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 pleased to present a most interesting and insightful essay on May Alcott Nieriker by Azelina Flint, an Alcott scholar from Great Britain who organized a conference in Paris last year called "Recovering May Alcott Nieriker's Life and Work." It begins with an intriguing letter written by May to her father, Bronson when she …
Continue reading "A fresh examination of May Alcott Nieriker: Did Genius Burn?"
from the LW 150 blog: "Amy's Will" - very interesting account of Amy's Catholic moment.
Did the real-life Amy know Laurie? Apparently so, and they were good friends! How do we know? Through a stash of letters at the Houghton Library from May Alcott to Alfred Whitman. Who was Laurie based upon? Alf is one of two boys on whom Laurie from Little Women was based (the other being Louisa's …
There are two wonderful sites that you need to see: Little Women 150 One is by noted Alcott scholars Anne Phillips and Gregory Eiselein called Little Women 150: Louisa May Alcott's Little Women: A 150th Anniversary Celebration. The blog will feature weekly posts covering each chapter, written by Phillips and Eiselein along with other contributors …
Continue reading "Important blogs to know about regarding the Alcotts"
From Metaphysics & Christian Science to “Little Women:” The Alcott Family’s Connections with Swampscott & Lynn Presented by Susan Bailey Thursday, May 24 at 7 pm Swampscott Public Library 61 Burrill St., Swampscott, MA 01907 Between 1839 and 1876, Swampscott and Lynn hosted members of Louisa May Alcott’s family. Progressive educator, reformer and philosopher Bronson …
NOTE: I feel a need to append this post as I have heard from many of you about all the inaccuracies in this article. This seamless mixing of fact, fiction and mythology between the fictional Marches and the real-life Alcotts is rather common in writing from this period. I've read several newspaper accounts from the …
Recently I read an essay called “Women, Menstruation and Nineteenth Century Medicine” by Vern Bullough and Martha Voght which discussed how misinformation regarding women and menstruation prevented them from receiving an education. The essay covered familiar territory with regards to how the world of medicine regarded women’s health in the nineteenth century. (See previous post) …
I have gotten to know some amazing people through this blog; one of them is a young British scholar, Azelina Flint. Like many of us, she is fascinated by May Alcott. And like us, she is grieved that May was eventually buried in an unmarked common grave just outside of Paris (see previous post). That, …
Continue reading "Petition drive begun for a memorial plaque for May Alcott Nieriker"
I had the pleasure last night of attending a presentation by Elise Hooper regarding her new book, The Other Alcott (see previous post for review). Among the many interesting aspects of her talk was the idea of women and artistry and the difficulty in claiming your vocation as an artist. May’s dilemma Elise pointed out …
Continue reading "May Alcott’s call to the creative life is our call"
Note: I received an advance copy of this book from the author for review purposes. Lounging on my wicker love seat with the koi pond (and its sprinkling fountain) in view, I had a most enjoyable summer read with The Other Alcott, a novel about May Alcott by Elise Hooper. May Alcott fleshed out Abigail …
Continue reading "Book Review: The Other Alcott by Elise Hooper"
Louisa May Alcott is My Passion 