Jo's Boys - Louisa May Alcott
Narrated by Barbara Caruso.
First published 1886.
The sequel to 'Little Men.'
This is the last book in the series that began with Little Women, and, like the book before this one, focuses more on the next generation, particularly the boys who attended the school run by Mr and Mrs Bhaer (that latter of whom began life as Jo March). Now those boys have grown up, and as such this book has the distinction of being the only book in the series to almost exclusively focus on adult characters (unless you count Good Wives as its own entry, rather than part 2 of Little Women).
This really changes the feel of Jo's Boys, and unfortunately it is not always for the better. Good Wives at least had the ongoing relationship issues and tight family unit of the Marches to focus on. Jo's Boys, on the other hand, has a number of boys, now young adults, who have gone their own way and don't have much interaction with each other. This makes each episode far more - well - episodic than the previous entries. There always was an element of episodic-ness to the series, but it is highlighted far more now than previously.
The book also has far more references to classical and classic literature - Greek mythology, contemporary novels, morality tales etc - without explaining those references. Again, this is something that did appear in previous entries (Jo always was quite dramatic and inspired by the 'greats') but now, with each character being an adult, those references are simply inserted without explanation, and if the reader doesn't understand who Galatia and Pygmalion are, they will probably come away none-the-wiser, and perhaps a little confused.
It's not all negative though. A number of the main boys (and a few of the girls) get chapters that 'wrap up' their story-arcs, even if those arcs may have been introduced in this volume. Emil (a minor character in the previous entry) gets a heroic moment, and Dan (featured far more in Little Men) gets a redemptive arc of sorts. Here though, we see the difference in older literature like this: Dan may get a redemptive arc, but his story is also left more 'unresolved' than modern stories may do - particularly in terms of his relationships, Dan's past prevents some opportunities - thus focussing on justice, whereas modern versions might choose to highlight mercy and forgiveness.
There are also a few tangents into the idea of women's suffrage - a topic that dates the book, and slows the plot down in patches, yet that also gives some interesting insight into a very specific time in history.
The narration by Barbara Caruso reminded me of a grandmother reading a story, and at times this was a nice feel. At other times, however, the similarities between the voices she gave certain characters, combined with the long Alcott passages of dialogue, mean that it can be hard to decide who is speaking in some scenes. Caruso's accents, however, are surprisingly strong, and do bring clarity in scenes that involve different nationalities.
Overall, this felt like the weakest entry in the series. It might have worked better as a written work, rather than an audiobook, but as it was, Elise and I didn't make it to the end together; Elise gave up on it mid-way through, and I finished it on my work commute instead.
A mixed bag. It's nice to revisit the characters and wrap up their arcs, but it is also the least focussed entry in the series.
Completed 18 November 2024.
(Little Women Series)
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