The Inheritance (Penguin Classics) by Louisa May Alcott (1998) Paperback

by Louisa May Alcott

Genres: Classics, Fiction

Paperback

About the author

Louisa May Alcott was an American novelist, short story writer, and poet best known for writing the novel Little Women (1868) and its sequels Good Wives (1869), Little Men (1871) and Jo's Boys (1886). Raised in New England by her transcendentalist parents, Abigail May Alcott and Amos Bronson Alcott, she grew up among many well-known intellectuals of the day, including Margaret Fuller, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Henry David Thoreau, and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.
Alcott's family suffered from financial difficulties, and while she worked to help support the family from an early age, she also sought an outlet in writing. She began to receive critical success for her writing in the 1860s. Early in her career, she sometimes used pen names such as A.M. Barnard, under which she wrote lurid short stories and sensation novels for adults that focused on passion and revenge.
Published in 1868, Little Women is set in the Alcott family home, Orchard House, in Concord, Massachusetts, and is loosely based on Alcott's childhood experiences with her three sisters, Abigail May Alcott Nieriker, Elizabeth Sewall Alcott, and Anna Bronson Alcott Pratt. The novel was well-received at the time and is still popular today among both children and adults. It has been adapted for stage plays, films, and television many times.
Alcott was an abolitionist and a feminist and remained unmarried throughout her life. She also spent her life active in reform movements such as temperance and women's suffrage. She died from a stroke in Boston on March 6, 1888, just two days after her father's death.

Reviews

[Laila · Rating 4 out of 5]

17 year old louis may ate down

percy lowkey actually the perfect man and it’s crazy to say that almost 200 hundred years later he’s still genuinely a great guy

i will be watching the movie so tune in on my letterboxd in 3-5 business days!

[Lydia · Rating 2 out of 5]

ok so I did not like the main character at all, I thought she was quite whiny and like "oh! I'm so petite" coded

[Heather Dreier · Rating 4 out of 5]

How did I not read this before? Charming little story.

[Shawna · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you’re a fan of this genre, you’ll likely appreciate this gem of a story. In fact, it could be adapted into a fantastic movie because it is ripe with plot twists and conflict resolution, as well as the hoped for romantic ending.

[Lablueann]

Such a nice story, written when Louisa May Alcott was just 17! The movie adaptation with Thomas Gibson, although differing in some ways from the book is one of my favourite period movies as well

[Sasha · Rating 3 out of 5]

i see in the reviews that some people didn’t like edith. i personally loved her! even though she’s not given much complexity and much personality outside of being nice, she’s likable in the fact that edith throughout this whole story is just trying to vibe. all she does is sit there quietly looking around grateful that she’s not dead. she’s a kind person who deserves all good. edith and tori vega sit at the same table!
i think lady ida had the potential to be complex but fell flat. everyone else is forgettable. i liked the part with that man that edith rejected that was well written.

it was a cute read but not that memorable

[Olivia · Rating 3 out of 5]

A simple story written by 17 yr old Louisa May Alcott that has me cheering for the main character to find love— and luckily the ending was expected but satisfying & sweet.

[Joelle Wyminga · Rating 3 out of 5]

An all around cute and sweet little story.

[Jeri Stockdale · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was Louisa's first story, written in 1849, when she was only seventeen years old. It's a sweet tale of an orphaned Italian girl taken in by a wealthy English family to be a companion and governess for the family's daughter. She is accepted and loved due to her sweet temperament and abundant virtues, but she knows her place, and is resigned to being separate from the family and alone. Her past is a mystery, but there is a grace and nobility about her. This, plus her beauty and virtues draw young noblemen to her, but she is resigned to life apart. Amazing character development for one so young. An excellent engaging story that kept me reading.

[Carrie DelaPena · Rating 1 out of 5]

Wow, this book is so corny! I can see why Alcott never published the romance that she wrote at age 17. The repetition of "pure, reverence, holy, noble, brave" made it even worse. I'm going to spoil the ending--she tore up her inheritance because she would rather have the unreliable family. Especially in the era of 1800's with no trace of social welfare I find the resolution ridiculous. I'll have to re-read Little Women to remember what a great storyteller Alcott became.

[bærnie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sweet, very sweet. Reading from a young Louisa’s hand was endearing. I felt it gave insight into Louisa and what remained significant to her throughout her life, and the common threads throughout her work.
Though she obviously hadn’t come into her own yet, and the story jilted up and down in emotion at times, her talent and heart shine through despite imperfection. The zeal and love of virtue was charm itself, and in short, it read as a sweet, simple fairytale-like story from a growing and ever-dear soul.

(Also, Percy coming from Louisa made the utmost sense in the world. It was so cute.)


Note: the movie doesn’t attempt at faithfulness, and some of the sweetest points of Louisa’s voice were missing

[Monique Bowman]

enjoyed reading this book

[Tiffany E-P · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF

[Carolyn Shelton · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was so happy to find this book on Thriftbooks! Her very first novel. It is a sweet gem. Lovely story of what it means to have a good heart and to forgive.

[Bella Kierce · Rating 5 out of 5]

After visiting Orchard house I gained a lot more context into Louisa’s personal life that she pours into her stories which makes it all the more meaningful.

[Sarah]

Piousity! Written when she was 17, which shows through in the soap opera. This feels like Jo’s play.

[S. A. · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 stars

[Donna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Charmingly written by seventeen year old LMA.

[Keyri_weyri · Rating 4 out of 5]

not her best but still enjoyable