The Other March Sisters by Linda Epstein, Ally Malinenko, and Liz Parker

In the literary landscape of beloved classics, Louisa May Alcott’s “Little Women” stands as a timeless beacon of sisterhood, ambition, and moral fortitude. For generations, readers have followed the March sisters primarily through Jo’s perspective—her trials and triumphs coloring our understanding of Meg, Beth, and Amy. But what happens when we shift the narrative lens away from the formidable Jo? What stories might her sisters tell if given their own voice?

This is precisely the ambitious undertaking of “The Other March Sisters” by Linda Epstein, Ally Malinenko, and Liz Parker. Their collaborative novel gives voice to the three March sisters perpetually overshadowed by Jo’s dominant narrative, allowing readers to discover the women behind the archetypes established in Alcott’s classic.

A Symphony of Three Voices

The novel is divided into four parts, with each author taking on a different sister’s perspective—Amy (Epstein), Meg (Parker), and Beth (Malinenko)—in a structure that allows for a deeply intimate glimpse into each sister’s inner world. The fourth section returns to Amy’s perspective, bringing the narrative full circle with satisfying symmetry.

What’s immediately striking is how distinct each sister’s voice becomes in this telling. Gone are the simplified characterizations we’ve grown accustomed to:

• Meg: No longer merely the pretty, conventional sister longing for wealth and security, but a complex woman struggling with the suffocation of 19th-century motherhood and marriage
• Beth: Transformed from the saintly, doomed angel to a young woman with desires, frustrations, and a passionate inner life
• Amy: Reimagined beyond the vain, materialistic youngest sister to reveal an ambitious artist contending with societal constraints

Each sister’s section reads almost as a novella, yet they’re interwoven through shared experiences, correspondence, and familial bonds that maintain the cohesive feeling of a single narrative.

Breathing New Life Into Historical Women

One of the novel’s greatest strengths is how it incorporates historical details from the lives of the real Alcott sisters, who inspired the March characters. As the authors explain in their informative end note, they drew from letters, diaries, and biographical information to add depth to their reimagined characters.

For instance, Beth’s sardonic inner thoughts about illness are inspired by Elizabeth Alcott’s actual letters, where she referred to herself as “the little skeleton” with dry humor rarely attributed to the saintly Beth of “Little Women.” Similarly, Amy’s artistic aspirations mirror those of May Alcott, who actually exhibited at the Paris Salon—a dream Amy harbors in this retelling.

This historical foundation grounds the novel in authenticity while allowing the authors to explore themes Alcott could not explicitly address in her time.

Progressive Themes Through a Modern Lens

The novel doesn’t shy away from introducing contemporary perspectives on timeless issues. Through Meg’s storyline, we confront women’s reproductive rights and bodily autonomy. Beth’s narrative explores queer identity and forbidden love. Amy’s section examines the impossible choice many women faced between artistic fulfillment and societal expectations.

While some readers might find these modern sensibilities anachronistic, the authors thoughtfully integrate these themes in ways that feel organic to the historical setting rather than imposing 21st-century values wholesale. The result is a story that bridges past and present, showing how many of our current struggles have deep historical roots.

Strengths That Shine

Several elements elevate this retelling beyond mere fan fiction:

1. The prose is exquisite, particularly in the pastoral scenes of Meg’s herbalism and Beth’s musical moments. The authors capture the essence of Alcott’s style while infusing their own distinctive voices.
2. The reimagining of Marmee as a more complex, sometimes stifling influence on her daughters adds compelling tension. Rather than the perfect maternal figure of the original, this Marmee has her own agenda for her daughters, sometimes prioritizing her vision of their lives over their own desires.
3. The expansion of secondary characters like Uncle Edward, Hannah, and Laurie adds rich texture to the world. Uncle Edward’s surprising depth and Hannah’s quiet wisdom are particularly welcome additions.
4. The representation of art as salvation runs as a powerful through-line across all three sisters’ stories. Whether through Meg’s gardening, Beth’s music, or Amy’s painting, each sister finds her authentic voice through creative expression.

Room for Improvement

Despite its many merits, “The Other March Sisters” isn’t without flaws:

• At times, the messaging about female empowerment becomes somewhat heavy-handed, particularly in Meg’s confrontations with Marmee, where the dialogue occasionally feels more suited to a contemporary feminist manifesto than a 19th-century household conversation.
• The novel’s pacing is uneven in spots, with Beth’s section feeling more compressed compared to the expansive scope of Amy’s European travels.
• While the authors have clearly researched the period meticulously, occasional modern phrasings slip through, momentarily disrupting the historical immersion.
• Some longtime fans of “Little Women” might resist the reimagining of beloved characters, particularly the more complex portrayal of Marmee and the revelation of Laurie’s fluid sexuality.

A Thoughtful Exploration of Sisterhood and Selfhood

What ultimately makes “The Other March Sisters” succeed is its deep compassion for these literary icons. The novel asks us to consider how restrictive the “little woman” archetype truly was, even in a supposedly progressive family like the Marches. It invites us to see Meg, Beth, and Amy as full human beings with desires, flaws, and inner lives as rich and compelling as Jo’s.

The novel’s exploration of sisterhood is particularly nuanced. The sisters love each other deeply while also resenting the roles they’ve been assigned within the family dynamic. Amy’s frustration with Jo’s dismissal of her artistic talent, Beth’s fear of being seen only as a “dear little angel,” and Meg’s complex emotions about being the “good daughter” create a realistic portrait of familial bonds that are simultaneously sustaining and constricting.

For Fans New and Old

This novel will appeal to several audiences:

• Devoted fans of “Little Women” who are open to seeing familiar characters in a new light
• Readers interested in feminist retellings of classic literature
• Those who appreciate historical fiction with contemporary relevance
• Anyone who has ever felt secondary in their own life story

The book pairs well with other feminist retellings like Jean Rhys’s “Wide Sargasso Sea,” Alice Randall’s “The Wind Done Gone,” and Madeline Miller’s “Circe“—all works that recenter marginalized figures from canonical literature.

Final Thoughts: A Worthy Companion to a Classic

“The Other March Sisters” accomplishes the difficult feat of honoring Alcott’s beloved classic while boldly reimagining it. The novel doesn’t seek to replace “Little Women” but to stand alongside it, offering complementary perspectives that enrich our understanding of the March family.

By giving voice to Meg, Beth, and Amy—allowing them to step out from Jo’s shadow and tell their own stories—Epstein, Malinenko, and Parker have created a thought-provoking, emotionally resonant work that feels both faithful to its source material and refreshingly original.

This novel reminds us that even the most familiar stories contain untold perspectives waiting to be discovered. In the authors’ capable hands, the other March sisters finally get their due—not as supporting characters in Jo’s narrative, but as protagonists in their own right, with stories every bit as compelling as their famous sister’s.