Abigail was deeply ambitious and therefore deeply frustrated. Unlike the homely Marmee we envision, the housewife and quiet counterpart to her brilliant husband, the real Marmee was a strong, complex woman with dreams that are familiar to women today.

How did what you learned about Abigail May Alcott in writing this book change your understanding of the whole Alcott family?Ībigail was a great surprise.

March, a character who seems nothing like Louisa’s father, Bronson Alcott? Was Marmee, the mother in the novel, an accurate portrayal of her real mother, Abigail? And why was it that the adult Louisa, in spite of her extraordinary success as a writer and entrepreneur, never really separated from her first family? Those mysteries drove me to research and write Marmee & Louisa, which, to my amazement, clarified them all.Ģ. There were so many unanswered questions: Was the March family invented by Louisa in Little Women in fact autobiographical, as everyone assumed? Who was the real Mr. It was thrilling to find new papers of the Alcott and May family, but the real inspiration for Marmee & Louisa was a set of mysteries that arose as I began to read and learn more about the Alcott women. What inspired you to write Marmee & Louisa? Had you always wanted to write about the Alcotts, or did the discovery of May family letters and memoirs in your attic prompt your biography of Louisa May Alcott and her mother? Q&A with Eve LaPlante about Marmee & Louisa and My Heart Is Boundlessġ.

American jezebel by eve laplante