Member Reviews
*Thank you NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.*
As someone who was never able to get into Little Women, I enjoyed this Graphic Novel quite a bit. The art style was very nice and it was a quick yet enjoyable read. Emotions were very clearly shown through the art which helped add to the setting. The dialogue was fun and the characters had personality. I think that the author was trying to fit too much plot into as few pages as possible, it would have been nicer if it was longer and if certain scenes and characters were more explored. It is a great introduction for middle graders to the classic novel Little Women, and the addition of magic and the March sisters being mages is a fun way for kids to try and grasp bigger concepts in history, like slavery. The graphic novel could have benefited from chapters, or better scene transitions, as well, because it left certain scenes feeling incomplete. Overall, I enjoyed it and I think it is a good read for a younger audience.
What if Beth, Jo, Amy and Meg were witches? And what if Laurie and his grandfather were witchfinders?
This is an interesting twist on a classic. I enjoyed the story along with the fact that the girl’s personalities stayed true to the original story. I think that the artwork suits the story very well. Since this is a middle grade book, the tone of the book remains light despite the magical elements in the book. I do wish that the book was longer since I would have liked more explanation of the world. The book also cut out certain characters, and parts of the story.
This is a good book for fans of the classic novel and graphic novel readers.
This graphic novel was such a wonderful adaptation of the classic. I can't wait for my daughters to be old enough to read so they can enjoy this. Tons of magic with the nostalgic charm of Little Women.
This is a retelling of Little Women but with witches. I’m not very familiar with Little Women so I don’t know how true this graphic novel is to the original story.
OK, why does the art remind me of Archie comics? Except most of the characters look the same; very confusing.
I really enjoyed the magic in the story. More magic! But the ending was quite abrupt.
2.5 stars: 2 stars for the art and 3 stars for story.
ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
This is a graphic novel adaptation of Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women. I haven’t read Little Women, and so won’t comment on the inspiration part of the novel. The story revolves around 4 witch sisters and their relationship with each other, their upbringing. Enter a witch finder who investigates and reports on witches who use magic for purposes which are prohibited. Then there’s a dark spell, obviously, and then these witches save the city. This is the journey of the book. That’s that.
The illustrations in the book are good, although the language in the comic strips and the font wasn’t great. The story is predictable and may be enjoyable to middle grade readers. It’s a graphic novel so won’t take much time to finish, so might as well give it a go!
I received this ARC from the publisher through Netgalley for an honest review. My rating - 2 stars
I received this graphic novel from Netgalley.
This will be a short review, the words just won't come for this book. I have never really read the original Little Women, and never will have plans to read it. However I am always interested in retellings, and this one has witches! It was quite an interesting read, though at times also very boring. I felt sad for Jo and I still don't get why everyone is treating her the way they do. She seems quite powerful, and really, you can see what happens when you hold her out of everything, it goes wrong. Bonds are broken. I loved Laurie, he was such a sweetie. Not a fan of Amy. Whodunnit was very nice and I hadn't expected that person. The art was quite fabulous. Also does it end with the girls in the living room or is my copy broken?
The story was entertaining and had some attractive scenes, but it was so simple and linear most of the time that I couldn't get into it. However, I would buy it for a child; something tells me anyone younger than me will enjoy it more than I did, maybe even adults that read the original story, which I've never been interested in getting. Good reading, though.
Full review MAY 09: https://tintanocturna.blogspot.com/2019/05/comic-little-witches-magic-in-concord.html.
This was adorable and would be a great book for reluctant readers or ELS students. It takes the beloved classic and adds a fun spin that may make modern kids more interested.
"Little Witches" is a cute graphic novel based on the classic "Little Women". I liked the art style, but the ending felt rather rushed.
I hope this is the first of a series, because it covers only a bit of the material in its source, Little Women. I like the reworking of the Laurences sad a family of color, though going ahead, it’s going to be hard not to have that be an issue, since racism existed/exists in the northern states just as in the southern ones.
Like Alcott’s book, which could get preachy, this one also has a moral lesson (jealousy is bad), though it’s a lesson given through magic rather than a Marmee Sermon.
I think young readers will like this, and that it might eventually lead them to read the classic.
I have never finished the original. I had it on my Goodreads Currently read list for years. I finally took it off of there out of pure shame of it all. It’s not bad it’s something that I should have read when I was a kid. It gets shoved to the side for a newer, shinier book. Instead of reading the original… I read Little Witches a comic adaptation of the original. Do you see what I mean?
It’s not that I don’t love the story it’s just… haven’t finished. However, this mixes in fantasy of witches and an alternative reality of sorts. Which is in my ball park. I couldn’t afford comic books or graphic novels growing up. Libraries around me didn’t house any — they’re more popular to have around these days and easier to access. I find them AMAZING for children and for adults (cos hello!).
This was a fun and interesting read. I’ve provided 2 amazon affiliated links to find the pre-order — as this doesn’t come out until August 29th. It’s available on Netgalley at the moment to request to download and review though.
The girls get a new neighbor — witch finders. Witches aren’t hidden and are seen and known. The service that witch finders provide is to help against the witches who don’t follow the laws.
At the beginning of the story their neighbor explains he became a Witch Finder because in the south… slave owners abused their powers and used them against their slaves.
Overall I like the tone, pacing and the story line. As the spoons above indicate I give this a 4 spoon out of 5. I would recommend for those who have read Little Women or who have tried to read it and haven’t got through it yet.
Thank you for allowing me the time to read and review this for free in exchange for an honest review.
I received a copy of this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions expressed here are my own.
Little Witches is a graphic novel based on the classic Little Women.
When witchfinders move into the house next door, the Marches must hide their magic in fear that they will be blamed for the things that have been disappearing in Concord. Soon though, those missing objects become missing people. Laurie, one of their new neighbours, and Jo try investigating on their own. A strong storm soon takes hold of Concord and a stronger magic than either the Marches or Laurie have seen before is at play here. The question is, can the defeat it? Or is it too strong to fight against?
I really enjoyed reading Little Witches. I thought that the art style was very simple and cute, an artist style that I think is very good for younger readers (this book is categorised as a middle grade book on NetGalley). This book followed a very simple plot. It was very easy to follow when reading. You also don’t need to have read or know Little Women, which this is based on/inspired by, to enjoy or understand the story.
My only complaints would be that I felt that the ending was too simple and the conclusion as to why things and people were going missing, as well as the storm hitting Concord, was too short. It felt like the climax of the story fell a bit short. It felt like the mystery was building, the identity of the villainous mage was revealed, the danger was building and then it was quickly resolved and the story was finished in a few pages. I left me feeling a little disappointed.
I also would have liked a little more magic. There is some magic shown but I would have liked to have seen more. If there is any more books in this book they might explore the magic in more detail. As Amy started learning magic from their Aunt Josephine. Jo, Beth and Meg’s magic was briefly introduced and explained so I think it would be really interesting if their magic could be explored further.
I've never read Little Women, but I was still quite interested in this one because it's about witches. So while I probably didn't get how the story was similar to the book it was based on, I did enjoy this. The art style, however, looked a bit too unfinished at some points and I would have loved it if it had been a bit longer and the magic had been explained better (because there are witchfinders, but everyone basically knows these girls were witches???)
A charming and creative spin on a classic story (the "Little Women" are magical witches), told in a cartoony graphic novel format that middle grade readers will love. Some pages are full of brown, antique-ish looking colours, reminiscent of the "classic" status of the original book. Others are bursting with bright colours and magic.
Magic is exposed to be influential in a few historical events, including slavery and the Black Plague. I see how this could be controversial, but I think it will spark interesting conversations and may inspire some child readers to expand their research on the topics.
I was really intrigued by the twist on Little Women but it just didn't do it for me. The story was hard to follow and it felt rushed, overall it was poorly executed.
*ARC provided by Publisher & NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*
I'll start by saying I have never read Little Women, but I have read a graphic novel retelling set in the present day that I enjoyed. Unfortunately, this graphic novel was disappointing. The plot was boring and convoluted. I appreciated the diverse cast of characters, but the slavery and abolitionist references in the story didn't make sense or add anything to the story. I find this type of "inclusiveness" offensive. I felt like the author was pandering to the audience. And adding witches is supposed to make the story more entertaining. I gave the book two stars because I really liked the idea. I wish it had lived up to my expectations.
I was disappointed by the art and the addition of magic to the classic tale. It just didn't end up making very much sense.
I was really looking forward to giving this a read. However, when i download the pdf, it doesn't appear to be compatible with any programs in order for me to open it and therefore I haven't been able to read it.
I don't know if anyone else has had this problem but I just thought I should mention it,
Thank you as always to NetGalley and the publishers for sending me this through.
How charming! I love how whimsical it was and the different perspective on a timeless classic!
I would like to thank the author/publisher/Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.
First off, I'd like to thank Oni Press & Net Galley for an ARC of this book. It was provided for an honest review.
This book hits many of my book weaknesses: female protagonists, a new take on a classic, graphic novel, and WITCHY MAGIC. I was drawn to the title, and I know middle grade Sarah would have been all about this. I loved the little nods to the original tale (pickled limes, Jo cutting her hair, stick out in particular). I also enjoyed the mage/slavery tie in that added some cultural undertones to the book.
Aside from Beth, no other sister had her powers clearly defined. I figure this is due to the fact that they're all still learning their powers, so they're not all sure exactly what they are capable of. I do like that Beth, albeit powerless, is the one who keeps them all safe - and this is the reason for her illness. It was a pretty clever way to go about that.
I did have a hard time following the ending. <spoiler> I don't really know where it was Amy went when she disappeared due to Jo's jealousy -- and how come Jo could still see her? I also don't know how Meg & Beth also got to that spot. I understand they came together to save the day, but I didn't get the logistics of how it happened. </spoiler> If I were younger, I probably wouldn't have questioned it.
I do hope that this is the start of a series, because I am already looking forward to more adventures of the Little Witches.