Book Report on Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

In 1868, Louisa May Alcott wrote the book Little Women in

"response to a publisher's request for a 'girl's book'". Louisa wrote

this book by calling upon her own memories of her childhood and putting

them down on paper. This is the story of four young girls, Meg, Jo, Beth,

and Amy March, and how they endure all the trouble and hardships that come

along during their lives. They are raised by their mother and by their

father, and many interesting characters pop up along the way, such as

Laurie, their good-natured next-door neighbor; Laurie later falls in love

with Jo but ends up marrying Amy. In the beginning of the story they are

all fairly young, the youngest being twelve years old, and their mother,

whom they call Marmee, is left to guide them while their father is away

fighting in the war. As they grow and mature, they learn many hard

lessons about life. For instance, there was the time when Amy, the

youngest, suffered her first punishment in school. She carries that

anger, humility, and embarrassment with her for the rest of her life.

There were also more serious lessons to be learned, like when one of the

sisters, Beth, dies. By the end of the book, they really have turned from

little women into real women.

Jo was the second oldest of the four sisters. Her birth name was

Josephine, but she always thought that it sounded too feminine, so she

shortened it to Jo. Clearly, Jo was one of the main characters of the

story because many of the events centered on her and the audience learned

more about who she was. She was a tomboy at heart and hated all the prim

and proper ways of the ladies in those days. Jo was very blunt in her

speaking and always said exactly what was on her mind. However, most

people felt right at ease speaking with her because she had a way of

making them feel comfortable, despite her frankness. Jo was the one who

first had enough courage to go over to the frightening house next door and

talk with the Laurence Boy, whom they knew as Laurie after that, and

became the best of friends with him. Despite that one good trait, Jo has

an uncontrollable temper that can erupt at any time. This is quite

evident one day when Amy burns one of Jo's most precious items-a book that

she wrote stories in and had for years.