Reviews

The Voyage Out by Virginia Woolf

jmsw's review against another edition

3.0

Woolf herself wrote that "the second-rate works of a great writer are worth reading because they offer the best criticism of his masterpieces" -- definitely true here. This isn't her best novel, but it's her first novel, and you can see so many things developing that you are going to love when they are grown.

That said, this is NOT the novel to fall in love with Woolf with. The end moves quickly -- the last 100 pages for me turned far faster than any 30 of the previous hundreds, but it's a long haul sometimes.

karenmichele's review against another edition

4.0

It is fascinating to read a first novel by an established author after having read later works after her writing style has evolved. In The Voyage Out, Woolf’s writing ability and many themes she will develop over time shine through. She captures the reality of many of the lives around her in the early 1900s. I loved meeting the Dalloways who appear during the actual voyage out described in this book and could picture Clarissa preparing for her famous party in the future. Feminism, family ties and loss were there as themes later to be more fully developed. The writing is straightforward and traditional, but not at all awkward hinting at the greatness to come. Having just read a fictionalized account of Woolf’s life as she was writing this first book, I felt as if I knew some of the characters she portrayed and had the feeling that she was starting with the advice, “write what you know”. I enjoyed it and thought the voyage itself was the best part of the novel.

kkuykendall06's review against another edition

4.0

I appreciated this book. Woolf says the real thing, instead of the expected thing. I found it original, refreshing, and symbolic in a beautiful way.

itspickhles's review against another edition

4.0

This is great novel! Woolf never fails to flourish her writings with descriptive imagery, poetic diction, and metaphors. There isn't really any singular plot that the book revolves around - but I kind of liked that about this book. Woolf introduces several characters - all of which she paints as unique but also similar in their devotion to everyday life. I especially liked how Woolf made seemingly mundane thoughts and things that we come across every day as beautiful and worth writing about.

beckylaxtonbass's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

abigailoise's review against another edition

3.0

The number of fascinating characters is astounding but because the book is pretty short, sometimes leaving something more to be desired for insight. Virgina has such a variety of insights on different types of people, about the interactions between the most unlikely of friends, the bonds between all of us, and the places (literal and metaphorical) life brings us. This is my first read of any of her work but I'm pretty well on the train now.

oftheglade's review against another edition

3.75

I think I was expecting more plot than this, and the threads felt very loose at the end. However I really enjoyed the stream of consciousness style that Woolf developed from this book and if this is considered one of her weaker works, I’m looking forward to reading the others immensely. 

I related a lot to Helen and I liked her as a protagonist, her changing moods and the way she was so very herself, content with her life and her choices compared to many of the other women. I liked Rachel for her indecision and lack of content, and her musings on how you’re meant to know a feeling is a feeling of you’ve never felt it before. The men I was less interested in but I felt that Woolf was too. 

Lots of very good quotes from this that I hope stay highlighted on my library ebook copy of the book!

ros_scallydandler's review against another edition

challenging reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

Fascinating to see Woolf developing her themes and style in this first novel. We're still a long way from To the Lighthouse or The Waves just fifteen years later, but this is a tremendous novel in its own right. 

ikaiser's review against another edition

5.0

The stream of consciousness style Woolf employs makes her novels an experience, and rather than viewing the characters from outside of the narrative, one feels as if they have entered into the minds of the characters themselves. This is my third Woolf read and by far my favorite. Very romantic and thoughtful and all-together wonderful.

iseutbm's review against another edition

4.0

I really liked this book at first. I liked the style and the way the narration listens in turn to the musings of each of the characters and their judgments about each other. I also liked the feminist theme and the questions Woolf was asking about the relationships between men and women. However, that all kind of got lost, I felt, in the love story between Rachel and Hewet, and from there it all continued almost inevitably to the ending, which disappointed me. I won't spoil it, though - this is a quick, fun read, and it did make me eager to read some of Woolf's later, better-developed novels.