Louisa May Alcott is My Passion
Begun in 2010, this blog offers analysis and reflection by Susan Bailey on the life, works and legacy of Louisa May Alcott and her family. Susan is an active member and supporter of the Louisa May Alcott Society, the Fruitlands Museum and Louisa May Alcott's Orchard House.
I am happy to share a discovery made by John Matteson, Pulitzer prize-winning author of Eden's Outcasts: The Story of Louisa May Alcott and Her Father. My thanks to him for sharing the following photo. John writes, "This is the photograph of Michael C. Lowry, the half-brother of John Suhre. Michael was also killed at …
Continue reading "Photo of half-brother of John Suhre (of Hospital Sketches) discovered"
Here is a great find, thanks to our friend JBee - PDF versions of the Boston Commonwealth which serialized Hospital Sketches before it was published as a book. There is a page of additional information and citations for each PDF. There other files as well, not related to Hospital Sketches, including letters that were published …
Many fans of Little Women are not aware of the fact that Louisa May Alcott, a bestselling children's author, also served her country during the Civil War as a nurse. Because of her experience in taking care of her dying sister Lizzie, Alcott was accepted as a nurse, serving in Washington, DC in the Union …
Continue reading "Review of “Louisa on the Front Lines” by Samantha Seiple"
On Saturday, April 2 many of us had the distinct pleasure of hearing Pulitzer-prize-winning author John Matteson speak at the Colonial Inn in Concord for the Friends of Sleepy Hollow’s annual breakfast. His talk was titled “How Nurse Alcott Earned Her Star: The Author of Little Women and the Civil War.” He was referring to …
My obsession with Louisa played out in a rather odd way. Never a big reader until a few years ago, I’d find myself reading a biographical account of Louisa’s life (rather than read her own words) every few years. This began after reading Martha Saxton’s biography. After the reading (usually done during the autumn months) …
Continue reading "Louisa May Alcott as grief counselor (on the fifth anniversary of this blog)"
Note: Mr. Burby kindly gave me his presentation (handwritten notes and all) in lieu of the fact that I was unable to attend the Monday session of the Summer Conversational Series. I thank him for doing so. This is a longer post than usual as I found his presentation to be quite thought-provoking. * * * …
I recently reviewed an interactive book-on-app called Civil War Truce for a Catholic website (see review). It was developed by the 5-woman team of Davis Studio. Civil War Truce tells the fascinating story of a young nun, Sr. Mary Lucy Dosh, whose lovely singing and tender care impacted the lives of countless Civil War soldiers. …
After four years of constant reading, study, writing and pondering on one family, I think I understand now how actors prepare for their roles, and the subsequent consequences of their immersion into their characters. Taking on the Louisa persona I'm acquainted with a couple of people (Jan Turnquist and Marianne Donnelly) who, as actresses, take …
Christmas wouldn't be Christmas without the wonderful holiday programs at Orchard House! Here are their offerings: PLEASE NOTE THIS EVENT IS FOR MEMBERS ONLY. Interact with Living History portrayers in the festively decorated house, enjoy seasonal refreshments and music, catch up with old friends -- or make new ones -- and shop our Museum Store …
Continue reading "Holiday programs at Louisa May Alcott’s Orchard House"
Note: I missed Day 3 of the series because of my trip into Harvard’s Houghton Library. For any of you who follow me on Facebook, you’ll know that I scored big on this trip. I photographed a total of twenty-five letters, five of which come from Lizzie (and they are lengthy). It will take a …
Louisa May Alcott is My Passion 