Jo's Boys
2005
Considering the fact that one of Fakhruddin’s previous post was about technology versus books, I guess I will start my post from that point.
Well, I am technically more of a bookworm than a techno geek. But technology turned out to be a help rather than a hindrance in my hobby. Having acquired a new handphone I was eager to explore its functions, and by chance, stumbled upon an application which allowed me to download and read certain e-books. From then on, I was often seen with my handphone in hand, and my eyes glued tight to the screen, much to the bewilderment of my classmates, who thought that I was busy messaging some mysterious personnel.
The books made available by the application are somewhat limited. Or, to be more exact, not all the books available were free; the most popular titles came with a fixed price. But the classics were free, and pretty soon my virtual bookshelf was filled with my favourite titles such as ‘Anne of Green Gables’, ‘Rilla of Ingleside’, ‘Pride and Prejudice’, even ‘Romeo and Juliet’ and most recently, the ‘Little Women’ series by Louisa May Alcott.
Those who had read ‘Little Women’ would be familiar with the four March sisters– Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy. The second book in the series, sometimes known as ‘Good Wives’, sometimes simply as ‘Part 2’ was a follow-up on their respective lives, whereby the four sisters blossomed into capable and graceful young women, eventually finding love and romance in their lives, and in one sad case, left her short yet meaningful life behind to descend to the ‘Valley of the Shadow’ as quoted from the book.
The next book was entitled ‘Little Men’, and it was about Jo, whom, upon inheriting Plumfield, a stately estate from her deceased aunt, converted it into a school for boys. The third book, ‘Jo’s boys-and How They Turned Out’ was centered on the lives of the boys after they grew up. And that was the book that kept me company during the stressful and tiring exam week.
I will not elaborate further on the prequels to this book, for after not reading them for quite some time I have forgotten some major plots and storylines, and do not wish to mar this post with incomplete or incorrect facts. But from here onwards I have to assume that those reading this have already read, or at least, heard of ‘Little Women’ and ‘Little Men’, or else it may be hard to get an inkling of the storyline I’m about to present.
So, the boys at Plumfield have all grown up. Dan was exploring gold mines in San Francisco, Nat was aspiring to become a violinist, Demi had a temporary job as a reporter, and Tom was studying Medicine, not out of interest but merely for the sake of wooing his childhood sweetheart, Nan. Professor Bhaer’s nephews, Franz and Emil were well established in their respective careers, the former managing some business, the latter as a sailor who was promoted to become second mate of his ship. Jo’s sons were doing well too, Ted being labeled as ‘the lion’ due to his hyperactive and reckless nature, while his brother Rob was his exact opposite; thus known as ‘the lamb’.
(more…)