Bookclub Books:

I’ve always been curious about Virginia Woolf, but shied away from her work, given its reputation as difficult and highbrow. However, I recently saw and enjoyed The Hours so Woolf is back on my radar. Keen to find something a bit more ‘girly’ after last month’s war novel, I plumped for one of her apparently more accessible works, Mrs. Dalloway, as my first bookclub choice.

All playing out on the day of Clarissa Dalloway’s 'charming evening party', the plot and narrative of this novel become subordinate to the inner lives and meditations of its characters. Despite its age (it was first published in 1925), I expect the book will be fresh and vital. Its style will, no doubt, prove a challenge, but I hope that it will be a rewarding one.

A review will be posted here shortly.

This month's book was picked by The Dancer 

What the other femmes had to say
"After starting this in NZ and losing the book before I got halfway through it, I was delighted to finally finish Mrs Dalloway. I think that you have to be in a particular mood to read this book and it got me at the perfect time - I very much enjoyed the dreamy atmosphere and circular narrative." 4/5

"The meandering structure of this book did nothing but frustrate me. Perhaps a more forgiving frame of mind is required to read it but I for one did not enjoy it." 2/5

"Meticulously structured, with a meandering pace punctuated by some exquisitely beautiful writing. Mrs Dalloway is such a mood piece that you really do have to be in the right mood to read it. Parts of it have lingered with me however, and I suspect I'll return to it again." 3/5