“[An] affectionate and perceptive tribute.”—Wendy Smith, Boston Globe In Meg, Jo, Beth, Amy, Anne Boyd Rioux brings a fresh and engaging look at the circumstances leading Louisa May Alcott to write Little Women and why this beloved story of family and community ties set in the Civil War has resonated with audiences across time.

From the bestselling, award-winning Cuban writer, comes a new collection of stories. Love, death, betrayal, and sex intertwine and whirl with New York City and Havana beating in the background. In unpredictable tales woven with psychological and political significance, the protagonists struggle to transform themselves with honesty and bravery regardless of the crumbling worlds that surround them. These bitterly exuberant, sweetly regretful, fierce and beautiful stories will haunt you for a long time.

"An Old-Fashioned Girl" tells the story of Polly Milton, a young girl from the countryside who goes to visit her wealthy and sophisticated friends in the city. The novel is structured in two parts, with the first part focusing on Polly's childhood visit and the second part on her experiences as a young woman. In the first part, Polly stays with the Shaw family, including Tom, Maud, and Fanny. She is initially seen as old-fashioned and unsophisticated compared to her more fashionable city friends. However, her kindness, honesty, and good-hearted nature soon win over the Shaw family, and she becomes a beloved member of their household. The novel explores the contrast between Polly's simple, virtuous upbringing and the more worldly values of her city friends. Polly's influence on the Shaws and her ability to maintain her integrity in the face of societal pressures serve as central themes. In the second part of the book, Polly returns to the city as a young woman, and the story follows her experiences as she navigates the challenges of adulthood, including romance, career aspirations, and the importance of staying true to oneself. Polly's character development is a central focus as she matures and finds her place in the world. "An Old-Fashioned Girl" is known for its moral and ethical themes, as well as its portrayal of the importance of character and virtue. It contrasts the values of simplicity and authenticity with the superficiality of social conventions. The novel also explores themes of friendship, love, and the pursuit of happiness. Louisa May Alcott's "An Old-Fashioned Girl" is a charming and heartwarming coming-of-age story that continues to resonate with readers for its timeless lessons and the enduring appeal of its characters.

Pulitzer Prize–winning author John Matteson illuminates three harrowing months of the Civil War and their enduring legacy for America. December 1862 drove the United States toward a breaking point. The Battle of Fredericksburg shattered Union forces and Northern confidence. As Abraham Lincoln’s government threatened to fracture, this critical moment also tested five extraordinary individuals whose lives reflect the soul of a nation. The changes they underwent led to profound repercussions in the country’s law, literature, politics, and popular mythology. Taken together, their stories offer a striking restatement of what it means to be American. Guided by patriotism, driven by desire, all five moved toward singular destinies. A young Harvard intellectual steeped in courageous ideals, Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. confronted grave challenges to his concept of duty. The one-eyed army chaplain Arthur Fuller pitted his frail body against the evils of slavery. Walt Whitman, a gay Brooklyn poet condemned by the guardians of propriety, and Louisa May Alcott, a struggling writer seeking an authentic voice and her father’s admiration, tended soldiers’ wracked bodies as nurses. On the other side of the national schism, John Pelham, a West Point cadet from Alabama, achieved a unique excellence in artillery tactics as he served a doomed and misbegotten cause. A Worse Place Than Hell brings together the prodigious forces of war with the intimacy of individual lives. Matteson interweaves the historic and the personal in a work as beautiful as it is powerful.

Originally published: New York: Free Press, 2012.