A Louisa May Alcott Christmas: “A Christmas Turkey, and How It Came”

From the Barnes and Noble collection of Christmas stories by Louisa May Alcott called Christmas Tales and Stories (edited by Laura Ciolkowsk) comes a sweet tale with a lot of fodder between the lines for those of us well-acquainted with the life of Miss Alcott. "A Christmas Turkey, and How It Came" The premise is familiar: a …

A feminist manifesto: wrapping up Work A Story of Experience (part two)

“…Work is an expression of Alcott’s feminist principles and a major effort toward synthesizing in popular, readable form the broad set of beliefs encompassing family, education, suffrage, labor and the moral reform of social life that defined feminist ideology in the nineteenth century.” (pg. 191 from Critical Essays on Louisa May Alcott edited by Madeleine …

My 3 days with Louisa May Alcott (part four): connections between Louisa May Alcott and Margaret Fuller

Note: This post is longer than usual. I had considered running it in two installments but thought it would lessen the impact of its message by doing that. So sit back with a cup of coffee, relax and read. 🙂 Two ladies, same vision Two New England feminists, both heavily influenced by transcendentalism. Both in …

My 3 days with Louisa May Alcott (part three): John Matteson talks about his two favorite ladies

This was the day I was waiting for. Ever since I started reading Eden’s Outcasts: The Story of Louisa May Alcott and Her Father, I have been dying to talk to John Matteson. His penetrating insights into Bronson and Louisa have forever changed the way I look at them (most especially Bronson). Unique understanding In …

“What the Bells Saw and Said” – Louisa May Alcott’s State of the Union Address

If Louisa May Alcott were to deliver a State of the Union address (minus the politics), what would it be like? You can find out by reading "What the Bells Saw and Said," in Christmas Tales and Stories, edited by Laura Ciolkowski. Portrayed through the reports of six spirits living in the bells of the local …