Rate this book

Clear rating

1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

Civil War Hospital Sketches (Bedford Series in History & Culture)

3.68 of 5 stars 3.68 · rating details · 527 ratings · 59 reviews

Before Little Women brought her wider fame, Alcott achieved recognition for her accounts of her work as a volunteer nurse in an army hospital. Written during the winter of 1862-63, her lively dispatches revealed the desperate realities of battlefield medicine as well as the tentative first steps of women in military service.

Paperback, 80 pages

Published February 10th 2006 by Dover Publications (first published 1863)

more details... edit details

Get a copy:

More…

Friend Reviews

To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up.

Lists with This Book

This book is not yet featured on Listopia. Add this book to your favorite list »

Community Reviews

(showing 1-30 of 1,412)

filter | sort: default (?) | rating details

Sep 05, 2011 Ami Blue rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Alcott's Hospital Sketches is, in the Bedford edition edited by Alice Fahs, a 6-chaptered memoir of Alcott's half a year spent nursing for the Union Army in Georgetown, outside DC, during the Civil War. I add the disclaimer because Fahs mentions in her introduction that the sixth "chapter" is actually a letter tacked on after the publication of the original five-chaptered Hospital Sketches. And it shows. I didn't shudder or cringe at anything Alcott wrote in those first five chapters even though...more Alcott's Hospital Sketches is, in the Bedford edition edited by Alice Fahs, a 6-chaptered memoir of Alcott's half a year spent nursing for the Union Army in Georgetown, outside DC, during the Civil War. I add the disclaimer because Fahs mentions in her introduction that the sixth "chapter" is actually a letter tacked on after the publication of the original five-chaptered Hospital Sketches. And it shows. I didn't shudder or cringe at anything Alcott wrote in those first five chapters even though one of them, "A Night," describes the slow, sentimental death of her beloved John. But in that final letter, the entire tone of the book changes from tragicomedy, dark and gritty, to the grotesque, all but describing the sounds arms make when they're being sawed off by a rougher-than-necessary Dr. P.

Chapter one, "Obtaining Supplies," covers how it is that Alcott made up her mind to (all but) join the Army as a nurse. It establishes a tone of playful cheeriness that pervades the novel? memoir? journal? -- especially in light of difficulties, such as all the gender-related obstacles she faces when trying to get a rail pass from Concord, MA, to Washington, DC, as well as all the other permissions a woman of her time needs to travel alone.

Chapter two, "A Forward Movement," recounts her trip to DC and then onto the hospital, which she dubs The Hurley-Burley House, with stops in New York, Philadelphia, and Baltimore along the way. Her first view of Washington, DC, "a spacious place, its visible magnitude quite took my breath away, and of course I quoted Randolph's expression, 'a city of magnificent distances,' as I suppose every one does when they see it," so squared with my own experience that, had I not been already endeared to LMA, she would have had me right there. We also see quite a bit more development of her alter ego, Tribulation Periwinkle, in this chapter, whom I believe LMA uses to call attention to the sentimental irony of her usually gendered or classed situations -- as well as to contribute to the sense that LMA is more aware of what's going on than a simple retelling would allow.

Chapter three, "A Day," takes us through a day-in-the-life of a quirky, intellectual, sarcastic Army "Nurse" -- and we begin to see just how loose a term that actually is, as the methods used in these hospitals seem so illogical and foreign to a germaphobe like me or any contemporary reader.

Chapter four, the most sentimental and, appropriately, dark chapter, is "A Night," in which she recalls the night that John dies. This chapter is fascinating for a number of reasons. It's the first time in the book that she actually addresses PTSD (though not called that at the time) outright in the fevers and reactions that soldiers relieving the war produces. It relies on the very dichotomy between woman and mother than the nineteenth century is so good at keeping separated in LMA's transformation from maternal caretaker to man-sensitive woman then back to maternal--even grandmotherly--caretaker. And it ends with two men kissing each other goodbye, "tenderly as women." Chock-full of intimacy, but Fahs contends that, when compared to other first-hand accounts of John's death, we find that LMA actually over-sentimentalizes the scene by adding the final goodbyes series and by playing up the homoeroticism of the final farewell between John and Ned.

Chapter five, "Off Duty," explains that LMA was relieved of her duty after contracting an illness that killed another woman working in her ward then details her return to her family home, but not before one last action scene wherein LMA rushes from room to room of the hospital in order to save a dying soldier's life (actually, it's a sardonic parody of the hospital's poor organization and implementation of care, a recurring theme in the narrative). It's remarkable, still, for its inclusion of LMA's brief encounter with a black family and the responses given by those around her to LMA's genuine concern for and acceptance of them. The chapter also details some of LMA's duties after she was no longer in contact with the bodies as well as what she enjoyed paying attention to now that her mind wasn't constantly occupied with wounds and dying.

The postscripted chapter, as I hinted at earlier, goes back through her time in a hurry but adds to it some gruesome details she left out in the first, original five chapters. I get the impression that she's been asked so much about those details that she felt compelled to, from the perspective of her alter ego Tribulation Periwinkle, tell the dirty underside of being a nurse... while also taking a backhanded stab at the way things were done at the Hurley-Burley House.

This was my first LMA reading, so I'm going to say only that I was surprised by the comedic tone she took up early on and maintained throughout. I'm also intrigued by the adoption of the alter ego, as though she required someone else to shift the responsibility to when things got gruesome or disgusting or plain ridiculous. Suggests to me a kind of splitting that she might have observed others doing, maybe her (then) larger-than-life father (whom she would come to overshadow in fame and fortune, as she details in the final letter). That's me psychoanalyzing LMA through her book, but if it's a memoir, I'm welcome to. Even if it's fiction, I can if I want. :)(less)

like · see review

Mar 16, 2011 Jill rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I am a huge fan of Louisa May Alcott's "Little Women" series. So when I was peeking around on Project Gutenburg looking for something to read and stumbled across this one, I immediately downloaded it.
The book took me a while to get into. Alcott takes a very different approach to this narrative, based on her own life experiences. Her writing style seems a bit choppier and less well-formed than the children's novels she is best known for. As my mind grew more used to the style- which seem more lik...more

like · see review

Nov 06, 2010 El rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: american-civil-war, late19th-centurylit, science-and-medicine, library-borrow

Most people know Louisa May Alcott's name for Little Women. They may know her name in relation to her father, Bronson Alcott, and his friendship with dudes like Ralph Waldo Emerson and H.D. Thoreau, and the Transcendentalist movement. Not as many people knew she also went to war.

Alcott spent six weeks working as a nurse in Washington, DC during the Civil War. She went home after a nasty bout of typhoid fever, but those six weeks made quite an impression on her. She turned her experiences there i...more Most people know Louisa May Alcott's name for Little Women. They may know her name in relation to her father, Bronson Alcott, and his friendship with dudes like Ralph Waldo Emerson and H.D. Thoreau, and the Transcendentalist movement. Not as many people knew she also went to war.

Alcott spent six weeks working as a nurse in Washington, DC during the Civil War. She went home after a nasty bout of typhoid fever, but those six weeks made quite an impression on her. She turned her experiences there into a short series of "sketches" which eventually were put together into Hospital Sketches. The character Tribulation Periwinkle is based on Louisa's experiences herself. Had she been able to stay longer and seen more, I wonder what the "sketches" would have potentially turned into.

This was a quick read, pretty charming actually. The introduction to my edition was 38 pages long, almost as long as Hospital Sketches itself, and I was surprised that the first part of Alcott's account had to do with the travel to DC; very little actually focused on the hospital scene at all. In a totally selfish way I have to admit I was a bit bugged by that. I also would have preferred if Alcott hadn't made it a fictionalized story - certainly her experiences in those six weeks alone would have been for an interesting read, but it is what it is. Hospitals at that time were pretty grungy from what I understand - body parts lying around in the yard, no sterilization, not much as far as anesthetization, dead bodies hanging around in the middle of summer. Alcott touches on some of those issues, and these stories would certainly open readers' eyes to the reality behind a lot of the other war stories they may have heard.

Interesting to note that the role of women as nurses in hospitals during the Civil War was not to assist the surgeons in their operations - in fact, women weren't often allowed in to witness the operations unless they specifically asked to be a part of it. The role of the nurses was to comfort the soldiers after the surgery. Their role was quite controversial it seems as many thought it imprudent to have women in the rooms at all. 'Cause, y'know, women just want to have sex with anything possessing a penis, and clearly their desire to help the wounded had nothing to do with actually helping the wounded. Pshaw.

(Courtesy of the National Library of Medicine) (less)

3 likes · like · see review

Sep 24, 2012 Sharon rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: classics, e-books, memoir

This book is Alcott's memoir of her time nursing in a Civil War-era hospital, and was particularly timely reading due to the recent 150th anniversary of Pres. Lincoln signing the Emancipation Proclamation. Alcott makes reference to her family's abolitionist beliefs, as well as the New Year's Day effective date of the proclamation, as contemporaneous with her nursing days.

At times the book seems a little light-hearted (which was also a criticism leveled during the time it was published), but I th...more

like · see review

Jan 25, 2013 Audrey rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: People that like non-fiction History books

Shelves: read-2013

This book was okay. I was hoping for a bit more since it was written by Louisa May Alcott, but in my opinion it fell short of expectations. Her descriptions were spectacular but the writing was really jumpy. It was hard to formulate what she was saying some of the time. It was so disjointed it was difficult to stay interested in reading it. I did enjoy her descriptions of the people she met of her way to Washington D.C. and those she worked with and nursed. It was heartwarming that she was able...more

like · see review

Oct 13, 2011 Camilla Schulte rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2011-books, literary-fiction, literary-nonfiction, didn-t-finish

Yes, I put it in both the fiction AND nonfiction: it's a fictional account of actual events.
We just read this for book club -- GREAT read. Gotta love the Alcott.

"I'm a woman's rights woman, and if any man had offered help in the morning, I should have condescendingly refused it, sure that I could everything as well, if not better, myself. My strongmindedness had rather abated since then, and I was not quite ready to be a 'timid trembler,' if necessary. Dear me ! how easily Darby did it all: he j...more

like · see review

Jan 04, 2010 Debbie Barton rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This was not what I expected but I enjoyed it a great deal. It is unfortunately too short (I knew Ms. Alcott went home after contracting Typhoid Fever, I didn't realize she became ill so quickly after her arrival). Considering she went to a new city, to learn a new job, on the eve of Fredericksburg, and remained less than 2 months, I find it rather impressive that she was able to capture what she did in her letters. I loved that the colloquial style was kept for the book. It's rough and informal...more

1 like · like · see review

Nov 13, 2012 Kristi rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

A wonderful short piece, recollecting Alcott's service as an Army nurse during the Civil War. Blending social reform, human pathos, and Alcott's signature hilarity, this is a wonderful read.

1 like · like · see review

Jan 01, 2011 Luckngrace rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: amican-civil-war, historical-fiction

Louisa May Alcott her short-lived experiences as a nurse in a makeshift Yankee hospital to convey her thoughts and feelings as well as some of her patients' travails. The book seems to me to (maybe) be a speech or report on her efforts during the war. I found that, although the book is very short (80 pages), the first quarter was unnecessary with minute detail. I did, however, respond tearfully to some of the soldiers' brave and selfless stories of dying in sad inglorious circumstances. I found...more

1 like · like · see review

May 17, 2009 Erika rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This book made me laugh. I know that's not what you're expecting to hear, and it wasn't what I was expecting to do, but nevertheless, even though I felt I was doing something wrong, or reading it the wrong way, I did laugh. Louisa May Alcott is extremely witty in this book, in the way she describes settings, people, and interactions. It had sad parts, but it wasn't the tear jerker I thought it would be. For me this was an easy read, which I wasn't expecting either, but I really liked it. I read...more

like · see review

Feb 24, 2013 Mary Alice rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: american-authors, reviewed, biography

Hospital Sketches is an interesting look at a short period of Louisa May Alcott's life, that spent in Washington DC nursing Civil War soldiers. Alcott spent about 3 months working in a hospital, where she became so ill herself that her father came to bring her home. Alcott uses the somewhat didactic, preachy style she used for her children's books.

Not only an account of Alcott's hospital and patients, the book also describes some of her Civil War rambles in DC during her off duty time.

The book...more

like · see review

Jan 16, 2010 Deb rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2010-books-read

After seeing the PBS American Masters presentation on Louisa May Alcott, I downloaded Hospital Sketches on my Kindle. I'd read all the usual LMA books - Little Women, Little Men, Jo's Boys, Eight Cousins, Rose in Bloom, etc. but hadn't ever read this one. It's a thinly-disguised fictional account of LMA's nursing experiences in a Washington, DC Civil War hospital. Alcott's writing style is all Jo - earnest, engaging, enthusiastic, a bit preachy, and very detailed. I enjoyed it!

1 like · like · see review

Feb 25, 2012 Carla Thomas rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: classics

The first chapter had me worried. Here was a flighty, shallow young woman wallowing in self-pity because she is leaving home for the first time. Certainly such a thing would be more dramatic in the mid-1860's, but I was squirming thinking that perhaps this was a character who would just annoy me with her feminine drama about leaving home and finding herself.

My apologies, Ms. Alcott. I should have known you wouldn't disappoint.

When Trib Periwinkle signs up to become a wartime nurse, she is reall...more

like · see review

Mar 29, 2010 Rose rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Louisa May Alcott's Hospital Sketches is a collection of vignettes first published in the magazine "Boston Commonwealth" in 1863, then later gathered together in book form by abolitionist publisher James Redpath. Based on Alcott's first-hand experience during war-time, they tell the story of Tribulation Periwinkle, a volunteer nurse during the American Civil War.

The sketches were popular in their day and seem just as accessible today. Since I haven't read Alcott since I was a child (and maybe n...more Louisa May Alcott's Hospital Sketches is a collection of vignettes first published in the magazine "Boston Commonwealth" in 1863, then later gathered together in book form by abolitionist publisher James Redpath. Based on Alcott's first-hand experience during war-time, they tell the story of Tribulation Periwinkle, a volunteer nurse during the American Civil War.

The sketches were popular in their day and seem just as accessible today. Since I haven't read Alcott since I was a child (and maybe not even the whole of Little Women then), I was surprised by her informal yet vivacious tone. I was immediately drawn into the story, which starts as Tribulation declares to her family her intention to take up war-time nursing, then follows as she travels to her assignment, a journey muddled not only by the usual difficulties of travel but by frustrating bureaucratic red-tape. When finally stationed at her post and the wounded arrive, Trib is shocked by the horror of war just as Alcott must have been. Once composed, Trib learns to care for the ill as best she can: dressing wounds, cooling fevers, and simply comforting men through the worst, often to death. Though steadfast and determined to stay through war's end, Nurse Periwinkle eventually is dismissed from duty due to her own declining health.

I immediately loaned this book to a friend who is a medical student. I couldn't help but think of her when I was reading it. On the one hand, without the machinery of modern medicine, the nursing Trib performs seems like medicine at it's most pure and simple: one human caring for another's most basic needs in times of trouble, doing everything she can to cure and comfort. On the other hand, it was a startling realization of how far medicine in the United States has advanced in 150 years, and how far it hasn't come in other parts of the world, where nursing may not look much different for today's nurses than Trib. Moreover, by describing her abolitionist view at time of war, Alcott points to the intersection between politics and medicine, making this short collection an even more timely and relevant read.
(less)

like · see review

Nov 09, 2009 Margaret rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: american-literature, american-civil-war, american-history, history, authors-ab

Hospital Sketches describes Alcott's sojourn (cut short due to illness) as a nurse in a Washington, D.C., hospital during the Civil War; it's witty in a rather Dickensian style (Alcott calls herself Tribulation Periwinkle, for example) and touching even though sentimental. I mostly enjoyed it, though I was bothered by Alcott's condescending attitude toward the black people for whose freedom she enthusiastically worked; although she rejoices at the Emancipation Proclamation, she also clearly ster...more

1 like · like · see review

Nov 09, 2009 Alexandra rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

after reading Eden's Outcasts, I, of course became inspired to read any of Alcott's books that I hadn't read yet. Hospital Sketches intrigued me the most as it was based on her experiences as a nurse during the Civil War. Through her wit and thoughtfulness, the reader gets an excellent if brief sketch of time in a war hospital and how things - from doctors treatment of nurses to government beaurocracy - have not changed so much.

like · see review

Dec 19, 2012 Michele rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: books-of-2013

Interestingly, Louisa May Alcott says in her own words that this book has no literary merit but was written hastily and even with some levity. I found that not to be the case. I found the book to be full of feeling and very literary. Some objected to the levity of the book, but you quickly see that if she was lighthearted it was because, in order to survive that kind of environment, you had to be. Not just for yourself, but the men needed that kind of positive, friendly tone. I was teary the ent...more

like · see review

Feb 27, 2013 Nancy Moffett rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Even though the audio book I listened to was very badly read, I thoroughly enjoyed the humble, humorous memoir by Louisa May Alcott. As in her other books, she is not shy to share her own opinion often with a heavy dose of morality. I don't mind that since she is obviously so touched by the suffering of her patients and willing to do the work required of her as a nurse. A good picture of medical care during the Civil War.

like · see review

May 28, 2012 Benita rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: history buffs and Alcott fans

I've been intending to read this for years, and a recent visit to Washington DC (and the plane flight there) prompted it. Definitely not Alcott's best writing, but an excellent glimpse into her life and her political views, as well as the Civil War, and hospitals of the period. It is short--as was her time as an army nurse, and I can understand why it was popular in the era.

like · see review

Feb 10, 2010 Ed Brown rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I'm not sure what I expected from these hospital sketches. They describe what a volunteer nurse observed in a Civil War hospital just after the battle of Fredricksburg. Alcott seems superficial and almost light hearted as her descriptions flit from one scene to another. Nonetheless these sketches do provide a small clue to what war in the nineteenth century was like.

like · see review

Aug 27, 2012 Eric rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Alcott really knew how to write an engaging story. Hospital Sketches really gives the reader a feeling of what it was like to nurse wounded soldiers during the Civil War. Written with some humor creative mixed in and very descriptive imagery, Alcott tells a wonderful narrative of life during the 1860s.

like · see review

Apr 02, 2013 Sean Mccarrey rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This book was wonderful when well written, but the beginning and end really dragged on, as short as they were. On one hand I loved the personal touches and the poignant depiction of what these hospitals were like, but I felt that the other parts were kind of tacked on.

like · see review

Apr 25, 2009 Jenny rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

You really get a sense of Alcott’s voice here, and of her time. She’s got a little Florence Nightengale going, and a little of the class clown. She describes Washington DC in the Civil War era, and she’s a compassionate and aware observer.

like · see review

May 16, 2012 Elizabeth rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: 19th-century, history, memoir-autobiography, nonfiction, war, books-we-own

The writing style was odd, as though she were trying too hard to be "literary": hyperbole, allusion, and flowery language were too excessive, in my opinion. Still, excellent insight and description of war experiences, well worth reading.

like · see review

Aug 30, 2009 Maureen rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I really enjoyed this book. Its unbelievable the atrocities they had to deal with and the pain and suffering.
It makes me see the dealings I have has a nurse are nothing compared to what these poor souls endured.

like · see review

Apr 01, 2013 Carolyn Cannon rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I bought this book back East at the Louisa May Alcott home during my tour. It was a little tedious and difficult to read, but interesting to learn more about her time as a nurse during the war.

like · see review

Aug 10, 2009 Nicole rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: history-teachers-unite

I picked up this book while visiting The Alcott home last summer. I finally got a chance to read it this summer and I loved it! Oddly enough, I spent much of the short book laughing out loud. Who knew Civil War hospitals could be funny! Alcott uses rich language and humor to write about a nurse's struggles while working at a hospital during 1863. The nurse's time spent at the hospital definitely has its up and downs! While I did chuckle quite a bit, the harsh reality of war is evident throughout...more

like · see review

Dec 19, 2011 Andrea rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This was supplemental reading for a History class I took. It was interesting to read the thoughts of this pioneering woman yet lacked that extra magic that makes you fall in love.

like · see review

Jun 08, 2010 Rachel rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: own, 2010, historical-fiction, worth-re-reading, 2006

I really enjoyed this. The writing is funny and tender; it's like something that Jo March would have written. But then how could you go wrong with a name like Tribulation Periwinkle?? :)

like · see review

Jan 05, 2008 rinabeana rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Though the book is based on Alcott's nursing experiences during the Civil War, she fictionalized them somewhat. The main "character" is named Tribulation Periwinkle, and she's quite reminiscent of Jo March. I absolutely love LMA's writing style! Her constant use of slang (how vulgar! according to Amy March) cracks me up. I had to restrain myself from laughing out loud on the plane! There are parts of the book that are just heartbreaking too, though. Overall it's a great story and I have so much...more

like · see review

« previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 … 47 48 next »

new topic
Discuss This Book

There are no discussion topics on this book yet. Be the first to start one »

Recommend it | Stats | Recent status updates

combine
Other Editions (45)

More editions...

Genres

Classics

23 users

History

20 users

Non Fiction

9 users

Military History > Civil War

8 users

Literature > 19th Century

4 users

War

4 users

Autobiography > Memoir

4 users

Literature > American

4 users

Biography

3 users

Biography Memoir

2 users

See top shelves...

Readers also enjoyed similar books

About Louisa May Alcott

Louisa May Alcott was born in Germantown, Pennsylvania on November 29, 1832. She and her three sisters, Anna, Elizabeth and May were educated by their father, philosopher/ teacher, Bronson Alcott and raised on the practical Christianity of their mother, Abigail May.

Louisa spent her childhood in Boston and in Concord, Massachusetts, where her days were enlightened by visits to Ralph Waldo Emerson’s...more Louisa May Alcott was born in Germantown, Pennsylvania on November 29, 1832. She and her three sisters, Anna, Elizabeth and May were educated by their father, philosopher/ teacher, Bronson Alcott and raised on the practical Christianity of their mother, Abigail May.

Louisa spent her childhood in Boston and in Concord, Massachusetts, where her days were enlightened by visits to Ralph Waldo Emerson’s library, excursions into nature with Henry David Thoreau and theatricals in the barn at Hillside (now Hawthorne’s "Wayside").

Like her character, Jo March in Little Women, young Louisa was a tomboy: "No boy could be my friend till I had beaten him in a race," she claimed, " and no girl if she refused to climb trees, leap fences...."

For Louisa, writing was an early passion. She had a rich imagination and often her stories became melodramas that she and her sisters would act out for friends. Louisa preferred to play the "lurid" parts in these plays, "the villains, ghosts, bandits, and disdainful queens."

At age 15, troubled by the poverty that plagued her family, she vowed: "I will do something by and by. Don’t care what, teach, sew, act, write, anything to help the family; and I’ll be rich and famous and happy before I die, see if I won’t!"

Confronting a society that offered little opportunity to women seeking employment, Louisa determined "...I will make a battering-ram of my head and make my way through this rough and tumble world." Whether as a teacher, seamstress, governess, or household servant, for many years Louisa did any work she could find.

Louisa’s career as an author began with poetry and short stories that appeared in popular magazines. In 1854, when she was 22, her first book Flower Fables was published. A milestone along her literary path was Hospital Sketches (1863) based on the letters she had written home from her post as a nurse in Washington, DC as a nurse during the Civil War.

When Louisa was 35 years old, her publisher Thomas Niles in Boston asked her to write "a book for girls." Little Women was written at Orchard House from May to July 1868. The novel is based on Louisa and her sisters’ coming of age and is set in Civil War New England. Jo March was the first American juvenile heroine to act from her own individuality; a living, breathing person rather than the idealized stereotype then prevalent in children’s fiction.

In all, Louisa published over 30 books and collections of stories. She died on March 6, 1888, only two days after her father, and is buried in Sleepy Hollow Cemetery in Concord.(less)

More about Louisa May Alcott...

Books by Louisa May Alcott

More…

Share This Book

Facebook Twitter Your website

Trivia About Hospital Sketches

1 quiz

More quizzes & trivia...

title link	preview: Civil War Hospital Sketches
avg rating	preview: Civil War Hospital Sketches Goodreads rating: 3.68 (527 ratings)
small image	preview: click here [close]
med image	preview: click here [close]
BBCode	[url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/209415.Civil_War_Hospital_Sketches?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book][img]http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1328863734l/209415.jpg[/img][/url] [url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/209415.Civil_War_Hospital_Sketches?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book]Civil War Hospital Sketches by Louisa May Alcott[/url]

Civil War Hospital Sketches (Bedford Series in History & Culture)

Friend Reviews

Community Reviews

Share This Book

Share This Book on Your Website