An Old-Fashioned Girl

By: Louisa May Alcott

Narrated by: Anne Johnstonbrown

Length: 10 hrs and 13 mins

Publisher's Summary

A country girl named Polly is visiting city friends and comes to realize that this world is quite different than which she has left. Here people are judged according to their dress and manner of speech rather than for their honesty and hard work. Yet all who meet Polly cannot help but be enamored of her; her sweet simplicity is unlike any that they have ever seen, and soon everyone comes to realize that Polly is not someone to be laughed at and ridiculed, but someone to put upon a pedestal for failing to become willing prey to the cynicism of the times.

Public Domain (P)2014 Audible Inc.

A favorite story, read horribly!

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

It's a wonderful story, but this was painful to listen to.

What was one of the most memorable moments of An Old-Fashioned Girl?

I have always loved this book and even own a first edition of it. I have read it countless times and thought having the audiobook would be a treat. Boy was I wrong. All the fun moments that I loved reading myself were butchered by the narrators over dramatized reading.

What didn’t you like about Anne Johnstonbrown’s performance?

The reader, Anne Johnston Brown read the story with over exaggerated accents that completely distracted from the story. Her attempts at a country accent for Polly came across as uneducated and unintelligible. Same with Tom...not quite sure what she was going for there. There was no need to overdramatize such a simple, wonderful story. Very disappointed with the audiobook.

Any additional comments?

So saddened by this performance. If this was someone's first exposure to this lesser known Louisa May Alcott treasure they would turn it off and not finish - missing out on the sweetness of wonderful love story.

Sadness

I was so excited to find one of my favorite girlhood books available on Audible. Imagine my disappointment when the main character is made to sound more like Tammy Tell Me True. This is NOT a story about a hillbilly girl. I hope at some future time Audible will redo the book with a better narrator. Louisa Mae Alcott must be turning in her grave!

Narrator used inexplicable accents

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

I had to keep fighting against the fake accents; southern drawls for people who live on Beacon Hill?! Please.

What did you like best about this story?

Louisa May Alcott is the master.

Who would you have cast as narrator instead of Anne Johnstonbrown?

It may not be ther fault; as a narrator she's fine. The accents must be someone else's dumb idea.

Do you think An Old-Fashioned Girl needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?

I strongly think it should be re-done. This version is a disservice to a lovely classic.

Any additional comments?

Listening to this is like reading a book with terrible illustrations.

Love the story, don't care for the narration

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

I absolutely love this story and have for years. I was disappointed in this narration - the reading is very mechanical with over-done drawls for the character voices that don't seem to fit the characters. I would absolutely recommend the story, but not this narration. I'm hoping to find a different narration that I like better.

What other book might you compare An Old-Fashioned Girl to and why?

Little Women. It's a comparison of an old-fashioned life of work and character compared to a frivolous, giddy "fashionable" life. The conclusion is similar to Little Women - showing the value of work and purpose in life.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

I don't like the character voices. The drawling tones don't match my mental images for the characters. The narrator is so focused on enunciating every sound that the prose comes across as very mechanical. It's hard to get into the story because the reading is so measured and enunciated.

If this book were a movie would you go see it?

I love the story, so I would go see it and hope that the dramatization lived up to my mental images.

Any additional comments?

Love the story. I'm hoping to find a different narration that I like more.

Excellent story. Beautifully narrated.

How can one go wrong with Louisa May Alcott? She's a master storyteller. I admire her ability to share nuggets of wisdom with the reader/listener without making them feel preached at.

Great book, but the voices we're hard for me

This is one of my all-time favorite books, and I was really excited to find that an audio version was made. However, the fact that the characters were read with southern accents in a story set in Boston really threw me off. That wasn't how I had always read it, so it was quite disconcerting.
Having said that, I don't know if the voices smoothed out some by the second half, it if I just got used to it, but by the end it was ok to me, and I loved it as much as I loved reading the book for the first time some 35 years ago.

Every young girl NEEDS to read this book

Where does An Old-Fashioned Girl rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Honestly, I have read this book about 5 times all at different times in my life and it always has something new to bring me. I mostly listen to Louisa May Alcott's books, because I enjoy her so very much! This book is not my least favorite of hers but not my most beloved either. But listening to the audio book is a lot more fun! I would have to say this book hits the upper middle

What did you like best about this story?

This story has so many good morals, but it NEVER preaches. All of the morals are taught in such a sweet way that you like to learn them. This story is full of diamonds if we only look for them. There is no fear of finding fools gold, only the purest of truth makes it into Alcott's books. They are the simplest truth told with a beautiful story. This book not only have morals, but also a great story line. You will love the characters and can learn a lot from each and everyone of them.

What does Anne Johnstonbrown bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

The voices are wonderful! You can tell who is talking even before the book tells you. Anne brings the charters to life by personalizing each charter with his/her own voice and only using that voice for the charter. Anne has a lovely voice that is easy to listen too. She has a way with words that make it pleasant to hear her read. All in all she makes the story come to life a lot better then it would just reading the story.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes!!!! This book is no thriller there are only a few twist and turns. But it is so pleasant, it brings a feeling of peace and adds sunshine to your life. If the hearts of our young girls could all hold a bit of this book it is my opinion that our world would be much better off.

Excellent story, poor recitation

This is one of my favorite books but I was really disappointed with the performance. The accents were all wrong. Polly sounded like she was a southern Belle, not a New Englander.

Narrator never heard of Louisa May Alcott

What disappointed you about An Old-Fashioned Girl?

What in the world possessed a narrator to give the characters in this book hillbilly accents!!??? Obviously she knew NOTHING about Louisa May Alcott, the story's setting, and the New England values of the time. I cannot believe that this got by whoever matches narrators to books. Hand her a copy of Gone With the Wind....obviously more her style. Her diction is good, had she simply read the book it would probably be a 5 star but her corny, totally inappropriate " voices" ruin the entire book for anyone who knows and appreciates Louisa May Alcott. I returned the title. Wish someone with more sense would create another edition.

What did you like best about this story?

The story line.

How could the performance have been better?

NO "voices"! Just read the book!!!!! Save the playacting for the stage...preferably a Southern one.

What reaction did this book spark in you? Anger, sadness, disappointment?

Anger, frustration, disappointment, total disbelief that an otherwise good narrator would be so far off base! The book is based in New England, for pete sake, not the hills of West Virginia!!!!

Any additional comments?

PLEASE get another reader ( not Flo Gibson). Most of the narrators of the Georgette Heyer romances are excellent...ditto tenfold the narrator of the James Herriot books.

A Revisit of a Childhood Favorite!

I was excited to find this childhood favorite in Audible's catalog! I enjoyed listening to it. I enjoyed the narrator's regular reading voice, but didn't like the southern accents she put on for the characters voices. It wasn't how I imagined Polly, Fanny, Tom or anyone else talked. Sometimes it was a stronger accent than others and I even became so irritated at times that I stopped listening and switched to a different book for a while to give my ears a rest. I did finish listening and still love the story very much!