Synopses & Reviews
Louis
a May Alc
ott never intended to write
Little Women. She had dismissed her publishers pleas for such a novel. Written out of necessity to support her family, the book had an astounding success that changed her life, a life which turned out very differently from that of her beloved heroine Jo March.
In Louisa May Alcott, Susan Cheever, the acclaimed author of American Bloomsbury, returns to Concord, Massachusetts, to explore the life of one of its most iconic residents. Based on extensive research, journals, and correspondence, Cheevers biography chronicles all aspects of Alcotts life, from the fateful meeting of her parents to her death, just two days after that of her father. She details Bronson Alcotts stalwart educational vision, which led the Alcotts to relocate each time his progressive teaching went sour; her unsuccessful early attempts at serious literature, including Moods, which Henry James panned; her time as a Civil War nurse, when she contracted pneumonia and was treated with mercury-laden calomel, which would affect her health for the rest of her life; and her vibrant intellectual circle of writers and reformers, idealists who led the charge in support of antislavery, temperance, and womens rights.
Alcotts independence defied the conventional wisdom, and her personal choices and literary legacy continue to inspire generations of women. A fan of Little Women from the age of twelve, and a distinguished author in her own right, Cheever brings a unique perspective to Louisa May Alcotts life as a woman, a daughter, and a working writer.
Review
“A moving, inspiring book about one of the most remarkable lives in American literature. Cheever brilliantly lays out Louisa May Alcott’s riveting, often heart-wrenching story, seemingly as unlikely as a fairy tale. Louisa will grip your heart, as Cheever does.” —Judy Collins
Review
“What a perfectly wonderful read this is! Alcott, her family, and the special world she inhabited leap forward from these pages in all their full, complex, sometimes infuriating humanity. Wrought with care and commitment, Louisa May Alcott is a tour de force and a book that is impossible to put down.” —Maggie Scarf, author of Intimate Partners
Review
"Susan Cheever has shone a rare and welcome light on the sometimes mysterious life of Louisa May Alcott. Fans of Little Women will experience again the magic of seeing themselves as writer Jo, crowd-pleaser Beth, poignant Meg or cunning Amy! This is a wonderful book." —Marie Brenner, author of Apples and Oranges
Review
“If you loved Little Women, you will adore this book. Alcott comes to life in this complex, engaging portrait of a beloved American writer and her times. Susan Cheever is our Nancy Mitford.” —Jane Stanton Hitchcock, author of Mortal Friends
Review
“Susan Cheever's Louisa May Alcott is a grand achievement, one that delivers a portrait of a woman and artist movingly and vividly. Cheever has a wonderful gift for being able to suggest the emotional weight and bearing of her subjects, to bring them fully to life, and to treat them as human beings.” —Robert D. Richardson, author of William James and Emerson: The Mind on Fire
Review
“Susan Cheever brings the life and art of an iconic American writer to the page with extraordinary sensitivity and insight. This engaging and revealing biography is the perfect companion reader to Louisa May Alcott's novels.” —Hilma Wolitzer, author of Summer Reading and Hearts
Review
“We all loved Little Women and wished we could be Louisa May Alcott, but who would have thought she would be the muse for Susan Cheever's best book? A complex study of an inspiring woman and an enthralling read. Tell all your friends.” Erica Jong“A moving, inspiring book about one of the most remarkable lives in American literature. Cheever brilliantly lays out Louisa May Alcott’s riveting, often heart-wrenching story, seemingly as unlikely as a fairy tale. Louisa will grip your heart, as Cheever does.” Judy Collins“What a perfectly wonderful read this is! Alcott, her family, and the special world she inhabited leap forward from these pages in all their full, complex, sometimes infuriating humanity. Wrought with care and commitment, Louisa May Alcott is a tour de force and a book that is impossible to put down.” Maggie Scarf, author of Intimate Partners"To make the past not only comprehensible, but relevant to the present is a noble task. Louisa May Alcott is at once the story of an extraordinary life, family and milieu. The author of Little Women turns out to be as fascinating to read about as the characters in her novel, and her problems prefigure many of those which women are still sorting out for themselves today. Alcott is both a child of the 19th Century enlightenment and very modernanother splendid piece of work with hidden depths by Susan Cheever.” Michael Korda, author of Ulysses S. Grant and Ike“If you loved Little Women, you will adore this book. Alcott comes to life in this complex, engaging portrait of a beloved American writer and her times. Susan Cheever is our Nancy Mitford.” Jane Stanton Hitchcock, author of Mortal Friends“Susan Cheever brings the life and art of an iconic American writer to the page with extraordinary sensitivity and insight. This engaging and revealing biography is the perfect companion reader to Louisa May Alcott's novels.” Hilma Wolitzer, author of Summer Reading and Hearts"Susan Cheever has shone a rare and welcome light on the sometimes mysterious life of Louisa May Alcott. Fans of Little Women will experience again the magic of seeing themselves as writer Jo, crowd-pleaser Beth, poignant Meg or cunning Amy! This is a wonderful book." Marie Brenner, author of Apples and Oranges“Susan Cheever's Louisa May Alcott is a grand achievement, one that delivers a portrait of a woman and artist movingly and vividly. Cheever has a wonderful gift for being able to suggest the emotional weight and bearing of her subjects, to bring them fully to life, and to treat them as human beings.” Robert D. Richardson, author of William James and Emerson: The Mind on Fire“In an amazing display of scholarship, deep knowledge, and searing honesty, Cheever’s biography reveals Alcott’s entire milieu of eminent people and the religious, financial, and societal transitions of the nineteenth century. A great read full of vivid life.” Barbara Goldsmith, Author and historian“Susan Cheever has immersed herself in the extraordinary life and times of the author of Little Women and brought her fully to life.” A. E. Hotchner
Review
“Lively and likable.”
—Elaine Showalter, The Washington Post
Synopsis
Susan Cheever’s comprehensive and definitive biography sheds new light on of life of Louisa May Alcott, whose work has inspired generations of women.
About the Author
Susan Cheever is the bestselling author of thirteen previous books, including five novels and the memoirs Note Found in a Bottle and Home Before Dark. Her work has been nominated for the National Book Critics Circle Award and won the Boston Globe Winship Medal. She is a Guggenheim Fellow, a member of the Corporation of Yaddo, and a member of the Author's Guild Council. She teaches in the Bennington College M.F.A. program. She lives in New York City with her family.