Young Bloomsbury: The Generation That Redefined Love, Freedom, and Self-Expression in 1920s England

by Nino Strachey

An “illuminating” ( Daily Mail , London) exploration of the second generation of the iconic Bloomsbury Group who inspired their elders to new heights of creativity and passion while also pushing the boundaries of sexual freedom and gender norms in 1920s England.

In the years before the First World War, a collection of writers and artists—Virginia Woolf, E.M. Forster, and Lytton Strachey among them—began to make a name for themselves in England and America for their irreverent spirit and provocative works of literature, art, and criticism. They called themselves the Bloomsbury Group and by the 1920s, they were at the height of their influence.

Then a new generation stepped forward—creative young people who tantalized their elders with their captivating looks, bold ideas, and subversive energy. Young Bloomsbury introduces us to this colorful cast of characters, including novelist Eddy Sackville-West, who wore elaborate make-up and dressed in satin and black velvet; artist Stephen Tomlin, who sculpted the heads of his male and female lovers; and author Julia Strachey, who wrote a searing tale of blighted love. Talented and productive, these larger-than-life figures had high-achieving professional lives and extremely complicated emotional lives.

The group had always celebrated sexual equality and freedom in private, feeling that every person had the right to live and love in the way they chose. But as transgressive self-expression became more public, this younger generation gave Old Bloomsbury a new voice. Revealing an aspect of history not yet explored and with “effervescent detail” (Juliet Nicolson, author of Frostquake ), Young Bloomsbury celebrates an open way of living and loving that would not be embraced for another hundred years.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, LGBT, Biography, Queer, Biography Memoir, British Literature

304 pages, Hardcover

First published December 6, 2022

Reviews

[Alwynne · Rating 3 out of 5]

It’s questionable whether the world needs yet another book about the Bloomsbury Group but Nino Strachey’s contribution approaches the topic from an unusual angle. Her focus isn’t on the Bloomsbury Group itself, instead she turns her gaze on the younger generations who became its avid fans and followers. These were a mix of socialites, artists, students and writers, from Stephen Tennant and Julia Strachey to Frances Partridge, attracted to its possibilities for a newly-scripted, post-WW1 English society. Young men and women fascinated by the promise of freedom of expression and, above all, a space in which they could explore and celebrate queer identities. They came together through different routes: wild parties, exclusive dining clubs, some flocked to Lytton Strachey’s home at Ham Spray others to literary salons in Bloomsbury itself. Strachey’s is a relatively fresh perspective and I was particularly fascinated by her survey of queer cultures of the 1920s. She also does a decent job of highlighting the difficult negotiations between sexual exploration and life in a wider, hostile environment in which any overt signs of queer expression were often rigidly policed and punished. But for readers, like me, who’ve already devoured a number of Bloomsbury Group studies and biographies there isn’t a lot that’s particularly revelatory here. It’s a fairly descriptive piece, well-researched but sometimes a little plodding and fragmentary, with some sections that veer towards the potted biography. It’s also quite unbalanced at times, so there’s a wealth of material relating to author Julia Strachey and Stephen Tennant but not so much on lesser-known Bloomsbury acolytes. But for anyone interested in the background to books like Orlando who hasn’t read much, if anything, about Bloomsbury then this is a reasonable, undemanding introduction to its key players and their interactions with their surroundings.

Thanks to Netgalley and publisher Two Roads for an ARC

Rating: 2.5/3

[Alexis Hall]

Source of book: NetGalley (thank you)
Relevant disclaimers: none
Please note: This review may not be reproduced or quoted, in whole or in part, without explicit consent from the author.

And remember: I am not here to judge your drag, I mean your book. Books are art and art is subjective. These are just my personal thoughts. They are not meant to be taken as broader commentary on the general quality of the work. Believe me, I have not enjoyed many an excellent book, and my individual lack of enjoyment has not made any of those books less excellent or (more relevantly) less successful.

Further disclaimer: Readers, please stop accusing me of trying to take down “my competition” because I wrote a review you didn’t like. This is complete nonsense. Firstly, writing isn’t a competitive sport. Secondly, I only publish reviews of books in the subgenre where I’m best known (queer romcom) if they’re glowing. And finally: taking time out of my life to read an entire book, then write a detailed review about it that some people on GR will look at would be a profoundly inefficient and ineffective way to damage the careers of other authors. If you can’t credit me with simply being a person who loves books and likes talking about them, at least credit me with enough common sense to be a better villain.

*******************************************

Unfortunately, this book turned out to a bit of a chore for me. I started it in the middle of the heatwave, which probably didn’t help, as intra-Bloomsbury relationships are dodecahedral at the best of times. There’s about six pages worth of dramatis personae at the front but it just didn’t help. Unlike a lot of books about the Bloomsbury set, this particular book takes the bright young things—the next generation of Bloomsbury lovers, admirers and hangers-on—as its focus but, err, given the way the roaring twenties went they’re all androgynously beautiful twenty-somethings who went to Oxford and potentially had mental health issues. By about the 70% mark I’m not sure I could have told you the difference between Stephen Tennant, Frances Marshall, and Stephen Tomlin. Frankly, the only reason can independently identify Roger Senhouse is because he apparently enacted a sexy crucifixion scene with Lytton Strachey.

Like, tell me more?



The central core of this book is the relationship between the two Bloomsbury generations: the way the elders created a space for acceptance, self-expression, and queerness that allowed the young generation to flourish, and in turn, the younger generation provided novelty and creativity and, y’know, their nubile twenty-something bodies for bonking. In all seriousness, the environment cultivated by the elder Bloomsburys does seem to have been genuinely beneficial—radical, too, in its gender equality (class less so, however, something this book gently elides) and sexual openness, especially in contrast to the repression of the times. And the book itself does its best to honour the queerness of its subjects: there’s frank discussion of polyamory and pansexuality, as well as expressions of gender nonconformity that we might today recognise as reflections of trans or nonbinary identity.

Where it falls down for me is … there’s simultaneously a lot here and not a lot here? It’s a whirlpool of connections that ends up feeling like a string of rather superficial potted biographies. Virginia Woolf’s affection-shady letters provide the spine of the narrative but its heart—the polyamorous relationship between Lytton, Carrington, and Ralph Patridge—is almost entirely neglected in the second half. After a fairly engaging start, the book starts to feel like a bit like you’re stuck at a party where everyone else already knows each other and think they’re way too cool for you anyway. Which is … basically what the Bloomsbury set was. Is? Remains, even in biography.

I think I’m also a fairly shallow audience when it comes to biography: like Virginia Woolf I’m all about gossip, love affairs, and intimate emotional portraits. And I realise that’s complex because we’re talking about real people who lived real lives and it’s not really my business what they liked to do in bed. Even putting my sordid tastes, though, there’s just so much … vividity to the lives of these people, like when Clive Duncan gets so pissed off at Lytton Strachey he decides to “fire” him as a friend and writes a long letter that he doesn’t, in the end send:

“You walk in an alley sheltered and comely … your hedges are grown so tall that you know nothing of the sun, save that he falls sometimes perpendicular on your vanity and warms your self-complacency at noon.”

A subtweet just doesn’t have the same grandeur, you know?

In any case, Young Bloomsbury is a well-meaning but ultimately—for me—fairly surface-level romp through the younger Bloomsbury generation that, through what feels like a misplaced desire to be comprehensive, ends up whisking the reader past nearly everything that makes this particular group of people fascinating even a century later.

I mean, Lytton Strachey, to this day, remains top of my "historical figure you would spank" list. Just look at him. He's got that pseudo-buttoned up post Victorian look that suggests he would be a total riot in bed. And that beard. And those hands.

[Roman Clodia · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you've read about the Bloomsberries before then this book over-promises and doesn't wholly deliver on its premise. The hook is that this is not supposed to be about the core Bloomsburyites but about the next generation of youthful free thinkers who looked to their elders while forging their own spaces. In reality, though, this book spends far longer with the well-known and less with the new names. There's an enticing introduction but then we flip backwards. I also thought this was quite uneven in its attention with more time spent on Julia Strachey and Stephen Tennant.

For a book which is tracing a sort of counterculture, it feels remarkably staid where I wanted flamboyance and something a bit more exciting. I'd say that if you're new to reading about the Bloomsbury Group, this will be a good, if not innovative, introduction.

Thanks to the publisher for an ARC via NetGalley

[Emmkay · Rating 2 out of 5]

Well-researched and well-intentioned, with an interesting focus at its core - the creation of cross-generational queer community within and around the Bloomsbury Group. But…it plods. And its ploddingness cast an especially bitter pall over my reading experience, because it’s filled with other people’s parties.

I was reading about what the people at the parties were wearing, the hijinks they got up to, the booze they drank, the sex they had, the partners they swapped and shared and gossiped about, all while I was introduced with great rapidity to loads of people I had trouble telling apart. You know that feeling when you’re the only sober person at a party? Well, at this party the author and I were both sober, and I was trapped in a corner with her.

There were certainly some parts I found interesting, particularly some bits that provided sociocultural context. And the notes at the back speak to a significant research effort. But having made it through, I’m off to down some espresso to jolt me back to the rest of my weekend. 2.5.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Having read this, I feel it will be of more interest to those who haven’t, perhaps, read as many books about the Bloomsbury group as I have. Of course, author Nino Strachey is a relative of Lytton Strachey, one of the ‘Old Bloomsbury’ set and so I had hoped for some real insights and unseen material. The idea behind this title being that the emphasis will not be on Virginia Woolf, Vanessa Bell, Duncan Grant, etc. but on the ‘Young Bloomsbury’ set that followed them and were inspired by their flouting of conventions and open conversation. Seen by many at the time as smug and self-absorbed, they were followed by the ‘Bright Young Things’ of the Twenties, who were impressed and encouraged to be open about their sexuality by the generation of writers and artists who preceded them.

Strachey begins though with a rather uninspiring, potted history of the Bloomsbury group, before moving on to the next generation – Stephen Tennant, Eddy Sackville-West, Julia Strachey, Frances Marshall and others. The problem that the younger Bloomsbury set faced was that, as the Thirties approached, and politics and global depression appeared, then personal choice and freedom of self-expression again began to look self-absorbed. The problem with this book is that Strachey rarely delves deeply into events and tends to highlight those who, presumably, she has, or found, more information on. As such, I ended the book feeling as though I had eaten an insubstantial meal and was left, casting around, feeling rather unsatisfied. A good introduction, but it could have offered more. I received a copy of this book from the publisher, via NetGalley, for review.

[David Sweeney · Rating 2 out of 5]

I suspect that the key to enjoying this book is to be very clear what your expectations are.
The Bloomsbury Group was renowned for its wit, and this is completely devoid of it. This provides a thumbnail sketch of the group and the young ones that came along. Given the author's relationship to the group one can't expect that this will be a balanced view, and that is especially revealed when she writes about John Strachey.
Interestingly, the only negative, and dare I say bitchy, comments all come via quotes attributed to Virginia Woolf, which unfortunately lead me to believe the author is clearly not a fan.
The book concludes that the Bloomsbury's were the first to have non-conventional relationships, but that simply ignores pioneers such as Edward Carpenter. (Lived openly with George Merrill for 30 years and was very influential).
Finally, one factual error. Forster's Maurice was not unpublishable but rather Forster strictly forbade to be published until after he died.
Best used as a guide to get a cast of characters but then go elsewhere for any meaningful insights.

[Jeimy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have always been fascinated by how ahead of its time the Bloomsbury group was and this book gave me a glimpse into the open relationships that prevailed in this circle of artistic luminaries.

[Jarrett Neal · Rating 3 out of 5]

It should be a crime to write a book this dull about a group of writers, artists, and intellectuals who sussed vibrancy out of every moment. I have a feeling Lytton Strachey, Virginia Woolf, Duncan Grant and all the other members of the Bloomsbury milieu are spinning in their graves right about now. Anyone who endeavors to write a book that probes the loves and losses of the Bloomsbury group needs to up their game and provide a text as fresh and original as they were, yet Young Bloomsbury is full of yawns when it should be raucous and trenchant. Either Nino Strachey--a relative?--was too close her subjects or not close enough.

Let me short hand Young Bloomsbury for you: a group of posh writers, artists, and intellectuals cluster in 1920s London. Their abiding ethos is to challenge the stodgy, restrictive conventions of the Victorian Era and burst newness upon the world of arts and letters. Pansexuality runs through everything from their discussions to their rowdy parties to the work they produce. They all fall in love with each other, they all sleep with each other, and jealousy and heartbreak are rampant. Some get sick and die. Some, sadly, commit suicide. The survivors, riven by the upheaval of the Second World War and the loss of their beloved contemporaries, drift into the conventionality they so staunchly fought against. Just now, I think I did as good a job of describing Young Bloomsbury as Nino Strachey. This isn't a bad book but there are better books, films, and documentaries out there on this group.

For those who are quite familiar with the Bloomsbury group and their output of work, Young Bloomsbury will be a lethargic reading experience. But for those looking to acquaint themselves with these changemakers for the first time, this book is a good starting point. But don't make the mistake I did and listen to the audiobook. Nino Strachey is a thoroughly boring narrator who reads rather than performs the next, yet another disservice she does to artists who, even in death, are more alive than the slim book that was written about them.

[Charmaine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sadly this was much more superficial and dull than I was hoping. Too many characters and not enough depth of exploration of psyches.

[Laura Spira · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found this book disappointing. Like other reviewers here, I had expected that, with the author being a member of the Strachey family, there would be new information and the concept of a second generation of "Bloomsberries" was interesting. Group biographies are a difficult genre to pull off without a very clear central theme which enables the author to deal with chronological complexity and avoid repetition - Francesca Wade's Square Haunting is a good example of a successful group biography. But this book seemed jumbled, repetitive and superficial, with no real sense of the personalities or the milieux in which they existed. And the constant emphasis on the group's sexual exploits was tedious.

My view may have been unduly influenced by my other current reading - Frances Spalding's biography of Gwen Raverat. The Darwins seem so much more substantial, less frivolous than the Bloomsbury set. They too broke boundaries, intellectual and artistic, as well as sexual. And Spalding is of course a very accomplished biographer who writes beautifully and brings her subjects to life vividly, even the peripheral characters.

[Kathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

The best audience for this book is folks who are familiar with one or more of the famous figures and desire more information about how they lived. It was refreshing to see a thriving queer community that accepted homosexuality and especially bisexuality, and openly embraced the concepts of open communication and consensual non-monogamy That being, once I had forced myself to read line by line for the first half of the book, I did start skim reading, as the cast of those involved was too wide for me to feel attached to their individual goings on. I am mostly left with a newfound appreciation for found queer families and clubs, and am happy to report they were alive and well in 1920s London.

I chat about my thoughts on this book in this wrap up.

[Lara · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think this book was perfect for me who absolutely LOVES the Bloomsbury Group but didn’t really know much about all the interconnections between the sprawling members, not to mention how it was more like a queer chosen family with everyone fucking everyone. I guess I especially learned a lot about the Strachey family—Nino liked to focus on these characters, as members of her literal family…

I will say, however, that if you’re going to read this book, you should definitely read LOTE by Shola Von Reinhold as well. The protagonist in that book is obsessed with Stephen Tennant, a Bright Young Thing/member of Young Bloomsbury, but the book focuses on locating missing Blackness in the archives and the lack of historical Black representation. Indeed, Strachey’s book is entirely white by contrast…proving Reinhold’s point.

[Chessie Gordon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Young Bloomsbury explores the transgressive lives of the second generation of the Bloomsbury Group looks at the impact new ideals and ways of being had on original members of the group. It's written by Nino Strachey who is interestingly one of the original members' descendants.

I really enjoy reading about people who have led unconventional lives so I was excited to check this out. Young Bloomsbury is clearly well researched and well written, it covers a myriad of interesting characters and it contains an impressive amount of information about the lives people involved with Bloomsbury.

As someone fairly new to the Bloomsbury Group topic, this was a really interesting read for me as I didn’t know much about the original members of the group and knew virtually nothing about the second wave of members in the 1920's. I found the sort of contents page that introduced the significant players a useful tool to refer back to as it was occasionally hard to keep track of who was who. I'd definitely recommend it to readers looking for an introduction to all things Bloomsbury.

My favourite passage was probably this: 'A family of choice, they created ties of love that lasted a lifetime, embracing queerness, acknowledging difference, defying traditional moral codes.'

Thank you to Netgalley and John Murray Press for the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Nicole · Rating 4 out of 5]

Marvelous! And my first introduction to the Bloomsbury Group, though I've heard of and read some of the individuals... so I'm understandably a bit star struck and in awe of their openness regarding sexuality, etc.

And now my TBR list has a slew of new authors: some previously unknown, some I've dabbled in but must now commit to reading and some I know only by literary reputation.

Unfortunately, my knowledge and interest in art is so minuscule as to have been detrimental in my understanding of several Bloomsbury figures. I shall educate myself forthwith.

What a group! I want to sink myself into their literary output to understand the concepts they were grappling with. Many still a struggle today (femme masculinity, transphobia, female equality).

Yet, class inequality seemed to be a cause outside their concern. Hum.

Fantastic reading by the author. Highly recommended.

[Just read Alexis Hall's review and agree with much of his assessment except... I embraced the spirit of this work. I'm all in. And for me, it's also a launch pad. And it helps give some context to The Charioteer, by Renault, which I read and loved. I clearly have a lot more reading to do.]

[Anneri · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a rather disappointing read. First, I was quite happy that I really do know quite a lot about the Bloomsbury Group, because you need to know the major members of the group or you'll be completely lost with this book.
Second, I was disappointed because major parts of the book read like a list of who fucked whom, without any broader evaluation of their lives and the effects of those relationships. Broad statements were placed there instead, without any exploration of deeper meanings.
The most baffling part of the book, for me, came in the last chapters and the exploration of James Strachey's life that lead him to the USA and the bohemian scene there. Sure, he was a member of the younger Bloomsbury set, but still, I couldn't understand why he was singled out.

[Jamie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I mean, come on, young men and women striking out in the generation after the Woolfs, the Bells, Lytton Strachey, the original Bloomsbury group but who are from distinguished families, educated at Oxford and Cambridge and “deciding” they would like to write or paint. It doesn’t seem like real life. I did love it though.
The sexual freedom of the 1920s with this group is intense. It made for many complications but they all embraced it.

[mia · Rating 4 out of 5]

the quote on the back cover from phoebe waller-bridge says it all, "i want to climb inside this book and live there."

[Tess]

“Always life will be worth living by those who find in it things which make them feel to the limit of their capacity”

Reading this was a pretty fun time. Any book in which the central cohort describe themselves as ‘very gay and amorous’ is going to be a winner for me tbh, and this was no exception.

Just as the original Bloomsbury Set (including Lytton Strachey and Virginia Woolf) had formed and caused societal stirs from the very start of the 20th century with their spirited approach to life, literature and culture - by the time the 1920s rolled around, a new era was blossoming (blooming? geddit?) in Bloomsbury, as a new generation and movement of youth stepped in to invigorate the already established Bloomsbury Group. This cohort still embraced art and creativity as their predecessors did, but brought new explorations of sexuality, gender norms, polyamory, and freedom of self-expression in all aspects of life. They pushed boundaries, turned heads and sparked discourse aplenty - and most importantly, revelled in it. They were queer, in every sense of the word, and proud.

I have long known of and been interested in the Bloomsbury Group - they are an incredibly well documented, romanticised and, dare I say it, likely overdone in many ways… However, bringing a fresh new lens to the second generation of the group, particularly as written by a direct descendent really reignited this for me. I loved meeting all these individuals chronicled in more detail - and it was astounding to see how many parallels there were between this younger generation, and so many people I know and are friends with now, and the causes they advocate for. There is a really central thread throughout this not only of self-expression, and authentic self, but of the fight for socialism (at one point capitalism is described as “thoroughly despicable”), Labour activism (the reality of class division and the differentiation between card carrying Labour members and those who remained on the fence) , and the ongoing dismissal of the notion of fair dealings between classes as ‘ideological’, and class traitorship. Ring any bells with the current political climate…?

Essentially this is a group who, despite their blatant privileges and lust for the finer things in life, ultimately chose to campaign for a fairer future, and liberation for all - even at the disinclination of their family and many peers. It’s very reminiscent of many things I have seen in this generation (though we are generally minus the wealthy parents and class protection also)

What I will say, is that I regret listening to this on audio. Not because it was poorly narrated, but because there are so many names and connections and relationships that I so often lost track and wished I could flip back, or tab or highlight sections. I definitely don’t think I gleaned as much as I possibly could from this by listening to it, and I do think I will likely pick up a physical copy at some point.

[Juliano · Rating 3 out of 5]

“My child and I have found much to celebrate in the world of Young Bloomsbury, and in the queer history of our own family.” Spurred by her love for her gender-fluid and queer child Cas, to whom Young Bloomsbury is dedicated, Nino Strachey has crafted a loving, celebratory, new, queer history of the famed Bloomsbury Group, bridging the perceived gaps between the Old Bloomsbury set and the postwar New. “Each group had something to learn from the other. Bloomsbury had always celebrated sexual equality and freedom in private, feeling that every person had the right to live and love in the way they chose. […] But by the 1920s, transgressive self-expression was becoming more public.” With an awareness of present day concerns and challenges for queer liberation, but with the deftness required to prevent the anachronistic, retroactive applying of modern theory to historical times and crises, Strachey illuminates the forward-thinking, hope-inspiring path left by the Bloomsbury Group, an early instance of the chosen family. Strachey’s cast of characters includes her own relatives Lytton, James, and Julia Strachey, as well as Virginia and Vanessa Stephen (later Woolf and Bell), the cousins Vita and Eddy Sackville-West, Duncan Grant, Dora Carrington, Stephen Tennant and several more. Brimming with insights into the lives and works of these creative forerunners, Strachey forges an engaging, lively testament to a rich, vibrant moment in time that speaks, so readily, across the years, decades, to a nation of queer people in dire need of hope.

[False · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a straight forward history of the characters that can be said to make up the Bloomsbury set, both young and old, this is a reasonably good book. However the so called bravery of these people with their sexual freedoms is exaggerated. Their families were largely rich and powerful enough to prevent scandal and even prosecution. If they had been working class they would no doubt have been locked up or put into institutions. A few were but at the behest of their families or psychiatrists not the law. That attitudes have changed is good and I’m not so stupid as to go on an anti ‘woke’ rant, no, my objection is the anachronistic one. I don’t think these people acted from any desire to free up society as much as to get as much sex as possible with either gender which fair enough, provided it was consensual and I’m not entirely sure it always was. Hypocrisy also flourished as well as sex and snobbery of the intellectual kind. Lytton Strachey denigrated EM Forster when a novel was successful but when his own book sold that was seemingly ok. The Bloomsbury lot were not necessary likeable people, interesting yes but not always nice. The only person that seems decent was poor Dora Carrington. She was much misused by men and coerced into sex by Mark Gertler who being working class and Jewish should have known better.

[AnnieM · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is an absolute delight! I had some familiarity with the Bloomsbury group (Virginia Woolf, Cecil Beaton, Duncan Grant, Lytton Strachey, Evelyn Waugh etc.) but this book goes into much more detail about their lives, loves, ability to express themselves freely and be open to all sexual orientations and gender expression. This was a creative and fantastic time and these writers, artists and critics opened up new perspectives and visions that have only recently in the past few decades or so been "revived" of sorts in the US and UK in particular. What makes this book so unique and special is that the author is a descendant of one of the main members of the group and so tells us a compelling narrative that connects into present day and to their child. The book is structured really well -- each chapter focuses on one aspect of culture or their lives. This is a highly informative and enjoyable read. I highly recommend it.

Thank you to Netgalley and Atria Books for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

[ND · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved loved this book, so dishy and well-researched, and so queer. I was surprised that she gave the young women such short shrift, though, after pages and pages of handsome Oxford and Cambridge men and their gay affairs. It seems odd, i.e., is it because they left behind fewer records, or is it a reflection of the author's biases? Hard to say. She seems very taken with her relative Julia Strachey, but not the other women of this generation... She also doesn't really sum up their overall impact on British culture, ie she gives the stories of the key players, but not their lasting impact. I liked the occasional mentions of wealthy queer Americans of this era, such as Henrietta Bingham and her girlfriend Mina Kerstein, who hung out in Bloomsbury and had some juicy affairs in the 20s. Despite some flaws, the book is an important contribution to the realm of Bloomsbury scholarship. One hundred years in, that is really saying something!

[AJ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Please note: I won an advanced readers copy in a GoodReads Giveaway.

This was an interesting and unique look at a point in time in a world of creatives. It’s clear that this was a passion project for Strachey (it is their family after all). The 1920s are a fascinating time in Western culture and this book dives deep into what creatives were up to at the time. I’m curious about the books and works mentioned.

The ability to have the primary sources is so cool. I’m glad Strachey opted to share the information and stories - especially to show that members of the LGBTQIA+ community have always existed and fought for a place to exist in this world.

There are some times where the book’s sole focus on decadence and the upper class is disconcerting. Though there are times when the book points out that the upper classes were able to get away with more than the average person, it’s not all that critical of those situations.

Worth the read.

[Lea Columbus · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would like Atria Books and Net Galley for the opportunity to read this as an ARC.I have read a number of books about the Bloomsbury Circle ( Virginia Woolf et al). I was interested in this book about the next generation- or Young Bloomsbury.I had thought it would also be about the group referred to as the Bright Young Things- The Mitfords and Evelyn Waugh , for example. There was very little about the Bright Young Things. There was also not as much about the Young Bloomsbury as I had thought. The bulk was about the original Bloomsbury Group and their influences. It was well researched and well written,just not the information that I was looking forward to reading. Having said that, if you are looking for a first book about the Bloomsbury group, this is a good place to start.I enjoyed reading this book.

[Kelly Buchanan · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting read focused on the less-discussed younger generation of Bright Young Things who became part of the Bloomsbury circle, whether through romantic or familial relationships. Written, of course, by a member of the Strachey family who had access to privately-held documents from family and friends, Nino Strachey brings some more obscure figures into the light of day while also presenting the more familiar figures such as Virginia and Leonard Woolf, Lytton Stratchey, Duncan Grant, Vanessa Bell, E.M. Forster, and others in the context of a "found family," welcoming queerness in many forms and celebrating uniqueness even as the groups members can also doll out ruthless quips about one another in their writing. A celebration of young souls and their quest for belonging in a changing world.

[Elisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quite enjoyed this brief group biography of the second Bloomsbury cohort, many of whom were integral parts of the later lives of the Woolfs, working at the Hogarth Press, making art, writing their own novels. The book is full of family anecdotes and feels quite authentic as the author is third generation Bloomsbury herself and remembers many of the participants. The hardcover has helpful photographs of everyone, but the Audible version is read by the author, which I found delightful, especially since one could trust that she wasn't mispronouncing the names. Interesting to see the ways the various circles in England and Europe intersected each other. New-found interest in Julia Strachey in particular.

[Michele Cacano · Rating 5 out of 5]

While a thorough portrayal of the second generation of the Bloomsbury group of artists and writers, I Iistened to the audio book and feel like I might need to re-read it in print, to cement the characters into my head. This is my first foray into the 1920s of England, and I'm not familiar with these folks.

I definitely admire (most of) them, as free spirits, creative forces, and uninhibited lifestyle creators. They created non-traditional family groups, lived polyamorously and without regard to the conservative laws of the day.

There is a blood link here, from the Stracheys to Gerald Murphy, with whom I am more familiar.

I enjoyed listening to this biographical depiction of a true artist enclave.

[Benjamin Bookman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Topic, Research, Timeliness, Perspective - 5 stars. I loved the openness and unabashed queerness. It was refreshing as well as clearly well based in fact. However, the readability/cohesion was what dragged me down. There were sooo many people named, so quickly and sporadically, that it was really hard to follow. This could have read like a story, and would have been amazing. But it jumped around so rapidly that in the end I am not going to remember any of the people or events at all. The big idea was there, but otherwise it felt like just details strung together without any cohesion or narrative oomph.

[Kidlitter · Rating 3 out of 5]

Best if you're already a Bloomsbury collector of facts and fancies about that extraordinary group of people. This book is hardly Holroyd but really, does it need to be? I learnt much about a group of Bloomsbury-come-lately types who don't quite convince as the cultural force that Woolf & Co. were, but are quite interesting in their own right. Strachey is obviously a descendent of Lytton and her knowledge of family bric-a-brac is extensive so that alone makes it worthwhile. I went back to Eminent Victorians after this in an effort to really grasp its significance - more to come on that soon.

[Lynn · Rating 2 out of 5]

I picked this book up, because I thought it would be great to learn about the Bloomsbury group from a family member. I give the author great credit for researching, emphasizing, and celebrating the importance of diversity and inclusion, particularly for turn of the century England. However, I found the writing uneven and at times the content to be too gossipy and gratuitous. I’m not one to give up on a book because I hope it will conclude with the intent clearly woven. Needless to say, I was disappointed.