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.
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 …
Continue reading "Summer Conversational Series taking place this week"
Just yesterday I received this letter from Louisa May Alcott's Orchard House regarding their annual appeal. I present this letter to you. Please consider giving what you can to help preserve Orchard House from damage this winter: Dear Friend: Perhaps you've heard our recent great news: The "Kickstarter" campaign to fund the first-ever documentary about …
Continue reading "Louisa May Alcott’s Orchard House needs your help!"
Concord, home to Louisa May Alcott. I have been a student of Louisa on and off, for most of my life. Back in August of 2010 I decided to commit myself to study and share my reflections with you. I have so enjoyed all the book discussions and your wonderful comments about our favorite author. …
Continue reading "Concord in Autumn: walking the path Louisa walked"
I recently picked up a lovely volume from the library entitled Louisa May Alcott An Intimate Anthology, put together the by New York Public Library using materials from their archives. What's inside The book contains stories and essays Louisa wrote about herself, excerpts from her journals, intimate poetry, short stories and recollections from friends. Resistance …
Continue reading "“A Memorable Evening at the Alcotts’ House” as recalled by Edward W. Emerson"
In honor of Mother's Day, I am delighted to present this guest post by Barbara Solomon Josselsohn, reprinted with permission from NYMetroParents. A two-day trip to Concord, Massachusetts and the home of Louisa May Alcott, author of Little Women, is a great way to commemorate Mother’s Day—or any other time set aside just for the …
Because of all the upcoming events in Concord with regards to the centennial of Orchard House as a museum (many of the directly related to Little Women), I've started re-reading Louisa's classic. Jillian from A Room of One's Own is also re-reading (I actually got the idea from her). I invite you all to join …
Continue reading "Join in the group read/re-read of Little Women"
I just got a glimpse of Annie Leiborvitz' new book, Pilgrimage and it is amazing! For those who don't know, Pilgrimage is a journey through the places that mean the most to Leibovitz. One of those places is Concord where she toured Orchard House, Emerson's home (Bush) and Walden Pond. The pictures from Orchard House …
Continue reading "Book alert: Pilgrimage by Annie Leibovitz and Doris Kearns Goodwin"
I just created a page with personal recommendations of places to visit and things to do while visiting Concord, Massachusetts. The one thing I could not recommend is hotels because I live too close to Concord to have stayed overnight. Here's some recommendations for those of you who want to indulge in living history (to …
Continue reading "Coming to Concord this summer? Here’s some recommendations"
Here's a great essay by Klara Stephanie Szlezák where she concludes that staging is critical to the success of an historical homestead. Kudos to Orchard House for the brilliance of its staging which so beautifully captures not just the era Louisa May Alcott lived in, but her home, her family and her classic, Little Women. …
Continue reading "What makes Orchard House such a compelling historical site?"
I have been anticipating my vacation between Christmas and New Year's for several months because of a very special field trip I planned - a visit to the Concord Free Public Library where I would come into contact with the actual letters and manuscripts of my favorite author, Louisa May Alcott. The weather was beautiful …
