Authors: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

100 Awesome Quotes By Louisa May Alcott, The Author Of Little Women

Famous As: Writer
Born On: November 29, 1832
Died On: March 6, 1888
Born In: Germantown, Pennsylvania, United States
Died At Age: 55

There can be no child who has grown up without having read Louisa May Alcott. Proudly remembered as the novelist of the children, Louisa May Alcott was an American writer, novelist and poet who is till date reminisced as the author of the famous children’s book ‘Little Women’. The novel is loosely based on Alcott’s childhood experience and is set around her family home, Hillside in Concord Massachusetts. It describes the domestic adventures of a New England family of modest means but optimistic outlook. The book traces the differing personalities and fortunes of four sisters from their childhood to adult age. Other than being a children’s writer, Alcott was an abolitionist and feminist and made her later works as a platform for sharing her ideals, vision and beliefs. Through it, she elevated the status of women in society and depicted them as strong individuals who were self-reliant and had a voice and opinion of their own. They were imaginative but at the same time level-headed and opinionated. Like Alcott’s literary work, her quotes too reflected the vision and belief of her life. They are inspiring and motivational and give a new outlook to ponder about. With this section, find out some of the best quotes by Louisa May Alcott.  

Listed In:
She is too fond of books, and it has turned her brain.

She is too fond of books, and it has turned her brain.

Louisa May Alcott
I like good strong words that mean something…

I like good strong words that mean something…

Louisa May Alcott
I am not afraid of storms, for I am learning how to sail my ship.

I am not afraid of storms, for I am learning how to sail my ship.

Louisa May Alcott
I ask not for any crown
But that which all may win;
Nor try to conquer any world
Except the one within.

I ask not for any crown But that which all may win; Nor try to conquer any world Except the one within.

Louisa May Alcott
Far away there in the sunshine are my highest aspirations. I may not reach them, but I can look up and see their beauty, believe in them, and try to follow where they lead.

Far away there in the sunshine are my highest aspirations. I may not reach them, but I can look up and see their beauty, believe in them, and try to follow where they lead.

Louisa May Alcott
The power of finding beauty in the humblest things makes home happy and life lovely.

The power of finding beauty in the humblest things makes home happy and life lovely.

Louisa May Alcott
A faithful friend is a strong defense; 
And he that hath found him hath found a treasure.

A faithful friend is a strong defense; And he that hath found him hath found a treasure.

Louisa May Alcott
Your father, Jo. He never loses patience, never doubts or complains, but always hopes, and works and waits so cheerfully that one is ashamed to do otherwise before him.

Your father, Jo. He never loses patience, never doubts or complains, but always hopes, and works and waits so cheerfully that one is ashamed to do otherwise before him.

Louisa May Alcott
I've got the key to my castle in the air, but whether I can unlock the door remains to be seen.

I've got the key to my castle in the air, but whether I can unlock the door remains to be seen.

Louisa May Alcott
Love Jo all your days, if you choose, but don't let it spoil you, for it's wicked to throw away so many good gifts because you can't have the one you want.

Love Jo all your days, if you choose, but don't let it spoil you, for it's wicked to throw away so many good gifts because you can't have the one you want.

Louisa May Alcott
I'd rather take coffee than compliments just now.

I'd rather take coffee than compliments just now.

Louisa May Alcott
I want to do something splendid…
Something heroic or wonderful that won’t be forgotten after I’m dead…
I think I shall write books.

I want to do something splendid… Something heroic or wonderful that won’t be forgotten after I’m dead… I think I shall write books.

Louisa May Alcott
Love is a great beautifier.

Love is a great beautifier.

Louisa May Alcott
Because they are mean is no reason why I should be. I hate such things, and though I think I've a right to be hurt, I don't intend to show it. (Amy March)

Because they are mean is no reason why I should be. I hate such things, and though I think I've a right to be hurt, I don't intend to show it. (Amy March)

Louisa May Alcott
Watch and pray, dear, never get tired of trying, and never think it is impossible to conquer your fault.

Watch and pray, dear, never get tired of trying, and never think it is impossible to conquer your fault.

Louisa May Alcott
...for love casts out fear, and gratitude can conquer pride.

...for love casts out fear, and gratitude can conquer pride.

Louisa May Alcott
Let us be elegant or die!

Let us be elegant or die!

Louisa May Alcott
I want to do something splendid...something heroic or wonderful that won't be forgotten after I'm dead. I don't know what, but I'm on the watch for it and mean to astonish you all someday.

I want to do something splendid...something heroic or wonderful that won't be forgotten after I'm dead. I don't know what, but I'm on the watch for it and mean to astonish you all someday.

Louisa May Alcott
Don't try to make me grow up before my time…

Don't try to make me grow up before my time…

Louisa May Alcott
Be worthy love, and love will come.

Be worthy love, and love will come.

Louisa May Alcott
I keep turning over new leaves, and spoiling them, as I used to spoil my copybooks; and I make so many beginnings there never will be an end. (Jo March)

I keep turning over new leaves, and spoiling them, as I used to spoil my copybooks; and I make so many beginnings there never will be an end. (Jo March)

Louisa May Alcott
You don’t need scores of suitors. You need only one… if he’s the right one.

You don’t need scores of suitors. You need only one… if he’s the right one.

Louisa May Alcott
...the love, respect, and confidence of my children was the sweetest reward I could receive for my efforts to be the woman I would have them copy.

...the love, respect, and confidence of my children was the sweetest reward I could receive for my efforts to be the woman I would have them copy.

Louisa May Alcott
You are the gull, Jo, strong and wild, fond of the storm and the wind, flying far out to sea, and happy all alone.

You are the gull, Jo, strong and wild, fond of the storm and the wind, flying far out to sea, and happy all alone.

Louisa May Alcott
Some people seemed to get all sunshine, and some all shadow…

Some people seemed to get all sunshine, and some all shadow…

Louisa May Alcott
Conceit spoils the finest genius.

Conceit spoils the finest genius.

Louisa May Alcott
Wild roses are fairest, and nature a better gardener than art.

Wild roses are fairest, and nature a better gardener than art.

Louisa May Alcott
Love is a flower that grows in any soil, works its sweet miracles undaunted by autumn frost or winter snow, blooming fair and fragrant all the year, and blessing those who give and those who receive.

Love is a flower that grows in any soil, works its sweet miracles undaunted by autumn frost or winter snow, blooming fair and fragrant all the year, and blessing those who give and those who receive.

Louisa May Alcott
Simple, genuine goodness is the best capital to found the business of this life upon. It lasts when fame and money fail, and is the only riches we can take out of this world with us.

Simple, genuine goodness is the best capital to found the business of this life upon. It lasts when fame and money fail, and is the only riches we can take out of this world with us.

Louisa May Alcott
The emerging woman ... will be strong-minded, strong-hearted, strong-souled, and strong-bodied...strength and beauty must go together.

The emerging woman ... will be strong-minded, strong-hearted, strong-souled, and strong-bodied...strength and beauty must go together.

Louisa May Alcott
That is a good book it seems to me, which is opened with expectation and closed with profit.

That is a good book it seems to me, which is opened with expectation and closed with profit.

Louisa May Alcott
Keep good company, read good books, love good things and cultivate soul and body as faithfully as you can

Keep good company, read good books, love good things and cultivate soul and body as faithfully as you can

Louisa May Alcott
A real gentleman is as polite to a little girl as to a woman.

A real gentleman is as polite to a little girl as to a woman.

Louisa May Alcott
Be comforted, dear soul! There is always light behind the clouds.

Be comforted, dear soul! There is always light behind the clouds.

Louisa May Alcott
Love is the only thing that we can carry with us when we go, and it makes the end so easy.

Love is the only thing that we can carry with us when we go, and it makes the end so easy.

Louisa May Alcott
She preferred imaginary heroes to real ones, because when tired of them, the former could be shut up in the tin kitchen till called for, and the latter were less manageable.

She preferred imaginary heroes to real ones, because when tired of them, the former could be shut up in the tin kitchen till called for, and the latter were less manageable.

Louisa May Alcott
Girls are so queer you never know what they mean. They say no when they mean yes, and drive a man out of his wits just for the fun of it.
--Laurie

Girls are so queer you never know what they mean. They say no when they mean yes, and drive a man out of his wits just for the fun of it. --Laurie

Louisa May Alcott
Preserve your memories, keep them well, what you forget you can never retell.

Preserve your memories, keep them well, what you forget you can never retell.

Louisa May Alcott
Laurie, you're an angel! How shall I ever thank you?

Laurie, you're an angel! How shall I ever thank you?" "Fly at me again. I rather liked it," said Laurie, looking mischievous, a thing he had not done for a fortnight.

Louisa May Alcott
I think she is growing up, and so begins to dream dreams, and have hopes and fears and fidgets, without knowing why or being able to explain them.

I think she is growing up, and so begins to dream dreams, and have hopes and fears and fidgets, without knowing why or being able to explain them.

Louisa May Alcott
Wouldn't it be fun if all the castles in the air which we make could come true and we could live in them?

Wouldn't it be fun if all the castles in the air which we make could come true and we could live in them?

Louisa May Alcott
I wish I had no heart, it aches so…

I wish I had no heart, it aches so…

Louisa May Alcott
Life is like college; may I graduate and earn some honors.

Life is like college; may I graduate and earn some honors.

Louisa May Alcott
Painful as it may be, a significant emotional event can be the catalyst for choosing a direction that serves us - and those around us - more effectively. Look for the learning.

Painful as it may be, a significant emotional event can be the catalyst for choosing a direction that serves us - and those around us - more effectively. Look for the learning.

Louisa May Alcott
Nothing is impossible to a determined woman.

Nothing is impossible to a determined woman.

Louisa May Alcott
A quick temper, sharp tongue, and restless spirit were always getting her into scrapes, and her life was a series of ups and downs, which were both comic and pathetic.

A quick temper, sharp tongue, and restless spirit were always getting her into scrapes, and her life was a series of ups and downs, which were both comic and pathetic.

Louisa May Alcott
I could have been a great many things.

I could have been a great many things.

Louisa May Alcott
If we are all alive ten years hence, let's meet, and see how many of us have got our wishes, or how much nearer we are then than now.

If we are all alive ten years hence, let's meet, and see how many of us have got our wishes, or how much nearer we are then than now.

Louisa May Alcott
Life and love are very precious when both are in full bloom.

Life and love are very precious when both are in full bloom.

Louisa May Alcott
Well, if I can't be happy, I can be useful, perhaps.

Well, if I can't be happy, I can be useful, perhaps.

Louisa May Alcott
I have nothing to give but my heart so full and these empty hands.

I have nothing to give but my heart so full and these empty hands." "They're not empty now.

Louisa May Alcott
…tomorrow was her birthday, and she was thinking how fast the years went by, how old she was getting, and how little she seemed to have accomplished. Almost twenty-five and nothing to show for it.

…tomorrow was her birthday, and she was thinking how fast the years went by, how old she was getting, and how little she seemed to have accomplished. Almost twenty-five and nothing to show for it.

Louisa May Alcott
Jo had learned that hearts, like flowers, cannot be rudely handled, but must open naturally…

Jo had learned that hearts, like flowers, cannot be rudely handled, but must open naturally…

Louisa May Alcott
I like adventures, and I’m going to find some.

I like adventures, and I’m going to find some.

Louisa May Alcott
Some books are so familiar that reading them is like being home again.

Some books are so familiar that reading them is like being home again.

Louisa May Alcott
I am lonely, sometimes, but I dare say it's good for me…

I am lonely, sometimes, but I dare say it's good for me…

Louisa May Alcott
Jo's eyes sparkled, for it's always pleasant to be believed in; and a friend's praise is always sweeter than a dozen newspaper puffs.

Jo's eyes sparkled, for it's always pleasant to be believed in; and a friend's praise is always sweeter than a dozen newspaper puffs.

Louisa May Alcott
…because talent isn't genius, and no amount of energy can make it so. I want to be great, or nothing.

…because talent isn't genius, and no amount of energy can make it so. I want to be great, or nothing.

Louisa May Alcott
Woman work a great many miracles.

Woman work a great many miracles.

Louisa May Alcott
Some stories are so familiar its like going home.

Some stories are so familiar its like going home.

Louisa May Alcott
The small hopes and plans and pleasures of children should be tenderly respected by grown-up people, and never rudely thwarted or ridiculed.

The small hopes and plans and pleasures of children should be tenderly respected by grown-up people, and never rudely thwarted or ridiculed.

Louisa May Alcott
You have grown abominably lazy, and you like gossip, and waste time on frivolous things, you are contented to be petted and admired by silly people, instead of being loved and respected by wise ones.

You have grown abominably lazy, and you like gossip, and waste time on frivolous things, you are contented to be petted and admired by silly people, instead of being loved and respected by wise ones.

Louisa May Alcott
I love my liberty too well to be in a hurry to give it up for any mortal man.

I love my liberty too well to be in a hurry to give it up for any mortal man.

Louisa May Alcott
He was the first, the only love her life, and in a nature like hers such passions take deep root and die-hard.

He was the first, the only love her life, and in a nature like hers such passions take deep root and die-hard.

Louisa May Alcott
I never wanted to go away, and the hard part now is the leaving you all. I'm not afraid, but it seems as if I should be homesick for you even in heaven.

I never wanted to go away, and the hard part now is the leaving you all. I'm not afraid, but it seems as if I should be homesick for you even in heaven.

Louisa May Alcott
... for it is the small temptations which undermine integrity unless we watch and pray and never think them too trivial to be resisted.

... for it is the small temptations which undermine integrity unless we watch and pray and never think them too trivial to be resisted.

Louisa May Alcott
You are like a chestnut burr, prickly outside, but silky-soft within, and a sweet kernel, if one can only get at it. Love will make you show your heart some day, and then the rough burr will fall off.

You are like a chestnut burr, prickly outside, but silky-soft within, and a sweet kernel, if one can only get at it. Love will make you show your heart some day, and then the rough burr will fall off.

Louisa May Alcott
…she'll go and fall in love, and there's an end of peace and fun, and cozy times together.

…she'll go and fall in love, and there's an end of peace and fun, and cozy times together.

Louisa May Alcott
I hate ordinary people!

I hate ordinary people!

Louisa May Alcott
…the violin — that most human of all instruments…

…the violin — that most human of all instruments…

Louisa May Alcott
We'll all grow up Meg, no pretending we won't.

We'll all grow up Meg, no pretending we won't.

Louisa May Alcott
Mothers can forgive anything! Tell me all, and be sure that I will never let you go, though the whole world should turn from you.

Mothers can forgive anything! Tell me all, and be sure that I will never let you go, though the whole world should turn from you.

Louisa May Alcott
It takes so little to make a child happy, that it is a pity in a world full of sunshine and pleasant things, that there should be any wistful faces, empty hands, or lonely little hearts.

It takes so little to make a child happy, that it is a pity in a world full of sunshine and pleasant things, that there should be any wistful faces, empty hands, or lonely little hearts.

Louisa May Alcott
The humblest tasks get beautified if loving hands do them.

The humblest tasks get beautified if loving hands do them.

Louisa May Alcott
What do girls do who haven't any mothers to help them through their troubles?

What do girls do who haven't any mothers to help them through their troubles?

Louisa May Alcott
Now and then, in this workaday world, things do happen in the delightful storybook fashion, and what a comfort that is.

Now and then, in this workaday world, things do happen in the delightful storybook fashion, and what a comfort that is.

Louisa May Alcott
Good, old-fashioned ways keep hearts sweet, heads sane, hands busy.

Good, old-fashioned ways keep hearts sweet, heads sane, hands busy.

Louisa May Alcott
If I didn't care about doing right and didn't feel uncomfortable doing wrong, I should get on capitally.

If I didn't care about doing right and didn't feel uncomfortable doing wrong, I should get on capitally.

Louisa May Alcott
…we're twins, and so we love each other more than other people…

…we're twins, and so we love each other more than other people…

Louisa May Alcott
Oh, Jo, how could you? Your one beauty.

Oh, Jo, how could you? Your one beauty.

Louisa May Alcott
It’s amazing how lovely common things become, if one only knows how to look at them.

It’s amazing how lovely common things become, if one only knows how to look at them.

Louisa May Alcott
...for a girl with eyes like hers has a will and is not ruled by anyone but a lover.

...for a girl with eyes like hers has a will and is not ruled by anyone but a lover.

Louisa May Alcott
Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.

Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.

Louisa May Alcott
Many of the bravest never are known, and get no praise. [But]that does not lessen their beauty...

Many of the bravest never are known, and get no praise. [But]that does not lessen their beauty...

Louisa May Alcott
To me, love isn't all. I must look up, not down, trust and honor with my whole heart, and find strenght and integrity to lean on

To me, love isn't all. I must look up, not down, trust and honor with my whole heart, and find strenght and integrity to lean on

Louisa May Alcott
People don't have fortunes left them in that style nowadays; men have to work and women to marry for money. It's a dreadfully unjust world.

People don't have fortunes left them in that style nowadays; men have to work and women to marry for money. It's a dreadfully unjust world.

Louisa May Alcott
...but, dear me, let us be elegant or die.

...but, dear me, let us be elegant or die.

Louisa May Alcott
Men are always ready to die for us, but not to make our lives worth having. Cheap sentiment and bad logic.

Men are always ready to die for us, but not to make our lives worth having. Cheap sentiment and bad logic.

Louisa May Alcott
Dear me! how happy and good we'd be, if we had no worries!

Dear me! how happy and good we'd be, if we had no worries!

Louisa May Alcott
He was poor, yet always appeared to be giving something away; a stranger, yet everyone was his friend; no longer young, but as happy-hearted as a boy; plain and peculiar, yet his face looked beautiful to many.

He was poor, yet always appeared to be giving something away; a stranger, yet everyone was his friend; no longer young, but as happy-hearted as a boy; plain and peculiar, yet his face looked beautiful to many.

Louisa May Alcott
Better lose your life than your soul…

Better lose your life than your soul…

Louisa May Alcott
But the spirit of Eve is strong in all her daughters.

But the spirit of Eve is strong in all her daughters.

Louisa May Alcott
Love covers a multitude of sins…

Love covers a multitude of sins…

Louisa May Alcott
When we make little sacrifices we like to have them appreciated, at least…

When we make little sacrifices we like to have them appreciated, at least…

Louisa May Alcott
Such hours are beautiful to live, but very hard to describe…

Such hours are beautiful to live, but very hard to describe…

Louisa May Alcott
It takes two flints to make a fire.

It takes two flints to make a fire.

Louisa May Alcott
…I can't help seeing that you are very lonely, and sometimes there is a hungry look in your eyes that goes to my heart.

…I can't help seeing that you are very lonely, and sometimes there is a hungry look in your eyes that goes to my heart.

Louisa May Alcott
Nothing provokes speculation more than the sight of a woman enjoying herself.

Nothing provokes speculation more than the sight of a woman enjoying herself." -

Louisa May Alcott
Politics were as bad as mathematics, and that the mission of politicians seemed to be calling each other names

Politics were as bad as mathematics, and that the mission of politicians seemed to be calling each other names

Louisa May Alcott
…Jo loved a few persons very dearly and dreaded to have their affection lost or lessened in any way.

…Jo loved a few persons very dearly and dreaded to have their affection lost or lessened in any way.

Louisa May Alcott