"A biography wholly worthy of the brilliant woman it chronicles. . . . It rediscovers Virginia Woolf afresh." --The Philadelphia Inquirer
While Virginia Woolf--one of our century's most brilliant and mercurial writers--has had no shortage of biographers, none has seemed as naturally suited to the task as Hermione Lee. Subscribing to Virginia Woolf's own belief in the fluidity and elusiveness of identity, Lee comes at her subject from a multitude of perspectives, producing a richly layered portrait of the writer and the woman that leaves all of her complexities and contradictions intact. Such issues as sexual abuse, mental illness, and suicide are brought into balance with the immensity of her literary achievement, her heroic commitment to her work, her generosity and wit, and her sanity and strength.
It is not often that biography offers the satisfactions of great fiction--but this is clearly what Hermione Lee has achieved. Accessible, intelligent, and deeply pleasurable to read, her Virginia Woolf will undoubtedly take its place as the standard biography for years to come.
"One of the most impressive biographies of the decade: moving, eloquent, powerful as both literary and social history."
--Financial Times
"The most distinguished study of Woolf yet." --The New Republic
- ISBN10 0375701362
- ISBN13 9780375701368
- Publish Date 5 October 1999 (first published 22 April 1997)
- Publish Status Active
- Publish Country US
- Publisher Random House USA Inc
- Imprint Random House Inc
- Edition Vintage Books ed.
- Format Paperback (US Trade)
- Pages 944
- Language English
- URL https://penguinrandomhouse.com/books/isbn/9780375701368