Book And Character Review On "An Old-Fashioned Girl"

As part of the Fiesta de Octobre, Jo posted some blog post ideas. Now, these particular ones just happened to be the sort of thing I'd love to post about anyway, so I chose to write a Character overview on a character from a book or movie. I chose a book, and the book I am choosing is....An Old-Fashioned Girl by Louisa May Alcott. This is one of my favorite of her books, with Eight Cousins a tie. Polly Milton, the character I'm highlighting in this post, is so...easy to relate to. Although "An Old-Fashioned Girl" is one of L. M. Alcott's lesser known books, I find it has just as much truth in it as "Little Women".
As Christians, we girls are all more or less what people would term "An Old-Fashioned Girl"...as one elderly lady Polly knows tells her, "Modesty seems to have gone out of fashion these days". Polly is about 14 years old at the start of the book, and is visiting some wealthy friends in the city. There, she is faced with challenges to her simple upbringing. What I love about Polly Milton is that she does struggle, but at the end of her visit, she not only has withstood temptation, but has changed in some way the family she was visiting merely by her sweet, modest conduct.
Then, half-way through the book, there is a lapse of 6 years, and our Polly is 20 years old. She has returned to the City to be a piano teacher, and help her younger brother through college to be a minister. This season of Polly is my favorite, because I can readily identify with her. Louisa May Alcott perfectly captured a wholesome, sweet, innocent young lady who is still tempted to be discontent at times, wants to see just for a bit what it would be like to be "one of those girls" who her friend Fanny associates with, gets tired of doing her "duty", gives up the love of a good man for a friend who loves and needs him, and generally comes out of all these things a brighter, and stronger woman.
One of my favorite chapters is "Forbidden Fruit" when Polly does give into a small temptation and finds that her conduct has changed some relationships, made her discontent, and generally was not worth the few hours of pleasure it gave her....So true! :)

The end of this book is amazing! I love it. Everything ends just how you'd want it! :D So I guess this was a book review as well as a character over-view! I'm sure you'll love "An Old-Fashioned Girl" so please read it! :)

Over all rating of book: *****
Over all rating of Polly Milton: ***** (I could go on.... ;)
Cautions: There is one chapter with a rather feministic point of view, but that is easily sorted through! ;)