Review: Eden's Outcasts: The Story of Louisa May Alcott and Her Father

Eden's Outcasts: The Story of Louisa May Alcott and Her Father by John Matteson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is a detailed biography of the lives of Louisa May Alcott, author of Little Women, and her father Amos Bronson Alcott. To get a full sense of who Louisa was, one needs to get a fair picture of her father and her entire family. Bronson was of the group of Transcendentalists which included the likes of Emerson, Thoreau, and Fuller. Bronson, an author himself, educator, and speaker did not always live up to the same stature of his peers and the family often struggled because of it. His wife and their four daughters were often left alone to handle the home situation while Bronson traveled for business. It was during these times that the women spent together that gave Louisa inspiration to write Little Women and many other published works. Despite having a strained relationship at times, Louisa and Bronson became close in their later years.

This is a great book for any fan of LMA and the Little Women series. I wasn't always a fan of Bronson and reading about his life was my least favorite part of the book; however, it really helps to understand him and his thoughts and ideas to understand Louisa and what drove and inspired her.

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