Summary

Before Part 1 begins, the novel starts with a letter dated May 26, 1878 from Meudon France addressed to Louisa and signed by May. It starts with May admitting she is writing a letter she will not send. She writes of her frustration with her sister, her refusal to apologize during this estrangement, and a gift from Louisa she found tucked away behind a letter from Anna that she cannot understand and will hide until “your intentions become clear” (2).

Part 1 starts on the following page, with the title “October 1868 - June 1869” in Concord, Massachusetts. May is preparing for a party, while the reviews from her sister’s new book arrive. May’s older sister Louisa reads the reviews for her new novel Little Women out loud and they contain high praise. So absorbed in the reviews, May forgets the molasses she had put on the stove...