Oh, Kate, I love this post! I had no idea your childhood was so tumultuous. I definitely took comfort in books as a child to escape family drama, as well. Books never ever let me down or stressed me out. To this day I can find comfort in books better than any other distraction. I'm so grateful for books!!!
Wow! I had a very similar childhood and rarely hear others share the same stories. Books were my solace for the exact same reasons. I bought myself a fancy hard cover edition of Little Women with a Waldenbooks gift certificate when I was about 10, but I’ve never read it!
Thank you for sharing with us so vulnerably, Katy. I'm so glad Little Women could be a comfort to you in difficult times.
It holds a special place in my heart as well, for different reasons. As a girl, I found so much to look up to in Jo & after discovering Alcott modeled her after herself, I did a deepdive on Alcott. Her life was so fascinating & she endured many hardships; her non-fiction book Hospital Sketches was eye-opening for me to read as a teen. All that to say, I'm obviously a diehard Alcott fan!
Loved this post! I read a lot of the same things you did as a kid, and also moved house a few times (though my folks were and are happily married, almost obnoxiously so lol). I was the dorky new girl wherever we went, though. And get this - I also read Gone With the Wind in 5th grade! Or maybe 6th. I loved it so much. It was the first “grown up” book I ever read. I still have that copy and some pages are smudged with chocolate. I’m afraid to go back to it as an adult because there’s no way my adult self will be as taken with it as my tween self was.
What a lovely post! Thank you for sharing so openly with us. I also lost myself in books as a kid (still do)!
My first “grown up” book was Carson McCullers’ The Heart is a Lonely Hunter, which I read when I was about… oh, 13? I chose it because we earned points in school when we passed reading quizzes after finishing books—and that book gave the most points.
I hardly remember a thing about it, except that it was heavy. I recently bought my own copy and plan to re-read soon, now as a 40-year-old adult. We’ll see what I remember and if it resonates with me now, because it definitely didn’t back then. 🤣
Surprisingly I read Little Women for the first time as an adult, and not too long ago, it was ahead of watching the Greta Gerwig adaptation in theater, and while I understand those caveats I just fell in love with the March family!
I reread Little Women last fall and was surprised by my reactions being different. Many decades ago, I was furious with Amy and thought she was the worst. This time, I had much more appreciation for the wise and diplomatic adult she grew up to be. I still don't understand why Jo chose Prof. Bhaer over Laurie. 😂
Oh, Kate, I love this post! I had no idea your childhood was so tumultuous. I definitely took comfort in books as a child to escape family drama, as well. Books never ever let me down or stressed me out. To this day I can find comfort in books better than any other distraction. I'm so grateful for books!!!
Books can rescue us from turmoil. Books can change our life. 🩷
Wow! I had a very similar childhood and rarely hear others share the same stories. Books were my solace for the exact same reasons. I bought myself a fancy hard cover edition of Little Women with a Waldenbooks gift certificate when I was about 10, but I’ve never read it!
Thank you for sharing with us so vulnerably, Katy. I'm so glad Little Women could be a comfort to you in difficult times.
It holds a special place in my heart as well, for different reasons. As a girl, I found so much to look up to in Jo & after discovering Alcott modeled her after herself, I did a deepdive on Alcott. Her life was so fascinating & she endured many hardships; her non-fiction book Hospital Sketches was eye-opening for me to read as a teen. All that to say, I'm obviously a diehard Alcott fan!
wow i was also a Little Women girlie ™ ! thanks for this post ✨❤️
Loved this post! I read a lot of the same things you did as a kid, and also moved house a few times (though my folks were and are happily married, almost obnoxiously so lol). I was the dorky new girl wherever we went, though. And get this - I also read Gone With the Wind in 5th grade! Or maybe 6th. I loved it so much. It was the first “grown up” book I ever read. I still have that copy and some pages are smudged with chocolate. I’m afraid to go back to it as an adult because there’s no way my adult self will be as taken with it as my tween self was.
What a lovely post! Thank you for sharing so openly with us. I also lost myself in books as a kid (still do)!
My first “grown up” book was Carson McCullers’ The Heart is a Lonely Hunter, which I read when I was about… oh, 13? I chose it because we earned points in school when we passed reading quizzes after finishing books—and that book gave the most points.
I hardly remember a thing about it, except that it was heavy. I recently bought my own copy and plan to re-read soon, now as a 40-year-old adult. We’ll see what I remember and if it resonates with me now, because it definitely didn’t back then. 🤣
Surprisingly I read Little Women for the first time as an adult, and not too long ago, it was ahead of watching the Greta Gerwig adaptation in theater, and while I understand those caveats I just fell in love with the March family!
I reread Little Women last fall and was surprised by my reactions being different. Many decades ago, I was furious with Amy and thought she was the worst. This time, I had much more appreciation for the wise and diplomatic adult she grew up to be. I still don't understand why Jo chose Prof. Bhaer over Laurie. 😂