yak_attak's review against another edition
1.0
1.5
Listen, I'm not going to pretend this is a reasonable reaction to such an important work, or that I understood it enough to really judge much about it, but the experience of reading this was feeling my brain slowly leaking out of my ears. In order to get stream of consciousness, your consciousness needs to be able to float along with the author's. At times I could, and there were certainly sections and portions of beautiful writing in which I could get a glimpse of the flow of the novel. These were few and far between. Mostly, it felt like hovering on the border of sleep, where thoughts come, go, and make not a god damn bit of sense. The pretentious assholes in this novel don't seem to congeal into some sort of study of humanity so much as discrete photos of absolute wretched melodrama. I dunno. I get this is likely my failing entirely, but it was a *lot* of failing.
Listen, I'm not going to pretend this is a reasonable reaction to such an important work, or that I understood it enough to really judge much about it, but the experience of reading this was feeling my brain slowly leaking out of my ears. In order to get stream of consciousness, your consciousness needs to be able to float along with the author's. At times I could, and there were certainly sections and portions of beautiful writing in which I could get a glimpse of the flow of the novel. These were few and far between. Mostly, it felt like hovering on the border of sleep, where thoughts come, go, and make not a god damn bit of sense. The pretentious assholes in this novel don't seem to congeal into some sort of study of humanity so much as discrete photos of absolute wretched melodrama. I dunno. I get this is likely my failing entirely, but it was a *lot* of failing.
sonjahill's review against another edition
1.0
Not for me. I struggled to keep track of what was going on ☹️
marivincenzi's review against another edition
challenging
inspiring
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
4.25
m00rko's review against another edition
challenging
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
robotswithpersonality's review against another edition
Thought I'd be safe with a short classic but that was DENSE. It's a little blurred by the stream of consciousness narrative, but there is an endless array of sharp observations about humanity in the individual and as a group, about society itself and how it grinds people down. What struck me most was the heartbreaking reality of a writer lending first hand experience with how poorly mental health conditions were understood, treated, disclaimed or ignored at this period in history. How suffocating living under a narrow range of expectations is; how suffocating it is to know/discover you'll only be 'loved' if you behave a certain way, show the right interests, associate accordingly, equally as oppressive a notion for both men and women; how suffocating to have another cling to you as their only possibility of happiness because they don't consider they have any ability to pursue actions which should make themselves happy.
Written in 1925 at the epicenter of the 'British Empire' so be on the lookout for every unenlightened, offensive sentiment that came with that era. The sapphic romance references were as impressive in their honesty as they were saddening in their brevity.
If I weren't scrambling for sensemaking in run on sentences I may have been more captivated by the descriptions. If I knew London, I might have more kinship with the intimate placement of various characters throughout this day.
imnotadorableimpunk's review against another edition
1.0
I'm just not a big fan of stream-of-conscious writing.
kjboldon's review against another edition
5.0
A novel of interlocking perspectives that switch organically, not abruptly. They move forward and back in time, with themes of love and loss, particularly the latter from the Great War. There's a palpable tension, which produced an insistent pull to finish the novel and find out what happens. Related reading I hope to do: Michael Cunningham's The Hours, James Joyce's The Dubliners, and the Mrs. Dalloway Reader, for more perspective (or 'proportion,' heh) on this slim but complex and involving novel.
mazza57's review against another edition
2.0
this was not my favourite classic. At times the narrative was turgid and the rest of the time hard to really understand. I would rather read [a:Daphne du Maurier|2001717|Daphne du Maurier|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1422444467p2/2001717.jpg]
acatarina's review against another edition
4.0
I had to wait three days to do this review cause I was not sure what to say about it. One thing is sure: I enjoyed reading it.
If you think about it, this book is really forward minded for the time it was written. There are many thoughts of the characters which people still take a lot of time to realize nowadays.
When I finished the book I thought: this is it? Cause the story basically happens during just one ordinary day. But then I realized that the action was all "inside" the characters rather than in the outside.
For me it was all about personal growth, love and life's purpose.
And the writing was beautiful, it made me want to read more of this author.
If you think about it, this book is really forward minded for the time it was written. There are many thoughts of the characters which people still take a lot of time to realize nowadays.
When I finished the book I thought: this is it? Cause the story basically happens during just one ordinary day. But then I realized that the action was all "inside" the characters rather than in the outside.
For me it was all about personal growth, love and life's purpose.
And the writing was beautiful, it made me want to read more of this author.