Nelly's Hospital" [in] OUR YOUNG FOLKS, Volume 1

Boston: Ticknor and Fields, 1865. Very good.. Bound volume of the first 12 issues of this literary magazine for children - including Alcott's story about a young girl who wants to a nurse, informed by her time as a nurse during the Civil War. The 11-page story of "Nelly's Hospital" appears in the April issue and deals with a little girl who, in her quest to become a nurse, learns compassion by caring for small wounded animals. In it, Alcott also champions the idea of a woman taking charge of her own life independent of a man. The story was published separately and distributed by the US Sanitary Commission some time in 1865. This volume also contains work by Harriet Beecher Stowe, Longfellow and host of other important American authors and it is profusely illustrated with wood engravings. A wonderful time capsule of the United States just after the Civil War. 8.5'' x 5.5''. Original green cloth, elaborately gilt-stamped spine. Engraved frontispiece potrait of author Thomas Hughes; illustrated with in-text wood engravings. 808 pages. Beautifully handwritten gift inscription, dated 1866, to front fly leaf. Some cracking to hinges, still firm. A bit of spotting, with slight lean. Overall bright.