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Little Women Book One Complete Text
Little Women Book One Complete Text
Little Women Book One Complete Text
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Little Women Book One Complete Text

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

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The girls gave their hearts into their mother's keeping, their souls into their father's; and to both parents ... they gave a love that grew with their growth, and bound them tenderly together by the sweetest tie which blesses life and outlives death.

Pretty Meg, tomboy Jo, shy Beth, and vain Amy, the four March sisters, are as different as sisters can be, but more devoted and loyal sisters you'll never find. For though the March girls fight, tease, nag, and scold as all sisters do, they do so with the knowledge that nothing is as precious as a sister's love. Discover the magic of family in the first part of this classic novel cherished by young girls everywhere.

LanguageEnglish
PublisherHarperCollins
Release dateJun 8, 2010
ISBN9780062023384
Little Women Book One Complete Text
Author

Louisa May Alcott

Louisa May Alcott (1832-1888) won international renown with the publishing of Little Women and its sequel, Good Wives. Her works include An Old Fashioned Girl, Eight Cousins and Jack and Jill. Alcott grew up in Concord, Massachusetts, where her family befriended such literary greats as Henry David Thoreau and Ralph Waldo Emerson.

Read more from Louisa May Alcott

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Rating: 4.005321599483954 out of 5 stars
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  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Although this was a novel primarily intended for a female audience, I still found this incredibly likable and appealing. There is much here: sorrow, friendship, family, yearnings, disillusionment, and closure. The characters are vivid and the setting serves as a ready placard to explore their innermost feelings, desires, and emotions. The plot does not waver, it stays concentrated and focused on the intrigues of its principal characters and I feel that it managed to accomplish all that was intended. Overall, a great book. 4 stars.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    It's interesting to listen to a book written in the 1800's. The dialog isn't that great and some of the phrases mean something totally different in 2016. For example snowballing. I didn't know what it meant in 2016 until I typed it in during my bing rewards searches. Of course Louisa May Alcott was talking about an innocent snow ball fight. I think with classics like this, I might stick with the movie.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    While it is a charming coming of age tale, I found it a tad slow and a bit dry, I really like the movie though.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    Somewhat entertaining read. I did get a little weary of the repeated moral preaching by adults.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    The classic tale of the March sisters--Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy. It's a coming-of-age tale in many ways as the girls grow up and most find love. Marmee imparts wisdom when her daughters seek it. The neighboring Laurance family, particularly Laurie, plays an important role in the book. Jo begins her career as a writer. This classic never fails to make me cry. Even though I know it is coming, I never want Beth to die.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    A true classic, truly timeless, Little Women is a must have for any bookshelf. This story of a family of young women, dealing with the very real traumas of the Civil War is charming in that it gives pictures into the lives of the daughters, the things that concern them, please them, the trials they must face and the choices they are forced to make. The main character is endearing as are her three sisters and by the end I found myself rooting for the ultimate well-being of everyone involved, not simply the main character. I can't imagine not having this book around.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Read when I was young and I laughed and cried with the "little women".
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    Third time lucky! This was the third attempt at reading this book and I finally read it and enjoyed it. It took time for me to persevere through it and really engage with the sisters and their family. I can understand how this is a must read book and it was a nice read. I think I'm probably not its real target audience and its one of those books, I read due to it being a classic.All in all, it was nice enough and I'm glad I read it!
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    This American classic, set in the 19th century during the Civil War, follows the lives of the March sisters as they grow up and become young ladies. Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy are often joined by their neighbor Laurie, who is living with his grandfather.Some how I missed reading this book as a kid but as an adult, I have had the pleasure to read it twice, this being the second time. Jo is still my favorite character. I love how she often flies in the face of what society might expect from a proper young lady. At one point she cuts off a good chunk of her hair. She learns to writes short stories that sell to newspapers, so she has a source of independent income. She’s not caught up in the latest dance or the stylish lace. Yep. She’s much how I would imagine myself if I was trapped in the 1800s.The other sisters all have their own personalities as well. Meg is the oldest and seems be a little mother in waiting. Once she falls in love, that’s exactly what she becomes – a dotting mom. Then sweet Beth embodies the tender heart of the family. She is so kind to everyone and everyone in turn is so gentle and kind with her. Amy has a flash of independence as well but she’s also rather caught up in appearances. While the Marches don’t have much money, Amy makes up for it in grace and practical kindness.Laurie is a good addition to the mix. I really like his grandfather as well. Laurie starts off as a rather shy and lonely lad but the girls draw him out pretty quickly and adopt him into their little circle of confidences and games. Marmee (Mrs. March) does her best to be a confidant to her daughters while also allowing them the privacy they need. Robert March, the dad, is seen quite a bit less in the book though he’s totally doted on by the family when he is home.The entire book is riddled with little life lessons. For the first 3/4 of the book, these are well portrayed in story form. The author shows us rather than tells us. For instance, I like how Marmee often gives her girls enough rope to hang themselves. She lets them make mistakes so that they will recall the lesson better in the future. The solitary thing I don’t care for is that the last bit of this book gets a bit preachy. I feel the author was either rushed or got a little tired of the book herself and started telling us the lessons instead of showing us. Plus, perhaps since a main character dies, religion is brought into the mix. Despite this minor let down for the ending of the book, I still really enjoy this classic.Let’s talk limes. Yes, limes. There’s a great little bit of the book that goes on about these pickled limes that were all the rage at school. In fact, the teacher banned them from his classroom since they were a distraction. One of the sisters had to borrow money from another sister just so she could buy some limes. After reading that section, I really want to try a pickled lime.One of the reasons I so like this book is that most of the characters are women and it’s not a big romance. There is romance here and there, but that isn’t the main driving force of the plot. Women have so many more freedoms and rights now than they did during the Civil War and yet here we have a well written and enjoyable book that has women actually doing things, instead of being these flowery, vague love interests. So, when someone gives me the excuse, ‘Oh, things were different back then,’ to explain why a book is lacking in relevant female characters, I can always point to Alcott and quirk an eyebrow. Yes, things were different back then, but women were still relevant. Thank you Ms. Alcott!I received a free copy of this book via The Audiobookworm.The Narration: Andrea Emmes did such a lovely job with this book. She made each sister sound unique and she also managed to make them sound young when they are little girls and like young ladies by the end of the book. She also had a variety of male voices which were quite believable.
  • Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
    2/5
    I almost did not finish this book. I found it the storytelling a little too whimsical and old fashioned. However, I made myself finish the book by reading a chapter a day. Once I got into the rhythm of reading only a chapter a day I found myself liking the Little Marches. This is definitely not my genre of books, but I am glad I finished it. This book is about four young sisters, Meg, Jo, Amy and Beth. They are not rich in money but they are rich in love and happiness. Their mother and father have provided everything they could, but mainly taught them to be kind, generous and caring women. They each take their own path and find happiness. I want to watch the movie now!
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5

    Reading this book again after an interval of some forty years was much like returning to a place known well in childhood, but not seen since. Memory distorts the landscape and the size and the shape of things contained within it. The place is both totally familiar and completely unknown at the same time.

    Little Women is one of the first novels that I remember reading. I can still see the book – a red hardback with small print, the dust jacket long gone. It took me to a time and a place that was completely foreign to me. I knew nothing about 1860s Concord, Massachusetts, about the American Civil War, about what it would be like to have an absent clergyman father, about having to earn a living at a young age. Indeed, when I first read this book, all of the March sisters seemed very grown up to me. What I related to was not the specific circumstances of their lives, but being a girl, growing up, wanting something more than I had and not knowing what the future would bring. I read Little Women and its sequels several times between the ages of 9 and 14 and the experiences of Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy became part of my life.

    Re-reading the novel forty years on, the first thing I noticed was how very young the March girls are. The next thing I noticed was the pervasiveness of the moralising. Marmee is, of course, the chief proponent of right and proper behaviour, with every negative experience turned into a teaching moment. This was not something I noticed at all when I was a child, so the moral lessons worked either subliminally or not at all. Another thing I noticed was how time flew by, particularly in the second part of the book (that section which I knew previously as Good Wives). I also noticed the emphasis on gender roles. Even though Jo wants to be a writer and Amy an artist and both girls engage in those activities, the proper role for girls of being a good wife and a good mother is emphasised again and again. Given the period in which the novel was written this is not surprising, but it is not what I remember of the book from my childhood.

    Coming back to Little Women after all of this time has reminded me what I loved about the book when as a child. It has also given me a different perspective on the novel. For example, I’ve spent forty years not liking Amy March (and thinking that Laurie made a mistake in marrying her). I don’t feel that way anymore. I used to think that Marmee was the ideal mother. Now I think that I would have been driven crazy if my mother had had a moral lesson for every occasion.

    I’m very glad to have re-read this novel. I’m also glad to have done so as a buddy read with my friend Lynn. I don’t know that I would give the book four stars if it was not a childhood favourite, as there is no doubt that it is very dated. However, the fact that it has been a treasured literary experience for more than forty years keeps it firmly in four star territory.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    I have long loved this book- it's one I don't remember reading the first time, even. I haven't read it for years, and included it almost reflexively in my comfort reading as I loaded my iPhone with Kindle books for a recent trip.

    I didn't remember the huge amount of preachifying and moralizing that imbue nearly every page of this book. There were things that made me blink and bridle in plenty. There's a lot here to be appalled at. Yet there are certainly some forward-thinking parts, especially when one takes into consideration when this was written.

    The constant theme of submission is grating to my modern sensibilities. That being said, I think that Alcott's genius shines through in the ways she illuminates the inner struggles of the girls who are trying to grow into good women. Who can't find something to identify with here, if not Jo's white-hot rages, then perhaps Meg's dismay at her lack of furbelows in the face of Sally's fashionable dress or Beth's simple desire to see to her mother's comfort? Who can help loving crusty old Mr. Laurence, who is only cranky because he's lost so much? Who doesn't weep for Beth?

    I know there are some of you who think Jo should have married Laurie, but you are wrong. Mr. Bhaer is perfect for Jo, as becomes even more evident as the trilogy progresses.

    The girls are universal, the principles of kindness and love are as valid now as they ever were. The dated parts can be taken as historical, if you are the feminist godless sort like me. This one will be read and loved by girls forever, I think.

    On to Little Men, which I like even better than this one.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    This classic story of one year in the lives of the March sisters of New England during the American Civil War justly holds its place of honour in American literary tradition. This is really a Young Adult novel and I’m sure that each young or older!) reader identifies with one of the sisters: the eldest, Meg who is maturing into a young women preparing for marriage; Jo, the impetuous tomboy & alter ego of the author; home-loving and painfully shy Beth; and the creative & somewhat spoiled baby, Amy; and events in the book involve all sisters in turn. Each chapter of Little Women contains a gentle moral, espousing a value such as honesty, industry or thriftiness with time and money.I found this much easier to read than other 19th century novels, perhaps because it was targeting a young audience. My edition had several charming illustrated plates by Jessie Wilcox smith.Read this if: you’d like to have a glimpse of the home-front during the American Civil War; you love a story that teaches old-fashioned morals; or you enjoy gentle old-fashioned adventures. 5 starsSuggested reading companion to Little Women: March by Geraldine Brooks which follows the activities of the girls’ father, Mr. March during his enlistment. Note: March is not a YA novel.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    I think maybe some of the value of this book is lost if one first reads it as an adult. I like it just fine, but I don't love it the way so many do, who re-read it a thousand times in childhood. Also, unlike virtually everyone else, I never liked Laurie all that much.

    ***

    How awesome is it that my daughter can say, yesterday, that she'd like to read Little women, and when I discover we don't have a copy lying around I can download it to the Kindle and leave it there with her, as a little comfort on a sick day? It's really awesome, in case you were wondering.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    Little Women, first published in 1868, is an inspiring story of 4 girls and their mother during a period of time in their lives when their father is off at war. Each of the March sisters works on her own personal struggle and is guided by a copy of Pilgrim's Progress, thier mother- Marmee and supported by each other. Through the daily occurences, we witness growth in maturity, selflessness, dealing with poverty and death. Although a little slow in parts, this story gives a good insight to the time period and brings in a tone of morality not usually seen in today's novels. This book is best introduced to girls in grades 4-7; many will revisit it several times as they grow older. The version with illustrations by Prunier gives insights in the margins and many photos and drawings. Adults may enjoy this, while younger readers most probably would prefer the original story for the story's sake.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Initially, I didn't like this book because it felt rather pointless. After further reflection, it seems to me that this book is like the precursor to sitcoms; each chapter is like a new episode with new "adventures." It wasn't half bad. Not my favorite, but not too horrible.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    Somehow, this book did not work for me - the March daughters were too readily faulty and the parallel with Bunyan's 'Pilgrim's Progress' was just too...righteous. The fact that Jo and Laurie are not marrying as I thought they should was way too much; the absent father comes back to check on his daughters, only to comment that they are becoming 'perfect' women (his comments about their change of character was, in my opinion, a true reflection of the concerns of the time - the denial of the 'self' to become society's ideal woman in the civil war: charitable, selfless, sacrificing all for the greater good in the absence of men, etc...). While I may have enjoyed just reading it, I felt unease at the background ideology, I am sorry to say!
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    2011, Listening Library, Read by Kate Reading Somehow I missed reading this well-loved classic until now. When I spotted it recently in 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die (book nuts take note, the best-smelling book ever!), I went in search of an audiobook, and am delighted to have decided on this edition. Kate Reading is perfect as narrator.I found it impossible not to be completely charmed by Alcott’s narrative of idyllic family life as the March sisters, Jo, Meg, Beth, and Amy, come of age under the gentle but firm guidance of their mother. Set against the backdrop of the American Civil War, Little Women recalls a time when life was quiet and genteel, manners impeccable, morals intrinsic, and modesty fundamental. To Alcott’s credit, I found myself longing for a quieter, simpler time. That said, I was comforted (and much humoured) to know that some things have not changed at all:“Amy’s lecture did Laurie good, though, of course, he did not own it till long afterward. Men seldom do, for when women are the advisers, the lords of creation don’t take the advice till they have persuaded themselves that it is just what they intended to do. Then they act upon it, and if it succeeds, they give the weaker vessel half the credit of it. If it fails, they generously give her the whole.” (Ch 41)A worthy and deserving read. Highly recommended!
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Strangely, I don't remember much about reading this book the first time. My memory was faulty and I didn't remember anything after Mr. March came home from the war.

    This book is much more religious than I remembered. Not that there is anything wrong with that. The time period sought morality books for children (and adults). This book delivered that in spades.

    I enjoyed re-reading it. I might go and read Jo's Boys and Little Men too. I seem to be on a 19th cent kick.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    (300/759) This book is about 4 girls who live with there mother and a slave. There father went off to be a soldier for the war. There family is middle class, so they can buy new things but they aren't rich like they use to be because their father was helping a friend and ended up losing a lot of their money. Later they found out there father is sick so their mother went to washington because their father was in one of the hospitals, then one of the sisters name Beth got scarlet fever. The main characters are Meg who is the oldest sister, she is discribed as beautiful and gets more beautiful with each passing day, she also loves elegant rich things. Joe the next oldest sister acts like a tome boy. Her one beauty was her hair until she cut it off to help her family get money for her mother to go to washington to help their father. Beth, the second to youngest is one of the kindest shyest people you would ever meet. Then the youngest is named Amy who loves to drawn and beautiful things. There mother Mrs. March is one of those mothers who you think is the greatest mother in the world. Then Hannah their slave is kind and an amazing nurse. I think Meg likes the material things of life too much, Joe has a short temper but I'm glad she is working to fix it. Beth has nothing wrong with her or that I think she should change about herself. if anything i think she should be more outgoing. Amy, I think she should be less selfish. I don't think i can relate to any of the things in this book, I mean so many things have changed since then, nothing is really the same. I think if anything I'm like Beth in shyness and Meg in liking elegant beautiful things. Actually so far I pretty much like everything, actually ya so far I like everything I have read. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes old victorian things, or old type of stories. For a movie I think all these parts would be hard to cast, I mean a beautiful elegant young lady, a tome boy, a shy kind girl, and one that is selfish yet loves drawing. I don't think anyone I could pick would be the right one to play the roles.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    I loved this book. It was seriously one of the best books I've ever read. My AP English teacher called it "elementary", but it really wasn't. This book changed my life. For an "elementary" book it's deep. This book is also very relatable. I think everyone, both boys and girls,should read this book.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Still one of my favorite books.
  • Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
    2/5
    I can't understand why this book has stayed so popular for so long. It just drags on. I've tried to read it three separate occasions but I can't ever seem to finish it without being incredibly bored.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Little Women is so preachy in places that it's a wonder I loved it as much as I did, when I was younger. Reading it now, the preaching is more obvious than ever -- though, I still love it. That's part nostalgia, and part Jo. She's my favourite character of them all. Her faults, her temper, is like mine, and she's a writer, and she's by far the most interesting of the girls. Meg is just irritating, to me, and likewise Amy; Beth is sweet, but we keep getting told how sweet and perfect she is, which is somewhat trying. Jo's mistakes are funny and endearing -- salt instead of sugar on berries, indeed -- and she's no saint.

    Must confess, I wept a little, reading this again. Even at points which I've never cried at before. There was something about the family feeling and the way the children try so very hard that got to me extremely, this time.

    One thing I don't like very much is the relationship between Meg and Brooke. I mean, it doesn't come out of nowhere, but I'm just not that invested in it and so the time spent on it bores me.

    I was never that interested in reading the sequels to this. I was content in the picture of the family we get at the end -- the parents reunited, Meg and Brooke together, Beth getting better, etc, etc. So don't plague me with tales of Beth's death!
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Last time I read this (15 years ago), I was disappointed how this childhood favorite didn't stand up to adult reading & was bothered by the moralizing. This rereading has restored my love for this tale. The moralizing is a bit much but I have gotten better at just letting it wash over me without becoming so annoyed.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Summary: No words could describe what this sweet story means to me. I read it as a young girl and enjoyed it, but each time I read it as an adult it instills in me a desire to be a better woman, to cherish those things that are uniquely feminine and a tenderness for the simple things of life that are meant to be appreciated. How I relate to dear Jo as I tumble along in my own "Plumfield" filled with boys and I appreciate her wisdom and this story that teaches us how she got it.Quote: "Yes, Jo was a very happy woman there, in spite of hard work, much anxiety and perpetual racket. She enjoyed it heartily and found the applause of the boys more satisfying than any praise of the world..."
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    This is an edited and abridged version of the original. Little Women is of course Louisa May Alcott's story of four sisters who each live according to their personalities. Meg wants to be the ideal, typical housewife, Jo has dreams of being a famous author, Beth wants only to help others, and Amy is a little vain and very artistic. All of them love one another despite their feuds. This version especially focuses on Jo and how she grows.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    I remember when I was teaching in the 2nd grade. I would tell my students that this was my favorite books and my students would reply that I had a lot of favorite books. Well this one is one of my favorits because of the independent spirits of the girls. Well writen and a joy to read.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    It's impossible to pinpoint the year I first read this. Probably the year I learned to read in sentences. Classic, indeed. A book I'd recommend to all little girls.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    I bought this book at "The Orchard House" in Concord, Massachusetts where Louisa May Alcott lived while she wrote "Little Women". I didn't enjoy this book as a girl, but I appreciate it more now. It was a pleasure to read about young women who are more interested in developing their character than their appearance. The writing style is lively enough to carry the reader through plotlines that are credible to the point of banal. It is also a wonderful depiction of daily life of its time. It is also a feminist novel -- the home is the core of a woman's responsibility, but the home is also seen as absolutely crucial for society. Oddly, I think the denigration of the role of women in the world belongs to a later era.

Book preview

Little Women Book One Complete Text - Louisa May Alcott

ONE

Playing Pilgrims

"CHRISTMAS WON’T be Christmas without any presents," grumbled Jo, lying on the rug.

It’s so dreadful to be poor! sighed Meg, looking down at her old dress.

I don’t think it’s fair for some girls to have plenty of pretty things, and other girls nothing at all, added little Amy, with an injured sniff.

We’ve got Father and Mother and each other, said Beth contentedly from her corner.

The four young faces on which the firelight shone brightened at the cheerful words, but darkened again as Jo said sadly, We haven’t got Father, and shall not have him for a long time. She didn’t say perhaps never, but each silently added it, thinking of Father far away, where the fighting was.

Nobody spoke for a minute. Then Meg said in an altered tone, You know the reason Mother proposed not having any presents this Christmas was because it is going to be a hard winter for everyone, and she thinks we ought not to spend money for pleasure when our men are suffering so in the army. We can’t do much, but we can make our little sacrifices, and ought to do it gladly. But I am afraid I don’t. And Meg shook her head, as she thought regretfully of all the pretty things she wanted.

"But I don’t think the little we should spend would do any good. We’ve each got a dollar, and the army wouldn’t be much helped by our giving that. I agree not to expect anything from Mother or you, but I do want to buy Undine and Sintram for myself. I’ve wanted it so long," said Jo, who was a bookworm.

I planned to spend mine in new music, said Beth, with a little sigh, which no one heard but the hearth brush and kettle holder.

I shall get a nice box of Faber’s drawing pencils. I really need them, said Amy decidedly.

Mother didn’t say anything about our money, and she won’t wish us to give up everything. Let’s each buy what we want, and have a little fun. I’m sure we work hard enough to earn it, cried Jo, examining the heels of her shoes in a gentlemanly manner.

I know I do—teaching those tiresome children nearly all day, when I’m longing to enjoy myself at home, began Meg, in the complaining tone again.

You don’t have half such a hard time as I do, said Jo. How would you like to be shut up for hours with a nervous, fussy old lady, who keeps you trotting, is never satisfied, and worries you till you’re ready to fly out of the window or cry?

It’s naughty to fret, but I do think washing dishes and keeping things tidy is the worst work in the world. It makes me cross, and my hands get so stiff, I can’t practice well at all. And Beth looked at her rough hands with a sigh that anyone could hear that time.

I don’t believe any of you suffer as I do, cried Amy, for you don’t have to go to school with impertinent girls, who plague you if you don’t know your lessons, and laugh at your dresses, and label your father if he isn’t rich, and insult you when your nose isn’t nice.

"If you mean libel, I’d say so, and not talk about labels, as if Papa was a pickle bottle," advised Jo, laughing.

"I know what I mean, and you needn’t be statirical about it. It’s proper to use good words, and improve your vocabilary," returned Amy, with dignity.

Don’t peck at one another, children. Don’t you wish we had the money Papa lost when we were little, Jo? Dear me! How happy and good we’d be, if we had no worries! said Meg, who could remember better times.

You said, the other day, you thought we were a deal happier than the King children, for they were fighting and fretting all the time, in spite of their money.

So I did, Beth. Well, I think we are. For though we do have to work, we make fun of ourselves, and are a pretty jolly set, as Jo would say.

Jo does use such slang words! observed Amy, with a reproving look at the long figure stretched on the rug.

Jo immediately sat up, put her hands in her pockets, and began to whistle.

Don’t, Jo. It’s so boyish!

That’s why I do it.

I detest rude, unladylike girls!

I hate affected, niminy-piminy chits!

Birds in their little nests agree, sang Beth, the peacemaker, with such a funny face that both sharp voices softened to a laugh, and the pecking ended for that time.

Really, girls, you are both to be blamed, said Meg, beginning to lecture in her elder-sisterly fashion. You are old enough to leave off boyish tricks, and to behave better, Josephine. It didn’t matter so much when you were a little girl, but now you are so tall, and turn up your hair, you should remember that you are a young lady.

I’m not! And if turning up my hair makes me one, I’ll wear it in two tails till I’m twenty, cried Jo, pulling off her net, and shaking down a chestnut mane. I hate to think I’ve got to grow up, and be Miss March, and wear long gowns, and look as prim as a China aster! It’s bad enough to be a girl, anyway, when I like boys’ games and work and manners! I can’t get over my disappointment in not being a boy. And it’s worse than ever now, for I’m dying to go and fight with Papa. And I can only stay home and knit, like a poky old woman! And Jo shook the blue army sock till the needles rattled like castanets, and her ball bounded across the room.

Poor Jo! It’s too bad, but it can’t be helped. So you must try to be contented with making your name boyish, and playing brother to us girls, said Beth, stroking the rough head at her knee with a hand that all the dishwashing and dusting in the world could not make ungentle in its touch.

As for you, Amy, continued Meg, you are altogether too particular and prim. Your airs are funny now, but you’ll grow up an affected little goose, if you don’t take care. I like your nice manners and refined ways of speaking when you don’t try to be elegant. But your absurd words are as bad as Jo’s slang.

If Jo is a tomboy and Amy a goose, what am I, please? asked Beth, ready to share the lecture.

You’re a dear, and nothing else, answered Meg warmly, and no one contradicted her, for the Mouse was the pet of the family.

As young readers like to know how people look, we will take this moment to give them a little sketch of the four sisters, who sat knitting away in the twilight, while the December snow fell quietly without, and the fire crackled cheerfully within. It was a comfortable-old room, though the carpet was faded and the furniture very plain, for a good picture or two hung on the walls, books filled the recesses, chrysanthemums and Christmas roses bloomed in the windows, and a pleasant atmosphere of home peace pervaded it.

Margaret, the eldest of the four, was sixteen, and very pretty, being plump and fair, with large eyes, plenty of soft, brown hair, a sweet mouth, and white hands, of which she was rather vain. Fifteen-year-old Jo was very tall, thin, and brown, and reminded one of a colt, for she never seemed to know what to do with her long limbs, which were very much in her way. She had a decided mouth, a comical nose, and sharp, gray eyes, which appeared to see everything, and were by turns fierce, funny, or thoughtful. Her long, thick hair was her one beauty, but it was usually bundled into a net, to be out of her way. Round shoulders had Jo, big hands and feet, a flyaway look to her clothes, and the uncomfortable appearance of a girl who was rapidly shooting up into a woman and didn’t like it. Elizabeth—or Beth, as everyone called her—was a rosy, smooth-haired, bright-eyed girl of thirteen, with a shy manner, a timid voice, and a peaceful expression, which was seldom disturbed. Her father called her Little Tranquility, and the name suited her excellently, for she seemed to live in a happy world of her own, only venturing out to meet the few whom she trusted and loved. Amy, though the youngest, was a most important person—in her own opinion at least. A regular snow maiden, with blue eyes, and yellow hair curling on her shoulders, pale and slender, and always carrying herself like a young lady mindful of her manners. What the characters of the four sisters were we will leave to be found out.

The clock struck six, and, having swept up the hearth, Beth put a pair of slippers down to warm. Somehow the sight of the old shoes had a good effect upon the girls, for Mother was coming, and everyone brightened to welcome her. Meg stopped lecturing, and lighted the lamp, Amy got out of the easy chair without being asked, and Jo forgot how tired she was as she sat up to hold the slippers nearer to the blaze.

They are quite worn out. Marmee must have a new pair.

I thought I’d get her some with my dollar, said Beth.

No, I shall! cried Amy.

I’m the oldest, began Meg, but Jo cut in with a decided, I’m the man of the family now Papa is away, and I shall provide the slippers, for he told me to take special care of Mother while he was gone.

I’ll tell you what we’ll do, said Beth. Let’s each get her something for Christmas, and not get anything for ourselves.

That’s like you, dear! What will we get? exclaimed Jo.

Everyone thought soberly for a minute, then Meg announced, as if the idea was suggested by the sight of her own pretty hands, I shall give her a nice pair of gloves.

Army shoes, best to be had, cried Jo.

Some handkerchiefs, all hemmed, said Beth.

I’ll get a little bottle of cologne. She likes it, and it won’t cost much, so I’ll have some left to buy my pencils, added Amy.

How will we give the things? asked Meg.

Put them on the table, and bring her in and see her open the bundles. Don’t you remember how we used to do on our birthdays? answered Jo.

"I used to be so frightened when it was my turn to sit in the big chair with the crown on, and see you all come marching round to give the presents, with a kiss. I liked the things and the kisses, but it was dreadful to have you sit looking at me while I opened the bundles," said Beth, who was toasting her face and the bread for tea at the same time.

Let Marmee think we are getting things for ourselves, and then surprise her. We must go shopping tomorrow afternoon, Meg. There is so much to do about the play for Christmas night, said Jo, marching up and down, with her hands behind her back and her nose in the air.

I don’t mean to act anymore after this time. I’m getting too old for such things, observed Meg, who was as much a child as ever about dressing-up frolics.

You won’t stop, I know, as long as you can trail round in a white gown with your hair down and wear gold-paper jewelry. You are the best actress we’ve got, and there’ll be an end of everything if you quit the boards, said Jo. We ought to rehearse tonight. Come here, Amy, and do the fainting scene, for you are as stiff as a poker in that.

I can’t help it. I never saw anyone faint, and I don’t choose to make myself all black and blue, tumbling flat as you do. If I can go down easily, I’ll drop. If I can’t, I shall fall into a chair and be graceful. I don’t care if Hugo does come at me with a pistol, returned Amy, who was not gifted with dramatic power but was chosen because she was small enough to be borne out shrieking by the villain of the piece.

Do it this way. Clasp your hands so, and stagger across the room, crying frantically, ‘Roderigo! Save me! Save me!’ And away went Jo, with a melodramatic scream which was truly thrilling.

Amy followed, but she poked her hands out stiffly before her, and jerked herself along as if she went by machinery, and her Ow! was more suggestive of pins being run into her than of fear and anguish. Jo gave a despairing groan, and Meg laughed outright, while Beth let her bread burn as she watched the fun with interest.

It’s no use! Do the best you can when the time comes, and if the audience laughs, don’t blame me. Come on, Meg.

Then things went smoothly, for Don Pedro defied the world in a speech of two pages without a single break. Hagar, the witch, chanted an awful incantation over her kettleful of simmering toads, with weird effect. Roderigo rent his chains asunder manfully, and Hugo died in agonies of remorse and arsenic, with a wild, Ha! Ha!

It’s the best we’ve had yet, said Meg, as the dead villain sat up and rubbed his elbows.

I don’t see how you can write and act such splendid things, Jo. You’re a regular Shakespeare! exclaimed Beth, who firmly believed that her sisters were gifted with wonderful genius in all things.

Not quite, replied Jo modestly. "I do think The Witch’s Curse, an Operatic Tragedy is rather a nice thing, but I’d like to try Macbeth, if we only had a trapdoor for Banquo. I always wanted to do the killing part. ‘Is that a dagger that I see before me?’" muttered Jo, rolling her eyes and clutching at the air, as she had seen a famous tragedian do.

No, it’s the toasting fork, with Mother’s shoe on it instead of the bread. Beth’s stagestruck! cried Meg, and the rehearsal ended in a general burst of laughter.

Glad to find you so merry, my girls, said a cheery voice at the door, and actors and audience turned to welcome a tall, motherly lady with a can I help you look about her which was truly delightful. She was not elegantly dressed, but a noble-looking woman, and the girls thought the gray cloak and unfashionable bonnet covered the most splendid mother in the world.

Well, dearies, how have you got on today? There was so much to do, getting the boxes ready to go tomorrow, that I didn’t come home to dinner. Has anyone called, Beth? How is your cold, Meg? Jo, you look tired to death. Come and kiss me, baby.

While making these maternal inquiries Mrs. March got her wet things off, her warm slippers on, and, sitting down in the easy chair, drew Amy to her lap, preparing to enjoy the happiest hour of her busy day. The girls flew about, trying to make things comfortable, each in her own way. Meg arranged the tea table. Jo brought wood and set chairs, dropping, overturning, and clattering everything she touched. Beth trotted to and fro between parlor and kitchen, quiet and busy, while Amy gave directions to everyone as she sat with her hands folded.

As they gathered about the table Mrs. March said, with a particularly happy face, I’ve got a treat for you after supper.

A quick, bright smile went round like a streak of sunshine. Beth clapped her hands, regardless of the biscuit she held, and Jo tossed up her napkin, crying, A letter! A letter! Three cheers for Father!

Yes, a nice long letter. He is well, and thinks he shall get through the cold season better than we feared. He sends all sorts of loving wishes for Christmas, and an especial message to you girls, said Mrs. March, patting her pocket as if she had got a treasure there.

Hurry and get done! Don’t stop to quirk your little finger and simper over your plate, Amy, cried Jo, choking on her tea and dropping her bread, butter side down, on the carpet in her haste to get at the treat.

Beth ate no more, but crept away to sit in her shadowy corner and brood over the delight to come till the others were ready.

I think it was so splendid in Father to go as chaplain when he was too old to be drafted and not strong enough for a soldier, said Meg warmly.

"Don’t I wish I could go as a drummer, a vivan—what’s its name?—or a nurse, so I could be near him and help him," exclaimed Jo, with a groan.

It must be very disagreeable to sleep in a tent, and eat all sorts of bad-tasting things, and drink out of a tin mug, sighed Amy.

When will he come home, Marmee? asked Beth, with a little quiver in her voice.

Not for many months, dear, unless he is sick. He will stay and do his work faithfully as long as he can, and we won’t ask for him back a minute sooner than he can be spared. Now come and hear the letter.

They all drew to the fire, Mother in the big chair with Beth at her feet, Meg and Amy perched on either arm of the chair, and Jo leaning on the back, where no one would see any sign of emotion if the letter should happen to be touching. Very few letters were written in those hard times that were not touching, especially those which fathers sent home. In this one little was said of the hardships endured, the dangers faced, or the homesickness conquered. It was a cheerful, hopeful letter, full of lively descriptions of camp life, marches, and military news, and only at the end did the writer’s heart overflow with fatherly love and longing for the little girls at home.

Give them all my dear love and a kiss. Tell them I think of them by day, pray for them by night, and find my best comfort in their affection at all times. A year seems very long to wait before I see them, but remind them that while we wait we may all work, so that these hard days need not be wasted. I know they will remember all I said to them, that they will be loving children to you, will do their duty faithfully, fight their bosom enemies bravely, and conquer themselves so beautifully that when I come back to them I may be fonder and prouder than ever of my little women.

Everybody sniffed when they came to that part. Jo wasn’t ashamed of the great tear that dropped off the end of her nose, and Amy never minded the rumpling of her curls as she hid her face on her mother’s shoulder and sobbed out, "I am a selfish girl! But I’ll truly try to be better, so he mayn’t be disappointed in me by-and-by."

We all will, cried Meg. I think too much of my looks, and hate to work, but won’t anymore if I can help it.

I’ll try and be what he loves to call me, ‘a little woman,’ and not be rough and wild, but do my duty here instead of wanting to be somewhere else, said Jo, thinking that keeping her temper at home was a much harder task than facing a rebel or two down South.

Beth said nothing, but wiped away her tears with the blue army sock and began to knit with all her might, losing no time in doing the duty that lay nearest her, while she resolved in her quiet little soul to be all that Father hoped to find her when the year brought round the happy coming home.

Mrs. March broke the silence that followed Jo’s words by saying in her cheery voice, "Do you remember how you used to play Pilgrim’s Progress when you were little things? Nothing delighted you more than to have me tie my piece bags on your backs for burdens, give you hats and sticks and rolls of paper, and let you travel through the house from the cellar, which was the City of Destruction, up, up to the housetop, where you had all the lovely things you could collect to make a Celestial City."

What fun it was, especially going by the lions, fighting Apollyon, and passing through the Valley where the hobgoblins were! said Jo.

I liked the place where the bundles fell off and tumbled downstairs, said Meg.

My favorite part was when we came out on the flat roof where our flowers and arbors and pretty things were, and all stood and sung for joy up there in the sunshine, said Beth, smiling, as if that pleasant moment had come back to her.

I don’t remember much about it, except that I was afraid of the cellar and the dark entry, and always liked the cake and milk we had up at the top. If I wasn’t too old for such things, I’d rather like to play it over again, said Amy, who began to talk of renouncing childish things at the mature age of twelve.

We never are too old for this, my dear, because it is a play we are playing all the time in one way or another. Our burdens are here, our road is before us, and the longing for goodness and happiness is the guide that leads us through many troubles and mistakes to the peace which is a true Celestial City. Now, my little pilgrims, suppose you begin again, not in play, but in earnest, and see how far on you can get before Father comes home.

Really, Mother? Where are our bundles? asked Amy, who was a very literal young lady.

Each of you told what your burden was just now except Beth. I rather think she hasn’t got any, said her mother.

Yes, I have. Mine is dishes and dusters, and envying girls with nice pianos, and being afraid of people.

Beth’s bundle was such a funny one that everybody wanted to laugh, but nobody did, for it would have hurt her feelings very much.

Let us do it, said Meg thoughtfully. It is only another name for trying to be good, and the story may help us, for though we do want to be good, it’s hard work and we forget, and don’t do our best.

We were in the Slough of Despond tonight, and Mother came and pulled us out as Help did in the book. We ought to have our roll of directions, like Christian. What shall we do about that? asked Jo, delighted with the fancy which lent a little romance to the very dull task of doing her duty.

Look under your pillows Christmas morning and you will find your guidebook, replied Mrs. March.

They talked over the new plan while old Hannah cleared the table. Then out came the four little work-baskets, and the needles flew as the girls made sheets for Aunt March. It was uninteresting sewing, but tonight no one grumbled. They adopted Jo’s plan of dividing the long seams into four parts and calling the quarters Europe, Asia, Africa, and America, and in that way got on capitally, especially when they talked about the different countries as they stitched their way through them.

At nine they stopped work and sang, as usual, before they went to bed. No one but Beth could get much music out of the old piano but she had a way of softly touching the yellow keys and making a pleasant accompaniment to the simple songs they sang. Meg had a voice like a flute, and she and her mother led the little choir. Amy chirped like a cricket, and Jo wandered through the airs at her own sweet will, always coming out at the wrong place with a croak or a quaver that spoiled the most pensive tune. They had always done this from the time they could lisp

Crinkle, crinkle, ’ittle ’tar,

and it had become a household custom, for the mother was a born singer. The first sound in the morning was her voice as she went about the house singing like a lark, and the last sound at night was the same cheery sound, for the girls never grew too old for that familiar lullaby.

TWO

A Merry Christmas

JO WAS THE FIRST to wake in the gray dawn of Christmas morning. No stockings hung at the fireplace, and for a moment she felt as much disappointed as she did long ago, when her little sock felt down because it was so crammed with goodies. Then she remembered her mother’s promise and, slipping her hand under her pillow, drew out a little crimson-covered book. She knew it very well, for it was that beautiful old story of the best life ever lived, and Jo felt that it was a true guidebook for any pilgrim going the long journey. She woke Meg with a Merry Christmas and bade her see what was under her pillow. A green-covered book appeared, with the same picture inside, and a few words written by their mother, which made their one present very precious in their eyes. Presently Beth and Amy woke to rummage and find their little books also, one dove-colored, the other blue, and all sat looking at and talking about them while the east grew rosy with the coming day.

In spite of her small vanities, Margaret had a sweet and pious nature, which unconsciously influenced her sisters, especially Jo, who loved her very tenderly and obeyed her because her advice was so gently given.

Girls, said Meg seriously, looking from the tumbled head beside her to the two little nightcapped ones in the room beyond, "Mother wants us to read and love and mind these books, and we must begin at once. We used to be faithful about it, but since Father went away, and all this war trouble unsettled us, we have neglected many things. You can do as you please, but I shall keep my book

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