This is a very nice adaptation of the first part of the timeless classic Little Women, chronicling the adventures of the March girls and their neighbour Laurie. Young readers will enjoy meeting Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy and sharing in their everyday joys and sorrows. Delightful parts of the original novel, such as the girls' "Pickwick Club" and the reconciliation between Jo and Amy after Amy burns Jo's precious book, are retained and condensed for young readers, while the original references to The Pilgrim's Progress and more elaborate moral passages are omitted.

The book ought to indicate right at the beginning that it only contains the "Little Women" half of the novel, excluding the "Good Wives" second half which sees the girls growing up, getting married and Beth's serenely tragic death. The author's note at the end does mention this, but it would be good to indicate this on the title page so that readers are not misled into thinking that this contains an adaptation of the second half as well.

This is a really lovely book however it doesn’t very much from the original so personally I would always recommend sticking with the original. It’s a classic for a reason

Classics aren't easy to read for many peole for several reasons, some are dyslexic, some find them very boring or time consuming and some are scared off them - there are some that I still haven't read because they scare me. These books are then the perfect remedy, they are written in a simple and cohesive sty;e and are quick and easy reads that will engaged both young and older readers that want to access classics in a more simple format.

This is a beautiful retelling of a Little Women by Laura Wood. One thing I really admire is how Barrington Stoke adapt their books for people with dyslexia/learning difficulties, who can often be reluctant readers for these very reasons. The book itself is easy to follow, short and readable. As a teacher myself, I overheard quite a few conversations from children about watching the movie, and how they loved it. But I also know that a lot of children wouldn't dream of going near a novel as large as the original at the age of 10. This version would really help with their confidence and belief In themselves, and for that alone, I'm grateful. It's a beautiful and accessible retelling of a classic coming-of-age novel.

Little Women was the first classic that I ever read. It changed me as, up until then, I thought the term classic was synonymous with boring. To my surprise, I found the story of the four March girls to be completely absorbing. In fact, this is a novel that I have gone on to reread several times.

Here is a version of Little Women that has been gently simplified so as to be more accessible for those who may not be ready or able to deal with the original. The essence of Little Women is in these pages. Ms. Wood has given readers the key descriptions and episodes of the novel. She may even inspire some readers to go to the original.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Barrington Stoke for this title. All opinions are my own.

Little Women is a childhood favorite of mine and I enjoy retellings. This book is good to introduce to young readers or if you struggle with the original text. This is written to be easily read and understood while keeping with the original story.

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

I adore Little Women, I first read it too many years ago on a much battered copy that belonged to my great grandmother. I have read it many more times throughout the years, so I am always up for a new spin.
However I am confused as this edition being labeled a "retelling". It would more accurately be labeled an abridgement. Because aside from inexplicably changing Jo's hair color, (This irked me, not all strong independent female characters need to have fiery red hair) there is no significant difference in the story other than a shortening. Whole passages are verbatim, while others are merely cleaned up a little for ease of reading for a younger demographic.

Now there is nothing wrong with this as it is, it just isn't a retelling. So having that in the title confused me.

So, 4 stars as a perfectly acceptable abridged that will hopefully bring younger readers to fall in love with the story.

I might be mildly obsessed with Little Women retellings and adaptations because it's simply such a timeless story of sisterhood, family and coming of age. This latest retelling by Laura Wood is yet another wonderful one and perfectly suited for younger audiences. I liked how the author has factored in some changes to make the book her own, while still retaining the essence of the original novel in terms of storyline, setting and characters.

A delightful novella and very engaging read overall! I'll be interested to see a retelling of the second half of Little Women though, where the themes are heavier and the stakes much higher.

"It's important to forgive the people you love just as soon as you can."

I had never read Little Women before so was a bit nervous based on what I'd heard. This was written wonderfully, very touching and had me in tears many times.

this worked so well as a retelling of little women, I could see the similarities of the original and the new spin on this telling. It was what I was hoping for when I requested this. The characters felt like their counterparts and I enjoyed the retelling in this. Laura Wood had a great idea and I'm glad I was able to read this.

"When New Year’s Eve came, the parlour was deserted. Amy and Beth were too young to be invited to the dance, but they played at dressing maids to help their older sisters with the important business of “getting ready for the party”. The outfits were simple, yet there was a great deal of running up and down, laughing and talking, and at one time a strong smell of burned hair filled the house."

This would be a great gate wait book into reading classics for younger readers. People should still read the original but this was great for what it was aiming to do.

Another really lovely retelling of a classic novel by Laura Wood, one of my absolute favourite writers!

I recently reviewed Laura's retelling of Pride and Prejudice, a story I only really knew through half-watched television adaptations. Well, I knew even less about Little Women going into this one. In fact the only thing about it I really thought I knew wasn't even in this book! But more on that in a bit.

As I said, I went into this cold, so I really can't comment on how the style matches the original. But I did really enjoy it! The publisher, Barrington Stoke, specialises in publishing books specially adapted for people with dyslexia or other reading difficulties and reluctant readers. This permeates through the whole design, from the language to the length of the story to the paper its printed on. I think what they do is incredible and they're incredibly good at it! With such a strong pool of authors too, the stories are never dumbed down either, and personally I find they're perfect for those days where I just want something short and easy to read, whether because I'm busy, tired or coming down from an epic novel high.

These classic retellings are a relatively new part of their offering and, like Pride and Prejudice, Little Women is presented here in a compact and incredibly readable format. Yes, I'm sure there's been material removed to keep the length down, but these are probably best thought of as the equivalent to a film adaptation, presenting the same story in a new, slimmed down format.

The characters all come across really strongly, particularly the four "little women", the March sisters. I loved how each one has their individual styles and flaws, and their squabbles and fallings out. They really came alive as fascinating characters. Then seeing how they develop, change and grow over the course of the book was really lovely. This is a real coming of age story, and it's great seeing how they grow into womanhood and come together as a really strong family against all adversity. The love and affection on show in this book is really quite beautiful. Obviously it isn't all plain sailing though, and some of my favourite bits were when they fell out with each other. It can be so hard to forgive someone who hurts you even, no, especially when you really love them, and this story really brings that across powerfully.

And yes, I was waiting for a particularly character to die, and they didn't. I did wonder if it had been rewritten for a happier ending, but the truth is rather more complex. Louisa Alcott wrote a sequel, Little Wives, which is often packaged up with Little Women into a single book or film. This retelling focuses only on the first part. I'm hoping Barrington Stoke might get Laura to retell the next one as well though!

A beautiful and accessible retelling of a classic coming-of-age novel. I thoroughly enjoyed Little Women.