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Little Women
By (Author) Louisa May Alcott
Introduction by Elaine Showalter
Notes by Siobhan Kilfeather
Penguin Books Ltd
Penguin Classics
26th January 1989
26th January 1989
United Kingdom
General
Fiction
813.4
Runner-up for The BBC Big Read Top 100 2003
Paperback
544
Width 130mm, Height 196mm, Spine 23mm
363g
This Penguin Classics edition of Louisa May Alcott's inspiring tale of sisterhood, Little Women, is edited with an introduction by Elaine Showalter. One of the best loved books of all time.Nominated as one of America's best-loved novels by PBS's The Great American Read Lovely Meg, talented Jo, frail Beth, spoiled Amy- these are hard lessons of poverty and of growing up in New England during the Civil War. Through their dreams, plays, pranks, letters, illnesses, and courtships, women of all ages have become a part of this remarkable family and have felt the deep sadness when Meg leaves the circle of sisters to be married at the end of Part I. Part II, chronicles Meg's joys and mishaps as a young wife and mother, Jo's struggle to become a writer, Beth's tragedy, and Amy's artistic pursuits and unexpected romance. Based on Louisa May Alcott's childhood, this lively portrait of nineteenth- century family life possesses a lasting vitality that has endeared it to generations of readers. For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.
"The American female myth."
Madelon Bedell
Louisa May Alcottwas born in Pennsylvania, in 1832, the second of four daughters. After a period of serving as an army nurse, she publishedHospital Sketchesin 1863, followed by Gothic Romances and lurid thrillers. In 1868-9, she publishedLittle Women, which proved so popular that it was followed by two sequels and several other novels. She died in 1888. Elaine Showalter is the author of the groundbreaking A Literature of Their Own and editor of Little Women for Penguin Classics.