The Glory Cloak : A Novel of Louisa May Alcott and Clara Barton

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Summary: Glory Be To Louisa
Review: Anyone who has ever read "Little Women" is going to love "The Glory Cloak." Pat O'Brien's historical novel of war and romance and friendship brings Louisa May Alcott alive for all of us who are now grown-up women. She just shines as a woman more complicated and interesting even than Jo. What an amazing story this is about Alcott and Clara Barton, Concord and Civil War.

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Summary: Powerhouse Novel
Review: I so enjoyed The Glory Cloak, I could scarcely put it down. At times, I laughed; often, I cried. This engaging novel vividly brings to life the passion and the horror of the American Civil War, and the contributions of women despite the constraints they faced in the nineteenth century. It also opens a window into the intellectual and emotional development of two women who have become American icons: Louisa May Alcott and Clara Barton. Men as well as women will enjoy this book. It's a terrfic read (and will make a good movie).

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Summary: Wonderful Book!!
Review: I was casually browsing through my local bookstore when I glanced at this book and noticing the positive blurb on the cover by Gore Vidal, picked it up. I am a big fan of Vidal's historical fiction and essays and so I bought this book. I am so glad I did! It is a beautiful book that brings a fascinating time and place alive again. Here are Civil War Washington and the literary community in Concord brought to vivid life. The writing was supurb and the story of Louisa, Clara and Susan was riveting. I was sorry that the book had to end. Bravo!

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Summary: The Glory Cloak - How Little Women grew
Review: Patricia O'Brien caught my attention as I began to read her book and my mind heard echoes of Little Women in its prose. Her voice is her own, but often approximates Alcott's tone and approach, probably intentionally. It was easy to recall scenes from a book that ranks in my top five all time favorites as I read Glory Cloak. O'Brien neatly slips allusions to Alcott's most well-known work into her own story - and does it in a way that isn't intrusive and doesn't smack you over the head with reminders. She just let's you be gently aware that you and she share a love.
The history is good, slightly fictionalized, but that's ok - we all go into the story aware that it is NOT a text book. The characters are truly engaging and quite three dimentional. I felt as though I got to know the person inside Alcott and I liked doing it through Cousin Susan as a vehicle, even while I got to know Susan in her own right. The story flows smoothly, enriched by detail that gives a nice sense of place without becoming cloyng about transendentalists (the sense of seeing intimate glimpses of famous writers like Hawthorne, Thoreau and Emerson was fun. Like being a bit of a voyeaur).

Let me say this - I'm a voracious reader, but often guilty of skimming through slow parts or speed reading to get flavor and not waste my time with the drudge of some books. This one - well, I began it one afternoon, read for about an hour - reading each word, sometimes rereading passages I enjoyed - then got called away. Next day, I locked myself up and read until the very last page. Then I wished I could stay a while longer.

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Summary: Wonderful Book!!
Review: Patricia O'Brien has written a great story about women who responded to the call for duty during the Civil War. She skillfully recreates the horror and heroism experienced by young Louisa Alcott through the eyes of a friend, Susan Gray. Together they work in deplorable conditions that test their personal strength and friendship. Not only do readers get to know Louisa May Alcott and and her family, but we also learn about the political and social battles fought by Clara Barton and other dedicated women of the times. They were all women who made a difference and Patricia O'Brien does a great job of telling their story.

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Summary: OUTSTANDING WOMEN
Review: Patricia O'Brien has written a great story about women who responded to the call for duty during the Civil War. She skillfully recreates the horror and heroism experienced by young Louisa Alcott through the eyes of a friend, Susan Gray. Together they work in deplorable conditions that test their personal strength and friendship. Not only do readers get to know Louisa May Alcott and and her family, but we also learn about the political and social battles fought by Clara Barton and other dedicated women of the times. They were all women who made a difference and Patricia O'Brien does a great job of telling their story.

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Summary: Excellent, must read book for all women.
Review: The Glory Cloak is an empowering book that shows what women can accomplish under the worst of circumstances. This novel centers around Clara Barton and Louisa May Alcott during and after the Civil War and ties their stories together through a fictional character named Susan that portrays a cousin to Louisa. This is the story of a lifelong friendship, women surviving and thriving while cleaning up the messes made my men and most importantly chronicles the accomplishments of women smart enough to stay single and childfree despite the pressures of society. I only wish I had read this book thirty years ago...

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Summary: Excellent, must read book for all women.
Review: The Glory Cloak is an empowering book that shows what women can accomplish under the worst of circumstances. This novel centers around Clara Barton and Louisa May Alcott during and after the Civil War and ties their stories together through a fictional character named Susan that portrays a cousin to Louisa. This is the story of a lifelong friendship, women surviving and thriving while cleaning up the messes made my men and most importantly chronicles the accomplishments of women smart enough to stay single and childfree despite the pressures of society. I only wish I had read this book thirty years ago...

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Summary: Big Women--Louisa May Alcott and Clara Barton
Review: The recent discovery in a building in downtown Washington, boarded up for more than one hundred years, of an office where Clara Barton had been seeking the whereabouts (and burial sites) of thousands of missing Civil War soldiers, led Patricia O'Brien to write this tender and exciting tale of what might have happened if Louisa May Alcott--as a volunteer nurse--had met Clara in a vile Washington hospital, and had apparently fallen in love with a wounded soldier who was to move mysteriously through both their lives. No wonder Gore Vidal gave the book such high praise!

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Summary: I loved this book ,it is my new favorite
Review: This book although fiction talks lot about Alcott and Barton's life during the civil war. I am a huge Clara Barton fan and a nurse so I was drawn to this book (it was given to me as an early christmas gift). It only took me 5 days to read (in between the rest of my busy life). I found myself think about the charcters all the time. I definetly recommend this book.