Louisa May Alcott led a multi-faceted life as an author, army nurse, single mother, caretaker, and homemaker. She was also a daughter and sister. Alcott's life is inextricably linked with her family members, as demonstrated by her signature book, Little Women. The Alcott family story is far more complex than that of the Marches. However, one fact from Little Women is clear: like the Marches, the Alcotts were a brilliant, creative, and close-knit unit, willing to do anything for each other. As there would be no Jo as we know her without Marmee, Mr. March, Meg, Beth, and Amy, there would be no Louisa without Bronson, Abigail, Anna, Elizabeth, and May.

Susan Bailey is the curator of the Louisa May Alcott is My Passion website, now in its 11th year. She is also the Administrator of the Facebook group, “Louisa May Alcott: A Group for Fans, Readers, & Scholars” sponsored by Louisa May Alcott’s Orchard House and the Louisa May Alcott Society. She is the author of Louisa May Alcott: Illuminated by The Message (ACTA Publications) and a contributor to a Little Women anthology, Alcott’s Imaginary Heroes, published by Pink Umbrella Books, LLC.  Susan contributed an essay on May Alcott’s beginnings for The Forgotten Alcott, the first academic study of May Alcott Nieriker, newly released by Routledge Publishing in 2022. 

This program is free and open to the public.