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.
First, a disclaimer: I am no cook. And my diet regimen does not permit a lot of these foods (unfortunately). However, as someone who loves to eat, I did find the recipes in both of these books to be very tempting; I was quite hungry by the time I finished going through them. For devotees …
Continue reading "Book review: Treat yourself to these delicious Little Women cookbooks"
This wonderful poem, written by Deborah Nandan, sums up the life and legacy of Louisa May Alcott beautifully and succinctly. If you enlarge your view on your computer screen, you should be able to read it. Are you passionate about Louisa May Alcott too? Subscribe to the email list and never miss a post! …
Recently a small book of essays titled March Sisters: On Life, Death, and Little Women was released, written by prominent female authors. There are four essays in all, each dedicated to a March sister. Written in a memoir format, each writer reflects upon a sister using her own life experiences for comparison and backdrop. From …
Continue reading "Book Review: March Sisters: On Life, Death, and Little Women"
What do you think? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D_6ZKkl2rdk Are you passionate about Louisa May Alcott too? Subscribe to the email list and never miss a post! Keep up with news and free giveaways on Susan's books, Louisa May Alcott: Illuminated by The Message, and River of Grace! Facebook Louisa May Alcott is My Passion More About Louisa on …
Continue reading "It’s here! The official Greta Gerwig Little Women trailer"
Great article with lots of pictures. I think the movie looks promising but I remain cautious after the Masterpiece version. What do you think? Exclusive First Look: Greta Gerwig and Saoirse Ronan’s Little Women from Vanity Fair
I am pleased to share with you a wonderful essay about the professional lives of Louisa May Alcott and May Alcott Nieriker written by Lauren Hehmeyer, a professor of History and English at Texarkana College. Professor Hehmeyer presented at the May Alcott conference in Paris in June of 2018 (see previous post) and is currently …
Jo and Beth shared a special relationship, including things in common. My take on “Tender Troubles” from Little Women.
By Susan Bailey
Marmee was worried about Beth and for good reason. Her daughter was quieter than usual, even withdrawing from her father. She would cry when visiting with Meg’s babies. Her music was tinged with sadness. Unable to draw Beth out, Marmee asked Jo to find out what was wrong.
Jo thought she had the answer: Beth was in love with Laurie. But in her lack of experience with matters of the heart, she misread the signs. Does a girl in love stare out of a window with a tear sliding down her cheek? Does she cry over her little niece and nephew because she is longing for Laurie? Why would she withdraw from her family?
Jo tried to look at the bright side when it came to her favorite sister even if the signs were pointing in the opposite direction. Hoping that Beth had moved beyond her lingering…
View original post 510 more words
Here is this year's call for proposals for the Orchard House Summer Conversational Series. Visit louisamayalcott.org for more information. Are you passionate about Louisa May Alcott too? Subscribe to the email list and never miss a post! Keep up with news and free giveaways on Susan's books, Louisa May Alcott: Illuminated by The Message, and …
Continue reading "Call for proposals for Orchard House’s Summer Conversational Series"
From LW150 blog — wow, I had no idea Laurie was so complex! Fascinating read.
p.s. Check out Cathlin Davis’ comments about this chapter here — she brings it into the present day.
By Jan Alberghene
I was nine when I first read Little Women, but I still remember pausing over Hannah’s calling Laurie the “‘interferingest chap,’” not because I disagreed with her opinion, but because it took me a few minutes to decode the unfamiliar word “interferingest.” I had to agree with Hannah. Laurie popped up in places where he had no business being: at a meeting of the Pickwick Club (where Jo was, to be fair, a co-conspirator), and later when the sisters climbed a nearby hill on a pleasant afternoon to “play pilgrims” in private as they sewed and talked. “Yes,” I thought, “Laurie was the ‘interferingest,’” and I hadn’t even reached the chapter titled “Laurie Makes Mischief, and Jo Makes Peace.”
After I finished reading chapter 21, the Laurie I liked no longer existed. Although Laurie is barely sixteen, he feels superior to his tutor Mr. Brooke, a…
View original post 578 more words
From the LW150 blog: What a wonderful post by NY Times best-selling author of the Penderwick family novels Jeanne Birdsall!
By Jeanne Birdsall
Louisa settled at her desk, preparing to slog through another chapter of Little Women, this book she was writing only for the money. It was meant to be read by girls, which meant she needed to stay away from high drama and thunder, her usual ways to advance a story. She rubbed her temples—a headache threatened—unwittingly mussing her hair. Who was she to write for girls? A woman who’d never been a conventional girl, who barely knew what such girls talked about and wished for.
Stop fussing, she told herself, and get to work. Where was she in the story? The mother of the March family, Marmee, had just rushed home from Washington, where she’d been nursing the girls’ father, to find that Beth had miraculously escaped death from scarlet fever. The chapter needed to begin with quiet joy and gratitude. Louisa picked up her pen…
View original post 362 more words
Louisa May Alcott is My Passion 