Good Wives

Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women: or Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy (1868) was written in response to a request from Roberts Brothers. The publisher wanted a coming-of-age novel that could appeal to young female readers, so Alcott used her own family and childhood as inspiration. The semi-autobiographical account, which was written in less than three months, was an instant success.

Alcott immediately wrote a second volume, Little Women, Part Two (or Second), which was published in 1869. In 1881, Part Two became chapters 24-47 of Little Women as both texts were revised, reillustrated and republished in a single volume by Roberts Brothers. British editions of both volumes of Little Women appeared soon after it was published in Boston. 

However, Alcott had not been able to secure copyright for her work in Great Britain and a number of publishers took advantage of the opportunity to reprint it without her consent. In several cases, Part Two was given a new title, such as Little Women Wedded (Sampson Low, 1872), Little Women Married (Sampson Low, 1873), Nice Wives (Weldon & Co., 1875), and finally, Good Wives (Nisbet, 1895). Good Wives: Little Women, Part II, was also published solo by Connecticut-based Longmeadow Press in 1995.

Little Women: or Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy, Part Two was published by Roberts Brothers in April 1869 in a 2,000-copy print run. Issued in green and purple cloth, first editions sell for $1,000-$2,500.