Unable to guarantee his family a steady income, Bronson moved the Alcotts back to B

One winter day, a telegram arrived from the war department: Mr. March was critically ill. Heartsick by this news, Marmee felt she needed to be with her husband. With no money to spare, Joe offered to sell her only vanity - her long, flowing chestnut hair. The sacrifice, though tearfully made, brought twenty-five dollars, and financed the trip. Mr. Lawrence sent along John Brooke, Laurie's tutor, to assist Mrs. March in her journey. Both Mr. and Mrs. March grew to be very fond of John - and he, in turn, became very fond of Meg.

Jo also had matured, and her friend, Laurie, fell more deeply in love with her. Despite all her efforts to change his heart, Laurie proposed marriage. Jo, devoted to her writing and publishing, was dismayed because she could never love Laurie more than as a brother, and refused his proposal. Brokenhearted, Laurie left with his uncle on a tour of Europe. But Laurie was not the only one voyaging to Europe; Amy was traveling there, accompanying her rich aunt. She soon learned some of life's harsher lessons. To her initial disappointment, she first detected that she would never be a great artist. She also came to recognize that marrying for money rather than love would not lead to happiness. Inevitably, Amy's and Laurie's paths crossed and they each gradually grew in love for the other. To the delight of all, they too were wed.

Louisa saw that her loving heart was need by more than just her family and she headed for Washington, DC in 1862 to serve as a Civil War Nurse. Like many other nurses, Louisa contracted typhoid fever and although she recovered, she would suffer the poisoning effects of mercury (the doctors at the time had used calomel, a drug laden with mercury to cure typhoid) for the rest of her life. Her stay in Washington prompted Louisa to write Hospital Sketches, which was published in 1863 followed by Moods in 1864. At this point Louisa's publisher, Thomas Niles, told her that he wanted "a girls story" from her. Having spent her life with three of the most interesting girls, Louisa wrote furiously for two and a half months and produced Little Women based on her own experiences growing up as a young woman with three other sisters. The novel, published September 30, 1868, was an instant success and sold more than 2,000 copies immediately. In fact the country was so taken with Louisa's story that her publisher begged for a second volume. April 14, 1869 saw the release of the second volume with a response of more than 13,000 copies being sold immediately. Alcott's story of Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy had launched her into stardom and helped to alleviate the family's financial problems. Louisa followed up her success with Old Fashioned Girl in 1870.

Needing a break, Louisa and her youngest sister May headed off to Europe in 1870. The next few years, however, saw Alcott's career grow and grow as book after book was published and enjoyed by a huge audience of young readers. Little Men was published in 1871 followed by Work in 1873, Eight Cousins in 1874, and Rose in Bloom in 1876. During this time, Alcott became active in the women's suffrage movement, writing for "The Woman's Journal" and canvassing door-to-door trying to encourage women to register to vote. In 1879 Alcott became the first woman in Concord to register to vote in the village's school committee election. Unfortunately, Abba's health was failing and she passed in November of 1877.

Some common words found in the essay are:
Civil War, Grandfather Lawrence, Little Women, Christmas March, Bhaer German, Fever Beth, Alcotts Boston, Bronson Alcott, Orchard House, Brooke Laurie's, little women, alcott family, bronson alcott, civil war, family moved, theodore lawrence laurie, hummel family, march family, scarlet fever, women based, based own, women based own, little women based,
Approximate Word count = 2455
Approximate Pages = 10 (250 words per page double spaced)