Virginia Woolf: A Life from Beginning to End

by Hourly History

Discover the remarkable life of Virginia Woolf... Free BONUS Inside! Virginia Woolf ranks among the most influential writers of the twentieth century. Embracing the Post-Impressionist times in which she lived, her novels reflect the artistic shift from romanticism to abstract. Plot mattered very little to Woolf. Her writing was a stream of consciousness outside of time and place. Her novels, including her best-known work, Mrs. Dalloway, invariably dwell on gender roles and the concept of reality. Woolf suffered from mental illness throughout her life. Her inner torment formed the basis of much of her writing. Virginia made multiple suicide attempts and was institutionalized several times throughout her life as she feared a loss of control due to her increasing depression and manic episodes. Her husband, Leonard Woolf, with whom she had mainly a platonic relationship, remained supportive of her until her death. On March 28, 1941, Virginia Woolf walked into the River Ouse wearing a heavy coat with pockets filled with rocks. Her body was found three weeks later. Discover a plethora of topics such as A Dysfunctional Home Woolf and the Bloomsbury Group The Making of a Modern Woman Mrs. Dalloway Virginia and Vita’s Love Affair Woolf’s Suicide and Beyond And much more!So if you want a concise and informative book on Virginia Woolf, simply scroll up and click the "Buy now" button for instant access!

Genres: Biography, History, Nonfiction

46 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 29, 2020

About the author

At Hourly History, we focus on publishing history books that are concise, straightforward and take no longer than one hour to read.

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Reviews

[Tania · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another good overview of the subject. This has made me keen to read more of her work.

[Murray · Rating 4 out of 5]

a helpful summarization of an author’s works and thought

A great deal is discussed and examined in this short bio. Her struggle with mental health, her relationships, her books. I’ve read To the Lighthouse, The Waves, and A Room of One’s Own. Of these, Waves and Room are discussed in detail, Lighthouse is not. In addition, Mrs. Dalloway and Orlando are examined. So, a lot is packed into a few pages and the look into her art and thought is not superficial.

I did not care for The Waves. I’ve read lots of stream of consciousness, including Ulysses, but I found Lighthouse more captivating than Waves and found Room, a speech, fascinating.

I grieved her death. I wrote a poem where I spoke with her and tried to argue her out of the decision she made to drown herself in the Ouse. It would have been wonderful to have received many more works from her mind. Ah, but how she suffered in this life.

[Sakshi Bansal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hourly history provides a brilliant and breif glimpse into who Virginia Woolf is... Found this to be a helpful aid in reading her work, which one can appreciate more the more one knows about her.

[Autumn Kearney · Rating 2 out of 5]

Well, that was depressing.

[Jerry Jares · Rating 4 out of 5]

From the description of Virginia Woolf, she was an extremely sensitive person who didn't recover from change and life's difficulties very well.  What she could do was help readers understand more about their lives through her introspection about her own (life).  Victorian life was geared toward married women taking care of their families and doing good works outside the home.  It was a restrictive environment for unmarried women, that kept them in the home, doing needlework.  Politics, business, and educational interests were generally closed to women.

Obviously, the Bloomsbury Group was a group of avant-garde intellectuals, including E M Forster and Lytton Strachey. When Virginia and Leonard Woolf married, they had dogs instead of children because her physician worried about Virginia's mental instability. 
 
Virginia specialized in the 'stream-of-consciousness' narrative voice.  The author points out accurately that "Virginia was less concerned about the accuracy of reality than the impact of reality on the mind." (p. 20)  I learned a great deal about Virginia, her friends, and her writings.

[bea · Rating 5 out of 5]

Como eu amo essa mulher 😭

[D. Thrush · Rating 4 out of 5]

Virginia Woolf was a fascinating complicated woman living in a time that oppressed women. I didn’t know much about her, but this short 43-page book covers her life pretty well including some of her best-known books and their appeal. She was creative and had her demons. I understand better who she was and why her books endure after reading this.

[Quinesia Johnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Okay, I skimmed through this booklet. However, I found that it did include basic information about Virginia. It was easy to read and good for general information. If you have the slightest interest in Virginia Wolf it's definitely an easy enough, and short enough read to take an interest in.

[Harry Trumfio · Rating 5 out of 5]

Outstanding overview of this troubled author's life, together with meaningful summaries of her best works. A good read that provides insights into her counter-culture life style and causes of her deep depression.

[Jean · Rating 3 out of 5]

A Wonder Woman of her time

Virginia Woolf was so very ahead of her time. She was intellectually amazing - not a trait appreciated in women of her era. She is to be admired not only for her writing, but for living the life she believed in.

[n · Rating 5 out of 5]

This just further cemented my love for her while also breaking the ideal image i had of her. She wasn’t perfect, nor did she have the best philosophy but her writing and some of her believes still keep me hooked

[Books and the Bronx Gurrrrlll · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great quick, informative read!

[Neera Kapahi · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book is a fascinating look at Virginia Woolf’s life. We learn about her writings, beliefs and personal life. She was a member of the Bloomsbury group, a group of English intellectuals, artists and more. They were influential and had a very liberal outlook towards feminism and sexuality. They led an unconventional lifestyle and there were affairs, sometimes complicated, among its members.

I enjoyed the book because it also discusses her writings and we get an insight into her beliefs and state of mind.

[Kendra Parker · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an interesting and short biography of Virginia Woolf.

It touched upon most things one might want to know.

The biggest issue I had with this is that while the biography touched upon the time that Woolf donned blackface it did not talk in any way about Woolf's racism and anti-semitism. These things are especially important to know because Woolf was a feminist, lived a mostly bohemian life, had a Jewish husband, and was not straight. I believe that room should have been made for at least some exploration of this even in a biography that was meant to be very short.

[Victor Raul · Rating 5 out of 5]

Una interesante biografia sobre una mujer excepcional que sobrellevo su enfermedad y la revelo en sus obras. Una feminista que ademas carecio de una educacion formal por el solo hecho de ser mujer. Sin lugar a dudas un personaje valioso que fue discriminado y a pesar de las circunstancias se supo imponer.
"Una no puede pensar bien, amar bien dormir bien si una no ha cenado bien"
Muy satisfecho con esta lectura.

[Hyacinth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow, I did not know the perils of Virginia's life. I remember reading her in college but never studied her life. My heart broke while reading this overview of her life. I can't even imagine the torment she must've felt at a time when not much was known about mental health. Even with the advances made, we are still losing too many. I pray that more education and more resources are allotted for the study of the mind and mental healthiness.

[Bonnie Gleckler Clark · Rating 5 out of 5]

Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?

I remember, from many years ago (circa 1966), seeing the movie “Who’s afraid of Virginia Woolf?” Virginia Woolf had been dead for almost twenty years when this play by Edward Albee was made in this movie.
Though I’ve never read anything written by Woolf, I’ve always been interested in her. Until reading this Hourly History, I confess, I new little to nothing about her live.
I found this a most interesting and informative read.

[Mehnaz Amjad · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you

Virginia Woolf is an author to be not read but understood,this book helps you in doing so.
It makes so much sense now learning all about her life which reflects in her writing

[Natalie LeSage · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was actually intending to download Orlando but picked this book by accident. Turned into a happy accident as I am so much more excited to read Orlando having delved into Virginia as a person and an author. This was really concise while being well researched and thoughtful.

[Brooke · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a short and concise overview of Woolf’s life. I felt it covered many important moments relevant to her novels. If you’re going to read Woolf, I recommend giving this a read as it brings a lot of context to her work.

[Maria Ploumaki · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thought about starting my Virginia Woolf marathon with her biography.Good.Liked it.

[derick prentice · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read, I new nothing about the lady now I fully intend to read some of her, if not all her books.
Highly recommend you read this little snippet into the past and present situation.

[Irene O'Brien · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ahead of her time

Never cease to be fascinated by individuals like her who were ahead of their time in their way of thinking and behaviour.

[Robin Dix · Rating 4 out of 5]

A pioneer for women and LGBTQ.

[Kassidi. Under The Radar Books. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting read!