Literary Works

Observations on the Principles and Methods of Infant Instruction was the first standalone work published by A.B. Alcott.

The essay was issued in the form of a pamphlet in 1830 when Alcott was teaching in Boston, Massachusetts.

You can see in this screenshot of the publication that he is credited as A.B. Alcott "teacher of an elementary school, Boston." 

After teaching at various schools for a decade, Alcott would eventually open the Temple School in Boston in 1834.

Alcott encouraged open dialogue with his students. Many of the conversations, lectures, and class session notes from Temple School were put into a publication titled Conversations With Children on the Gospels in 1836.

A biography about American Transcendentalist Ralph Waldo Emerson is one of many published works by A. Bronson Alcott. He published everything from letters and journals to philosophies on education reform, but the publishing of this praise of Emerson, his friend, mentor, and fellow American Transcendentalist, was something that he enjoyed quite especially.

According to the publisher's preface, the essay was written before the passing of Emerson. This biographical piece was printed for Emerson as a birthday present and later published in limited print in 1882, the year Emerson succumbed to pneumonia.

This is a copy of the first page of "Ralph Waldo Emerson, philosopher and seer / an estimate of his character and genius in prose and verse," written by A. Bronson Alcott, published in London in 1889.

Little Women is a semi-autobiographical novel written by Louisa May Alcott. This American classic is loosely based on Louisa May's early years of "growing up Alcott." Her family, short-lived experience of life on the Utopian commune Fruitlands, and formative years living at The Orchard House, paved the foundation for what has become a celebrated piece of American literature.

The book was written at the bequest of Thomas Niles, a Boston publisher, who wanted Louisa May to pen something for young girls to read. According to the Boston Public Library, Rare Books & Manuscripts Department, this is the first edition copy of Part Two, later retitled Good Wives.

Louisa May Alcott published over 30 pieces of literature including novels and collections of stories. She died on March 6, 1888 at age fifty-six.