Eight Cousins
Rose and her seven boy cousins: classic Alcott warmth.
7 hr 39 min · read by Ann Fritz
0:00
4:54
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Author
Louisa May Alcott
The author of Little Women.
1832–1888 Fairy TaleChildren's StoryFantasy
About
Who was Louisa May Alcott?
Louisa May Alcott is best known for Little Women, but she also wrote fairy tales, family novels like Eight Cousins, and secret thrillers under a pen name.
Her life
Alcott was born in Germantown, Pennsylvania, in 1832 and grew up in Concord, Massachusetts, where Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau were family friends. Her father was a brilliant teacher who could not earn a living, so Louisa worked from a young age as a seamstress, governess and writer. In the Civil War she served as a nurse.
Her writing
Before Little Women (1868) made her rich, she wrote fast, dramatic thrillers like Pauline's Passion and Punishment (1863), many under the name A. M. Barnard. She also wrote fairy stories for children and novels such as Eight Cousins (1875). She died in Boston in 1888, two days after her father.
New to Louisa May Alcott?
Start here
Eight Cousins
Rose and her seven boy cousins: classic Alcott warmth.
7 hr 39 min · read by Ann Fritz 
Pauline's Passion and Punishment
Her prize-winning thriller of revenge, written in secret.
1 hr 44 min · read by Heather Nichols
0:00
4:26
Aunt Kipp
A short, funny story. Our most-played Alcott.
44 min · read by Sara Gladstone
0:00
4:21
Audiobooks
Listen to Louisa May Alcott
Aunt Kipp
Narrated by Sara Gladstone
Polly Snow, her frail mother and her mischievous younger brother live on little money and depend on their rich, sharp-tongued relative, Aunt Kipp. The aunt holds their fu...
0:00
4:21
Eight Cousins
Narrated by Ann Fritz
Rose Campbell is an orphan, a thoughtful girl who has never been very strong. She comes to live with her great-aunts and, soon after, her clever Uncle Alec arrives to tak...
0:00
4:54
Eva's Visit to Fairy Land
Narrated by Heather Nichols
Eva is a little girl who loves to sit by the brook. One day she meets fairies, and they invite her to come and see their world. Eva wants to go, but she is much too big....
0:00
4:19
Kitty's Class Day
Narrated by Julie Ann Marra
Kitty has just been invited to Class Day by her cousin Jack, and she is overjoyed. But she has nothing to wear. She has ten dollars from her grandfather and some big idea...
0:00
3:58
Mermaids
Narrated by Tara-Louise Kaye
Nelly is a little girl who loves the water so much that when she is kept out of the sea with a cold, she sulks on the rocks and wishes she were a mermaid. The King of the...
0:00
4:54
My Red Cap
Narrated by Greg Cooper
A powerful Civil War short story by Louisa May Alcott—brought to life by Greg Cooper—about sacrifice, compassion, and the enduring dignity of wounded veterans.
0:00
4:43
Pauline's Passion and Punishment
Narrated by Heather Nichols
Pauline is engaged to a man who writes to end it, because he has found someone with more money. Hurt and angry, she turns to a younger man who loves her and sets out to m...
0:00
4:26
Ripple, the Water-Spirit
Narrated by Heather Nichols
Ripple is a little water-spirit who lives in the deep blue sea. She dances under coral arches and rides the waves. When a storm drowns a child, Ripple hears a mother on t...
0:00
4:25
The Frost King
Narrated by Jennifer Kellams
Winter has come, and the Frost King has a plan to freeze the flowers and all their gentle spirits. The fairies of the summer cannot stop him, so a little fairy named Viol...
0:00
4:32
Life in dates
Louisa May Alcott's life
- 1832
Born in Germantown, Pennsylvania.
- 1840
The family moves to Concord, Massachusetts.
- 1862
Serves as a Civil War nurse.
- 1863
Pauline's Passion and Punishment wins a prize, published anonymously.
- 1868
Little Women.
- 1875
Eight Cousins.
- 1888
Dies in Boston.
Questions
Questions about Louisa May Alcott
Did Louisa May Alcott use a pen name?
Yes. She wrote thrillers as A. M. Barnard and published others anonymously.
What is Eight Cousins about?
An orphaned girl, Rose, who goes to live with her uncle and seven lively boy cousins.
Which Alcott audiobook should I start with?
Aunt Kipp is short and our most-played. For a longer listen, Eight Cousins.
Where can I listen to Louisa May Alcott audiobooks narrated by real people?
Academy Voices has 9 Louisa May Alcott audiobooks, each performed by a real narrator, with a free sample on every one. Every recording is Certified Human Voice.
Reviewed October 2026 by the Academy Voices team. Sources: Wikipedia, Wikidata .
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