Samantha seiple biography

Samantha Seiple (pronounced “Si-pull”) is the author of Louisa on the Front Lines: Louisa May Alcott in the Civil War (Seal Press), the first narrative nonfiction book focusing on the least-known aspect of Louisa May Alcott’s career – her time spent as a nurse during the Civil War. Though her service was brief, the dramatic experience was one that she considered pivotal in helping her write the beloved classic Little Women. It also deeply affected her tenuous relationship with her father and solidified her commitment to human rights. Louisa on the Front Lines has been praised as “Lively, well-researched… engaging and informative… Alcott herself would have marveled at how Seiple’s biographical and historical account reads like a novel!” by leading Alcott scholar Daniel Shealy, co-editor of The Journals of Louisa May Alcott and The Selected Letters of Louisa May Alcott.

Seiple enjoys uncovering forgotten and little-known aspects of history and meticulously crafting the factual story to read like a novel. Louisa on the Front Lines is her first biographical account for the adult audience. Her previous narrative nonfiction books for young adults include Ghosts in the Fog: The Untold Story of Alaska’s WWII Invasion, a YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction Nominee and a Junior Library Guild Selection; Lincoln’s Spymaster: America’s First Private Eye, a Junior Library Guild Selection; Byrd & Igloo: A Polar Adventure; Death on the River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt’s Amazon Adventure, a Eureka! Nonfiction Children’s Gold Award winner; and Nazi Saboteurs: Hitler’s Secret Attack on America, a Junior Library Guild Selection.

Seiple lives in Asheville, North Carolina with her husband and teacup-sized poodle.

Many fans of Little Women are not aware of the fact that Louisa May Alcott, a bestselling children’s author, also served her country during the Civil War as a nurse.  Because of her experience in taking care of her dying sister Lizzie, Alcott was accepted as a nurse, serving in Washington, DC in the Union Hotel Hospital.  A 2019 release,  Louisa on the Front Lines: Louisa May Alcott in the Civil Warby Samantha Seiple, details Alcott’s short but distinguished service which earned her the right to be designated as a war veteran at her grave in Sleepy Hollow in Concord. MA.

Adult or YA audience?

Although the book was an enjoyable read I had difficulty  in trying to determine the audience for which the book was intended. Samantha Seiple is known as a YA author; although Louisa on the Front Lines is not designated as a YA book, it often reads as such (particularly with referring to Louisa as “Lu” which seemed overly familiar to me).

Summarizing Alcott’s background

I found the first half of this book to be dull and forgettable (part of the reason being that I know the story of the Alcotts so well). Louisa’s backstory (which is complex given her extraordinary family and their circumstances) is overly simplified to the point of bordering on erroneous. I realize that the author’s intent was to get to the “good stuff” as fast as she could and not burden the reader with too much history. And I can certainly empathize with the difficulty of trying to boil down the Alcott family story – it’s tough! So I commend her for the effort but I think this portion of the book failed to deliver.

The heart of the book

However, by chapter 6, I was rewarded. Once Seiple gets to Alcott’s Civil War nursing experience, the book sparkles with great attention to the interesting and relevant details of Alcott’s experience. Seiple captures the sights, sounds and smells of the hospital where Alcott served along with the horren

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Samantha Seiple’s latest book is Louisa on the Front Lines: Louisa May Alcott in the Civil War (Seal Press), the first narrative nonfiction book focusing on the least-known aspect of Louisa May Alcott's career – her time spent as a nurse during the Civil War. Though her service was brief, the dramatic experience was one that she considered pivotal in helping her write the beloved classic Little Women. It also deeply affected her tenuous relationship with her father, and solidified her commitment to human rights. Louisa on the Front Lines has been praised as “Lively, well-researched… engaging and informative… Alcott herself would have marveled at how Seiple's biographical and historical account reads like a novel!” by leading Alcott scholar Daniel Shealy, co-editor of The Journals of Louisa May Alcott and The Selected Letters of Louisa May Alcott. Seiple enjoys uncovering forgotten and little-known aspects of history and meticulously crafting the factual story to read like a novel. Louisa on the Front Lines is her first biographical account for the adult audience. Her previous narrative nonfiction books for young adults include Ghosts in the Fog: The Untold Story of Alaska’s WWII Invasion, a YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction Nominee and a Junior Library Guild Selection; Lincoln’s Spymaster: America’s First Private Eye, a Junior Library Guild Selection; Byrd & Igloo: A Polar Adventure; and Death on the River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt’s Amazon Adventure, a Eureka! Nonfiction Children’s Gold Award winner. Seiple lives in Asheville, North Carolina with her husband, Todd, and tiny toy poodle, Lucy.