Meg
and Jo: A Contemporary Retelling of Little Women. Virginia Kantra. Penguin
Publishing Group. December 2019. pb, 400 pp.; ISBN: 9780593100349.
The
March sisters each have a unique personality that thrilled readers in the
renowned novel, Little Women. In
this contemporary retelling, Meg is still doing good things for everyone, Jo is
still hot-tempered and independent, Amy is still stylish and Beth is still shy
but ultra-loving to all around her. They
grew up on a farm in North Carolina, with their father still serving as a
military chaplain and their mother handling home and the farm business.
However, Meg is now married to John, a former teacher, and has two
children. Jo had moved to New York City,
worked for a newspaper until she was laid off and now works as a prep cook in a
famous restaurant, Gusto, and writes a food blog called Hungry that is growing
with followers who interact. Her dream is
still to be a great writer but life takes these two eldest sisters in different
directions for the duration of this novel.
Amy is involved in the world of fashion and Beth is involving in musical
performances, albeit as a neophyte writer and singer.
This
story is definitely a romance between Meg and John. Both are super-busy but have initially little
time to talk about what they really want out of life as well as what they
expect of each other. Shaped by their
past in which the father did not take much part in family life, they learn
through challenges how to truly listen to and talk to each other. This makes their love very real and appealing
to readers.
Jo
begins to have a sexual relationship with her boss, the famous chef and
restaurant owner, Eric Bhaer. However,
after he discovers she has been writing about his cooking on her blog, he
responds with fury and Jo quits working for him. It’s just as well she returns to North
Carolina because her Mom is about to have back surgery for damage done by a
bone infection and will need a lot of help during her rehabilitation from that
operation.
Beth
and Amy also come in and out of the story, along with rich but nasty Aunt Phee
and they all bond strongly in the face of so many challenges. Jo’s old boyfriend Trey is still around and
wants to marry Jo but he is just a very good friend to her, nothing more. It provides for some funny as well as tense
moments. Family meals are a joy for all
to share and it’s clear that these meals are just one manifestation of the very
close bond that exists in this family.
While
this retelling may not bear all the contrived mushiness of the original tale, Meg
and Jo is a contemporary love story and family drama that is uniquely
endearing and a grand read. Highly
recommended reading! This reviewer is
looking forward to the next book in this series which will be Amy and Beth!
Happy reading, all!
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