Louisa Alcott

The Brothers (1863), also known as My Contraband by Louisa May Alcott, is a short story regarding the American Civil War with depiction of an attack on the Fort Wagner. During the war, two brothers, one white brother and the other a half black meet in a hospital. Due to a previous a grudge between them the black one tries to kill the white one. Preaching the religion of humanity and kindness, she draws from her personal experiences to create this amazing work.

The Brothers

First Edition Cover

Illustrated Little Women

Best of Alcott: Jo's Boys (Illustrated)

Influenced by the melodrama of the contemporary theater and the popular gothic novels of the time, Louisa May Alcott weaves a tale far removed from the reality of her everyday life in Boston. With a charm reminiscent of Jane Austen's novels, "The Inheritance" sets love and courtesy against depravity and dishonor--and with the help of a secret inheritance, allows virtue to prevail.

The Inheritance

An Old-Fashioned Girl Louisa May Alcott 1869 An Old-Fashioned Girl is a novel by Louisa May Alcott first published in 1869. The first six chapters of the novel were serialised in the Merry's Museum magazine between July and August 1869. Alcott added another thirteen chapters before publishing the novel. The book revolves around Polly Milton, the old-fashioned girl of the title, who visits the wealthy family of her friend Fanny Shaw in the city and is overwhelmed by their fashionable life they lead and disturbed to see how the family members fail to understand one another and demonstrate little affection. She is largely content to remain on the fringes of their social life but exerts a powerful influence over their emotional lives and family relations. The novel was the basis of a 1949 musical film starring Gloria Jean as Polly. Polly Milton, a bright 14-year-old country girl, visits her friend Fanny Shaw and her wealthy family in the city for the first time. Poor Polly is overwhelmed by the splendor at the Shaws' and their urbanized, fashionable lifestyles, expensive clothes and other habits she has never been exposed to, and, for the most part, dislikes. Fanny's friends ignore her because of her different behavior and simple clothing, Fanny's brother Tom teases her, and Fan herself can't help considering her unusual sometimes. However, Polly's warmth, support, and kindness eventually win the hearts of all the family members, and her old-fashioned ways teach them a lesson they would never forget. Over the next six years, Polly visits the Shaws every year and comes to be considered a member of the family. Later, Polly comes back to the city to become a music teacher and struggles with professional issues and internal emotions. Later in the book, Polly finds out that the prosperous Shaws are on the brink of bankruptcy, and she guides them to the realization that wholesome family life is the only thing they will ever need, not money or decoration. With the comfort of the ever-helpful Polly, the family gets to change for the better and to find a happier life for all of them. After being rejected by his fiancée, Trix, Tom procures a job out West, with Polly's brother Ned, and heads off to help his family and compensate for all the money he has wasted in frivolous expenditures. At that point in the book, we see that Polly and Tom seem to have developed strong feelings for one another. At the end of the book, Tom returns from the West and finally gets engaged to his true love, Polly.

A Novel by Louisa May Alcott First Published in 1869, Serialised in the Merry's Museum Magazine Between July and August 1869, and the Basis of a 1949 Musical Film Starring Gloria Jean As Polly

An Old-Fashioned Girl

Chronicles the joys and sorrows of the four March sisters as they grow into young women in nineteenth-century New England.

Louisa Alcott

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