Includes bibliographical references (pages 877-894).

Work : a story of experience. Christie ; Servant ; Actress ; Governess ; Companion ; Seamstress ; Through the mist ; A cure for despair ; Mrs. Wilkins's minister ; Beginning again ; In the strawberry bed ; Christie's gala ; Waking up ; Which? ; Midsummer ; Mustered in ; The colonel ; Sunrise ; Little heart's-ease ; At forty (1873) -- Eight cousins, or, The Aunt-Hill. Two girls ; The clan ; Uncles ; Aunts ; A belt and a box ; Uncle Alec's room ; A trip to China ; And what came of it ; Phebe's secret ; Rose's sacrifice ; Poor Mac ; "The other fellows" ; Cosey corner ; A happy birthday ; Ear-rings ; Bread and button-holes ; Good bargains ; Fashion and physiology ; Brother bones ; Under the mistletoe ; A scare ; Something to do ; Peace-making ; Which? (1875) -- Rose in bloom : a sequel to "Eight cousins". Coming home ; Old friends with new faces ; Miss Campbell ; Thorns among the roses ; Prince Charming ; Polishing Mac ; Phebe ; Breakers ahead ; New-Year's calls ; The sad and sober part ; Small temptations ; At Kitty's ball ; Both sides ; Aunt Clara's plan ; Alas for Charlie! ; Good works ; Among the hay-cocks ; Which was it? ; Behind the fountain ; What Mac did ; How Phebe earned her welcome ; Short and sweet (1876) -- Other writings: Address of the Republican women of Massachusetts -- Kate's choice -- How I went out to service -- Women's part in the Concord celebration -- Letter to the Woman's Journal, June 29, 1876 -- Anna's whim -- My girls.

"After the success of Little Women, Louisa May Alcott brought her genius for characterization and eye for detail to a series of revolutionary novels and stories remarkable for their forthright assertion of women's rights. In the largely autobiographical Work: A Story of Experience, twenty-one-year-old orphan, Christie Devon, announces 'a new Declaration of Independence' and pursues economic self-sufficiency through a variety of jobs: servant, actress, governess, companion, and seamstress, among others. Eight Cousins and its sequel, Rose in Bloom, follow the fate of Rose Campbell, another orphan, who with the benefit of a progressive education charts her own course to fulfillment and love. All three novels are presented with art from the original editions and supplemented by seven rare stories and public letters--two restored to print tor the first time in more than a century--as well as notes identifying the many allusions, quotations, and autobiographical episodes."--Publisher's description.