From School Library Journal Grade 6 Up For fans of vampire literature, this book can be fun. It is a retelling of the Alcott classic with the March family as humanitarian vampires they will not ingest the blood of humans. Set as the original is during the Civil War, the story follows the traditional plot. The family must survive without Mr. March, who is off at war, bolstered by his abolitionist views. Marmee is home with her four lovely daughters. They are not interested in furthering their numbers. Jo refuses to mate with Laurie, even though he desperately wants to be a vampire, too. The Marches are not shunned from society and intermingle with some ordinary humans, though there are those who would do them harm. Although vampires are supposed to live forever, a strange illness has threatened Mr. March, and Beth does eventually succumb. Thus the role of the vampire defenders becomes important, and Jo is passionate about joining their ranks. Messina has cleverly interspersed footnotes in the text to explain some past vampire accomplishment or event. The serious, scholarly tone with which they are written makes them quite humorous. The author's prose style is sharp, and her imprint on these characters is distinct. There is certainly an audience for this selection, and it may introduce readers to a classic. Renee Steinberg, formerly at Fieldstone Middle School, Montvale, NJ Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. Read more From Booklist “‘Christmas won't be Christmas without any corpses,' grumbled Jo, lying on the rug.” Alcott's classic receives the Pride and Prejudice and Zombies (2009) treatment—and it's surprisingly effective. The original March family was characterized by their poverty, independence, and firm morals in the face of wealthy neighbors and decadent temptations. The vampire version has the equally poor Marches resisting the urge to dine on humans, instead drinking the blood of rats, beavers, and in Beth's case, her beloved kittens. These Marches preach humanitarianism and fight valiantly against vampire slayers, but most of the original plot is preserved. Meg marries John Brooke (after “siring” him as a vampire), Amy marries Laurie (ditto), Jo falls for the Transylvanian vampire Mr. Bhaer, and Beth . . . dies (from poisoned kittens). Jo's tomboyish behavior translates perfectly to a vampire's impassioned need for blood. Though the audience is necessarily limited mostly to those who have read the original, those who have will be delighted by Messina's clever and loving spoof, replete with excellent wordplay and footnotes to clarify vampire history. Grades 7-12. --Debbie Carton Read more See all Editorial Reviews
K**A
Silly but good
I've read Little Women and now I've read little vampire women. The book was close enought to see the original in it but changed enough to make it really enjoyable.Little Vampire Women I gave it 3 because it took a lot of thought to make it this good, but not enough imagation to be a whole new book.
H**Y
A great retelling of a classic!
I really enjoyed this book. It stayed true to the style of the original and the vampire storyline was highly entertaining! If you enjoyed this book I would also recommend Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters or Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. They were both excellent retellings as well.
A**R
Humor wth a bite.
What a twist and dry humor. I love the story and how it differs from the classic "Little Women". Definitely one to add to the home library to enjoy over and over.
R**A
I love these series of books
I love these series of books. It's interesting to read a different perspective of books I used to find pretty dull
D**N
Fun read; well done
Another great take on classic w/fun vampire twist.
J**A
It's ok.
It was ok read, nothing over the top. I've read better, not much to go by. Of course the original is always better!
M**L
Four Stars
My daughter was very taken by this book and she read the whole thing in about 1 day.
C**T
Sink Your Teeth Into Silliness
Those plucky March girls - Meg, Jo, Amy and Beth - are centerstage in this campy spin on Alcott's classic. With their father away at war and their beloved Marmee raising them to be humanitarian vampires, this quartet of femme fatales is learning that it's not always easy for the undead to coexist with their human neighbors. You just never know if a vampire slayer has a stake in your future (literally) or, for that matter, if the beau who's courting your sister has a wicked agenda to decapitate all of your kin while they're sleeping. Add to this batty mix the trials and tribulations of young romance, most notably in the form of guy pal Laurie who's so earnestly pining and whining to join the ranks of the immortal that you can't help but fear he'll fall into bad company if one of the sibs doesn't hurry up and grant his dying wish. This snappy spoof has all the earmarks of a fun movie, especially given the current obsession with men who sport fangs and sleep in coffins. Speaking of movies, this book is replete with some pretty hysterical footnotes that - like end credits and bloopers in a film - you might have the misfortune to miss if you don't read past THE END. Here's a sample:6. International bestseller by Dimitri Strinsky (b. 1294), translated into 37 languages, including Swahili. Its sequel, "Seven More Signs of a Vampire Slayer and How I Missed Them the First Time," is also a classic.7. The Pinkerton National Detective Agency, established in 1850 by Allan Pinkerton, who became famous after foiling an attempt to assassinate President-elect Abraham Lincoln. Pinkerton was the first personal-security agency to hire vampires to screen for slayers.15. A primitive version of what is now known as a solar cloak, which makes it possible for vampires to go out in the sun. Filtering out the sun's rays wasn't possible until the invention of Gore-Tex in 1976 by Wilbert L. Gore.17 Such parlor games did not become illegal until 1907, when the Freedom from Vampire Cruelty Despite Personal Preference for Vampire Cruelty Act was passed.36. Invented by Harken Hennings (b. 1803) in 1853 and very popular with defenders working in the modern urban crime environment. His first attempt at vampire armor, an iron neckerchief to protect one from decapitation, had to be recalled because sharp clasps of the garment inadvertantly removed the wearer's head.
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