The Diary of Virginia Woolf: Vol. 1, 1915-1919

I really enjoy biographies of literary figures. This is the first diary I have purchased. Mrs. Woolf is fascinating, and I expect to purchase the rest of her published diaries. Virginia Woolf is my favorite British female author.

Virginia Woolf diary 1 is a great read. Each and every volume of her diaries is interesting, educational, mysterious, genius, personal. VW lived an exciting, interesting life and thank-goodness she was very good at writing in her diary. You will get hooked on reading them and I recommend getting all five diaries. I read diary 5 first of course , since I know what happens in the end, then began with diary 1,then 2,3.4....and I shall read 5 again. (It is even better if you buy the books of letters to refer to alongside each volume) (even better, to also read the novels as they are 'being written then published by VW) The footnotes are wonderful, informative, and appreciated. Even tho they at times took up half a page, they were well worth it and were at times just as interesting as the diary on that page. You will immediately discover that she does not write her diary with the same prosey language with which she writes her books except for the entries where she is experimenting; so there is still plenty of beautiful imagery but mostly it feels as if she's speaking to the reader in everyday language/tone. The diaries would also be helpful to potential writers because she explains her process with each book; emotional states, inspirations, sights, sounds, re-writes, interruptions, time-lines, how she feels when books come out, how reviews affect her, how she gets her feelings hurt, humiliation, friendship, perseverance, and torture in the form of rest cures. Read all five volumes, you won't be sorry. Oh, and all of the other characters in the diaries are extraordinarily described and one begins to feel friendship with each and every one. I like Virginia. By the way, choose a favorite pen to underline with.

"The Diary of Virginia Woolf, Volume One: 1915-1919" was truly magnificent. I never was so interested in every day, mundane goings-on as I was while reading this diary. As a journal keeper, I was in awe over the way she expressed her thoughts and explained her day(s). I've never read anything by her, but in reading this has really sparked my interest. Editor Oliver Bell put much time and hard work into this book, but I found the footnotes on the bottom of the pages bothersome, and it took me a while to get used to them being there. If you're interested in Virginia Woolf, then read her diary. I recommend.

Woolf is fascinating, even when describing the most mundane details of daily life. Her writing style is as beautiful here as in her fiction, and so the diary is well worth reading for that alone. Plus, nearly every page contains a reference to Lytton Strachey, Dora Carrington, or some other Bloomsbury luminary. She isn't always completely truthful or straightforward, but she is always supremely entertaining. However, despite a number of very helpful footnotes, the editor cannot provide explanations and clarifications for every entry, so it helps to be somewhat familiar with Woolf's life before reading her diaries.