The best stories, however, are living things, and as much as we may cherish the original, the true act of love comes in the retelling.

And if boys enjoy books about aliens, which they certainly do, why not also books about girls?

As girls gravitate to more contemporary fare and away from Little Women, they are missing a lot. Today’s successors to Little Women seem to have overlooked two of the most important themes of Alcott’s classic: companionate marriage and sisterhood. And many of them are missing the central premise altogether, namely that growing up means becoming a better person, one who can balance her own needs and desires with those of the people she loves.