Meg and Jo

Starred review from September 30, 2019
Kantra (Carolina Blues) charms in this outstanding update of Little Women, Louisa May Alcott’s 19th century classic. In this retelling, always-independent Jo, after losing her journalism job, is working as a prep cook and writing a food blog in New York City; Meg is a married and overwhelmed stay-at-home mother with two-year-old twins in small-town Bunyan, N.C.; Beth is a shy aspiring musician, and stylish Amy’s in Paris doing an internship with Louis Vuitton. After the girls’ mother, Abby, is hospitalized, Meg and Jo (who tell the story in alternating first-person chapters) rally to take care of her—and find happiness in unexpected places. Supporting characters from the original abound—rich boy-next-door Theodore Laurence III is Trey and owns a car dealership, where Meg’s husband, John, works; Mr. Bhaer (called Eric rather than Friedrich in this version), Jo’s love, is a successful chef. Kantra blends just enough of Alcott’s story of four close-knit sisters and their myriad tribulations with clever and timely new elements (unexpected pregnancies, the girls’ father as a military chaplain, parents separating), a mix that will satisfy Alcott fans as well as entice Kantra’s existing fans. The imaginative storytelling and sparkling prose make this a winner. Agent: Robin Rue, Writers House.

Narrators Karissa Vacker and Shannon McManus voice Meg and Jo in Kantra's updated vision of LITTLE WOMEN. Setting the story in North Carolina in the period after the War in Iraq and an excessive use of coarse language change the flavor of the story. McManus's voice for Meg has a slight Southern accent but is flat and whiny, as she resents all her responsibilities while rejecting offers of help. McManus puts life into other characters, especially husband John, who tries to persuade Meg to share the load. Vacker gives Jo the measured voice of one who has left her Southern accent behind. But she delivers Jo's romantic clich�s flatly. Secondary characters express the emotions Jo hides. The audiobook ends with questions to guide a book club discussion. N.E.M. � AudioFile 2020, Portland, Maine