I was favorably impressed with this tiny volume of short stories by 19th century novelist Louisa May Alcott. This is the first book I've read by her in over 50 years! I did read Little Women as a child, but I have no recollection of that book other than I liked it. In addition, my elementary school was named after this author. It was Louisa May Alcott School #59 on Reisterstown Road in Baltimore, Maryland. I don't know if that school (or even the building) still exists. :)

There are only five stories in this 55-page book. It was very quick to read, but also suitably engaging. I liked that four of her stories were about her experiences as a nurse at a military hospital in Georgetown, DC (in the heart of what is now Washington, DC) during the Civil War. She was a night nurse for part of that time, at least. I, too, was a nurse in DC, although my experience was as a visiting nurse in the second half of the twentieth century.

There are some things about nursing that never change. It's what I always liked best about nursing - that is, the human interactions and the support provided by nurses through helping others cope with injury, illness, and death. These topics are handled beautifully in this book. The nurse in our story is warm and caring. She also is an abolitionist who, in a story called "My Contraband" gives great support to the mixed race brother of a Rebel in a most unusual story that uses Fort Wagner, South Carolina, as the historical setting for a dramatic scene.

I was taken aback by the essay called "Happy Women" which was the author's explanation of why women did not need to defend their position of not wanting to marry. It's a very dated essay, but the content seemed quite outspoken for its time.

These are very heart-rending stories which touched me deeply. Who knows? I might even choose to go back and read a bit more by this nineteenth century author whose writing I've neglected for a very long time! ( )