Wealth is certainly a most desirable thing, but poverty has its sunny side . . .” It's Christmas time . . . The March family has fallen on bad times after the father lost their money. The four March sisters-the nearly perfect ‘little woman' Meg, the tomboyish Jo, the shy but wise Beth, and the artist of the family Amy-are planning to brighten up their Christmas by buying presents while their father is away, fighting the Civil War. Featuring...

In 1861, war is raging in the South, but in Concord, Massachusetts, Margaret March has her own battles to fight. With her husband serving as an army chaplain, the comfort and security of Margaret's four daughters, Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy, now rest on her shoulders alone. Money is tight and every month, her husband sends less and less of his salary with no explanation. Worst of all, Margaret harbors the secret that these financial hardships are largely...

In this richly annotated, illustrated edition, Daniel Shealy illuminates the novel's deep engagement with issues such as social equality, reform movements, the Civil War, friendship, love, loss, and of course the passage into adulthood. The editor provides running commentary on biographic contexts, social and historical contexts, literary allusions, and words likely to cause difficulty to modern readers. With Shealy as a guide, we appreciate anew...

"When a famed photojournalist shows up to document her family's 'Little Women Live!' attraction, Jo, who is rebelling against living in the shadow of her literary namesake, discovers that real life is much more complicated and messier than fiction"--Provided by publisher.

Louisa May Alcott ended Little Women (1868) with the words "So the curtain falls upon Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy. Whether it ever rises again, depends upon the reception given the first act of the domestic drama called Little Women." It was an immediate commercial and critical success, and readers demanded to know more about the characters. Alcott quickly completed a second volume, Good Wives (1869), and later Little Men (1871) and Jo's Boys (1886). The...