Though she also wrote adult novels, Louisa May Alcott is known primarily for her eight novels for children in the Little Women series. Her children's novels are characterized by their glorification of family life, by their wholesomeness and high spirits, and by the lack of the preachiness which was evident in most other children's novels of her time. Though she did not set out to be a children's writer, it is in this field that her greatest achievement was made. Her most popular characters are more than mouthpieces and moral exemplars for the author; they are well-rounded individuals and independent thinkers. In her novels, Alcott criticized many of the current philosophies of education and notions of fashionable behavior. Throughout her works, the ideas of religious faith, sensible eating, learning, and play are dominant themes investigated in a variety of real-life situations. Though her works for children have recently...