Louisa Mae Alcott (1832-1888)

Her early childhood experiences inspired her to write several chlidren's books.

At an early age, Alcott believed her Transcendentalist father did not provide well enough her his wife and four daughters. After he founded a utopian community called Fruitlands that failed, Alcott earned money for her family by teaching, working as a domestic, and eventually writing.

She wrote the autobiographical "Little Women" in 1868 out of a serious need for money. Alcott is remembered as an American icon.

Pub Date: 9/06/98