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.
The Summer Conversational Series is taking place all this week at Louisa May Alcott's Orchard House. The theme is "Heaven in the Mind:" The Spirit of Place in Transcendental Concord. I will be going to the Tuesday and Wednesday sessions. I believe registration is still open--here is information on topics and who is presenting (scroll down a bit to …
On a cool and cloudy day a group of dedicated teachers, writers, academics and hard-core fans gathered together at ground zero to celebrate the love of an author who had, in one way or another, transformed their lives. Thus was the gathering of the Louisa May Alcott Society as we celebrated ten years as an …
Sometime ago I was contacted by Charline Bourdin who blogs about Louisa May Alcott in France. She recently authored a book on Louisa's life, published by Devin Editions. Titled Louisa May Alcott Ou la véritable histoire de Josephine March, this is the first official biography of Louisa in French. Charline Bourdin was born in Rouen, …
I have finally finished Caroline Ticknor's memoir of May (I told you I was a slow reader!) and although it is pretty romanticized, I enjoyed it thoroughly. Being able to blog about it as I read made it far more enjoyable. I will reiterate that May must have been a delight to know and that …
I am getting close to the end of Caroline Ticknor's memoir on May and am beginning to dread the end. I think one of the things so captivated me about May's story was her tragic end. It just seemed so sudden, so random. She was so robust and healthy; her life was pretty much perfect …
I particularly appreciated a paragraph I read in today in May Alcott A Memoir by Caroline Ticknor where she summarized May's true contribution to the art world. Here's what she said: (page 225-226) "These slender links that bind May Alcott to the little group [in Grez, a small French village that proved to be a …
I loved this section that I read in Carolyn Ticknor's May Alcott A Memoir this morning. It details how May, while visiting the small village of Grez in France ( the latest mecca for artists), ran into a 14 year old fan of Little Women. Having read before how Louisa May Alcott was the first …
Caroline Ticknor pointed out something key to May Alcott Nieriker's success in life, both as a person and an artist - "It was characteristic of the aspiring artist form Concord to make the most of her opportunities and much of May's so-called 'good luck' was traceable to the alacrity with which she seized upon each …
I'm reading the chapter entitled "Marmee's Journal" from Caroline Ticknor's May Alcott A Memoir; this journal was written in the last year of Mrs. Alcott's life. There were several little things I noticed that I wanted to share. First, there was an excerpt from one of May's letters about an episode in her drawing class. …
The more I read of Caroline Ticknor's May Alcott A Memoir, the more I like May Alcott Nieriker (and Ticknor obviously did too). I just read a section in Ticknor's book where May was in London with friends and wanted to go rowing. Apparently in that day and age, it was not proper for well-bread …