Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolf

Mrs. Dalloway takes place over the course of a single day in the mid 1920s during which the title character is planning for a party that she is hosting that evening. The point of view passes from Mrs. Dalloway to other characters in a round-robin fashion, during which the reader has access to that person's inner monologue, shared in a style that's close to stream-of-consciousness. Access to the characters' thoughts and memories allows the reader to know what is in the mind of not only Mrs. Dalloway, but also her family, future attendees of her evening party, and a husband and wife who are struggling with severe “shell-shock” being experienced by the war veteran husband, a condition we would now call PTSD. Being privy to the perspectives of so many characters who have opinions about the main character also gives the reader an interesting 360-degree view of Mrs. Dalloway.

The way Virginia Woolf writes the internal, anguished monologues of her characters is remarkable. Because of the flowing style that reads like unfiltered thoughts, including some repetitiveness of phrase, this isn't a quick read, but it's a very worthy one. With each book (I've read To The Lighthouse and A Room of One's Own in addition to Mrs. Dalloway) my admiration for this author grows. Her writing style is challenging, full of depth, and gives the reader a detailed look at early 20^th Century culture and manners.

An aside: This is the first book that my in-person book club (The Dalloway Club) read, when it formed in 1999. (I joined the club during its fourth session, when the book was The Handmaid's Tale.) I've been casually planning to read Mrs. Dalloway sometime ever since then; I am finding it mildly interesting and coincidental I actually picked it up and read it the year I am 52, the same age as Mrs. Dalloway on this day of her party.