A Tale Told by Moonlight

by Leonard Woolf, Victoria Glendinning (Foreword)

An after-dinner walk in the moonlight leads to a series of confessions of first loves, each one sentimental and romantic. That is until Jessop takes his turn and decries the very notion of love. He tells of a tragic affair between an old school friend and an innocent Sinhalese girl, and so introduces the central motif of these three stories—the incompatibility of East and West. Based on Woolf's own experiences in Ceylon, these tales provide a brilliant depiction of colonial life. A central figure in the Bloomsbury circle, Leonard Woolf (1880–1969) is perhaps best remembered for his marriage to Virginia, yet he produced some of the finest literary writings of his age.

Genres: Classics, Short Stories, Fiction, British Literature, Classic Literature

74 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 2007

About the author

Leonard Sidney Woolf was a noted British political theorist, author, publisher (The Hogarth Press), and civil servant, but perhaps best-known as husband to author Virginia Woolf.

Reviews

[Russell James]

Short stories and pieces from his 4-volume autobiography, telling of his time as a civil servant in the Far East (as it was then known). If that makes the book sound dated and uninviting, read it and change your mind.

[Brent Woo]

Of course you're reading this because you already love Virginia. It's probably a solid morsel of average travel writing, but it's hard to appreciate it in its own right because there's little here for fans of Virginia. Reads like Steinbeck, extremely plain and plotty yarns, direct language and dialogue-oriented.

However... what is interesting is his unique setting in time and location: British Ceylon (Sri Lanka). Lots of dated attitudes, pretty normal yellow fever, orientalism, the whole shebang in these short stories. To be clear I never "dock" for that stuff in historical fiction if it's suitable for the context—it's fascinating to experience those attitudes and the sociopolitical environment of British colonization.

Best is "The Two Brahmans", a straightforward parable about the caste system, it reminds me of Steinbeck's The Pearl. The colonial setting reminded me of The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet, which is set not in a colony but a Dutch trading post in Japan, which is a far richer exploration of the west-meets-east dynamic.

[Glen U]

An amazing little (73 pages) consisting of 5 short stories (one repeated with minor changes), written by Leonard Woolf, most notably known as Virginia Woolf's husband but a fine writer in his own right. Taken from his experiences as a civil servant for Great Britain in Ceylon (Sri Lanka in present times) during the early 1900's, Woolf writes in a style reminiscent of Rudyard Kipling and G.K. Chesterton. Extremely descriptive and flavorful, Woolf's writing will transport the reader to the Imperialist Times of British expansionism. It is definitely not PC but for the time period it was written in, moderately liberal and although there is a definite racist bent, nothing of a blatant racial hatred. Maybe uncomfortable, for some, still, an enjoyable and entertaining read about a time and place in British history. A skillful writer, but vastly overshadowed by his exquisitely talented partner, Leonard Woolf's writing should be explored by readers for its own enjoyment and not compared to the incomparable Virginia Woolf. A very good read.

[Terra]

Verrebbe da dire che si capisce perché quella famosa è la moglie. Almeno tre dei racconti sono di una noia mortale; gli altri, con meno contabilità su barche, perle e razze umane, si leggono meglio. Ma non è un libro che consiglierei.

[Boro]

I started out of pure curiosity but ended up enjoyed the collection so much! Pearls and Swine is a gem.

[Ayesha Budhwal ♡]

After reading Virginia Woolf I was really excited to read her husbands work, the stories were interesting but the casual white supremacy irked me

[Ann]

About love and metaphorically, imperialism. Set in British Ceylon, now Sri Lanka. Didn't feel dated at all.

[Vanessa Braganza]

Leonard Woolf is trying to be both Joseph Conrad and E.M. Forster, but these stories are interesting.

[Isabella]

Savage and beautiful.

[Dan Cooley]

I really liked this, possibly because it was a short read and kind of to the point, I've also been listening to a lot of history podcasts so this gave a good account of what things were like under the British Raj. I think the best story was Pearls and Swines and the last few were more autobiographical which was interesting as certain events from the stories came from this. I found the stories all interesting and well described, some of the language is very of the time but this is the speech of others, whereas I think the author was more sympathetic and critical of what the British were doing and the small minded racist views of others. Definitely worth a read.

[Elaine]

Uneven, and one story is in here twice, perhaps to fill out the slenderest of volumes, but still quite a delight. If you find Maugham's tales of colonial corruption and inebriation delicious, this little snack will be most welcome. I had no idea that Woolf (L.) had such a way with words. One of my 2017 projects has been to rediscover Virginia, but I am putting discovery of Leonard on the list as well.

[Barbara]

Three short stories and two excerpts from Woolf's autobiography 'Growing', this, for me, was a reminder of the grotesque that was (is?) the colonial English man abroad (and those sitting at home pontificating on how the Empire should be run). There is an honesty, humour, vividness and insight in these stories and excerpts that makes them both easy to read and thought provoking.

[Stacey]

3.75
I loved digging Leonard Woolf out from his famous wife's shadow and reading the autobiographical stories he crafted from his time as a civil servant in India. My favorite story was the first story from which the book received its name. I bought his other two fiction works and look forward to the time when I open their covers.

[Beth]

Incandescent.

[Zelal Zelalcan]

Felt like it had racist under tones