Eden's Outcasts: The Story of Louisa May Alcott and Her Father
John Matteson
(Author)
Description
Louisa May Alcott is known universally. Yet during Louisa's youth, the famous Alcott was her father, Bronson--an eminent teacher and a friend of Emerson and Thoreau. He desired perfection, for the world and from his family. Louisa challenged him with her mercurial moods and yearnings for money and fame. The other prize she deeply coveted--her father's understanding--seemed hardest to win. This story of Bronson and Louisa's tense yet loving relationship adds dimensions to Louisa's life, her work, and the relationships of fathers and daughters.
Product Details
Price
$19.95
Publisher
W. W. Norton & Company
Publish Date
November 01, 2008
Pages
512
Dimensions
5.57 X 8.11 X 1.27 inches | 0.88 pounds
Language
English
Type
Paperback
EAN/UPC
9780393333596
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About the Author
John Matteson was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Biography for Eden's Outcasts and the Ann M. Sperber Prize for The Lives of Margaret Fuller. A Distinguished Professor of English at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, he lives in the Bronx.
Reviews
Matteson...tells his story so clearly and attractively that no previous acquaintance with the remarkable Alcott clan and their various, equally remarkable friends is needed to relish their world as he re-creates it. Vividly, affectingly, Matteson describes one family's struggle to live their lives with meaning, without taint or exploitation.--Philip McFarland
A double biography is a difficult thing to bring off but Matteson does it beautifully, giving a vivid but delicate account of two complicated characters inextricably entwined.--Rosemary Hill
A splendid new dual biography...Compassionate and compelling.--Daniel Dyer
Matteson's engrossing biography of the Alcotts achieves a rare fusion of intellectual precision and emotional empathy.--Madeleine B. Stern, author of Louisa May Alcott
Matteson's portrait of Bronson and Louisa is painted on a large canvas, capturing an era when ideals and practice collided as never before in the history of the American nation.--Megan Marshall, author of The Peabody Sisters
Matteson tells the odd, fascinating story of the über idealistic Bronson Alcott and the impact of his life decisions on his daughter, beloved children's book authoress Louisa May Alcott...Particularly for those unfamiliar with the Alcott story, this is a journey of much interest.--Christian Science Monitor
A double biography is a difficult thing to bring off but Matteson does it beautifully, giving a vivid but delicate account of two complicated characters inextricably entwined.--Rosemary Hill
A splendid new dual biography...Compassionate and compelling.--Daniel Dyer
Matteson's engrossing biography of the Alcotts achieves a rare fusion of intellectual precision and emotional empathy.--Madeleine B. Stern, author of Louisa May Alcott
Matteson's portrait of Bronson and Louisa is painted on a large canvas, capturing an era when ideals and practice collided as never before in the history of the American nation.--Megan Marshall, author of The Peabody Sisters
Matteson tells the odd, fascinating story of the über idealistic Bronson Alcott and the impact of his life decisions on his daughter, beloved children's book authoress Louisa May Alcott...Particularly for those unfamiliar with the Alcott story, this is a journey of much interest.--Christian Science Monitor
