The Little Men Literary Reference Page

This page lists the books that have been mentioned in the episodes of the series Little Men.

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20,000 Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne (1828-1905) Philanthrophy

Published in 1869 and 1870, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea tells the adventures of Captain Nemo and his crew aboard the submarine, Nautilus. As warships begin to disappear, survivors begin to believe they are victims of a giant whale, but when a harpoon ship sets out to kill the beast, they discover that the whale is actually the Nautilus.

Alice Through the Looking-Glass by Lewis Carroll/Charles Dodgson (1832-1898) Opposites Attract

"And as in uffish thought he stood,
The Jabberwock, with eyes of flame,
Came whiffling through the tulgey wood,
And burbled as it came!"
Published 1872.

Frankenstein (The Modern Prometheus) by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley (1797-1851) The Lantern Man

"I saw the pale student of unhallowed arts kneeling beside the thing he had put together. I saw the hideous phantasm of a man stretched out, then on the working of some powerful engine, show signs of life...his success would terrify the artist; he would rush away...hope that...this thing...would subside into dead matter...he opens his eyes; behold the horrid thing stands back at this beside opening his curtains..."
Published 1818.

Great Expectations by Charles Dickens (1812-1870) Coming Attractions

"It was one of those March days when the sun shines hot and the wind blows cold: when it is summer in the light, and winter in the shade."

Great Expectations, Dickens' thirteenth novel, first published in 1861 as a weekly serial in All the Year Round, contained a great many autobiographical details as did his eighth novel, David Copperfield. Often seen as Dickens' darkest novel, Great Expectations was, and remains, one of the author's most popular works. It tells the story of Miss Havisham, a woman slighted at a young age who puts her entire life on hold and devotes it entirely to seeking revenge on the male sex.

Little Men / Jo's Boys by Louisa May Alcott (1832-1888)

"For love is a flower that grows in any soil, works its sweet miracles undaunted by autumn frost or winter snow, blooming fair and fragrant all the year, and blessing those who give and those who receive."

Published in 1871, Little Men is the basis for Carl Binder's television series of the same name. The third and fourth books in Alcott's series of stories about the March sisters look more closely at life at the Plumfield School for Boys, founded by Jo and her husband Fritz. Jo's Boys follows ten years after Little Men and was published in 1886.

Little Women / Good Wives by Louisa May Alcott (1832-1888) Leap of Faith

"Henceforth, safe across the river,
I shall see forever more
A beloved, household spirit
Waiting for me on the shore."

Published in 1868 and 1869 respectively, Little Women and Good Wives tell the story of the March sisters (Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy) as they grow from faithful daughters to loving wives and mothers. Although not mentioned per se in the series Little Men, Jo and her sisters often recall episodes from the stories Alcott created for them. Jo also refers to the ghost of her sister Beth as her "beloved, household spirit waiting for me on the shore."

Middlemarch by George Eliot/Mary Ann Evans (1819-1880) Opposites Attract

Published serially in 1871 and 1872, this 900-page novel is set in early nineteenth century England amidst the urban wealth of a town called Middlemarch. This saga of pre-Victorian English society serves as a critique of women's position in society at the time. The plot involves Dorothea Brooke, a woman looking for fulfillment and happiness, who falls in love with the cousin of her deceased husband only to find that she will forfeit her inheritance if she re-marries.

Moby Dick by Herman Melville (1819-1891) Father Figure

"Call me Ishmael."
Published 1851.

The Pilgrim's Progress by John Bunyan (1628-1688) Blame

"As I walked through the wilderness of the world, I lighted on a certain place where was a den, and laid me down in that place to sleep; and as I slept, I dreamed a dream..."

An allegorical tale written in 1678, The Pilgrim's Progress is the story of two epic journeys: one taken by Christian and the other by his wife Christiana as they both travel the same route from the City of Destruction to the Celestial City, but with different experiences along the way.

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen (1775-1817) The Lantern Man

"It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife."
Published 1813.

Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe (1659-1731) Changes

"In trouble to be troubl'd
Is to have your trouble doubl'd."
Published 1719-1720.

The Story of the Three Little Pigs Blame

"Not by the hair of my chinney-chin-chin!"

An English folk tale dating back to the early 17th Century, this favourite children's story is an allegory for the conflicting values of English culture and that of the Powhatan, the people with whom the English first had contact in what became known as America.

The Tempest by William Shakespeare (1564-1616) Three Angry Women

"How may goodly creatures are there here!
How beauteous mankind is! O brave new world,
That has such people in't."

Written in 1610 and 1611, The Tempest was first performed in November 1611 for King James I and his court. Having been deposed by his brother and cast out to sea with his daughter Miranda some twelve years before the play begins, Prospero (Duke of Milan) seeks justice by using his magical arts to establish himself as a ruler of a distant island and then subsequently raising a storm at sea, causing his brother Antonio, Alonso (King of Naples), Ferdinand (Alonso's son) and their crew to be shipwrecked on the same island. Separated from the rest of his party, Ferdinand is led by Ariel to Prospero's cell. There, he and Miranda fall in love, and Prospero makes Ferdinand a slave to test his character after which he finally gives his blessing to their marriage.

Three Musketeers, The by Alexandre Dumas (1802-1870) The Sign

When King Louis XIII suspects his wife, Queen Anne, of having an affair with the Duke Of Buckingham, the King's trusted confidant, Cardinal Richelieu further fuels the King's suspicions against his wife in an effort to gain more power and influence. From rural Gascony comes D'Artagan, seeking fame and fortune, and wishing to join the King's Musketeers. After running a gauntlet of challenges, threats and duels by the King's guard, also known as the Musketeers, D'Artagan is accepted unofficially into fold and forms a bond with Althos, Porthos, and Aramis, the three most infamous Musketeers. Events become deadly serious when these four are selected in secret by the Queen to retrieve a valuable brooch which was given to her by her husband and then by her to her lover.

Walden, or, Life in the Woods by Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862) Civil Disobedience

"I have travelled a good deal in Concord."

Published in 1854, this book is a record of the eccentric Thoreau's life and thoughts while he lived alone in the woods for two years on the shores of Walden Pond in Concord.

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20,000 Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne (1828-1905)	Philanthrophy
Published in 1869 and 1870, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea tells the adventures of Captain Nemo and his crew aboard the submarine, Nautilus. As warships begin to disappear, survivors begin to believe they are victims of a giant whale, but when a harpoon ship sets out to kill the beast, they discover that the whale is actually the Nautilus.
Alice Through the Looking-Glass by Lewis Carroll/Charles Dodgson (1832-1898)	Opposites Attract
"And as in uffish thought he stood, The Jabberwock, with eyes of flame, Came whiffling through the tulgey wood, And burbled as it came!" Published 1872.
Frankenstein (The Modern Prometheus) by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley (1797-1851)	The Lantern Man
"I saw the pale student of unhallowed arts kneeling beside the thing he had put together. I saw the hideous phantasm of a man stretched out, then on the working of some powerful engine, show signs of life...his success would terrify the artist; he would rush away...hope that...this thing...would subside into dead matter...he opens his eyes; behold the horrid thing stands back at this beside opening his curtains..." Published 1818.
Great Expectations by Charles Dickens (1812-1870)	Coming Attractions
"It was one of those March days when the sun shines hot and the wind blows cold: when it is summer in the light, and winter in the shade."
Great Expectations, Dickens' thirteenth novel, first published in 1861 as a weekly serial in All the Year Round, contained a great many autobiographical details as did his eighth novel, David Copperfield. Often seen as Dickens' darkest novel, Great Expectations was, and remains, one of the author's most popular works. It tells the story of Miss Havisham, a woman slighted at a young age who puts her entire life on hold and devotes it entirely to seeking revenge on the male sex.
Little Men / Jo's Boys by Louisa May Alcott (1832-1888)
"For love is a flower that grows in any soil, works its sweet miracles undaunted by autumn frost or winter snow, blooming fair and fragrant all the year, and blessing those who give and those who receive."
Published in 1871, Little Men is the basis for Carl Binder's television series of the same name. The third and fourth books in Alcott's series of stories about the March sisters look more closely at life at the Plumfield School for Boys, founded by Jo and her husband Fritz. Jo's Boys follows ten years after Little Men and was published in 1886.
Little Women / Good Wives by Louisa May Alcott (1832-1888)	Leap of Faith
"Henceforth, safe across the river, I shall see forever more A beloved, household spirit Waiting for me on the shore."
Published in 1868 and 1869 respectively, Little Women and Good Wives tell the story of the March sisters (Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy) as they grow from faithful daughters to loving wives and mothers. Although not mentioned per se in the series Little Men, Jo and her sisters often recall episodes from the stories Alcott created for them. Jo also refers to the ghost of her sister Beth as her "beloved, household spirit waiting for me on the shore."
Middlemarch by George Eliot/Mary Ann Evans (1819-1880)	Opposites Attract
Published serially in 1871 and 1872, this 900-page novel is set in early nineteenth century England amidst the urban wealth of a town called Middlemarch. This saga of pre-Victorian English society serves as a critique of women's position in society at the time. The plot involves Dorothea Brooke, a woman looking for fulfillment and happiness, who falls in love with the cousin of her deceased husband only to find that she will forfeit her inheritance if she re-marries.
Moby Dick by Herman Melville (1819-1891)	Father Figure
"Call me Ishmael." Published 1851.
The Pilgrim's Progress by John Bunyan (1628-1688)	Blame
"As I walked through the wilderness of the world, I lighted on a certain place where was a den, and laid me down in that place to sleep; and as I slept, I dreamed a dream..."
An allegorical tale written in 1678, The Pilgrim's Progress is the story of two epic journeys: one taken by Christian and the other by his wife Christiana as they both travel the same route from the City of Destruction to the Celestial City, but with different experiences along the way.
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen (1775-1817)	The Lantern Man
"It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife." Published 1813.
Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe (1659-1731)	Changes
"In trouble to be troubl'd Is to have your trouble doubl'd." Published 1719-1720.
The Story of the Three Little Pigs	Blame
"Not by the hair of my chinney-chin-chin!"
An English folk tale dating back to the early 17th Century, this favourite children's story is an allegory for the conflicting values of English culture and that of the Powhatan, the people with whom the English first had contact in what became known as America.
The Tempest by William Shakespeare (1564-1616)	Three Angry Women
"How may goodly creatures are there here! How beauteous mankind is! O brave new world, That has such people in't."
Written in 1610 and 1611, The Tempest was first performed in November 1611 for King James I and his court. Having been deposed by his brother and cast out to sea with his daughter Miranda some twelve years before the play begins, Prospero (Duke of Milan) seeks justice by using his magical arts to establish himself as a ruler of a distant island and then subsequently raising a storm at sea, causing his brother Antonio, Alonso (King of Naples), Ferdinand (Alonso's son) and their crew to be shipwrecked on the same island. Separated from the rest of his party, Ferdinand is led by Ariel to Prospero's cell. There, he and Miranda fall in love, and Prospero makes Ferdinand a slave to test his character after which he finally gives his blessing to their marriage.
Three Musketeers, The by Alexandre Dumas (1802-1870)	The Sign
When King Louis XIII suspects his wife, Queen Anne, of having an affair with the Duke Of Buckingham, the King's trusted confidant, Cardinal Richelieu further fuels the King's suspicions against his wife in an effort to gain more power and influence. From rural Gascony comes D'Artagan, seeking fame and fortune, and wishing to join the King's Musketeers. After running a gauntlet of challenges, threats and duels by the King's guard, also known as the Musketeers, D'Artagan is accepted unofficially into fold and forms a bond with Althos, Porthos, and Aramis, the three most infamous Musketeers. Events become deadly serious when these four are selected in secret by the Queen to retrieve a valuable brooch which was given to her by her husband and then by her to her lover.
Walden, or, Life in the Woods by Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862)	Civil Disobedience
"I have travelled a good deal in Concord."
Published in 1854, this book is a record of the eccentric Thoreau's life and thoughts while he lived alone in the woods for two years on the shores of Walden Pond in Concord.