Contents

Prologue: “Our Book”

PART I  img  THE MAKING OF A CLASSIC

1
“Pegging away”: The Road to Little Women

2
“We really lived most of it”: Making Up Little Women

3
“Fresh, sparkling, . . . full of soul”: The Phenomenon of Little Women

Part II  img  THE LIFE OF A CLASSIC

4
“See her . . . living . . . the immortal Jo!”: Little Women on Stage and Screen

5
“The mother of us all”:
Little Women’s Cultural and Literary Influence

6
“A divided house of a book”: Reading Little Women

Part III  img  A CLASSIC FOR TODAY

7
“A private book for girls”: Can Boys Read Little Women?

8
“Being someone”: Growing Up Female with Little Women

9
“Wanting to be Rory, but better”: Little Women and Girls’ Stories Today

Acknowledgments

Notes

Index