Introduction by Susan Cheever Commentary by G. K. Chesterton, Katherine Fullerton Gerould, and Madeleine B. Stern
Nominated as one of America’s best-loved novels by PBS’s The Great American Read
It is no surprise that
Little Women, the adored classic of four devoted sisters, was loosely based on Louisa May Alcott’s own life. In fact, Alcott drew from her own personality to create a heroine unlike any seen before: Jo, willful, headstrong, and undoubtedly the backbone of the March family. Follow the sisters from innocent adolescence to sage adulthood, with all the joy and sorrow of life in between, and fall in love with them and this endearing story. Praised by Madeleine Stern as “a book on the American home, and hence universal in its appeal,”
Little Women has been an avidly read tale for generations. This Modern Library edition includes notes that offer more description and insight than those of previous editions.
Includes a Modern Library Reading Group Guide
Louisa May Alcott was born in 1832 in Pennsylvania and grew up in Concord, Massachusetts. She is best known for her books for children. The daughter of philosopher and reformer Amons Bronson Alcott, she was also a supporter of women’s rights and an abolitionist. Family debts led her to write the autobiographical novel
Little Women (1868). The book was a huge success, followed by
Little Men, An Old-Fashioned Girl, and several other novels.
Susan Cheever is the author of
Home Before Dark, Note Found in a Bottle, As Good as I Could Be, and
My Name Is Bill. She lives in New York City.
