Louisa May Alcott's Christmas Treasury

by Louisa May Alcott, C. Michael Dudash (Illustrations), Stephen W. Hines (Editor)

A publishing first - the first and only complete collection of all Louisa May Alcott's Christmas short stories and novellas. Louisa May Alcott has been loved by generations of readers for her timeless stories like Little Women, Little Men, and Jo's Boys. Few authors have equaled her ability to bring characters to life in such a way that readers truly care for and believe in them-and are inspired to be like them. Now for the first time, all of Alcott's known Christmas short stories and novellas have been gathered into a single exquisite collection, which is sure to brighten the holidays for book lovers. Readers of all ages will cherish these fifteen enchanting tales filled with hope, sorrow, faith, joy, redemption, strength, and goodness. Louisa May Alcott's Christmas Treasury is a wonderful gift for oneself or a loved one.

The quiet little woman --
A hospital Christmas --
What Polly found in her stocking --
Rosa's tale --
Mrs. Podgers' teapot --
Peace from heaven --
A country Christmas --
Gwen's adventure in the snow --
A Christmas dream, and how it came true --
A song --
A merry Christmas (Little women) --
What love can do --
Tessa's surprises --
A Christmas turkey --
Becky's Christmas dream --
Kate's choice --
Bertie's box --
A new way to spend Christmas --
Tilly's Christmas --
The virutes of Louisa May Alcott's characters

Genres: Christmas, Classics, Fiction, Short Stories, Holiday, Childrens Classics, Adult Fiction

290 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2002

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

[Christine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hands down the most enjoyable and heartfelt book of short stories I have ever read. I cannot recommend more highly.

[Lesle · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Christmas Treasury is a collection of stories that one could easily curl up with a soft blanket and a cup of tea. The stories are about the true meaning of what Christmas is all about.
A couple of my favorites!
Rosa’s Tale: Rosa is about a horse and on Christmas Eve she is granted the ability to speak to Belinda about her fantastic life.
Mrs. Podgers’ Teapot: A heartwarming story between two middle aged people who have loved one another for a long time and are finally brought together.
The Quiet Little Woman: This story does a great job of making you think about people you might take for granted their feelings.
The stories are a bit whimsical and very quaint. My favorite part is getting to see how people truly celebrated Christmas.
These stories are perfect!

[Gina House · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5🌟 A festive and hopeful collection of Christmas stories for all ages. I enjoyed reading Louisa May Alcott's Christmas Treasury and I was especially happy that the Christmas section of Little Women was included. All of these holiday short stories has a lesson to learn about charity, kindness, thoughtfulness, and generosity (of both mind and spirit). It was very slightly preachy, but not in a bad way. This treasury kindled a deep sense of nostalgia for an old-fashioned Christmas celebration. I'm glad I have this book in my Christmas book collection. I love the read and gold foil dust jacket—absolutely reminiscent of the holiday season!

[Shauna · Rating 5 out of 5]

If I could give this book more stars I would. This is probably the best collection of Christmas tales that I have ever read. Each tale caused me to feel both heartache and warm happiness in turn. The book reminds me how to be my best self during the Christmas season, and to lift my eyes above my little world to take in the world of others. I think my favorite of the tales were Kate's Choice and Bertie's Box.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Alcott is among my favorite authors. Her style is so wonderful and beautiful. I love how she saw beauty and goodness all around.
This collection was a mixed bag. My favorite of the collection was Kate's choice.

[bethany m. planton]

Louisa May Alcott plus Christmas - What could be better? I loved this collection of Alcott's Christmas stories and poems. I read a little at a time so I could savor it.

[Meghan John · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a charming read for the month of December. Louisa May Alcott delighted me once again.

[Dianne · Rating 3 out of 5]

I know it's a little early for Christmas books, but our book club chose this for our November selection so here we are. And besides I'm accumulating such a collection of "read this every Christmas" books that there isn't time in December for all of them anymore. I'm going to have to start earlier or give some of them up.

If you loved "Little Women" then you will probably love this collection of Christmas stories too. They are each centered around a young girl, and are sweet, wholesome and altogether lovely. Each one delivers a moral lesson, but it's done gently and isn't preachy. It's everything we know and love about Louisa May Alcott.

Unfortunately I don't think this was a good time for me to read this one. I simply haven't been in the right frame of mind and so didn't enjoy the stories as much as I should have.

I will make a point of reading them again, closer to Christmas, and I know I'll find them as touching and satisfying as I ought to then. I'll let them convince me that right always wins, that good always comes to those who do good, and that hard work is always rewarded. I want to believe those things and it's easier at Christmastime. The beautiful music, the sentimental movies and stories all tend to soften our hearts and for a few weeks we believe in a world that sparkles and shines. We know that come January we will go back to the real world, where good things do happen, but not all the time and people are good, but not all the time. It's fun to take a break from those realities in December and let down the walls we build to protect ourselves. At Christmastime we open up and let life be what we want it to be all year round. The stories in this book will be perfect then.

"Christmas Treasury" would be a lovely gift for any reader. It has a very nice red hard cover and a beautiful glossy dust jacket. From little girls to grandmothers, I think any girl would enjoy reading this collection.

[Cassandra · Rating 4 out of 5]

What an awesome book. I love Louisa May Alcott and was excited to find a compilation of her Christmas stories. The stories teach great lessons without being too preachy and often moved me to tears.

[Beth Farley · Rating 4 out of 5]

All her Christmas stories really have the feel of Little Women. Wonderful!

[Ari DeBenedictis · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found this at my parents house and in the front cover, it had a cute letter written from my grandma to my sister back in like 2010. So I said, why not, cause it's Christmas and I want to get in the Christmas spirit. Plus, it's written by Louisa May Alcott (although as much as I love the story line of Little Women, wasn't a huge fan of the book). I found myself thinking the same thing about this book - I just wasn't really a fan. This book is a compilation of about 20 short stories and have something to do with Christmas. I feel bad for saying this, but I found most of the stories boring and most of the time, I skimmed through them. Of the 20 stories, I would say I really only enjoyed about 3-5 of them. There was one about Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy, which I of course LOVED so that was a perk. But that was about it...

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

A collection of Christmas-themed writings by Louisa May Alcott which includes an excerpt from Little Women. Many of the stories are about poor children who are rewarded for their goodness, but there are others about animals finding homes and adults finding love. The stories are pretty sentimental and have a religious component, but they are all heartfelt in their view that Christmas is about hope, faith and charity. Readers familiar with Alcott's biography will recognize that many of the events in this collection mirror events in her life. Readers who enjoy old fashioned Christmas stories will appreciate this collection.

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovely little collection of darling short Christmas tales primarily focusing on charity, good will towards your fellow man and moral choices. There were a couple tales that were repetitive, but overall a wonderful way to get in the spirit of Christmas and a reminder of what’s really important during this time. It would be a nice gift for a reader and would be nice to revisit some stories each year, especially to read aloud as a family.

[Kelsey Bryant · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sweet stories. Some of them felt the same, but there was a surprising variety among most of them. My favorite was "Kate's Choice," which I've read from another collection before.

[QNPoohBear · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book contains Christmas-themed stories by the author of Little Women. Some of the stories are newly collected here and others have been published in other anthologies. Most contain a heavy-handed moral about charitable giving similar to A Christmas Carol. Some of the stories resemble Lucy Maud Montgomery's later tales of orphans and country life.

This is a nice anthology to add to any Louisa May Alcott collection. Small two-tone illustrations are placed throughout the book. They don't add anything to the stories but they're very lifelike and pretty. The cover is gorgeous and made to look like a red morocco leather and gilt engraved book of the 19th century. It's actually regular hardcover boards but I love that it looks period. My only complaint about this volume is that it doesn't include a bibliography. I'd like to know when and where each story was published.

[Ginny · Rating 4 out of 5]

This collection of stories was a very inspirational read for the holidays. All the little/big acts of kindness were so beautiful and could melt your heart. I hope to spread this sense of charity and love over the holidays.

[emma grace · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a wonderful collection of stories and poems, that are amusing, charming, and yet full of Christmas spirit. I really liked this one, and plan to read it for many Christmases to come!

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

I truly loved these short stories so Dickens in nature and with the theme of Christmas. Two of my favorite ingredients.

The first two stories tell of little girls in sad situations, they of course result in a good ending. The third is told from the point of view of a horse. A horse who tells of how her human owners cared and did not care for her. Again the story ends up with a happy ending.

The book also includes a short biography (5 pages) about Alcott. Revealing details I didn't know. There is so much in this little volume. I purchased mine from a small bookseller. It was tucked between some very thick classical volumes and was barely noticeable. What a great find!

Highly recommend! Especially as a Christmas gift for young readers.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is probably my third or fourth time through this book. I am always surprised by how many of the stories I forget, even though I've read them so many times. This time it has been almost 5 years since my last read, so I understand my forgetfulness this time. The stories I do remember are like bumping into old friends I forgot. It made me happy to read them again. And the ones I had forgotten about are like finding new friends you are already confident you are going to love. Some of them maybe are a little too sweet, but by the end of the book, those last few stories always have me in tears. I highly highly recommend this as a sweet light read that will make you laugh and cry and love your fellow humans even more.

[Sandra Strange · Rating 3 out of 5]

This collection presents stories Alcott wrote to appear in contemporary 19th Century popular magazines, sometimes as serials. Included is an excerpt from Little Women--the chapter of the girls' sacrificing for Christmas. All of the stories are sweet and moralistic, almost always centered around someone struggling without resources, making moral and usually unselfish actions and decisions, then ultimately receiving justly earned rewards. The stories are worth reading and somewhat inspirational, harkening back to times more innocent, though with struggles much more serious, that stretch the characters more than today's modern concerns.

[Elizabeth7781 · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a charming book! Each December, I re-read Dickens' A Christmas Carol, but this year I decided to read more short Christmas stories. To my surprise, I discovered a number of Christmas stories not only by Dickens but by Anthony Trollope and Louisa May Alcott as well.

I loved the stylized writing in these stories, a long bygone era, and the tidy ending with a moral bow. This would make a sweet read for a middle elementary age child but this adult quite appreciated the stories too.

[Cathie Maud · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some stories were charming, others bordered on excessively fantastical in a sickly sweet manner. Perhaps I’m now jaded but you can be as kind and hardworking and good, and someone will see it more in another, true or not, because they favour them. I just don’t see much reality in goodness being justly rewarded as these stories seem to heavily imply. I’ll still do my best, but not with the view that I’ll be noticed or “rewarded”.

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Christmas Treasury by Louisa May Alcott is a collection of short stories that one wants to curl up with next to a fire. They tell stories of the true meaning of Christmas and of helping out your fellow man at the holidays and all year round. Interspersed in the stories is also an Introduction that contains biographical detail on Louisa May Alcott as well as interesting points in editor’s notes after some of the stories. I was a bit disappointed that these points weren’t after all of the stories. The end also contained a section on the virtues of Louisa May Alcott’s characters.

A Christmas Treasury reminded me that Louisa’s father, Bronson Alcott was a man of high ideals that didn’t believe in demeaning himself with physical work to support his family. Instead, Louisa’s mother, Abba became the first paid social worker in America and supported the family. Louisa made it her life’s goal to become a paid author and to support her family with her earnings. After the success of Little Women, Louisa was able to pull her family out of poverty for good and also was able to pay back family friend Ralph Waldo Emerson who supported the family during times of trouble. These acts of charity by friends to help the family stayed with Louisa as she became an adult and are often seen in her Christmas stories. I could also see the influence of Charles Dickens in the works and indeed that author as well as A Christmas Carol were referenced in a couple of stories.

My favorite stories in the collection included:

The Quiet Little Woman - Patty is a young orphan who is adopted by a family to be a servant girl. The family overlooks her and doesn’t take them with her to visit their Aunt for Christmas. Their Aunt reminds them about Patty being a person with feelings and shows them all of the letters she has received from Patty through the year. This story did a great job of making the reader think about people you might take for granted and how everyone has feelings.

A Hospital Christmas – This story is set in a hospital during the Civil War. Louisa May Alcott was a nurse during the Civil War and I found this story to be heartwarming and also a good look at the Civil War hardships. The story takes an unflinching look at both the negatives and positives of life in the hospital at that time and how thinking positive, and sharing what little treasures you have can make Christmas happy for all involved.

Rosa’s Tale – Rosa is a horse and on Christmas Eve she is granted the ability to speak and tell young Belinda about her fantastical life. It reminded me a bit of Black Beauty.

Mrs. Podgers’ Teapot – A heartwarming love story between two middle aged people who have loved one another for a long time and are finally brought together.

A Christmas Turkey – A family of four children is having a hard time as father spends all of his money on drink rather than feeding his family. The four children think of ways to earn money to be able to purchase a turkey for Christmas. Their ingenuity and the charity of others help them to gather a feast for Christmas and may even bring a Christmas miracle for the family.

Bertie’s Box – A young boy hears his rich mother read a letter requesting charity from a poor woman. While the mother and Aunt Jane are jaded, young Bertie builds a box with all of his best things in it and gets his family to really think about the true meaning of Christmas. They send the box off and make Christmas wonderful for a poor family in Iowa. This was a touching story about the true meaning of giving.

A New Way to Spend Christmas – A story of a lady of charity who visits the poor children on Randalls Island in New York City. It describes the sad conditions that the children are living in at different facilities and the cheer they bring with their small offerings. It brought a tear to my eye all of these years later and made me wish I could help out.

One question not answered in the text was why were most of the stories “adapted by Stephen W. Hines?” What was changed in the stories? I am curious.

A couple of my favorite quotes were as follows:

“Heroes are always expected to be young and comely, also fierce, melancholy, or at least what novel readers call ‘interesting’; but I am forced to admit that Mrs. Podger was none of these. Half the real beauty, virtue, and romance of the world gets put into humble souls, hidden in plain bodies.” (Mrs. Podger’s Teapot)

“’He can give you one thing, Tilly,’ her mother said. ‘He can give you the pleasure of doing good. That is one of the sweetest things in life, and it can be enjoyed by the poor as well as the rich.’” (Tilly’s Christmas)

Overall, this was a wonderful collection of heartwarming stories about the true meaning of Christmas. The characters are vintage Louisa May Alcott and often display qualities that she thought were important through her own life experiences. It’s been over ten years since I first read this collection, and it’s reminded me that it is a good book to read every few years for Christmas.

Book Source: This was a Christmas gift to me from my Mother over ten years ago. Thank-you!

This review was first posted on my blog at: http://lauragerold.blogspot.com/2016/...

[Laura (acquariusgb) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received this book as a gift. It was a great read during the Christmas holidays. Even though I had already read some of the stories,it was nice reading them again and read some new Christmas stories. Most of the stories have a moral theme, a bit like the Christmas carol.
Still, you will be transformed in a classic old-fashioned Christmas atmosphere.

[Heidi · Rating 2 out of 5]

Well-written, as one would expect from Louisa May Alcott, but these saccharine-sweet Christmas stories just didn't do it for me. No conflict or drama, and every story was about a little girl who learned a Good Moral Lesson. It was a book club selection, but I only got halfway through before deciding I can only handle so much sweetness.

[Becky · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved these sweet old stories, especially so after reading that Alcott's childhood was one of poverty. She never forgot the generosity of Ralph Waldo Emerson who helped her family when they were in great need. The stories in this book reflect the goodness of others and the way charity leads to transformed lives. I would have loved them as a girl who also loved Little Women.

[Emily Baker · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️
Assuming this book is geared towards young readers, it is a sweet virtuous collection that would be great for a read aloud Christmas tradition and praises values like self sacrifice and hard work. For an adult reader however I found it to be fairly simplistic and predictable. I love Alcott but didn’t find this collection to be very engaging however wholesome it may be.

[Tracy · Rating 5 out of 5]

My favorite book when I was young,and still is one of my favorite books was Little Women. I enjoyed reading these short stories by Louisa May Alcott. Back to a simpler time and a reminder of what Christmas is really about. The birth of our Lord Jesus; giving; and caring for others.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A number of these short stories were available for free on hoopla audio. I listened to all the ones I had access to and thought they were cute little snippets, but of course nothing like a classic tale of Louisa May Alcott "Little women"💕

[Jenny · Rating 3 out of 5]

A sweet collection of little Christmas stories--some were overly treacly for my taste, and they're better in small doses than read all at once, but I'm glad I pulled this collection out this year. 2020 can use more happy endings.