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Show Children to Celebrate 100th Anniversary of Author of "Little Women" Concord, Mass. Oct. 26th This month thousands of school children chil-dren throughout the world, and grownups who have refused to grow old, are going to celebrate the J 00th anniversary of the birth of Louisa May Alcott, author of "Littlo Women" who first opened her eyes on November 29, 183'! at Oermantown, Pa. Writing in the November Child Life Msgazine, Laurie Hillyer Armstrong, says: "Sixty-three years after it was written, 'Little Women' is read by more children than when it was first published. More than 1,500,000 copies have been sold; it is required school reading for the children of Japan, and is read by children in England, Eng-land, France, Germany, Poland, Italy, Holland, Finland, Portugal and Spain." Continuing she writes: "Children always wonder how much of 'Little Women' is true and are delighted when they learn that almost all of it is true. Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy March were really Anna, Louisa, Elizabeth and May Alcott. "Anne married John Pratt 'in 'Little Women' he is called John Brooke) and it is her descendants who will be in the audience and who will take part in the play. Louisa did not marry but spent her life writing books and helping her family. Elizabeth died after an attack of scarlet fever, just like the dear, gentle Beth in the book. May had many of the adventures recorded In 'Little Women' and, when abroad studying art, married a Swiss gentleman and died leaving leav-ing a baby Louisa Alcott Nieriker, nicknamed Lulu, who now lives abroad. The John Pratts did not have twins called Daisy and Demi but two little boys, Fred and Johnny. Daisy's character was drawn from Johnny's and Demi's from Fred. "Miss Alcott was 21 when she began to sell short stories and poems to magazines and papers to help her' family. In 'Little Women' Mr. March went to war Dut it was really Louisa and not Mr. Alcott who was taken ill when helping the sick and dying soldiers. She became ill and after a long convalescence con-valescence and a trip abroad she wrote 'Little Women.' It was written writ-ten in two months and Miss Alcott Al-cott was certain no one would like it. But people did like It and the book made her famous and started start-ed her family fortune." Concord, where the Alcott family fam-ily moved when Louisa was eight years old, will celebrate the anniversary anni-versary by giving a play based on the book. In the audience will be two little girls, grand-nieces of Miss Alcott and in the play two Alcott descendans. Bronson Alcott Pratt who is to take the part of Mr. March, his grandfather, and Louisa Alcott Kussin who will take the part of "Meg," her grandmother. |