Chapter 1: Playing Pilgrims with James Frankie Thomas

This week, we're joined by special guest James Frankie Thomas, who writes the YA of Yore column for the Paris Review. We dive into the first chapter of Little Women, "Playing Pilgrims," where the March sisters await a Christmas without any presents and Jo can't get over her disappointment in not being a boy. We also get into the life and times of Lu Alcott, who, in their own words, was "more than half-persuaded that I am a man's soul put by some freak of nature into a woman's body." Why, you ask? "Well, for one thing, because I have fallen in love in my life with ever so many pretty girls, and never once the least bit with any man." Who can't relate?

You can visit James online at jamesfrankiethomas.com and on Twitter at @james_f_thomas.

Our cover art is by Mattie Lubchansky. It interpolates the cover art for Bethany C. Morrow's book "So Many Beginnings: A Little Women Remix," with permission from Macmillan Children's Publishing Group. It also interpolates the cover art for Hena Khan's book "More to the Story," with permission from Simon & Schuster. Our theme music is Mozart's Piano Sonata No. 16 in C Major. This episode was edited by Peyton Thomas and transcribed by Morgan Bimm.

A transcript of this episode is available here.