Updated: May 14, 2010
Much of Louisa May Alcott's literary success stemmed from her experiences as a young woman growing up in the mid to late 1800's with her three sisters in New England. Alcott was born in Germantown, Pennsylvania on November 29, 1832.She spent her life in Boston and Concord, Massachusetts, where her vivid imagination and determination led to her career as an author, despite her family's economic hardship. She published short stories and poetry in magazines, but she found literary success when Little Women was published in 1868.
In fact, there were many similarities between author Louisa May Alcott and her character "Jo March" in the semi-autobiographical novel Little Women. Like "Jo," Alcott grew up as a self-proclaimed "tom boy." She also wrote plays she and her sisters would act out and shared many of the same bonds of sisterhood and coming of age scenarios that make the book a beloved classic.
Alcott published 30 books and collections of stories over her lifetime. In addition to her prolific writing career, Alcott was also a teacher, seamstress, abolitionist and women's suffrage activist. She died on March 6, 1888.
Discover more about this American author in the quiz and gallery of works below.
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