9 h 14 minAudiobook4 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at costPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
What if courage begins at home, in the small kindnesses and honest work of an ordinary day?
The Louisa Alcott Reader gathers short pieces for young readers by Louisa May Alcott. Kindness at home, courage in hard times, and the pleasures of imagination run through these gentle tales. Their concerns are close to daily life: how to treat others, how to work honestly, and how to practice goodness.
The collection explores kindness in small daily acts, the value of honest work, and the strength children find in make-believe. Alcott's narrators often speak directly to the child, offering advice. Her moral lessons are plain, and her warm voice invites readers to consider what goodness looks like in their own lives.
What you’ll discover
- Kindness close to home Discover tales that place goodness within reach, in the small acts of daily family life.
- The worth of work Explore the place of honest effort in Alcott's ideas about living a good life.
- Courage in hard times Find gentle encouragement in stories that make room for difficulty as well as kindness.
- Room for make-believe Enjoy Alcott's lively imagination and her sense that make-believe can give children strength.
- Tales to share aloud Share short pieces whose plain lessons offer a starting point for talking about everyday choices.
Who will love it
For parents, teachers and grandparents who love gentle, wholesome tales to read aloud, and for anyone who enjoys Alcott's warm voice, family life, kindness and lively imagination.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- Kindness begins in small daily acts
- Honest work makes a good life
- Imagination gives children strength
- Why her lessons still last
Formats and delivery
- eBook
- On your phone, tablet, computer or Kindle, with the type as large as you like.
- Large-print eBook
- The same book in bigger, clearer type, from the first page.
- Audiobook
- 9 h 14 min, complete, read by Lucas Linden.
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas in about 4 minutes, to read or to hear.
- Paperback
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Hardcover
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print paperback
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print hardcover
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
eBooks and audiobooks open right away. Download EPUB or PDF, or send the book to your Kindle. Every printed copy is made when you order it and shipped worldwide; shipping is shown at checkout.
How it works
- Start free. Nothing to pay today; the eBook of this book is yours to keep.
- Read, listen and print. 200,000+ classics as eBook, large-print eBook, audiobook and 15-minute summary, and any book printed at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print, 5 accounts for the price of one.
- We remind you first. Free for 3 months, and we email you 7 days before your first payment. Then 0,14 USD a day in your first year on the yearly plan and 0,27 USD a day after, or 0,66 USD a day on the monthly plan. Cancel online in two clicks.
Bought on its own? Every eBook, audiobook and printed book you buy without the plan carries our 30-day money-back guarantee.
25 languages, side by side
Read and hear Das Lesebuch von Louisa Alcott in 25 languages and switch at any time. Or read two side by side, paragraph by paragraph: the way to learn a language with a book you love.
Das Lesebuch von Louisa Alcott
Alcott turns a child's small choices at home into tales of kindness, honest work and the strength imagination gives.
Medium level5–10 hours to read25 languages
Excellent
- Read or listen
- 25 languages, side by side
- Print and large print at cost
- 5 accounts for the price of one
Free for 3 months · starts right away, on any device
Read free3 months free · cancel anytimeFree for 3 months, then 0,14 USD a dayCancel anytimeHow it works
In short
The Louisa Alcott Reader gathers short pieces by Louisa May Alcott for young readers. Alcott was an American writer from Massachusetts who died in 1888.
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
Kindness begins in small daily acts
Alcott writes as someone who watched family life closely. She grew up in a household where money was often short and where her parents, Bronson and Abigail Alcott, took moral questions very seriously. Her stories show goodness in ordinary moments, such as sharing food, nursing a sick neighbor, or owning up to a mistake.
This is why her morals rarely feel like grand speeches. A child in an Alcott tale learns by doing something, noticing the result, and feeling it. The lesson sits inside the action, so a young listener can see it before anyone explains it.
Free for 3 months · Cancel anytime
Free gifts
580 USD in free gifts when you start
Every book in every format and in 25 languages, 5 accounts for the price of one. Nothing to pay today.
- 200,000+ classic eBooksIn 25 languages, side by side
170 USDFREE - Every audiobookIn 25 languages, any device
120 USDFREE - 15-minute summariesRead or listen, in 25 languages
60 USDFREE - Print at cost, no markupPaperback, hardcover, large print
60 USDFREE - 5 accounts for the price of oneA shelf for everyone at home
170 USDFREE - A part in rebuilding the libraryNew languages and books for all
FREE
Questions about Das Lesebuch von Louisa Alcott
Can I read it free?
Yes. The first key idea of the 15-minute summary is free with no sign-up. Start free and the whole book is yours for 3 months, with the eBook to keep, plus 200,000+ more classics and any book printed at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print. Nothing to pay today: we email you 7 days before your first payment, and you can cancel online in two clicks.
Can I buy the printed book?
Soon. The paperback, hardcover and large print editions are being prepared. Choose Paperback or Hardcover above, leave your email, and we tell you the day you can order it, printed at cost.
How many accounts do I get?
Five, for the price of one: you and 4 more people, each with their own login, shelf and their own place in every book.
Can I cancel anytime?
Yes. Cancel online in two clicks at any time and nothing more is charged. Nothing is charged in your first 3 months, and we email you 7 days before your first payment.
Who wrote The Louisa Alcott Reader?
Louisa May Alcott, the American author of Little Women, wrote the tales and sketches that make up the collection. She died in 1888, and her work for children remained widely read long after her death.
What is The Louisa Alcott Reader about?
It gathers short pieces for young readers built around family life, kindness, honest work and imagination. Each piece offers a simple moral through the actions of children and the adults around them.
Is The Louisa Alcott Reader suitable for children?
Yes. The pieces are short, warm and written for young readers, which also makes them good for reading aloud. Some customs and phrasing belong to the nineteenth century, so a little explanation may help.
The author
Louisa May Alcott
1832–1888 · American novelist
Louisa May Alcott (1832–1888) was an American novelist born in Germantown, Pennsylvania. She lived mainly in Massachusetts, including Boston and Concord. She wrote Little Women, published in two parts in 1868 and 1869, An Old-Fashioned Girl in 1870, Little Men in 1871, and Work: A Story of Experience in 1873.
More by Louisa May Alcott
All 14 books
More like this
Free
Free
Free
Our mission
The library burned once. We are building it back.
Every great book, in every language and every format, for every family. Every plan helps pay for new languages, new audiobooks and books for readers who have never had them. Join the movement.
Read our story- Every language25 languages today, side by side, and more every year
- No wastePrinted on demand: no warehouses, no unsold stock, no pulped copies
- For everyonePaperback, hardcover and large print at the cost of printing
Popular in children's classics
See all
Free
Free
Free
Free
Free
