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.
Thoughts on Moods by Corinna Robinson - well worth the read!
Whenever I am outdoors, especially in the kayak, I feel like I am drinking, drinking, drinking. It's a sweet elixir that fills my soul. I imagine Thoreau and Louisa felt this way; she wrote about in Moods. It was because of that passage that I christened my kayak the Sylvia Yule. I took Sylvia out …
Continue reading "Spring finally arrives in New England! A virtual kayak trip for city dwellers"
Cathlin Davis on Louisa’s philosophy of life Continuing with Day 4 of the series, Professor Cathlin Davis from California State University presented on “Practice Philosophy: ‘I want something to do.’” Through passages from Hospital Sketches, Work, Little Men and some of the rarer short stories (“May Flowers” from A Garland for Girls and “What Becomes …
I had the very rare opportunity yesterday of actually having 2 hours of free time lining up with beautifully warm weather in the middle of October! I jumped on it. 🙂 I grabbed the Sylvia Yule and went down to the local boat launch to take a final kayak trip before the cold weather settles …
Continue reading "A last journey on the Sylvia Yule before the winter comes"
It's vacation time again with more opportunities to visit Concord. The more times I visit, the more I want to see. A trip down the Sudbury River to Great Meadows I enjoy kayaking very much and so took a trip down the Sudbury River, launching from the bridge off of Lowell Road, just off of …
Continue reading "Tapping into my inner Thoreau; play-acting as Sylvia Yule"
I finally finished reading Moods a few weeks ago but just couldn't comment on it. After reading both the 1864 and 1882 versions, I concluded that the book left me flat. The characters felt rather two-dimensional. Both versions ended differently and each ending seemed convoluted. It left me feeling the way I did after reading …
I enjoy how Louisa describes Geoffrey Moor and Adam Warwick, the two love interests of heroine Sylvia Yule through comparing and contrasting how they respond to similar situations. Here's one scenario: Sylvia lost her mother at an early age and she has grieved throughout her young life over that loss. She first meets Adam Warwick …
I'm about a third of the way through both versions of Moods and have concluded that this book is a total mess! Now don't get me wrong, I am enjoying it, but considering the capital Louisa May Alcott had as a famous author, you have to wonder why she didn't just release the book the …
Finishing up chapter V in the 1864 version of Moods ("The Golden Wedding"), I walked away with two thoughts, regarding Louisa's spirituality and her romanticized self in Sylvia Yule. Louisa May Alcott's Spirituality I want more than ever to write a longer treatise on the spirituality of Louisa May Alcott. Although she did not belong …
Continue reading "Louisa May Alcott’s spirituality, and her better self in Sylvia Yule"
I admit it's a bit confusing reading both versions of Moods at the same time but it's sure been an eye-opener with regards to editing. As I sheepishly admitted in a reply to a comment from a recent post, I thought once a book was published that it was set in stone. Reading Little Women …
Louisa May Alcott is My Passion 