A review by feifeii
A Haunted House and Other Stories: The Complete Shorter Fiction of Virginia Woolf by Virginia Woolf

challenging dark reflective slow-paced

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

5.0

This is a fantastic collection of all the short stories and sketches of Virginia Woolf ( both published and unpublished during her life time). You can find the seeds of the themes, subjects and writing techniques dominant in her major novels, like Mrs Dalloway, Orlando, the Waves, to the Lighthouse, in these shorter fictions. They are all really interesting to read and would definitely recommend if you have read her major novels and would love to understand more about Woolf’s work. 

It’s hard for me to pick out which few I love as I almost enjoy every single piece in this collection. Each piece was written with diverse techniques and styles. I like the arrangement of the pieces in a chronological order which allows readers to understand the change of Woolf’s writing and subject matter corresponds to her novels. 


“Why admit anything to literature that is not poetry – by which I mean saturated?… Is that not my grudge against novelist? That they select nothing? The poets succeeding by simplifying: practically everything is left out. I want to put practically everything in: yet to saturate.”

“Wherever I go, mysterious figures, I see you, turning the corner, mothers and sons; you, you, you...it’s you ,unknown figures, you I adore; as I open my arms, it’s you I embrace, you I draw to me – adorable world! “- An Unwritten Novel