A Review and Biographical Sketch: Little Women

Today, a 36-year-old woman author writing a bestselling novel about growing up with her sisters would not be unusual. In 1868, when Louisa May Alcott wrote Little Women, this was revolutionary. She lived in Concord and Boston, Massachusetts, and wrote her most famous novel about four sisters, Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy March. These four sisters are a part of a poor but happy family. Their father is in the Civil War and their mother takes care of the family at home. They have a housemaid named Hannah and are friends with a neighbor boy, who is Jo’s age, named Laurie. The story begins around Christmas and takes places in a small New England town. 

The genre of the book is a coming of age and sentimental novel. Little Women reflects the life of Louisa May Alcott, who was born on November 29, 1832, in Germantown, Pennsylvania. She and her three sisters, Anna, Elizabeth, and May, were educated by their father, Bronson Alcott, who was a philosopher and teacher. Louisa and her sisters also learned the importance of living out their Christian faith through serving from their mother, Abigail May Alcott. Like the character “Jo March,” Louisa was a tomboy. She had a rich imagination and often acted out her stories with her sisters. She always liked to act out as villains, ghosts, bandits, and disdainful queens. Louisa found out she liked to write when she was young. Sadly, Louisa also had a sister who died at young age, which obviously contributed to the story of Beth in Little Women. Louisa wrote poems, short stories, thrillers, and tales for young children to read. In all, she wrote 30 books and collections of stories.  

In the novel, the March family faces many troubles. For example, the girls’ father becomes ill while fighting in the war, and their mother must leave immediately to help him. While she is gone, Beth develops scarlet fever after visiting a poor German family. She becomes permanently weakened. As her life goes on, Beth’s scarlet fever gets worse. Beth realizes that she does not have much time left to live. She tells Jo that she is nearing the end and that she is not afraid of dying. She encourages Jo to carry on with her writing but to continue her career with a focus on loving and serving others. Beth says, “… remember that I don’t forget you, and that you’ll be happier in doing that than writing splendid books or seeing all the world, for love is the only thing that we can carry with us when we go, and it makes the end so easy.” Jo responds, saying, “I’ll try.” In fact, all of the sisters try and succeed. In time, Meg, Jo, and Amy are married and off on their own. 

I really enjoyed reading Little Women because of the moving trials that the March girls go through and the funny situations they fall into.

“My book came out; and people began to think that topsy-turvy

Louisa would amount to something after all.” -Louisa May Alcott

– By Shieldmaiden

A Short Story: The Odd Babysitting Job

On a cold January night in England, just after New Year’s day, a girl named Julia told her siblings about her experience on the last day of the year before.

“At about 10:00 p.m., I was asked to babysit. A very odd time to be asked, but it is true.” said Julia. “I didn’t know what I had agreed to at that time.”

“What was so bad about it?” asked Julia's little brother, Sam.

            

“Just wait and see,” Julia said as she smiled. “I will tell you in a moment.” She made the story sound like nothing odd at all had happened at this job, but it was completely different than she let on. “When I left for the job, I was wondering, ‘What could be so important that you would need a babysitter late at night?’ When I finally found out what it was, I was surprised.”

“Oh, won't you just tell us already?!” said Julia’s other little brother, Tom.

“Be patient! I will get to that part!” Julia scolded her brother. “So, when I got there, I rung the doorbell. But, nobody answered after about five minutes of ringing! Then, just when I was about to leave, the door flung open. There, standing, was a young man – I would say about 17 years old – looking at me from head to toe. Then he scowled. What a mean thing to do,” she said angrily.

“Well, then he ordered me to come in and remove my coat. Once I was done with that, he led me into a small bedroom. I asked him where the children were, and he replied, ‘I will go get them.’ I waited in the room for what seemed like an hour, then walked in two girls. They were exactly alike: same black, lifeless curls, same terribly white skin, same clothes, and same positions. The young man slammed the door without saying anything. I had no idea what to do. They just stared at me with their creepy blue eyes seeming to wait for me to do or say something.”

“Then I heard a loud crash from below me. The girls turned their heads toward the floor at exactly the same time. Then I heard a scream from above me. Again, the girls turned their heads together. I had a feeling that the young man had never left. I heard footsteps coming from outside the door, and I gasped.”

“Then, all of a sudden, there was a wicked laugh from outside the door. I almost screamed until the girls started to giggle along with each other and the creepy laugh. Then I was very suspicious. I pushed the girls aside and yanked open the door to find the young man with a tape recorder. He stared at me for a moment then hit the stop button on the recorder. The laughing stopped, but the girls were still giggling.” Julia stopped for a long breath.

“That is when I realized that it was Pete Longtide from school. Pete is very much a prankster. I yelled at him for scaring me, then grabbed my coat. I then ran out the door as fast as I could. I don't know if I will ever speak to him again,” Julia said as she finished her scary story. Everyone was wide-eyed and still.

– By Alexandria Adelle Mcbeth

A Short Story: The Great Escape

‘Are they leaving me again? Where are they going? Am I going with them?’ Those thoughts rushed through my head as I watched my family prepare to go on a trip. “Rosie!” I heard my two sisters, Nicole and Sadie, calling my name. “Come here!” I ran over to see what they wanted.

“Good girl.” Sadie said. She stroked my fur as I sat and waited patiently for Nicole to grab my leash from the cupboard and attached it to my collar. They grabbed their flip flops, and we headed out the door to go on a walk, one of my favorite activities! As we strolled around the neighborhood, on the third of July, I could not help but wonder where my family was going and why they were leaving.

When we arrived home from our walk, the car was packed and my family was ready to leave on vacation. I was making my way inside the house, but surprisingly, my mom called me over and told me to hop into the car! I gleefully ran over and hopped in the car. ‘Was I going with them?’ I thought. My dad started up the car and we were ready for vacation, but after about fifteen seconds of driving, we slowed down and pulled into a driveway. I did not know what was happening. Everybody was getting out of the car! Nicole even grabbed the leash, which was still attached to me, and picked me up, out of the car. I reluctantly let her carry me to the front door. My dad rang the doorbell and a woman with short, brown hair and kind eyes came to the door, opened it, greeted us, and gestured for us to come inside her house. I suddenly realized that I have stayed at this house on a different occasion. I squirmed free of Nicole’s tight grasp and got re-aquatinted with the smells of this house. After a few minutes of exploring, I went back to the front door to get back into the car with my family, to go on vacation with them, but they were not there! I ran around the house and searched for hours (or what seemed like hours), but they were nowhere to be found. That night, I went to sleep feeling alone, but ready to make the most of my vacation.

The next day I woke up with so much energy! My vacation was off to a great start. My day consisted of mainly sleeping, playing outside, and even going on a walk! Since the people I was staying with saw how much I loved the outdoors, they decided to keep me in their fenced-in backyard when they left to go someplace for the evening. I was having a great time playing in their yard, but suddenly, partway through the evening, just as it was starting to get dark, I heard loud noises, sounding like something was blowing up, and colorful flashes appeared in the sky. I did not know what to do, and I admit, was a little scared. Different scenarios raced through my mind as I thought about what the loud noises and colorful flashes represented. ‘Maybe it’s evil cats taking over earth, or maybe it’s the dog food factory blowing up, or maybe it’s–’ another loud noise and colorful flash interrupted my thought. Now, I was really scared and looking for an escape hatch or tunnel of some sort. Then, I thought of a brilliant idea: I could jump over the fence! I looked it over, then took a step back from the fence, which was about 5 feet tall in human measurements, and braced myself for my great escape. I lunged forward, unsure if this was legal or not, jumped, and sailed through the air. The next thing I knew, I was on the other side of the fence. I made sure I was still alive, then rushed to my home, which was just around the corner, raced up to the steps, sat, and waited for my family to come home. After a few hours, a car pulled up the driveway. It was the other people I stayed with while my family was on vacation! They called my name a few times, but I refused to go with them. I was determined to stay where I was and wait for my family. Then again, I did not know how long they were going to be gone and what might happen if I was to stay out here by myself, so I reluctantly got into the car with them and let them take me to their house, where I could stay until my family came back from vacation.

The next day of waiting for my family seemed to drag along so slowly, I probably could have ran around the world five times! The doorbell rang a couple times, and each time I got up and ran to the door to see if it was my family, but it was only the mailman with a package and Girl Scouts selling cookies. No activity excited me, so I decided to lie down and take a nap.

My nap must have gone longer than I thought because when I woke up I heard “Good morning!” “How did you sleep?” and other typical morning greetings. I ran over, jumped on the couch, and looked out the window to see if it was really morning. It was indeed morning and hopefully the day my family comes home. A few hours into the day, the doorbell rang. I did not think it was my family, so I stayed where I was to save myself a trip to and from the front door. Then I heard a familiar voice. It was my mom! I bolted over as fast as I could and leaped up into my mom’s arms and smothered her with kisses. “Rosie!” Nicole and Sadie pried me out of Mom’s arms and hugged me really tight. I could not describe how great is was to be reunited with my family. They gathered my bone, bed, and leftover food and we all piled into the car to go home.  

I was so happy when we all arrived home, safe and sound. I listened to all their stories about the vacation and it sounded like they had a great time. Even though I do not like to be separated from my family, I know they will always come back for me no matter what happens.

 – By Kate Wetherall

A Biography: The Life of Katherine Paterson

Katherine Paterson is a Christian, although she might not seem that way when she writes. Since Katherine was born in China, she based the setting of her first novel in China. Her writing style, marked by a sense of longing and remorse in her books, is beloved by many readers of all ages. Although Katherine is a Christian, she writes from the perspectives of her characters instead of herself. Therefore, she often does not portray her own Christian worldview in her writing. 

Katherine was born in an unexpected place. She was born in Qingjiang, China in 1932. In China, her parents were Christian missionaries. When Katherine was five, there was an epic invasion by the Japanese. Because of the Japanese invasion of 1937, Katherine and her family fled to America. Surprisingly, Katherine and her family moved thirteen times in thirteen years, from 1937 to 1950. Although Katherine was born in China, she had the ambitions of an American.

Although Katherine started writing in Japan, in 1966 she moved back to America. While in America, Katherine received a master’s degree in Christian education. Katherine’s friend from church who came from Japan kindly told her she should become a missionary in Japan, and she did. Katherine wrote her first stunning novel, The Sign of a Chrysanthemum, in 1976 while in Japan. Her extensive studies in Japan frequently fused with her writing to form some of her best-selling novels.

Many of Katherine’s highly action packed books reflected her childhood. Her characters are often faced with dire situations. While she writes of sadness and joy, she also writes with empathy. Her inspiration for her best-selling novel Bridge to Terabithia came from a disastrous event in the life of her son David. David’s best friend, Lisa Hill, was struck by lighting and died. Katherine wanted to show his deep sorrow by writing a book for him. She dedicated the book to Lisa Hill. She knows her characters and feels every word she writes. 

Writing was the source of Katherine’s strength during her life. Katherine’s characters portray the hardships of her own youth. Having to move a lot in her youth, she must have longed for a real home. Since her writing takes place in both China and America, she must have arranged herself in two places during her life and her books. In dealing with her problems in her home and in her family, Katherine seems to give her characters hope through her own experience.

– By Victoria Scarlett Doman

A Biography: The Life of Louisa May Alcott

Louisa May Alcott, about age 25

The classic and popular book, Little Women, is made even richer by learning more about the life of the author, Louisa May Alcott. She was an avid writer, and her passion for writing grew increasingly throughout her life.

Louisa was born in 1832 and died at the age of fifty-five in 1888. In her spare time, she liked to write stories and plays for her and her sisters to dramatize. She had three sisters: Anna, the oldest, Elizabeth, the second youngest, and May, the youngest. Louisa based the sisters of Little Women on her own sisters.

Louisa and her sisters received the majority of their schooling through their father at home. In addition, they received education through close family friends such as Ralph Waldo Emerson and Nathaniel Hawthorne. Poverty forced Louisa and her sisters into the work force at a young age. Some of her work included being a teacher, seamstress, governess, domestic helper, and writer. She did these roles in many different locations, because her family moved multiple times.

The Alcott family moved to a home in Concord, Massachusetts, in 1840. There, Louisa adapted many stories and childhood memories she had with her sisters and used them in her book, Little Women. The Alcotts finally purchased and settled in a different home in Concord, which they named “Hillside.” Similar to the story-line in the book, Louisa’s younger sister, Elizabeth, died from scarlet fever, and Louisa’s older sister, Anna, married and moved away from their family. At this time, Louisa felt a strong breaking of their sisterhood. With these changes, Louisa had to work more to support the rest of her family.

One thing she did to support her family was serve in the American Civil War. This contrasts with the book, Little Women, in which the fictional father served in the war. Louisa served as a nurse in the Union Hospital for six weeks. Her letters to home were revised, published, and titled Hospital Sketches. She published many other stories and novels, often under the pen name A. M. Barnard, but Louisa used her real name in her book Little Women.

At age twenty, Louisa May Alcott published Little Women, which has become a classic and popular novel. Each of the fictional characters in the book had different traits taken from her family and friends. Louisa portrayed her passion for writing through her main character, Jo. Although, many events which occur in the book mirror the author’s life, some events which happened in Little Women never happened in Louisa’s life. For example, Louisa never married and had not planned for Jo to get married either, but her editor insisted that Jo marry.

In conclusion, Little Women is more than just a classic, fiction book. It has the Alcott family history intertwined throughout many events of the book. Understanding Louisa May Alcott’s personal life helps bring real life aspects to her fiction book. Though Louisa loved to write, her true passion was for her family and friends and the impact they made on her life.

– By Kate Wetherall

The World of Number the Stars: Families of World War II

Though wars are mostly known for their battles, it is also important to understand what life was like on the home front during those times. What was it like for children and their families during World War II? What did different countries do to keep families safe? Did the war affect jobs at all? Was it hard to get food or clothes? What did children do for fun? Did they go to school? What did they do to support the war effort? During World War II, the lives of children and their families living in America and the life of the Johansen family from Number the Stars (along with other families from Nazi occupied countries) had similarities and differences. One characteristic that was similar with all families during World War II is that their lives changed because of the war.  
 

Since much of the war was fought in Europe, Americans felt fairly safe. However, all that changed on Sunday, December 7, 1941, when the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor. Suddenly, a war that seemed so far away started to get closer to their homes in America. After that, some cities began making the people who lived there put dark paper or dark curtains over their windows so that if bombers came, they would not see the city. They also turned off the street lights and sometimes had air raid drills. Children, like Annemarie Johansen from Number the Stars, who lived in the Nazi-occupied parts of Europe, were also forced to put blackout curtains over their windows. They had a curfew during the night and soldiers on the streets. 

In Denmark and other occupied countries, some people joined the Nazi army, while others stayed with their original jobs. Many Jews in occupied countries lost their jobs because the Nazis closed down their shops. Though the war was mostly fought on non-American soil, Americans were affected by the war also. One change was that the U.S. factories that once made every day appliances began to make weapons and other war-related items. Since most of the men who worked in the factories left to fight in the war, women worked in the factories. In some states, even children worked in factories part-time. The war, as terrible as it was, helped get the United States out of the Great Depression. Because more jobs opened up in the army and in the factories that made war materials, less people were out of work.   

During the war, everyday items were hard to find. If a family lived in a Nazi-occupied country, it would be hard to find a new coat, clothes, shoes, hats, and gloves. If one of those items was found, it would be very expensive. Usually mothers would have to make and re-make dresses, shirts, and other clothing items for their children. In Number the Stars, Kirsti’s mother bought her shoes made of fish scales because there were not any other shoes that she could buy, and Kirsti needed new shoes.  It was also hard to get food items, because most of the food was used to feed the Nazi army. In America, many food items, shoes, and gas were rationed to make sure that the army had enough to eat and enough other provisions that they needed.

In Nazi-occupied countries during the war, life was very different for the children who lived there. Many of the things that children enjoyed so much disappeared when the war began. Many foods, such as ice-cream and frosted cupcakes, were almost impossible to find. Children living in Copenhagen could not visit Tivoli Gardens any more, because the Nazis had closed it and burned part of it when they came. Families did not take vacations either. Since most families had trouble just getting food on the table, they did not spend money on pleasures. Most children would play with whatever things they already had. As for school, most children continued to attend, except for Jewish children who had been prohibited from taking classes there. In America, children also went to school and made do with what toys and things that they had. They had parks and places to play, but not many things to play with, since factories that used to make toys had begun to manufacture weapons.

Sometimes in German-occupied countries, older children, like Lise Johansen and her fiancé Peter, joined resistance fighters and fought against the Nazis. A few children may have even helped as Annemarie did when she helped her Jewish friend Ellen escape to Sweden. Children in America helped the war effort in many ways also. One way was by planting Victory Gardens. When the seeds that they planted grew, they would use the produce as food for their family so the farmers could send more food to the troops overseas. They also collected leather, paper, string, cloth, and metal to be recycled and given to the factories to be made into items for the army. In Chicago, Illinois, children saved $263,148.83 worth of change for the government to buy two airplanes, 125 jeeps, and a motorcycle. Many older boys even joined the army.

The lives of children and their families were changed because of World War II. Many families gave up their old way of life to help the war effort. Many in Europe were forced to give up their old way of life. Even though many families experienced hardship during the war, they still continued to fight for what they believed was right.

– By Clara May

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Sources:

Josephson, Judith Pinkerton. Growing up in World War II. Minneapolis: Learner Publications Company, 2003. Print.

Lowry, Lois. Number the Stars. New York: Bantam Doubleday Dell Publishing Group, Inc., 1989. Print.

Nicholson, Dorinda Makanonlani. Remember World War II: Kids Who Survived Tell Their Stories.  Washington D.C.: National Geographic Society, 2005. Print.

Whitman, Sylvia. Children of the World War II Home Front. Minneapolis: Carolrhoda Books, Inc., 2001. Print. 

A Book Report: Number the Stars

In Number the Stars by Louis Lowry, ten-year-old Annemarie and her friend Ellen Rosen are waiting for World War II to end. In Copenhagen, Denmark, everywhere they look, there is a Nazi soldier ready to mock them. The Jews are being killed day by day, and suddenly the Nazis find out Ellen is a Jew. Annemarie and her family do everything they can do to keep Ellen’s family safe. As Ellen tries to blend in to Annemarie’s family, both Ellen and Annemarie must learn courage and bravery if they want to survive.

This story begins when Ellen and Annemarie are walking home from school one day. When the girls are stopped by Nazi soldiers on the street, they see just how cruel the soldiers really are. Later in this book, Annemarie and Ellen move into Annemarie’s uncle’s house. There they learn to have faith and trust that everything will turn out okay. Another scene where Annemarie must practice bravery is when she is sent into the woods with a package to give to her uncle who is at the dock in his fishing boat, waiting to smuggle Ellen and her family out of Denmark. She doesn’t know what is in the package or where it came from. As she is delivering this package, the Nazi soldiers stop her. Annemarie decides to act immature like her little sister Kristi would act. Acting like this saves Ellen and other Jews and gets them safely to Sweden. 

 

In this book, I learned that we should always stand up for what is right, even if it means getting hurt. Louis Lowry made Annemarie a very lovable character, because she stood up for her friend no matter what happened to her. She made it so clear that you should be brave and stand up for what is right even if it means getting in trouble. This book is a page turner – it will leave readers wanting to keep reading until the very end of the book. Number the Stars has been given many awards including the Newberry Award Medal, and has been named the book of the year by the School Library Journal.  

– By Leigh Collins