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3.72 AVERAGE
3.72 AVERAGE
Over the course of a day, various characters related to Clarissa Dalloway go about their lives before her party that evening.
I was initially very into this novel, but as it went on my interest declined. Part of it is the nature of stream of consciousness. We see a log of the internal lives of the characters and the way they have meaning even in mundane situations. But I felt there was a layer I often missed having to do with English society. If I knew more about the time period, maybe I would have felt more invested.
i enjoyed very much! clarissa and sally…. that’s all i am saying
there were gems of interest in a sea of boring. with books like this i think about the tiktokers who say they just read dialogue. would have finished in 5 minutes lol
challenging
dark
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
i found woolf's writing style (especially the stream of consciousness) both absolutely mind boggling and beautiful at the same time. it's quite difficult to get into it because of that, and because the plot is incredibly slow as it takes place in the span of a day (for 255 pages...). i really liked how there wasn't really that much dialogue at all but we got to understand the characters and their inner worlds through woolf's descriptions of their dynamics through the past and the present. while the book spans over a day, it takes us on a journey through the lifetimes of the characters (who are admitedly privileged snobby brits) as they reflect on life and ageing and the passage of time. regrets run deep for the characters and i saw a lot of the same sentiments of 'the Great Gatsby' in this book in that regard and also through the lavish parties. i think woolf probably did a good job at depicting post-war Britain, the narration of Septimus' life as a war veteran burdened by PTSD from the war and loss was really important for this novel to depict the contrast of liveliness and also death (physically, emotional) as society recovers. there are also parallels with woolf's own mental struggles depicted through Septimus and what happens to him which is saddening to read. overall a pretty good read with a lot to take away but nothing that really knocked my boots off
Will try Dalloway Day again next year
I would much rather read a whole book on Septimus, the other characters and their stories bored me. Also not a fan of Woolf's writing style with her paragraph long sentences. I was initially going to give 1 star, but by forcing myself to get half way through, enough of the story interested me to bump it up to 2. I'm just glad it's over
For a 'proper' second read, it was not a bad book. However, it took me longer to read despite a smaller page count due to the font size. It also lost my focus in parts (especially at the Dalloway's party sadly). The queer rep was there I don't care what anyone says haha!
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes