Audiobook · read by volunteers
À Garland for Girls
Louisa May Alcott (1832–1888)
Read by Lorelle Anderson · 7 chapters · 6 h 09
About the book
Flowers can inspire stories, and in A Garland for Girls Louisa May Alcott wove one into each tale. Written during a time of enforced rest, these stories take their titles from blossoms: May Flowers, An Ivy Spray and Ladies’ Slippers, Pansies and others. Each one follows young girls through episodes of friendship, family life, small trials and acts of generosity, all told with Alcott’s characteristic warmth. She hoped her readers would find a little beauty and sunshine in them, and the collection delivers that gentle cheer. At just over six hours in seven recordings, it is a book to enjoy slowly. Admirers of Little Women will recognise the author’s affection for her young characters and her mild, steady moral sense. A small bouquet of seven stories from a much-loved writer.
Introduction
Louisa May Alcott (1832–1888) was an American author whose novel Little Women, published in 1868 and 1869, brought her lasting fame. She wrote many stories and books for young readers, often drawing on her own family. A Garland for Girls was published in 1887, one of her last collections, and in the preface she explains that the stories were written for her own amusement during a period of enforced seclusion.
The flowers that comforted her during that time gave her the titles of the tales and, she says, gave an interest to the work. This explains the arrangement of the book, where each story is named for a flower and linked to it in some way. The stories are domestic and affectionate, with the sentiment of the late nineteenth century. They offer a view of girlhood, with its hopes and chores, in the world of Alcott’s New England.
Young listeners can enjoy the characters, while older ones may appreciate the period details and the author’s gentle humour.
Seven recordings, about 6.2 hours in all, are read by a single LibriVox volunteer, one story to a recording. The flower in each title gives you something to look for as you listen, from May Flowers and Pansies to Water-Lilies, Poppies and Wheat, Little Button-Rose and Mountain-Laurel and Maiden-Hair. One story at a time is the right dose. The late-Victorian world of girls’ friendships, household duties and quiet lessons comes through in the details, and Alcott’s preface makes clear that she thought of her readers as friends, addressing them directly and signing off in that preface as their “old friend”.
Public domain
Louisa May Alcott died in 1888: the work is in the public domain in Switzerland, more than 70 years after the author’s death.
The LibriVox volunteers dedicated this recording to the public domain.
Sources : LibriVox page · Files at the Internet Archive · Original text