Little Women (Oxford World's Classics) [Paperback]

Louisa May Alcott (Author), Valerie Alderson (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 15, 2009 | Series: Oxford World's Classics

This classic story of the March family women and their lives in New England during the Civil War has remained enduringly popular since its publication in 1868. Poor, argumentative, loving, and optimistic, the March sisters struggle to supplement their family's meager income and realize their own dreams. This highly autobiographical novel shows us women who are strong-minded and independent in their determination to control their own destiny. The introduction to this edition provides a fascinating history of the Alcotts, and a biographical history of Louisa Alcott's own struggles as a writer.

About the Series: For over 100 years Oxford World's Classics has made available the broadest spectrum of literature from around the globe. Each affordable volume reflects Oxford's commitment to scholarship, providing the most accurate text plus a wealth of other valuable features, including expert introductions by leading authorities, voluminous notes to clarify the text, up-to-date bibliographies for further study, and much more.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 7-12-Louisa May Alcott's story about the four March sisters who learn the hard lessons of poverty and of growing up in New England during the Civil War.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

How would one describe this latest recording of the classic story from Alcott (Little Men, Audio Reviews, LJ 11/15/96)? The answer must be, clear, competent, and unexciting. Laura Grafton is a precise reader, but her voice lacks expressiveness, and she makes little attempt to vocally differentiate (and/or animate) the characters. The result is an inoffensive and slightly dull rendering. There's nothing wrong; the tapes just won't grab the attention of the casual listener. The producer has made a praiseworthy attempt to reduce costs by having each cassette side carry double text. At $22.95, this tape set is an excellent value. Unfortunately, this double-track format requires a stereo cassette player with a fully functioning balance control. Most portable cassette players and some car stereo systems do not have this feature. Since, at least anecdotally, a large percentage of recreational audiocassette library borrowers are commuters or exercisers, one should consider whether this format would be used by patrons. Libraries purchasing this format might also consider purchasing (and lending) the associated headphone adaptor plugs. Recommended for libraries with limited audiobook budgets and/or appropriate user populations.AI. Pour-El, Iowa State Univ., Ames
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 530 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA (March 15, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0199538115
• ISBN-13: 978-0199538119
• Product Dimensions: 5 x 0.9 x 7.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (940 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #869,884 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Louisa May Alcott was both an abolitionist and a feminist. She is best known for Little Women (1868), a semi-autobiographical account of her childhood years with her sisters in Concord, Massachusetts. Alcott, unlike Jo, never married: "... because I have fallen in love with so many pretty girls and never once the least bit with any man." She was an advocate of women's suffrage and was the first woman to register to vote in Concord, Massachusetts.

Amazon Author Rankbeta 

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#98 in Books > Literature & Fiction > Classics

#98 in Books > Literature & Fiction > Classics

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

188 of 199 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars "Little Women," - The Original October 18, 2009

By Renee Shields

Format:Kindle Edition

Like the previous reviewer, I was surprised to find that he book I had been occasionally rereading for over 50 years was NOT the original novel. My own copy, much loved and well thumbed, has been with me since I was a ten year old. I bought the Kindle version just to have it in my portable library, since I thought I knew it almost by heart. To my surprise, when I started looking it over, I found that the book was not the same at all. My original copy must have been "modernized" at some point. All of the familiar passages were there, but there was a great deal that I didn't remember reading before. Some of that was a specifically Victorian kind of moralizing, but there was also some expansion of the story.. I'm not sure that I would have appreciated it all when I was younger, but I found it a delight to read now, as an example of a book of its times. Now I'm going to download the rest of the Alcott catalogue and see how it compares to the books I thought were the originals when I read them many years ago. This was still an exemplary book. It will always be one of the classics.

113 of 120 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars An American classic. March 15, 2009

By Michael Blaski

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

I am a 14-year-old girl and just got around to reading Little Women about a year ago. It is a great American classic written by Louisa May Alcott. It is about the four March sisters: Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy. They live in New England during the Civil War. They are poor, but they try to make the best of it as they grow and learn. We follow them through good times and bad as they, with help from Marmee and Laurie (their next-door neighbor), bear their own unique burdens. Meg's is poverty, Jo's is her temper, Beth's burden is not being able to play on a piano, and Amy's is her unaristocratic nose. (as funny as that sounds) You'll fall in love with Jo's oddities just as much as with Beth's gentil manners. It is a great book that everyone should read!

204 of 226 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars Whole Story edition is only half a story - I'm shocked! September 16, 2005

By bensmomma VINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover

I was so, so looking forward to reading "Little Women" to my daughter, so she could be caught up in it as I was at an early age. I particularly chose the "Whole Story" edition because of its broad margins, easy-to-scan pages, and charming illustrations and margin notes that add historical texture to the story.

Imagine my shock to discover that at the end of THIS edition, Jo has not written a book, Amy has not gone off to Europe, Professor Baer has not made an appearance of any kind and....you'll never believe this....Beth is still carrying on a conversation (I'm trying not to spoil the plot of the real thing here).

That's because, apparently, "Little Women" was initially published in two parts ("Little Women" and "Good Wives"), which are generally published as the same book. Whole Story has chosen to stop at the half-way point, so much of the story you remember, loved, cried, and laughed over is just not here.

Imagine getting only the first half of Tom Sawyer...leave him stranded on the island forever!

I feel completely conned. It's a five-star story - make that maybe even a seven-star story - but it's a one-star edition.