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A review by reverie_and_books
Orlando by Virginia Woolf
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.5
3.5
What is time? What is the proper form of a novel? What is gender?
Whatever our concepts are behind these words, Woolf threw them in the pan, stirred them up, and served the result as a biography that spans well over 300 years and includes a miraculous transition (without intention, it seems). What is often seen as solid suddenly appears fluid.
“He stretched himself. He rose. He stood upright in complete nakedness before us, and while the trumpets pealed Truth! Truth! Truth! we have no choice left but confess – he was a woman.”
Orlando contains multitudes, regardless of her biological or social gender, age or actually passed time, environment and location. It’s an early work of feminist fiction which breaks some rules, also regarding form or social norms. All the praise for that!
At times I found it difficult to follow or to grasp every meaning. Published in 1928 it contains some depictions thoroughly tinted with colonialism and it's effects. And I have a tiny little confession to make: I bought this vintage edition earlier this year, but couldn’t read it without sneezing. I read it as an ebook instead 🤷♀️
"At any rate, it was not until she felt the coil of skirts about her legs and the Captain offered, with the greatest politeness, to have an awning spread for her on deck, that she realized with a start the penalties and the privileges of her position.”
Overall, a dazzling novel that ignores rules and throws strict concepts overboard.
What is time? What is the proper form of a novel? What is gender?
Whatever our concepts are behind these words, Woolf threw them in the pan, stirred them up, and served the result as a biography that spans well over 300 years and includes a miraculous transition (without intention, it seems). What is often seen as solid suddenly appears fluid.
“He stretched himself. He rose. He stood upright in complete nakedness before us, and while the trumpets pealed Truth! Truth! Truth! we have no choice left but confess – he was a woman.”
Orlando contains multitudes, regardless of her biological or social gender, age or actually passed time, environment and location. It’s an early work of feminist fiction which breaks some rules, also regarding form or social norms. All the praise for that!
At times I found it difficult to follow or to grasp every meaning. Published in 1928 it contains some depictions thoroughly tinted with colonialism and it's effects. And I have a tiny little confession to make: I bought this vintage edition earlier this year, but couldn’t read it without sneezing. I read it as an ebook instead 🤷♀️
"At any rate, it was not until she felt the coil of skirts about her legs and the Captain offered, with the greatest politeness, to have an awning spread for her on deck, that she realized with a start the penalties and the privileges of her position.”
Overall, a dazzling novel that ignores rules and throws strict concepts overboard.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism and Violence