Aunt Jo's Scrap-Bag

Aunt Jo's Scrap Bag #1

by Louisa May Alcott

Leopold Classic Library is delighted to publish this classic book as part of our extensive collection. As part of our on-going commitment to delivering value to the reader, we have also provided you with a link to a website, where you may download a digital version of this work for free. Many of the books in our collection have been out of print for decades, and therefore have not been accessible to the general public. Whilst the books in this collection have not been hand curated, an aim of our publishing program is to facilitate rapid access to this vast reservoir of literature. As a result of this book being first published many decades ago, it may have occasional imperfections. These imperfections may include poor picture quality, blurred or missing text. While some of these imperfections may have appeared in the original work, others may have resulted from the scanning process that has been applied. However, our view is that this is a significant literary work, which deserves to be brought back into print after many decades. While some publishers have applied optical character recognition (OCR), this approach has its own drawbacks, which include formatting errors, misspelt words, or the presence of inappropriate characters. Our philosophy has been guided by a desire to provide the reader with an experience that is as close as possible to ownership of the original work. We hope that you will enjoy this wonderful classic book, and that the occasional imperfection that it might contain will not detract from the experience.

Genres: Classics, Short Stories, Fiction, Childrens, Historical Fiction, Audiobook, American

130 pages, Paperback

Published October 12, 2000

About the author

Louisa May Alcott was an American novelist, short story writer, and poet best known for writing the novel Little Women (1868) and its sequels Good Wives (1869), Little Men (1871) and Jo's Boys (1886). Raised in New England by her transcendentalist parents, Abigail May Alcott and Amos Bronson Alcott, she grew up among many well-known intellectuals of the day, including Margaret Fuller, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Henry David Thoreau, and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.
Alcott's family suffered from financial difficulties, and while she worked to help support the family from an early age, she also sought an outlet in writing. She began to receive critical success for her writing in the 1860s. Early in her career, she sometimes used pen names such as A.M. Barnard, under which she wrote lurid short stories and sensation novels for adults that focused on passion and revenge.
Published in 1868, Little Women is set in the Alcott family home, Orchard House, in Concord, Massachusetts, and is loosely based on Alcott's childhood experiences with her three sisters, Abigail May Alcott Nieriker, Elizabeth Sewall Alcott, and Anna Bronson Alcott Pratt. The novel was well-received at the time and is still popular today among both children and adults. It has been adapted for stage plays, films, and television many times.
Alcott was an abolitionist and a feminist and remained unmarried throughout her life. She also spent her life active in reform movements such as temperance and women's suffrage. She died from a stroke in Boston on March 6, 1888, just two days after her father's death.

Reviews

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this collection. The last story was my favorite.

[Doreen Petersen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really nice collection of short stories.

[Ellen Hamilton · Rating 5 out of 5]

My Boys - Story is pleasant and nothing more; title says it all
Tessa's Surprises - A heart-touching little story; perfect for reading during these holidays!
Buzz - Ingenious and the sort of story I would write; Buzz is a fly
The Children's Joke - My favourite among this bunch; ALL parents should do this at least once
Dandelion - Perfect little hopeful story to lift your mood; can't say there wasn't something in my eye
Madam Cluck and Her Family - Most entertaining, especially if you live on a farm. like me.
A Curious Call - Very curious story and not very well explained... very curious
Tilly's Christmas - The kind of story that squeezes your heart and makes you cry. a little.
My Little Gentleman - Same as above
Back Windows - very humorous and ehmm... relatable
Little Marie of Lehon - Sweet and savoury
My May-day Among Curious Birds and Beasts - made me want to visit a zoo right away
Our Little Newsboy - heart-touching-warming
Patty's Patchwork - What wouldn't I give to have an aunt like Patty's?

[P.S. Winn · Rating 4 out of 5]

A mixed up bag of heart warming stories and just a bit of memento's fro Aunt Jo. The author is known for the little women series and this is similar.

[M.L. Milligan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was such a good read, especially since Alcott is a favorite author of mine. I especially loved 'My Boys' and the character from that story that turned into Laurie in Little Women.

[R.K. Cowles · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 1/4 stars

[Janelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

I won’t be pursuing more books in this series. I enjoyed some of the stories but there were many that I disliked.

[Tarissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

For fans of Little Women and Louisa May Alcott, or if you just love short, sweet stories, this is for you. Here's a few descriptions of some of my favorite stories found in Aunt Jo's Scrap Bag.

I enjoyed “My May-Day Among Curious Birds and Beasts” in which the narrator sweetly tells of the sights of a visit to the Zoological Gardens in London. It is obviously based on Louisa's own travels. I think it would make for a delightful read-aloud to children, since there are lots of interesting animals that make an appearance in the story.

One story that is just so comical, just so demure, and a bit too fun, is “The Children's Joke”. My, my. What a laugh, what a riot. Two children get to play the part of the parents all day long, while the parents must be subjected to play the part of children. Each side learns big truths about the other, and that sometimes life is less stressful when you just do the best you can in the life you're given.

I actually was reading this short story collection Aunt Jo's Scrap Bag while I simultaneously was reading a biography on Miss Alcott, entitled Invincible Louisa, and it was perfect timing! I kept seeing so many parallels between Louisa's own life and the stories she was writing. Most of her stories pulled in so many details of what was happening with her and the rest of the Alcott family in real life. It was fantastic to see the similarities!

In the story “My Boys” Louisa writes of several boys who left an impressionable mark on her life. In it, we see she is starting to sketch out the character of beloved Laurie, though in this early story he is named Laddie. (I actually learned more of the history behind Laurie's character in Invincible Louisa, wherein the reader gets to meet the actual boy who both Laddie and Laurie are based on. (Pretty cool stuff can be found in history and literature, eh?)

Although not exactly a favorite, “Madam Cluck and Her Family” stands out to me, as it was a strange and grave sort of story. It's starts with this delightfully misleading line: “There never was a prouder mamma than Madam Cluck when she led forth her family of eight downy little chicks.” The story progresses as each of the chicks dies off in some unfortunate way. A comically grim and rather surprising plot choice, coming from Miss Alcott.

Overall, a delightful batch of stories that I greatly enjoyed!

Book #1 finished for the Louisa May Alcott reading challenge, found at inthebookcase.blogspot.com.

[Staci · Rating 5 out of 5]

A refreshing classic cleansing mymind and reminding me of the beautifulness in the world

[Hilary · Rating 4 out of 5]

A charming mix of LMA's reminiscences over "her boys", some observations and some short stories she penned. If you loved the "Little Women" series or "Rose in Bloom" you may notice some common themes, and will probably enjoy this little book too.

[Duckpondwithoutducks · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is as the title says, a scrap-bag, or collection of short stories, including an autobiographical one where Alcott describes the original inspiration for Laurie in Little Women. If you are a fan of Little Women, then this would interest you!

[marcia · Rating 4 out of 5]

The stories aren't anything of major substance, but this is just the type of book I'll read to my kids someday. ^_^

[Sara · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book years and years ago but wanted to reread it. It is actually a copy that was my mom‘s, so that’s kind of cool. One has to wonder if Alcott’s publisher asked her to do this, or if she wanted to pull together bits and pieces of short stories and even just sketches that she’d written previously? None of them are outstanding, in my opinion; nothing like her novel Little Women. They’re all a little too “precious“ – – kind of maudlin or with too much of a moral; which was the style when she was writing but Little Women is not so heavy on those which is one thing I like and which is why that novel has held up so well. These stories would probably be fine if a parent or older person read them to a pretty young child.

[Caleb · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a collection of several short stories; some of them were a bit odd to read. However, I did have a couple favorites: there was "The Children's Joke" was about a brother and sister who switched roles with their parents for a day. This was a hilarious read.

Another of my favorites was "Tessa's Surprises". It was a story about a little girl who wanted to be able to make a few coins and buy her younger siblings Christmas presents. I thought that this was a good holiday story.

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful. Rich in characterization and description. Collection of little short stories (most are true or semi true I think, and pretty much all have morality written in). Quite a few sections and lines highlighted. Main thing for first time readers is that this is not in connection to the Little Women trilogy (title is a little misleading in that regard). Easy book to pick up and just read a story or two and come back another time to read a little more.

[Heather · Rating 3 out of 5]

"No matter whether it rains or shines, there he is, smiling and nodding, and looking so merry, that it is evident he has plenty of sunshine bottled up in his own little heart for private use." - Back Windows

A scrap bag indeed of short stories -- some hits; some misses. I think my favourite was Buzz, written about a pet fly. Very imaginative and quirky! Many stories were moralistic (not surprising) and some with messages of charity and kindness a-la Charles Dickens.

[R · Rating 4 out of 5]

A touching set of stories beautifully told.

This book is filled with stories of different people, people who have influenced the author in one way or another. Each story touches the heart and lingers In the mind in a beautiful way. I enjoyed each and every one for a variety of different reasons.

[Ana · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5*
Contos típicos de Louisa May Alcott. Já li tantos livros dela que reconhecia o estilo mesmo que o livro não me dissesse o autor. Umas histórias mais bonitas que outras, todas elas dedicadas a fazer das crianças o melhor que podem ser.
Ouvido em audiobook.

[Marcy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a beautiful collection of stories! I feel that all children would be blessed to have these read to them!

[Samantha Schuh · Rating 1 out of 5]

Can’t really say I enjoyed any of the short stories…

[Susan Hall · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not even close to her best books. This one is sentimental drivel, but I’m glad I read it. Gives a clue as to late Victorian state of mind.

[Marianne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sweet stories

[Merije · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not as good as her novels, but not terrible either, she just never really gets into stride.

[Sandy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed this little collection by Louisa May Alcott. Some made me chuckle, some made me cry. Some were very fascinating because they added to the stories in her books.

The audio book is read by a variety of different readers. Most were fine, but one in particular was difficult to understand because the reader’s accent was very strong and the speed of reading was too fast.

[Cindy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really 2.5 stars but I did enjoy the ones that were so obviously autobiographical.

[Katja Labonté · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 stars & 5/10 hearts. This is such a good little collection! Like all Alcott books, it mingles good thoughts with funny, everyday happenings. The children’s joke, the little newspaper boy, Patty’s patchwork, the eagle’s call, the remarks upon her boys... oh, these are just delightful stories, though I may not agree with everything. <3

A Favouirte Quote: “‘Every task, no matter how small or homely, that gets well and cheerfully done, is a fine thing; and the sooner we learn to use up the dark and bright bits (the pleasures and pains, the cares and duties) into a cheerful, useful life, the sooner we become real comforters, and every one likes to cuddle about us.’”
A Favourite Humorous Quote: “‘Being a woman, sir, I'm naturally of an inquiring turn; and I must confess that I have a strong desire to know how it happens that you take your walks abroad, when you are supposed to be permanently engaged at home?’
“[The brass eagle] shrugged his shoulders, and actually winked at me, as he replied, ‘That's all people know of what goes on under, or rather over, their noses. Bless you, ma'am! I leave my roost every night, and enjoy myself in all sorts of larks. Excuse the expression; but, being ornithological, it is more proper for me than for some people who use it.’”

[Jennifer Ricks · Rating 3 out of 5]

Eh--2.9? The stories are nice, but not really profound. There's nothing wrong with them, but there's not really anything to grip you either. They are very, very moralistic. By the end I did feel like she was waxing quite Dickens-esque (which is a compliment, in my opinion) in depicting the sad plights of poverty-stricken children. This is both pretty neat and very sobering. I can't believe that finding a newspaper boy freezing on a doorstep was normal at the time.

[Terri · Rating 4 out of 5]

A collection of short stories. Some appear to be completely fictional while others appear to be factual. My favorite was the one where she described all her favorite boys and especially gave insight into how she created the character Laurie.

[Elise · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was okay. Some of the stories were really sweet, and it was easy to read. But they kind of got repetitive towards the end--all about poverty and kindness and so on. Good message, but not very exciting after a while.

[Jane · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was a sweet collection of stories meant to be told to children. Not a whole lot of substance, but an enjoyable way to spend some time.