Louisa May Alcott was born in Pennsylvania in eighteen thirty-two. She was the second of four sisters. she had one older sister, Anna. And two younger sisters, Elizabeth, called Beth, and May. Her perants were Bronson and Abigail Alcott. Her father was an educator and social reformer.

The Alcotts did not have much money. Louisa worked to help support her family. She tried teaching, sewing, and taking care of children. She did not like any of these jobs.

Alcott wrote books for adults, as well as children. She published these under another name--A.M.Barnard. These books were published before" Little Women" made her famous. They were very different from her children's stories. they were about love, power, and unhappiness. They have been publishesd again in the United States.

One book is called''Behind a Mask: The Unknown Thrillers of Louisa May Alcott." The book includes four mystery stories. Another is called "the Lost Stories of Louisa May Alcott." These stories are about love, betrayal, and illegal drugs.

Alcott's most famous book, "Little Women", tells the story of the March family of Concord, Massachusetts. The story begins during the American Civil War in the eighteen sixties. Mister March is away from home. He is with the troops of the Union Army. He is a religious worker. Missus March is raising her four daughters by herself.

The March family is very close. They do many things together. They do not have much money. They suffer shortages caused by the war. Yet they share what they have with people who are in need. Alcott's book, "Little Women", is still extremely popular. Women who read the book when they were young often give it to their daughters. Some famous American women even claim they decided to become writers after reading how to March became a writer in "Little Women".