When I was 12, Aunt Vangie got me my first copy of Little Women. Since then, the story has become a part of me. Do you have books like that? I reread parts of it every winter, often finding myself subconsciously relating things to parts of the book. It’s like an old friend.
By middle school, I’d fallen in love with the movies. While I am normally a Katharine Hepburn devotee, I will forever picture June Allyson as Jo. Although, I confess my love for the 1949 version probably has more to do with my crush on Peter Lawford than anything else. And Liz Taylor as Amy? I mean, how could you picture anyone else? (Sorry, Kirsten Dunst.)
Check out this tote on Out of Print’s website.
When I was in high school, I started collecting copies and also read Alcott’s books that followed: Little Men, Jo’s Boys, An Old-Fashioned Girl. I couldn’t help being fascinated by Alcott, her transcendentalist parents, and her influence on female writers in the late 19th century.
An illustration I did for a colored pencil, paper doll assignment in college.
Louisa Alcott was quite a pioneer: she was an abolitionist, a feminist, and a critically acclaimed author by the time she was my age. And although, she was at first hesitant to write a story for girls when asked by her publisher, on this day in 1868 the first volume of Little Women was released. So I’d suggest pulling out your own copy and giving it another read.
And if you aren’t a fan of Little Women, perhaps there’s another book you consider to be an old friend that could use another perusal?
What do you think?
