Little Women

The four young faces on which the firelight shone brightened at the cheerful words, but darkened...

Poor Jo. Its too bad, but it cant be helped. So you must try to be contented with making your name...

Amy followed, but she poked her hands out stiffly before her, and jerked herself along as if she...

Give them all of my dear love and a kiss. Tell them I think of them by day, pray for them by night,...

and it had become a household custom, for the mother was a born singer. The first sound in the...

Das ist gut. Die Engel kinder. cried the poor things as they ate and warmed their purple hands at...

A good deal of hammering went on before the curtain rose again, but when it became evident what a...

That boy put it into his head, I know he did. Hes a capital fellow, and I wish we could get...

Just my luck. You shouldnt have asked me to do it. I always spoil everything. Im so sorry, but the...

Well, I have a bad trick of standing before the fire, and so I burn my frocks, and I scorched this...

Jo told her adventures, and by the time she had finished they were at home. With many thanks, they...

There was a momentary lull, broken by Hannah, who stalked in, laid two hot turnovers on the table,...

The old lady wouldnt speak to them for a time, but happening to meet Jo at a friends, something in...

My only comfort, she said to Meg, with tears in her eyes, is that Mother doesnt take tucks in my...

He spoke so cheerfully, looked so sincere, and seemed so glad to give his all, that I was ashamed...

With that, Jo shouldered her broom and marched into the house, wondering what they would all say to...

We are not strangers, we are neighbors, and you neednt think youd be a bother. We want to know you,...

That answer pleased the old gentleman. He gave a short laugh, shook hands with her, and, putting...

I am not sure, but I think it was because his son, Lauries father, married an Italian lady, a...

They neednt see or speak to anyone, but run in at any time. For Im shut up in my study at the other...

Yes, all for you, my precious. Isnt it splendid of him. Dont you think hes the dearest old man in...

Why, you see, the girls are always buying them, and unless you want to be thought mean, you must do...

During the fifteen minutes that followed, the proud and sensitive little girl suffered a shame and...

Just listen to me a minute, and be a good child, said Meg soothingly. Mother doesnt wish you to go...

The storm cleared up below, for Mrs. March came home, and, having heard the story, soon brought Amy...

Now then, we must walk her home as fast as we can. Pile our things on her, while I get off these...

But I lost her when I was a little older than you are, and for years had to struggle on alone, for...

I wish you were all going, but as you cant, I shall keep my adventures to tell you when I come...

When the evening for the small party came, she found that the poplin wouldnt do at all, for the...

Now do let me please myself by dressing you up in style. I admire to do it, and youd be a regular...

Away they went fleetly and gracefully, for having practiced at home, they were well matched, and...

Then she told the various bits of gossip she had heard at the Moffats, and as she spoke, Jo saw her...

As spring came on, a new set of amusements became the fashion, and the lengthening days gave long...

Mr. Pickwick, Sir. I address you upon the subject of sin the sinner I mean is a man named Winkle...

My faithful friend and noble patron, continued Laurie with a wave of the hand, who has so...

At teatime they compared notes, and all agreed that it had been a delightful, though unusually long...

Get what you like, and dont disturb me. Im going out to dinner and cant worry about things at home,...

Poor Jo would gladly have gone under the table, as one thing after another was tasted and left,...

Ill do my lessons every day, and not spend so much time with my music and dolls. I am a stupid...

Thats my good girl. You do try to fight off your shyness, and I love you for it. Fighting faults...

Brooke is commander in chief, I am commissary general, the other fellows are staff officers, and...

Arent you company too. I thought shed suit Brooke, but he keeps talking to Meg, and Kate just...

Little goose girl, who kept a hundred fat geese in the field, said Amy, when Sallies invention gave...

Thank you, that sounds pleasant, began Mr. Brooke, looking cheerful again, but before he could...

On the lawn where it had gathered, the little party separated with cordial good nights and good...

Jo talks about the country where we hope to live sometime the real country, she means, with pigs...

I advise you to sail away in one of your ships, and never come home again till you have tried your...

Bent on showing that he was not offended, he made himself as agreeable as possible, wound cotton...

That depends upon how and where he takes it. I dont like Ned and his set, and wish youd keep out of...

For a week or two, Jo behaved so queerly that her sisters were quite bewildered. She rushed to the...

Meg sighed, and turned to the frostbitten garden again. Jo groaned and leaned both elbows on the...

Writing, thinking, and directing all at once might well bewilder the poor lady, and Meg begged her...

Oh, he was a little man who looked as if he merely lived to oil his hair. He rather stared at...

Meg, dear, be prudent, watch over your sisters, consult Hannah, and in any perplexity, go to Mr....

I wish we could wash from our hearts and souls The stains of the week away, And let water and air...

All were unconscious that this experience was a test of character, and when the first excitement...

Thats the very reason you ought to go away at once, so that you may escape it. Change of air and...

How dark the days seemed now, how sad and lonely the house, and how heavy were the hearts of the...

Laurie went off two stairs at a time, and Jo laid her wearied head down on Beths little brown hood,...

As if awaked by the stir, Hannah started out of her sleep, hurried to the bed, looked at Beth, felt...

I like the diamonds best, but there is no necklace among them, and Im fond of necklaces, they are...

Sit down and rest while I put these things away, then I want to consult you about a very serious...

When he had gone, she went to her little chapel, and sitting in the twilight, prayed for Beth, with...

Ive thought a great deal lately about my bundle of naughties, and being selfish is the largest one...

Money is a good and useful thing, Jo, and I hope my girls will never feel the need of it too...

I can no longer restrain my passion, and must know my fate before I return. I dare not tell your...

When they were called in, Laurie was standing by their mother with such a penitent face that Jo...

Come on, then. Why not. You go and surprise your father, and Ill stir up old Brooke. It would be a...

Jo was determined to have it out now, and tried to look quite placid, though she quaked a little...

Several days of unusually mild weather fitly ushered in a splendid Christmas Day. Hannah felt in...

Mr. Laurence and his grandson dined with them, also Mr. Brooke, at whom Jo glowered darkly, to...

Dont say my John, it isnt proper or true, but Megs voice lingered over the words as if they sounded...

He seemed to think it was worth the trouble, for he smiled to himself as if quite satisfied,...

I couldnt do better if I waited half my life. John is good and wise, hes got heaps of talent, hes...

The tea bell rang before he had finished describing the paradise which he meant to earn for Meg,...

Father and Mother sat together, quietly reliving the first chapter of the romance which for them...

As long as The Spread Eagle paid her a dollar a column for her rubbish, as she called it, Jo felt...

Mother and I have talked that over, and I have made up my mind to try her way first. There will be...

Come, Jo, dont desert a fellow. Im in such a state of exhaustion I cant get home without help. Dont...

The June roses over the porch were awake bright and early on that morning, rejoicing with all their...

There were to be no ceremonious performances, everything was to be as natural and homelike as...

No, your grandfather kindly offered us his best, and Aunt March actually sent some, but Father put...

Dont feel that I am separated from you, Marmee dear, or that I love you any the less for loving...

Our drawing class breaks up next week, and before the girls separate for the summer, I want to ask...

When Amy had whetted her tongue and freed her mind she usually got the best of it, for she seldom...

Now that was tact, for two of the ruling foibles of the masculine mind were touched. The lobster...

Fortune suddenly smiled upon Jo, and dropped a good luck penny in her path. Not a golden penny,...

A prouder young woman was seldom seen than she, when, having composed herself, she electrified the...

Well, said Jo, laughing, if my people are philosophical and metaphysical, it isnt my fault, for I...

While the cooking mania lasted she went through Mrs. Corneliuss Receipt Book as if it were a...

Is that all. Fling it out of the window, and dont bother any more about it. Ill buy you quarts if...

John was a little disappointed not to find a tender Niobe, but feeling that his dignity demanded...

The little book was brought slowly out and laid down before him. Meg got behind his chair under...

I will, I will. Only you must be responsible for damages. and obeying orders, Laurie heroically...

While Amy dressed, she issued her orders, and Jo obeyed them, not without entering her protest,...

Ill be agreeable. Ill gossip and giggle, and have horrors and raptures over any trifle you like. I...

Amy, we must go. Good by, dear, do come and see us. We are pining for a visit. I dont dare to ask...

What a good girl you are, Amy. said Jo, with a repentant glance from her own damaged costume to...

I am willing to work. Its for the freedmen as well as the Chesters, and I think it very kind of...

You can put your own things on your own table, if you prefer, began May, feeling a little...

It was a very long day and a hard one for Amy, as she sat behind her table, often quite alone, for...

Everything of Amys sold long ago. I took care that the right people saw them, and they made a nice...

Im afraid its partly your own fault, dear. When Aunt spoke to me the other day, she regretted your...

I sent a line from Halifax, when I felt pretty miserable, but after that I got on delightfully,...

Rotten Row means Route de Roi, or the kings way, but now its more like a riding school than...

Next week we are off to Germany and Switzerland, and as we shall travel fast, I shall only be able...

Mrs. March glanced at Jo as she spoke, but the face opposite seemed quite unconscious of any secret...

Things were in this state when the grand discovery was made, and Jo watched Laurie that night as...

Yes, I do, but youd better wait till you are through college, on the whole, and be fitting yourself...

Let us say nothing about it to him till the plan is settled, then Ill run away before he can...

Thou shalt haf thy Bhaer. Come, then, and take a goot hug from him, my Tina, said the Professor,...

I laughed all the way downstairs, but it was a little pathetic, also to think of the poor man...

Such a man. laughed good natured Mrs. K., as she put the relics in the rag bag. I suppose the...

I thanked him as well as I could, and talk now about my library, as if I had a hundred books. I...

When she went again, Mr. Dashwood was alone, whereat she rejoiced. Mr. Dashwood was much wider...

I dont know whether the study of Shakespeare helped her to read character, or the natural instinct...

She did neither, but she remembered the scene, and gave the Professor her heartiest respect, for...

Jo thought what a blaze her pile of papers upstairs would make, and her hard earned money lay...

While these internal revolutions were going on, her external life had been as busy and uneventful...

Evening meditation and morning work somewhat allayed her fears, and having decided that she wouldnt...

There was a long pause, while a blackbird sung blithely on the willow by the river, and the tall...

Yes, I will live and die for him, if he ever comes and makes me love him in spite of myself, and...

A restless movement from Laurie suggested that his chair was not easy, or that he did not like the...

There was no answer except her sisters cheek against her own, not even tears, for when most deeply...

Simple, sincere people seldom speak much of their piety. It shows itself in acts rather than in...

Oh, Laurie, is it really you. I thought youd never come. cried Amy, dropping the reins and holding...

It must be recorded of Amy that she deliberately prinked that night. Time and absence had done its...

Any young girl can imagine Amys state of mind when she took the stage that night, leaning on...

In France the young girls have a dull time of it till they are married, when Vive la liberte....

Not all the time, too much confinement makes you nervous, and then you are unfitted for everything....

But even that refuge proved unavailing, for he was delivered over to the enemy, with a Be gentle...

Im going to have the little carriage, and Baptiste can drive, so youll have nothing to do but hold...

Shes very busy. Im roving about so, its impossible to be regular, you know. When do you begin your...

But Amy did not laugh, for she was in earnest, and tapping on the outspread hand with her pencil,...

He looked and then he smiled, as he could not well help doing, for it was capitally done, the long,...

The first few months were very happy ones, and Beth often used to look round, and say How beautiful...

Thus our parting daily loseth Something of its bitter pain, And while learning this hard lesson, My...

Amys lecture did Laurie good, though, of course, he did not own it till long afterward. Men seldom...

Laurie did not utter the words, but he thought them, and the next instant kissed the little old...

He knew Vevay well, and as soon as the boat touched the little quay, he hurried along the shore to...

The moment Mrs. Carrol saw the girls altered face, she was illuminated with a new idea, and...

But someone did come and help her, though Jo did not recognize her good angels at once because they...

Providence had taken her at her word. Here was the task, not what she had expected, but better...

Mothers are the best lovers in the world, but I dont mind whispering to Marmee that Id like to try...

Jo laughed at that as she had not done for many a long day, and patted the sofa invitingly, as she...

Jo, dear, I want to say one thing, and then well put it by forever. As I told you in my letter when...

She can blow him up as well as shine on him, laughed Laurie. Such a lecture as I got at Nice. I...

I dont care, and Jo shut the door, feeling that food was an uncongenial topic just then. She stood...

But she did show something better than brilliancy or skill, for she sang Beths songs with a tender...

Now, Laurie, dont be too fastidious and worldly minded. If they love one another it doesnt matter a...