Little Women: 150th-Anniversary Annotated Edition (Penguin Classics Deluxe Edition) Paperback - 2012
by Louisa May Alcott; Foreword by Patti Smith; Anne Boyd Rioux (Editor)
About this book
Little Women (or Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy) is a novel by American author Louisa May Alcott (1832–1888). Written and set in the Alcott family home, Orchard House, in Concord, Massachusetts, it was published in two parts in 1868 and 1869. The novel follows the lives of four sisters—Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy March—on their way into adulthood while their father serves as a chaplain in the American Civil War.
Although it is not based on a true story, it is loosely inspired by the author's childhood experiences with her three sisters and her father’s educational philosophy. Amos Bronson Alcott, a pioneer of “progressive education,” was a notable intellectual at the time.
The book was an assignment of Alcott’s editor Thomas Niles, who wanted a novel for young women for the Robert Brothers publishing catalog. Although she initially despised the idea of writing a "girls' story," once she started, her writing became feverish. The first volume was published in 1868 with illustrations by Louisa’s younger sister May - the inspiration for the character of ‘Amy’ in the novel. It became an immediate hit, and the initial printing of two thousand copies sold out in two weeks. Little Women's original book cover was maroon cloth with gilt lettering, and it has become one of the most iconic Little Women book covers.
The second part of the novel was issued in 1869, under the title of Good Wives in the UK. The novel is still published separately in some instances, although starting in 1880 the two parts were published as one single volume under Little Women in the US.
Little Women has been adapted into a film on four different occasions. The first one was George Cukor’s 1933 version, which cast Katharine Hepburn as Jo, followed by the 1949 Mervyn LeRoy adaptation, and the 1994 film directed by Gilliam Armstrong, the first one directed, adapted, and produced by women. The most recent version was in 2019 by director Greta Gerwig and stars Emma Watson, Florence Pugh, Saoirse Ronan, and Eliza Scanlen.
Alcott’s most successful work has had notable cultural relevance all over the world. The ambitious and free-spirited Jo March has inspired women writers since its publication. Her unpretentious depiction of the March sisters and their aims and frustrations distinguish the work from the pious and moral tales of the time.
If you are looking for books like Little Women, the novel has two sequels that constitute an unofficial trilogy: Little Men: Life at Plumfield with Jo’s Boys (1871), which tells the story of Jo Bhaer (formerly March), Professor Bhaer, and the children at Plumfield Estate School; and the followup, Jo’s Boys and How They Turned Out (1886).
Summary
Little Women is recognized as one of the best-loved classic children's stories, transcending the boundaries of time and age, making it as popular with adults as it is with young readers. The beloved story of the March girls is a classic American feminist novel, reflecting the tension between cultural obligation and artistic and personal freedom. But which of the four March sisters to love best? For every reader must have their favorite. Independent, tomboyish Jo; delicate, loving Beth; pretty, kind Meg; or precocious and beautiful Amy, the baby of the family? The charming story of these four "little women" and their wise and patient mother Marmee enduring hardships and enjoying adventures in Civil War New England was an instant success when first published in 1868 and has been adored for generations.
First Edition Identification
The first US edition of Little Women was published in 1868 by the Roberts Brothers, Boston and includes an advertisement in the back pricing Little Women at $1.25. The second part was published in 1869. Each volume is illustrated with a frontispiece and three plates; those in the first part of Little Women were created by the author’s sister, May. Originally bound in purple cloth with gold lettering. The first UK edition was published by Sampson Low in 1869.
Details
- Title Little Women: 150th-Anniversary Annotated Edition (Penguin Classics Deluxe Edition)
- Author Louisa May Alcott; Foreword by Patti Smith; Anne Boyd Rioux (Editor)
- Binding Paperback
- Edition De Luxe edition
- Pages 560
- Volumes 1
- Language ENG
- Publisher Penguin Group
- Date 2012-04-24
- ISBN 9780143106654 / 0143106651
- Weight 1.35 lbs (0.61 kg)
- Dimensions 8.37 x 5.65 x 1.39 in (21.26 x 14.35 x 3.53 cm)
- Ages 18 to UP years
- Grade levels 13 - UP
- Reading level 610
-
Themes
- Topical: Coming of Age
- Topical: Family
- Library of Congress subjects Mothers and daughters, Domestic fiction
- Dewey Decimal Code FIC
Media reviews
Citations
- Christianity Today, 09/01/2012, Page 82
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Little Women (Penguin Classics Deluxe Edition): 150th-Anniversary Annotated Edition (Penguin Classics Deluxe Edition)
by Alcott, Louisa May
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