Ashley is reading "Little Women"

Littlest Women

WARNING: This post contains spoilers for the beloved 19th century classic novel “Little Women” by Louisa May Alcott.

Anytime I read novels with a lot of sisters, I immediately try to pair each fictional sister with one of my flesh-and-blood sisters, in order of birth. I don’t know why, my brain just does it automatically. It always falls apart pretty quickly.

Ashley is reading "Little Women"

"Hey! We're just like the sisters in this book!"

"Nicki is Meg, the oldest. Polite and maternal, sweet and even-tempered. She discovers that happiness doesn't depend on her social ranking."

"Charlotte is Amy, the baby, who is particularly vain about the shape of her nose. She grows up to marry the rich and dashing Laurie, who is a boy with a girly name."

And obviously, I'm Jo, the plucky writer, the tom-boyish heroine, the jolly secondborn."

"Who is my counterpart?"

"Oh, um... yeah, Beth..."

"Beth really likes kittens and dolls..."

Chrissy raises one eyebrow.

"...and then she dies."

"WHAT?! My character dies?! First she's lame and then she DIES?? This is so unfair. I always get the short end of the stick! Ugh!"

"Which sister am I?"

"Ooooo..."


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52 responses to “Littlest Women”

  1. morristownmemos by Ronnie Hammer Avatar

    Charming characters; great expressions and beautiful cut-outs.
    But now I have to re-read Little Women to see which sister is left….

    Ronnie

    1. themiddlestsister Avatar

      haha… there are only 4 March sisters. Poor Tess is always left out!

      1. whatimeant2say Avatar

        Tess could be Marmie – the brave and wise mother. Or, would she find that offensive?

        1. themiddlestsister Avatar

          I don’t know, she still wouldn’t be a sister, so it’s not quite the same. Marmie is awesome, though.

  2. The Simple Life of a Country Man's Wife Avatar

    These are awesome. My little sister and I had three girls “across the field” that we played with constantly. Their names were Beth, Amy, and Amanda…. as you can see, my sister and I were usually one of the non-existent sisters. But they were way more Little Women-ish then we ever were. Great post! Now I would like to see the film again… er, read the book, I mean.

    1. themiddlestsister Avatar

      Thanks :) That’s so cute. At least none of you had to be Laurie, the Boy!

  3. Angie Z. Avatar

    Hilarious as always! I loved anticipating which of your sisters got to be the one who croaked! The clothespin on the nose was a nice touch. (And I confess I actually slept with a clothespin on my nose after reading the book.)

    1. themiddlestsister Avatar

      Oh, ouch! This was one of my favorite books as a kid and since I immediately began the story with that “I am Meg, Ashley is Jo… etc” mentality, when I got to Beth/Chrissy dying, I completely lost it and started bawling. I reread it every few years and always skip Beth dying. I can’t take it.

  4. disturbinglynormal Avatar
    disturbinglynormal

    Ahahaha I’d love to see this with The Five Little Peppers.

    1. themiddlestsister Avatar

      Aw, I can’t believe I forgot about The Five Little Peppers!

  5. tita buds Avatar

    Jo, the one with the feather quill and the tongue sticking out in determination, is also the one who got Gabriel Byrne. ;)

    1. themiddlestsister Avatar

      True, and he is so adorable.

  6. whatimeant2say Avatar

    Is there any girl who read Little Women and didn’t want to be Jo? I know I did, too.

    1. themiddlestsister Avatar

      I know I did. I am the only one I know who was relieved when she didn’t end up with Teddy. I prefer Bhaer. :D

  7. Naomi Baltuck Avatar

    Very cute. Your artwork is great–I particularly enjoy their facial expressions. I am the youngest of five sisters, and the dynamics are so interesting and complicated. I look forward to the next post!

  8. worrywarts-guide-to-weight-sex-and-marriage Avatar

    As I said before, do you have a book because if you do, I would like to buy it How about an ecard?

    1. worrywarts-guide-to-weight-sex-and-marriage Avatar

      Hi again,
      I just read your answer about the book on the previous post. Two of the other blogs I read just self-published. I have no idea what that involves, but I think you should consider it.

      1. themiddlestsister Avatar

        I was sort of planning on self-publishing a book just for my family after I had a year’s worth of material, but I will have to look into it further. I’m not sure what making an e-card entails, I’ll have to ask around!

        1. worrywarts-guide-to-weight-sex-and-marriage Avatar

          I don’t either, have you ever used Animoto? I have used it in the past for creating photo cards for my family, but this year I keep thinking of how cool it would have been to have a brief series of your collages put to music in an animoto with a nice holiday message (and a hint of reality) intertwined in the montage.

          1. themiddlestsister Avatar

            I haven’t used Animoto, but I have a video/music editor on my computer. I’ve been working on a stop-motion cut-paper animation video in my spare time with music by my husband (and me!) This is our first attempt, but if it comes together nicely, we can work on something for next Christmas.

        2. riatarded Avatar

          Yes you should! when I have kids, i want them to read this ;P

  9. Miranda Gargasz Avatar
    Miranda Gargasz

    As always, AWESOME! I totally wanted to be Jo, too!

    1. themiddlestsister Avatar

      Thanks! Jo was definitely the most fun. I even loved the sequels about Jo’s school :)

  10. Connie Barnett Dowell Avatar
    Connie Barnett Dowell

    I also tried to find family parallels in books, especially Little Women. But there were only two sisters in my family so we had the opposite problem. Sorry to Meg and Beth. They just didn’t make the cut.

    1. themiddlestsister Avatar

      Hahaha… I loved the realistic way that Jo and Amy would fight. You could tell that Louisa May Alcott had sisters!

  11. jell jell @ I'll Sleep When They're Grown Avatar

    You’re so good at this! So unique and funny.

    1. themiddlestsister Avatar

      I’m glad you like it!

  12. meladjusted Avatar

    I love your technique – it’s really well put together and highly entertaining, thanks for a nostalgia inducing post.

    1. themiddlestsister Avatar

      Thank you! It’s time consuming, but I love the way it turns out.

  13. Little Ms. Curly Avatar

    I just stumbled over your blog right now, and I love it! I also like the fact that you are the middles one of five sisters, because I’m the middles one of seven sisters. Keep up the good work :)

    1. themiddlestsister Avatar

      Thanks! Wow, seven sisters! I’m glad you can relate :D

  14. Dee Avatar

    Your blogs are so cute, and definitely addictive. The characters, and the persona’s are sooooo true to family’s! OBVIOUSLY, b/c you are basing them on your real life experiences, and family, but still. It is too cute!

    1. themiddlestsister Avatar

      Thank you! It’s a true labor of love.

  15. publikworks Avatar

    I love the plucky writer’s, ink-stained paper. Oh, heck, I love the whole idea.

    1. themiddlestsister Avatar

      Thanks for noticing :D

  16. msperfectpatty Avatar
    msperfectpatty

    all i can do is laugh! lol

  17. metan Avatar

    Oh the disappointment, ‘first she’s lame, then she dies?!’ ha ha, great post :)

  18. happilyeverafter25 Avatar

    I have nominated you for the Versatile Blogger Award – the details are in my latest post. Hopefully there are many more who will appreciate you like I do!

  19. madi Avatar

    Maybe Tess can be “the one telling the story”. It’s what we did when there weren’t enough characters!

  20. chocolatefrosting Avatar

    You are so so good!! Just love your posts! The little details are awesome! Waiting for more!

    1. themiddlestsister Avatar

      Thank you! I’ll be on vacation soon, but I have posts scheduled for while I’m gone.

  21. icookbythebook Avatar

    Ahh!! This is so funny. Jo March is the love of my life.
    Sara

  22. singlecatholic Avatar

    Haha! This is great, I definitely do the same thing with that book. Then I realize I’m “kind of” like Jo AND Meg, and my other sister is like Meg and Amy, and we have NO ONE like Beth…and it all falls to pieces. (And there’s that troubling 5th sister element.) Pride and Prejudice is no better, since there are only two sisters anyone wants to be anything like…

  23. copycatmom Avatar
    copycatmom

    Love it! Haven’t read that book in years. I really should pick it up again…..

  24. Danna Avatar

    Oh that’s cute. Somehow I saw it coming that it’s going to be one sister short. I loved the book. Your cutouts are amazing! Keep it up!

  25. eb does life Avatar

    My sisters and I did the same thing…though they always claimed unfair when I wanted to be Jo. But we still spent countless hours acting out the scenes of the book. Such good times. Your blog is lovely and I am enjoying sharing it with the sisters.

  26. Benjamin Wieler Avatar

    I love it all, the story telling & the paper illustrations…
    I have 5 sisters myself & can say without hesitation that no two are alike.

  27. schmolphin Avatar

    Awesome post!! Love the way u create the characters beyond drawing & sketchings! Your post makes me smile! Thank you!!

    Cheers!

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