Between the Acts

Description

Woolf's last novel and, in her own opinion, "more quintessential" than any of her others. BETWEEN THE ACTS, one of Virginia Woolf's most lyrical works, was published shortly after her death in 1941. The story takes place at Pointz Hall, the country home of the Oliver family for 120 years. Its central focus is the performance of a village pageant, written and directed by the energetic Miss La Trobe, encompassing the whole history of England from the Middle Ages to the verge of war in the Summer of 1939. The comic events on stage, the reactions of the villagers in the audience, the blend of past and present are all presented with affection and insight affirming Virginia Woolf's belief in art as the unifying principle of life. This edition contains the original text that Virginia Woolf was working on when she died.

Virginia Woolf was born in London in 1882, the daughter of Sir Leslie Stephen, first editor of The Dictionary of National Biography. From 1915, when she published her first novel, The Voyage Out, Virginia Woolf maintained an astonishing output of fiction, literary criticism, essays and biography. In 1912 she married Leonard Woolf, and in 1917 they founded The Hogarth Press. Virginia Woolf suffered a series of mental breakdowns throughout her life, and on 28 March 1941 she committed suicide.

'Woolf was an innovator who redefined the novel and pointed the way towards its future possibilities.' Jeanette Winterson 'Virginia Woolf stands as the chief figure of modernism in England andmust be included with Joyce and Proust in the realisation ofexperimental achievements that have completely broken with tradition' New York Times