Eden's Outcasts: The Story of Louisa May Alcott and Her Father

Amos Bronson Alcott and his daughter Louisa May didn't always see eye to eye. He was a friend of Emerson and Thoreau's, a staunch abolitionists and a vegetarian, a philosopher, a teacher, yet always poor and in debt. His daughter Louisa was temperamentally was much like her mother and sometimes had her father at his wit's end with her impetuousness and spirit. Then, as she grew older she was much more practical and desirous of the comforts solvency can bring.

In this dual biography of Bronson and his famous daughter, John Matteson draws on the wealth of writings, including personal journals and letters, of the Alcott family to illuminate not just two lives but their changing relationship. Matteson does occasionally venture a little too show more far in his surmising (I noted a passage where he took Louisa's love for Jane Eyre as potentially linked to her fascination with the idea of mental health being hereditary), and tends to see a lot more autobiography in Louisa's fiction that I thought was perhaps warranted. Still, this well-researched, Pulitzer-prize winning book is a thorough and entertaining read, illuminating these two fascinating people in light of their relationship which each other. Born on the same day 33 years apart and dying within days of each other, Bronson and Louisa may not have always seen eye to eye, but they clearly loved each other and grew in mutual respect over the years. Well worth reading for anyone interested in literary history, Massachusetts history, or Transcendentalists. show less

Eden's Outcasts is an outstanding double biography of Louisa May Alcott and her father, Bronson Alcott. I was very impressed at the author's balancing act for all the disparate themes touched on in subjects lives.

Matteson gives a full background and exploration of the life and influences on Bronson Alcott, and his circle of contemporary transcendentalists. For the reader who comes to this biography wanting to know more about Louisa May Alcott, this background is illuminating. But Matteson gives Bronson's life full and compelling coverage, and he never treats Bronson as only "Louisa's Father".

Having read other biographies (excellent ones) of Louisa May Alcott, I was wondering what new information this bio would provide. But Matteson's show more approach to Louisa's life and literary influences does explore areas which other biographers have not covered, and Matteson ties together his research and his theories into a fresh and exciting story.

Most importantly, I felt that Matteson did a wonderful job of sympathizing with his subject's human failings without becoming an apologist or providing justifications for the subject's actions. This is especially hard given the dual nature of this biography, and the fact that the two subjects were sometimes in conflict with one another. Matteson fearlessly explored places where his subjects were less than heroic. But he always did so respectfully and with an eye to a better understanding, rather than to place blame or cast judgment.

I would highly recommend this biography to anyone interested in Alcott, the Transcendentalist Philosophy, American Writers, Feminist History, or in knowing more about the author of Little Women. The writing is absolutely accessible to those outside of academia, without talking down to anyone. show less

I'm very much the right audience for this book--I read Little Women and its sequels too many times to count when I was growing up, and in fact at one point named one of my dolls Louisa May Alcott Bassham. (Between this book and My Wilder Life, the last couple of months have been a real trip down Memory Lane.)

But leaving that aside, Matteson does great work in this book. It's a dual biography of Louisa and her father Bronson (they died a mere three days apart), who are both fascinating characters. Matteson has obviously done a lot of research, but he wears it lightly. He writes well; the book was simply a joy to read. I only wish I'd read it before we visited the Alcott house a couple of years ago.

I'm very much the right audience for this book--I read Little Women and its sequels too many times to count when I was growing up, and in fact at one point named one of my dolls Louisa May Alcott Bassham. (Between this book and My Wilder Life, the last couple of months have been a real trip down Memory Lane.)

But leaving that aside, Matteson does great work in this book. It's a dual biography of Louisa and her father Bronson (they died a mere three days apart), who are both fascinating characters. Matteson has obviously done a lot of research, but he wears it lightly. He writes well; the book was simply a joy to read. I only wish I'd read it before we visited the Alcott house a couple of years ago.

A very special book. So informative and well-written. I can see why it won the Pulitzer. I'm a native of eastern Massachusetts, and I love reading about Transcendentalists, specially because I can easily visit sites in Boston and Concord.

Matteson did a great job writing a double biography, pulling from a huge number of sources. At first Bronson was the focus. I had a very negative opinion of him before reading this; after reading it, I'm still not going to run out and try to find one of his old books. But I have more respect for him as a parent and teacher than I did previously. I was very surprised to learn that the experiment at Fruitlands lasted only seven months and involved so few people. I visited Fruitlands for the first time in show more the fall and it is quite developed as a history site, given the short time they spent there.

I have even more respect for Louisa after reading about her lifelong struggle with "moods," and the therapeutic poisoning she suffered when serving as a Civil War nurse in Washington, D.C. After six weeks, she was too sick to continue and was sent home to recover, but never again to feel well. And yet she soldiered on, intent on making her writing pay the bills that her father seemed unable and unwilling to pay with his own labor. Even her great novel, Little Women, was something she wrote at her publisher's request. She was never able to produce her masterpiece for adults. show less

John Matteson really did his homework. Well written and well researched. This book sent me off in pursuit of more. Bronson Alcott is an amazing man. What a treat to delve into his life and the lives of his family. There is a lot of depth to this book. It sent me off on tangents that made it hard for me to finish. Fascinating family.

@ Louisa + Bronson Alcott
Pulitzer Prize - Winner

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.