The Virginia Woolf Reading Group discussion

I am about to embark on reading my first book by Virginia Woolf, and I wondered if anybody has a suggestion as to the best one to start with. I have read a little of "The Waves" while browsing at Barnes and Noble, and it was beautiful.

I haven't read many of her books myself, but I started with Mrs Dalloway and that was good. A fair few people seem to have begun with A Room of One's Own, as well. The group is reading Orlando at the moment, and it seems pretty accessible.

Thanks for your suggestions, Choupette! I have "A Room Of One's Own" on my list already, and I can't wait to read it! :)

I would be willing to help out in the group - I noticed their has not been any activity. I would be new to this type of thing and would have to learn but I am willing. Thank you.

A Room Of One's Own is actually a critic book, not a novel. But many people prefer to start with it, since it opens an overview on Virginia Woolf's literary thoughts and writing style.

I often suggest "The voyage Out" and "Night and Day" first, since those novels still haven't a deep lark into Virginia's famous stream of conciousness technique. Starting by her most famous novels can be quite hard for a first expericence in to woolfian fiction, but this is up the reader.

Hope you enjoy your reading, Jamie :)

I read Mrs Dalloway as my first book and really enjoyed it! All her books are really unique and there to be read, enjoyed and disected, so it's really up to you. I would certainly recommend Mrs Dalloway, written a review of it if you want to read more?

Hope you enjoy whatever you pick!

Jamie wrote: "I am about to embark on reading my first book by Virginia Woolf, and I wondered if anybody has a suggestion as to the best one to start with. I have read a little of "The Waves" while browsing at B..."

I read a section of "A Room of One's Own" for AP English when I was in high school, and then read Mrs. Dalloway in college. I would go with either Room or one of her early works, as Rosangela (and a few others) have suggested. Hope you LOVE her!!! :)

I started with her difficult work first. The Waves. I fell in love with Woolf and have a ladder bookshelf devoted to her novels, letters, essays, and biographies. I liked that I started with the more heavy material and went back to where she began and it was interesting to read the Voyage Out and how she developed into the master she became.

I would suggest To the Lighthouse

Night and Day and The Voyage Out were the first novels written by Virginia Woolf and lack the 'Woolfian' Moment of Being. I found these novels fair enough, but not really quintessential Virginia Woolf. I didn't find her final novel Between the acts very good either (though I'm planning to re-read that one).

Mrs Dalloway would be a good starter, although my first novel was To the Lighthouse. To the Lighthouse made me mesmerized and made I eventually write my thesis on Virginia Woolf. The Waves is, to my opinion, the most difficult read. I think you should read that novel secondly, so you would already be familiar with Woolf's way of writing.

You could also read some of her short stories like "Kew Gardens", "The Mark on the Wall" or "The Fascination of the Pool", just to get an idea what kind of writer Virginia Woolf was.

http://gutenberg.net.au/pages/woolf.html

Try with ' Mark on the Wall',the best way to start exploring Virginia ;)Also 'a room of one's own' is great too

Nobody's mentioned Three Guineas here! I believe it goes naturally with A Room of One's Own - and that is still what it takes to become an artist like Virginia. Inflation taken into account, of course;-)
For beginners, I suggest the short story collection Death of a Moth. It is beautiful, shows her many sided skills - and the title short story has been choreographed by and for many dancers. Check it out on YouTube! Anybody else who knows of artistic "spin-offs" of her works? Except the movies, that is...

As she examines the struggle of a moth trying to achieve something impossible by going through a windowpane to reach the outdoors, Virginia Woolf sees the moth in a new light, a light that identifies the moth not as insignificant and in demand of pity, but a small creature of the world, a pure being that was afforded the gift of being “nothing but life.”
I agree with you Line,but also,for beginners it might be better to read her style in 'Waves' and after that move on her work in which she explores the difficulties of existence and freedom of women at the time,as Death of a Moth is, as well ...

Good argument! I'm just thinking that it's sometimes easier to read her works first as stories, and then come back to them and go deeper in your analysis and angle of reading. Love the way you describe the moth by the way:-)

thnx :) Anyway,You should should join this group if you haven't already https://lists.service.ohio-state.edu/... it's very useful and interesting. ;)

If no one is moderating here, you could check out http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/8...

OR if someone wants to totally make a new site and moderate the group, just ask. http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/2...

http://woolfonline.com/

As moderator of the other group I'm always open to suggestions.