PBS Little Women Part 1 Review

I've been waiting for PBS Masterpiece's Little Women special to air for months! I always enjoy visiting the Marches in Concord. On Sunday, part 1 became available for online streaming here. Having reviewed Little Women extensively before on my previous blog, I thought I'd make a brief jot about my thoughts on Part 1 of Masterpiece's Little Women. This will contain spoilers if you are not familiar with the story.

First of all, Part 1 covered all the story points you would expect it to. The classic "Christmas won't be Christmas without presents," giving breakfast to the Hummels, burning Meg's hair, going to the party and getting to know Laurie a little, the day at the beach with Laurie's English friends, Amy burning Jo's story, skating, and Marmee going to take care of Father in Boston. 

These are all the classic "Little Women" scenes, although there are many many more in the book that do not appear in the movies or stage productions. As a result, Part 1 did not seem to hold many new experiences along those lines. The events that did occur seemed rushed and to barely scratch the surface which they might have. That being said, having been reading the book shortly before watching Part 1, it is understandable that I would miss the many details. I appreciated the shots of Father as he is working in Boston, which help bring the war to life a little.

 

As for the characters, Beth seemed like a normal girl until she received an invitation from Mr. Laurence to play his piano. Then, her shy side came out as she repeatedly attempted to visit his house, but returning in fright each time before even knocking on the door or making it out of the front gate. However, she seemed to have no reservations when interacting with Laurie for the first time. When she visited the beach with her sisters, Laurie, and the Vaughn's, she stays behind alone on the beach, to find the companionship of one of the Vaughn boys who broke both his legs hunting. All though she is shy and awkward, her kindness comes out in this scene. Still, it was very short.

To me, Jo seems to be Jo. She did strike Amy in her fury over her burnt story, which I do not think Jo March would have done. In the book, she only "shook" her, which Jo in this version did plenty of as well. Other than that, Jo seems like Jo March to me.

Marmee seemed quite stern and guarded. I tend to think of Marmee as loving and allowing the children to self-govern themselves through her gentle suggestions, unless when more force is absolutely necessary. Although not necessarily the Marmee of the book, and Emily Watson often seems to be type cast into mother-figure roles (Book Thief, Little Boy, and Water Horse to name a few), Marmee is a full character and I appreciate that she is given the screen time she needs to become such.

I loved the kittens! Beth had live teeny-tiny baby kittens in many scenes and they were so cute.

The costumes and sets were very detailed. I did feel that the March house exterior (above) looked a bit too CGI.

Finally, there were a few moments when the camera angles were used to make the scene look especially... aesthetic. Like this one ↑ I realize that she isn't actually looking at the camera, but it's pretty close.

Well this is getting a little long. In summation, I would say that the first part was acceptable. I look forward to the next two parts!

Are you planning to see this PBS Masterpiece special? Have you read Little Women? Who is your favorite character? 

*All photos except the first (which is linked) are screenshots from the live stream*

Recent Reads 2 // Words and Such

It's been a little over a month since I first did a "Recent Reads" post and I feel like I've been doing a lot of reading lately. Thus, here we have the second edition of what I've been reading! I seem to be in a inspirational/autobiography/Christian phase. I'm not sure what that genre is called... I'm enjoying it, but if you have any ideas of novels, tell me in the comments!

(all images from Google Images)

Stomping out the Darkness by Neil T. Anderson and Dave Park

Written for teens, this book was about who you are in Christ as a born-again Christian. It offers a lot of help on how to become more Christ-like. One small thing I didn't especially like was that the authors switched off writing and would have to articulate who was talking in parenthesis. Other than that, I liked this book and recommend it.

 

 Keep it Shut by Karen Ehman

I got this book from the library. It had ideas about what to say in certain situations and how not to engage in gossip, flattery, etc. It was supported by Bible verses to encourage you to speak Godly and honoring words in real life, and on the internet.

Just Do Something by Kevin DeYoung

This was an interesting, thought-provoking book about God's will. Although I don't necessarily believe all the theories the author presents about God's will (such as, God doesn't care if you move or take a new job as long as you pray about it and make a good decision) there were parts that were really thought-provoking.

Start Here: Doing Hard Things Right Where You Are by Alex & Brett Harris

I'm glad I finally bought and read this sequel! It had lots of stories of what teens have done in their communities, and tips on how to stay connected with God and grow your relationship with him even when you are super busy doing a "hard thing".

image from Christianbook.com

Listening with My Heart  by Heather Whitestone

This book is about the woman who is Miss America 1995. I really liked this book! The first half of the book (which I favored) was about her growing up in a hearing world, the challenge of learning orally as a deaf person, how hard she worked to achieve her dream, and how she found her relationship with Christ. The second half was about the good things and the bad things about her year as Miss America. Although the timeline for her story jumped around a bit, I was able to understand it and saw why she was telling the story out of sequence. Overall, I learned a lot from this book. I really want to read Heavenly Crowns next.

I think I'll wrap up this post! Do you like to hear about what I'm reading? Are you excited for Christmas?

Merry Christmas!

A Book Review // "The Blackgaard Chronicles: Opening Moves" by Phil Lollar

 Today I'm going to embark on my very first book review!

"The Blackgaard Chronicles: Opening Moves" was written by Phil Lollar and published by Focus on the Family. It is based off of The Blackgaard Chronicles Adventures in Odyssey album. The original AIO episodes were written by Paul McCusker and Phil Lollar respectively.

Here is the summary of the book found on the Focus on the Family website (linked above):

"A conniving city councilman is secretly carrying out plans against John Avery Whittaker and Whit’s End. Yet Philip Glossman is only a pawn in a dark game played by the mysterious Dr. Regis Blackgaard. Meanwhile, against Whit’s express orders, Eugene and Connie tamper with a top-secret computer room – and the destructive Applesause program is unleashed. Can Whit counter the forces opposing him? What does Dr. Blackgaard really want?"

The book is for ages 10 and up, with 13 chapters. As for the writing, I appreciated the choice of descriptive wording. It is specific and original (to avoid possible spoilers, I won't give details), and created a clear image in my mind.

For those who are not already familiar with the characters of the Adventures in Odyssey radio drama, the book introduces each character (including Connie, Eugene, and Whit), starting at the beginning of their roles in the story. That being said, it is a little review for those who have listened to AIO before. Additionally, the format allows for further insight into the characters' heads and thought processes. Interesting information for both AIO newcomers and life-long fans, the characters' descriptions are laid out. For example, Connie's exact height is mentioned. The characters were well-formed and real. As for the plot, the story is drawing and hooked me as a reader. The plot covers a range of emotions.

Here's a photo to give you an idea of the art, it is not an illustrated book but has a character at each chapter. The character above is Phillip Glossman.

There will be a sequel to this book, titled "Pawn's Play", but I don't believe there is an announced release date for that one yet. It is also written by Phil Lollar.

If you like Adventures in Odyssey, or are in need of an interesting and fun book, I definitely recommend "Opening Moves"!

Have you ever read or listened to The Blackgaard Chronicles?