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A review by nikitaaaart
The Waves by Virginia Woolf
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
The Waves by Virginia Woolf // Fiction, Experimental
Virginia Woolf has a very picturesque and detailed writing style, using a stream of consciousness technique.
The book is about the journey of 6 friends - Bernard, Louis, Neville, Susan, Jinny & Rhoda - from their childhood to old age. The journey, you may ask, is inclined towards their psychological and philosophical changes that occur in the characters' lifespan.
What's unique about this is that there's no actual plot or even spoken dialogue between characters. Rather, they are in the form of internal dialogues reflecting each character's perspective, fears and anxieties, and experiences - their deepest thoughts in the given life scenario. However, conversation between the characters exists only within the subtext.
It took me the first 5-8 pages to figure out the structure. It takes a while to understand and get into the novel completely. Preferably around >20 pages, it gets interesting and the pace increases.
I feel this novel is mine. It's relatable. It's personal. You attach yourself to certain characters or even get pissed by the personalities of some.
The Waves is a culmination of different personalities trying to find their identity, to belong somewhere, and Woolf provides us with the opportunity to really get into each character's shoes. It represents continuity of life & connectivity to each other.
(This is widely known as one of the hardest reads with a slow paced flow of the book since it's entirely based on character development.)
💙 Music to listen to:
Ludovico Einaudi composed an album inspired by this novel, 'Le Onde' which means The Waves in Italian. (Read the CD description on Wikipedia of the album page after finishing the book)
Virginia Woolf has a very picturesque and detailed writing style, using a stream of consciousness technique.
The book is about the journey of 6 friends - Bernard, Louis, Neville, Susan, Jinny & Rhoda - from their childhood to old age. The journey, you may ask, is inclined towards their psychological and philosophical changes that occur in the characters' lifespan.
What's unique about this is that there's no actual plot or even spoken dialogue between characters. Rather, they are in the form of internal dialogues reflecting each character's perspective, fears and anxieties, and experiences - their deepest thoughts in the given life scenario. However, conversation between the characters exists only within the subtext.
It took me the first 5-8 pages to figure out the structure. It takes a while to understand and get into the novel completely. Preferably around >20 pages, it gets interesting and the pace increases.
I feel this novel is mine. It's relatable. It's personal. You attach yourself to certain characters or even get pissed by the personalities of some.
The Waves is a culmination of different personalities trying to find their identity, to belong somewhere, and Woolf provides us with the opportunity to really get into each character's shoes. It represents continuity of life & connectivity to each other.
(This is widely known as one of the hardest reads with a slow paced flow of the book since it's entirely based on character development.)
💙 Music to listen to:
Ludovico Einaudi composed an album inspired by this novel, 'Le Onde' which means The Waves in Italian. (Read the CD description on Wikipedia of the album page after finishing the book)