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Scribbles, Sorrows, and Russet Leather Boots: The Life of Louisa May Alcott
CCBC Review:
An unvarnished examination of Louisa May Alcott’s life draws heavily on her personal correspondence and journals, providing a nuanced sense of the Alcott family dynamics and challenges of her childhood, and the resulting responsibility she felt as an adult to provide for her relatives. Louisa and her mother Abby both struggled with the heavy load of caring for the rest of the family, at times coping with depression and hopelessness, while Bronson routinely focused on his intellectual and philosophical goals, seemingly oblivious to the harsh realities of their existence. Speculation about Louisa’s adult romantic life is unverified but inferred from references in her diaries. The author’s protracted failing health, likely a result of mercury given as treatment for typhoid pneumonia contracted during her work as a Civil War nurse, is chronicled even as her determination to continue to write and publish until near the end of her life remained steadfast. ©2022 Cooperative Children’s Book Center
Illustrated by Diana Sudyka
CCBC Age Recommendation: Age 12 and older
Age Range:
Grades 6-8 (Ages 11-13)
Grades 9-12 (Age 14 and older)
Formats:
Biography, Autobiography and Memoir
Substantial Narrative Non-Fiction
Subjects:
19th Century
Biography
Depression
Families
Girls and Women
Illness and Disease
Writers and Writing
Publisher:
Candlewick
Publish Year: 2021
Pages: 408
ISBN: 9780763694357
CCBC Location: Non-Fiction, 920 Alcott