist book to my Easter Swap partner. Enjoy!

To the finder of this book:

This book is gift, no strings attached, from me to you. You may keep it forever, pass it along to a friend, or release it into the wild to be found by someone else.

If you are new to BookCrossing, welcome! Enjoy the site, the book, and the BookCrossing community. I hope you'll join us...it's free! If you do, please consider using me, elizardbreath, as your referring member. You can even remain anonymous if you wish!

I hope you'll make a brief journal entry so all the previous and future readers can track this book's journey.

Thanks, and Happy BookCrossing! :)

Thank you so much for sending me this wishlist book for the Easter Exchange! Have a wonderful holiday and thanks for all the lovely sweets! I hope your package is just as nice!

Taking to the September meeting.

As always Geraldine Brooks doesn't disappoint, with this well researched and unflinching civil war novel from the point of view of Mr. March, the missing father in little women. Not my favourite of hers but even a book of hers in third or fourth place is head and shoulders above many other authors!

To the finder:
Calgary has an active group of BookCrossers that meet to swap books and discuss book crossing every second Saturday of the month at 11am at the Joshua Tree Cafe on Edmonton Trail. We always love to meet new crossers, so please join us any time you like!

Picked up at the Calgary BookCrossing Group at Cravings.

This was a very interesting spin off of "Little Women." It was definitely a different perspective I hadn't considered while reading the prior book.

Controlled release at the Calgary Book Crossing meeting at Cravings.

Picked up at get together

I'm still not sure how I feel about this story. On a whole I still really enjoyed the author's writing style. And I think what life could've been like back then and potential events were well portrayed and detailed within this story. I had a hard time relating to, or maybe just figuring out, the main character; but after reading the afterword in how she researched and based her characters and events I had a better appreciation for the different characterizations within her story. And I think more than the individual character traits that she did an excellent job capturing the different emotions and feelings people would potentially have within those situations.

Thanks for the interesting read.

Taken to get together

This book has come back to me after going to the Calgary crossers. I shall hold onto it for a VBB so it can travel again!

Sending on for the first sentence VBB. I hope you enjoy it! Geraldine Brooks is one of my favourite authors so I'm doubly glad to share this book after it went through the Calgary group.

To the finder:
Calgary has an active group of BookCrossers that meet to swap books and discuss book crossing every second Saturday of the month at 11am at Cravings Market on Fairmount Drive SE. We always love to meet new crossers, so please join us any time you like!

"October 21, 1861. This is what I write to her: The clouds tonight embossed the sky."

Thank you for sharing this First Sentences VBB selection! I read this book in 2008, but of course I didn't recognize this book by its first line. Here's my journal entry from the other copy:

"I completed this novel. I found the cadence of Mr. March's narration very moving, and I enjoyed reading about his experiences as a chaplain in the Union army. However, occasionally Mr. March vexed me, and Marmee did, too; their misunderstandings of each other particularly bothered me. Of course, I didn't really care for Little Women as a girl, so it's no wonder I didn't like this spinoff as much as I had hoped."

Arrived in today's mail. Thanks for sending.

An interesting tale of Mr. March, the absent father from "Little Women". It describes the atrocities of the civil war and the emancipation of the slaves.

I found the book hard to put down.

Wishlist tag sent to ghir in HI

Sent by dabercro for the library.