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published in the United States in

by Chronicle Books LLC.
Text © by Zena Alkayat.
Illustrations © by Nina Cosford.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be
reproduced in any form without written
permission from the publisher.

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First published in the UK by Frances Lincoln Ltd.

Chronicle Books LLC

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Contents
The Stephen Family Tree 10
THE BLOOMSBURYS 24
Virginia’s Desk 84
Acknowledgments
About the authors
ÒÒShe sliced like a knife through
everything; at the same time
was outside, looking on.''

ÒÒMrs Dalloway'',

 ADELINE VIRGINIA STEPHEN WAS
BORN ON JANUARY 25,
SHE GREW UP AT 22 HYDE PARK
GATE WITH HER FEROCIOUSLY
INTELLECTUAL FATHER, LESLIE, HER
PHILANTHROPIC MOTHER, JULIA, AND
SEVEN SIBLINGS AND HALF-SIBLINGS.
 LESLIE (A HISTORIAN AND CRITIC)
AND JULIA (A GREAT BEAUTY)
LOVED TO REMEMBER.

THEIR HOUSE WAS FULL OF BOOKS,

LETTERS, AND MEMENTOS.
The Stephen Family Tree
WHILE HER BROTHERS WERE AWAY
AT SCHOOL, VIRGINIA WOULD READ
AND WRITE OBSESSIVELY. HER
OLDER SISTER VANESSA SPENT
HOURS AT HER EASEL.

THEY WENT ON TO DEVOTE

THEIR LIVES TO EACH OTHER.
 HAPPIEST DURING FAMILY HOLIDAYS
TO TALLAND HOUSE IN ST IVES,
VIRGINIA ADORED PLAYING CRICKET AND
WAS AN ACE BOWLER. SHE ALSO LOVED
TO LISTEN TO THE WAVES BREAKING
ONE TWO, ONE TWO
AND TAKE LONG COASTAL WALKS
WITH HER FATHER.
 HER CONTENTED CHILDHOOD WAS
CUT SHORT WHEN HER MOTHER DIED.
VIRGINIA WAS THIRTEEN YEARS OLD
 VIRGINIA WAS THIRTEEN YEARS OLD
AND HEARTBROKEN.

THE DEATH OF HER HALF-SISTER STELLA

FOLLOWED IN HER FATHER PASSED
AWAY IN FEBRUARY
 INCONSOLABLE, VIRGINIA WAS
CONSIGNED TO BED FOR MONTHS.
SHE REFUSED TO EAT AND HEARD
SHE REFUSED TO EAT AND HEARD
BIRDS SINGING IN GREEK.
 AFTER LESLIE'S DEATH,
VANESSA PACKED UP THE FAMILY
HOME ALONG WITH ALL ITS
HISTORY. THE STEPHENS WERE
TO MAKE A FRESH START AT
46 GORDON SQUARE, BLOOMSBURY.
 ÒÒAll the voices I used to hear
telling me to do all kinds of
wild things have gone.''

Letter, September

 ON THURSDAY EVENINGS,
VIRGINIA'S BROTHER THOBY WOULD
INVITE HIS CAMBRIDGE FRIENDS TO
GATHER IN THE PARLOR TO DISCUSS
ART, POLITICS, PHILOSOPHY, AND
THEIR GRAND IDEAS.

THIS WAS THE START OF THE

BOHEMIAN ÒÒBLOOMSBURY GROUP''
AND VIRGINIA DELIGHTED IN
HER NEW FREEDOM.
 OVER THE YEARS, THE NEBULOUS
BLOOMSBURY GROUP BECAME
SHORTHAND FOR AN UNCONVENTIONAL
AND NONCONFORMIST SET
OF FRIENDS.
THE BLOOMSBURYS
 THE MOVE TO GORDON SQUARE
ALSO GAVE VIRGINIA A ROOM
OF HER OWN. SHE BEGAN
REVIEWING BOOKS, WRITING
ESSAYS AND ARTICLES, AND
BUILDING A REPUTATION AS
A FORMIDABLE CRITIC.

ÒÒDo you think I shall ever write

a really good book?''

Letter, October

 VIRGINIA TOOK TO
ÒÒSTREET HAUNTING''. SHE RAMBLED
THROUGH BLOOMSBURY TO
WATCH PASSERSBY, OVERHEAR
CONVERSATIONS, AND SPECULATE
ABOUT THE GOINGS-ON
BEHIND LAMPLIT WINDOWS.

SHE WOULD WALK VANESSA'S

SHEEPDOG, GURTH.
 LIFE WOULD NOT REMAIN
SO SPIRITED. BELOVED THOBY
DIED IN VANESSA MARRIED HIS
FRIEND CLIVE BELL THE FOLLOWING
YEAR, OBLIGING VIRGINIA AND HER
BROTHER ADRIAN TO MOVE A SHORT
WALK AWAY TO 29 FITZROY SQUARE.

DUNCAN GRANT, MAYNARD KEYNES,

AND ROGER FRY LIVED NEARBY,
AND THE BLOOMSBURY GROUP
MEETINGS CONTINUED.
 TIMES WERE CHANGING . . .
THE SUFFRAGE MOVEMENT WAS
IN FULL SWING AND THERE WAS
A NEW OPENNESS AMONG
THE FRIENDS TO TALK ABOUT SEX
AND SEXUALITY. THE BLOOMSBURY
GROUP WAS PRODUCING AVANT-GARDE
WORK AND FORGING A NEW
WAY TO LIVE.
 IN DECEMBER , ROGER FRY
HOSTED THE EXHIBITION ÒÒMANET
AND THE POST-IMPRESSIONISTS''.
IT INCLUDED RADICAL, ANTIFORMALIST
ARTWORK BY CEZANNE, VAN GOGH,
GAUGUIN AND MATISSE. LONDON
WAS LEFT SHOCKED, AMUSED,
OUTRAGED, AND CHALLENGED.

ÒÒOn or about December ,

human character changed.''

Essay,
 AMID THE FUSION OF LIBERAL
LIVING AND POLITE EDWARDIAN
SOCIETY, VANESSA AND CLIVE
HAD TWO CHILDREN.

VANESSA WAS A NATURAL MOTHER,

JUST LIKE JULIA BEFORE HER.
 VIRGINIA AND ADRIAN MOVED TO
38 BRUNSWICK SQUARE IN
AND CONCEIVED A COMMUNAL
LIVING PLAN THAT SAW VIRGINIA
SCANDALOUSLY SHARING A HOUSE
WITH FOUR MEN: HER BROTHER
AND THEIR FRIENDS DUNCAN
AND MAYNARD, AS WELL AS
LEONARD WOOLF.
VIRGINIA DREW UP LEONARD'S
TENANCY AGREEMENT.
ÒÒMeals are:
 Breakfast 9 a.m.
Lunch 1.
Meal p.m.
Dinner 8 p.m.

Trays will be placed in the hall punctually at these hours.''

LEONARD HAD SPENT SEVEN YEARS
WORKING FOR THE COLONIAL
CIVIL SERVICE IN CEYLON. HE WAS
A WRITER, AN INTELLECTUAL,
AND A PERFECTIONIST.

HE WAS ALSO TALL AND

DARK WITH BLUE EYES AND
TREMBLING HANDS.
 IN JANUARY , LEONARD
ASKED VIRGINIA TO MARRY HIM.
MONTHS OF COURTSHIP ENSUED,
BUT SHE WAS UNSURE ABOUT THEIR
FUTURE HAPPINESS AND KEPT HIM
WAITING FOR AN ANSWER. THEY
WERE EVENTUALLY MARRIED
ON AUGUST

VIRGINIA WAS THIRTY,

LEONARD WAS THIRTY-ONE.
LEONARD WOULD CALL HER ÒÒMANDRILL''.
VIRGINIA WOULD CALL HIM ÒÒMONGOOSE''.
A BEAUTY LIKE HER MOTHER,
VIRGINIA ALSO LOOKED RATHER
ECCENTRIC. HER HAIR PINS
OFTEN FELL LOOSE AND SHE
WAS SELF-CONSCIOUS ABOUT
DRESSING UP.
 VIRGINIA'S HONEYMOON WAS
SHARPLY FOLLOWED BY A PERIOD OF
ILLNESS. THE SUMMER OF SAW
HER STRUGGLING UNDER THE STRAIN
OF CORRECTING PROOFS FOR HER
DEBUT NOVEL ÒÒTHE VOYAGE OUT''.
SHE WAS ON THE BRINK OF
A BREAKDOWN.

DOCTORS WERE CONSULTED; REST

WAS PRESCRIBED. BUT IN SEPTEMBER,
SHE TOOK AN OVERDOSE OF
SLEEPING DRUGS.
 ON THE EVE OF WORLD WAR ONE,
AND DURING A BRIEF RESPITE FROM
HER ILLNESS, VIRGINIA AND LEONARD
MOVED TO HOGARTH HOUSE IN THE
LONDON SUBURB OF RICHMOND. BUT
SHE SUFFERED A RELAPSE JUST AS
ÒÒTHE VOYAGE OUT'' WAS PUBLISHED.
IT TOOK FIFTEEN YEARS TO SELL
TWO THOUSAND COPIES.
 BY , SHE WAS OUT OF THE
WOODS AND SLOWLY BEGAN TO WORK.
AGAINST A BACKDROP OF WAR, SHE
WROTE ÒÒNIGHT AND DAY'' (). AND
IN THE FOLLOWING DECADE, SHE BEGAN
ÒÒJACOB'S ROOM'' ().

THE FIRST WAS DEEMED A GENTLY

SUBVERSIVE NOVEL OF MANNERS,
THE SECOND AN EXPERIMENTAL,
ELEGIAC STORY OF A YOUNG MAN.
 MEANWHILE, VANESSA (NOW
SEPARATED FROM CLIVE BELL)
ABANDONED LONDON AND LEFT
FOR SUSSEX. SHE MOVED TO A
CHARMING, REMOTE COTTAGE
CALLED CHARLESTON.

WITH HER CAME HER CHILDREN

JULIAN AND QUENTIN, AS WELL
AS CONSCIENTIOUS OBJECTOR
DUNCAN GRANT AND HIS LOVER
DAVID ÒÒBUNNY'' GARNETT.
 AS THE WAR RAGED ON, VIRGINIA
AND LEONARD SPENT MANY NIGHTS
SITTING ON BOXES WHILE UNDER
SHELTER IN THE COAL CELLAR.
 IN THEY SPLURGED ON A
PRINTING PRESS. THEY NAMED THEIR
NEW PUBLISHING VENTURE AFTER
THEIR RICHMOND HOME, AND
BEGAN THE TRICKY PROCESS OF
LEARNING TO PRINT BOOKS.
 VANESSA DESIGNED BOOK
JACKETS, AND FRIENDS WERE INVITED
TO WRITE FOR THE PRESS. OVER THE
YEARS, HOGARTH'S PUBLISHED AUTHORS
INCLUDED E. M. FORSTER, T. S. ELIOT,
AND KATHERINE MANSFIELD.
ÒÒThe days melted into each other like
snowballs roasting in the sun.''

Diary, March

 ON A VISIT TO CHARLESTON,
VANESSA CONFESSED TO VIRGINIA
SHE WAS EXPECTING A BABY, AND
THAT IT WAS DUNCAN GRANT'S.

ANGELICA BELL WAS BORN JUST AFTER

WORLD WAR ONE IN DECEMBER
SHE WAS EIGHTEEN BEFORE SHE
DISCOVERED DUNCAN, NOT CLIVE,
WAS HER REAL FATHER.
 IN , VIRGINIA AND LEONARD
BOUGHT A SUMMER COTTAGE NEAR
CHARLESTON IN RODMELL.
ÒÒMonk's House . . . will be our address
for ever and ever; Indeed I've already
marked out our graves in the yard
which joins our meadow.''

Letter, August

 IT WAS CHARLESTON, THOUGH,
THAT THE BLOOMSBURY GROUP MADE
THEIR RETREAT. IT WAS DECORATED
ENTHUSIASTICALLY BY VANESSA
AND DUNCAN, WITH MURALS ON
THE WALLS, PAINTED FURNITURE,
AND A CHAOS OF COLOR.
 THERE WAS A TRANQUIL WALLED GARDEN,
AS WELL AS STUDIES, STUDIOS, AND SPARE
ROOMS FOR THE BLOOMSBURY GUESTS.
 IN VIRGINIA'S EYES, VANESSA'S
LIFE WAS FULL OF EXCITEMENT,
LOVE AFFAIRS, DEVOTED
MOTHERHOOD, TRAVEL, ART,
AND ADVENTURE.
 VIRGINIA LONGED TO LEAVE
RICHMOND AND TO BE BACK IN
THE ÒÒSIZZLE'' OF LONDON, WHERE
SHE COULD WANDER THROUGH
THE STREETS; GO TO MUSEUMS,
GALLERIES AND CONCERTS;
AND ÒÒGO ADVENTURING
AMONG HUMAN BEINGS''.
 IN , SHE WON LEONARD OVER
(HE WAS INITIALLY CONCERNED
LONDON MIGHT OVEREXCITE HER)
AND THEY MOVED TO 52 TAVISTOCK
SQUARE IN BLOOMSBURY.

IT WAS LATER BOMBED AND

DESTROYED IN WORLD WAR TWO.
WHETHER THEY WERE IN LONDON
OR SUSSEX, LEONARD AND VIRGINIA
INDULGED A SWEET TOOTH.
 DESPITE HER GROWING FAME AS
A CRITIC AND ESSAYIST, VIRGINIA
WAS REACHING FOR SOMETHING
NEW THROUGH FICTION, FOR RADICAL
POSSIBILITIES IN LITERATURE.
 ÒÒThere's no doubt
in my mind that I have
found out how to begin
(at 40) to say something
in my own voice.''

Diary, July

 ÒÒMRS DALLOWAY'' AN AMBITIOUS,
ADVENTUROUS EXPERIMENT
IN FORM WAS PUBLISHED IN
FICTION WAS NEVER THE SAME AGAIN.
 WHILE ENJOYING LONDON'S
PARTY SCENE, VIRGINIA MET THE
ARISTOCRATIC VITA SACKVILLE-WEST.

VITA'S LIFE WAS SCANDALOUS:

SHE HAD AN OPEN MARRIAGE,
PASSIONATE LESBIAN AFFAIRS, AND
A PENCHANT FOR CROSS-DRESSING.
SHE WAS ALSO A MOTHER,
A WRITER, AND A POET.
 AS THEIR RELATIONSHIP BUBBLED
AND FIZZED, VIRGINIA WROTE
ÒÒTO THE LIGHTHOUSE''. IT WAS
AN ODE TO HER PARENTS.

FOLLOWING ITS SUCCESS IN ,

SHE AND LEONARD BOUGHT A CAR.
THEY NAMED IT ÒÒTHE UMBRELLA''.
 VIRGINIA QUICKLY FOLLOWED
WITH ÒÒORLANDO''. IT WAS A WILD,
SATIRICAL ROMP AND A FANTASTICAL
FUSION OF HISTORY AND BIOGRAPHY.
ITS SEX-CHANGING TITLE CHARACTER
MOVED FROM COUNTRY TO COUNTRY
OVER THREE HUNDRED YEARS.

IT WAS A TRIBUTE TO VITA.

 ÒÒNothing thicker than a knife's blade
separates happiness from melancholy.''

ÒÒOrlando'',
 ÒÒMRS DALLOWAY'' PAID FOR A
NEW BATHROOM TO BE INSTALLED
AT MONK'S HOUSE; ÒÒORLANDO''
PAID FOR VIRGINIA'S NEW BEDROOM.
 WHILE WORKING ON ÒÒA ROOM OF
ONE'S OWN'' (A PROVOCATIVE ESSAY
ON WOMEN'S PLACE IN MALE-
DOMINATED LITERARY HISTORY),
VIRGINIA BUILT A WRITING ROOM
FOR HERSELF AT THE END OF THE
GARDEN AT MONK'S HOUSE.
 OVER THE YEARS, VIRGINIA HAD
VARIOUS DOGS, INCLUDING HANS
(WHO HAD TROUBLE WITH HOUSE
RULES), A MONGREL FOX TERRIER
NAMED GRIZZLE, A COCKER SPANIEL
NAMED PINKA, AND A SECOND
SPANIEL CALLED SALLY.
LEONARD HAD A PET MARMOSET.

MITZ WENT EVERYWHERE WITH

THEM, DELIGHTING SOME FRIENDS
AND DISTURBING OTHERS.
ÒÒTHE WAVES'' WAS PUBLISHED IN
IT WAS A POETIC MEDITATION
ON THE INNER VOICE FOLLOWING
SIX FRIENDS OVER A LIFETIME.

IT WAS VIRGINIA'S
EXPERIMENT WITH RHYTHM IN
PLACE OF PLOT AND AN HOMAGE
TO HER BLOOMSBURY CLIQUE.
 VIRGINIA WRANGLED
PAINFULLY WITH HER NEXT NOVEL,
ÒÒTHE YEARS'' (IT TOOK FIVE YEARS
TO WRITE AND WAS PUBLISHED IN
). IT SOLD 43, COPIES IN
THE FIRST SIX MONTHS.
 LUCKILY, MONK'S HOUSE
CONTINUED TO OFFER A PEACEFUL
RETREAT. VIRGINIA WAS A TERRIFIC
BOWLER AND LEONARD LOVED TO
SPEND TIME IN THE GARDEN.
AS EVER, DEATH OCCUPIED VIRGINIA'S
THOUGHTS AS WELL AS HER LIFE.
SHE LOST CLOSE FRIEND LYTTON
STRACHEY IN , HER HERO ROGER
FRY PASSED AWAY IN , AND HER
NEPHEW JULIAN WAS TRAGICALLY
KILLED IN JULY WHEN HE
JOINED THE FIGHT AGAINST FASCISM
IN THE SPANISH CIVIL WAR.
 IT WAS NOW VIRGINIA'S TURN
TO SUPPORT VANESSA, AND SHE
MADE DAILY VISITS TO CHARLESTON.
BUT HORROR LOOMED AGAIN,
AND SHE WAS SOON SEWING
BLACKOUT CURTAINS.

THE PRIME MINISTER ANNOUNCED

THE COUNTRY WAS AT WAR WITH
GERMANY ON SEPTEMBER 3,
A GRIM VERSION OF LIFE CONTINUED
AS HITLER ADVANCED THROUGH
EUROPE. BRITAIN WAS CONSTANTLY
SUBJECT TO HIS SPEECHES ON
THE RADIO AND THE ROAR OF
GERMAN BOMBERS OVERHEAD.
 VIRGINIA WAS BECOMING
DESPONDENT. SHE STARTED WORK
ON ÒÒBETWEEN THE ACTS'',
BUT ON FINISHING FELT IT
WAS ÒÒSILLY AND TRIVIAL''.

THE NOVEL (ABOUT A PLAY

MOUNTED IN AN ENGLISH
VILLAGE) WOULD BE PUBLISHED
POSTHUMOUSLY.
ÒÒBooks are the mirrors of the soul.''

ÒÒBetween the Acts'',

 ÒÒI am doing what seems the best thing to
do. You have given me the greatest possible
happiness . . . I don't think two people could
have been happier . . . I can't go on spoiling
your life any longer.''

Letter, March

 ON THE MORNING OF MARCH 28,
, VIRGINIA PUT ON A FUR COAT,
PICKED UP HER CANE AND WENT OUT
TO THE RIVER OUSE.

SHE COLLECTED HEAVY STONES AND

DROPPED THEM IN HER POCKETS.
SHE WAS FIFTY-NINE.
 LEONARD BURIED VIRGINIA'S ASHES
IN THE GARDEN AT MONK'S HOUSE
BENEATH THE ELM TREES THEY
HAD NAMED AFTER THEMSELVES.
 ÒÒI will not be Òfamous' Ògreat'.
I will go on adventuring, changing,
opening my mind and my eyes, refusing
to be stamped and stereotyped.''

Diary, October

Acknowledgments
The author would like to gratefully acknowledge in particular the information and inspiration provided by Hermione Lee's
Virginia Woolf. Lee's biography is not only a definitive account of the life of one of the twentieth century's greatest
authors, but is also moving, evocative, and generous in its approach. Additionally, the author would like to acknowledge
Virginia Woolf by Alexandra Harris — a celebratory biography that is as sensitive as it is revealing. Further thanks go to
the Society of Authors, the Random House Group, and Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company for assisting with
the use of material in .

The illustrator would like to extend her love and thanks to Ali, Ma, Pops, Jojo, and Chester.

The quotations used in this publication have been sourced from the following listed titles: The Diary of Virginia Woolf, ed.
Anne Olivier Bell and Andrew McNeillie, Volumes I and II (Hogarth Press).

The Essays of Virginia Woolf, ed. Andrew McNeillie, Volume III (Hogarth Press).

The Letters of Virginia Woolf, ed. Nigel Nicolson and Joanne Trautmann, Volumes I, II, and VI (Hogarth Press).

Selected Letters, ed. Joanne Trautmann Banks (Vintage).

A Writer's Diary, ed. Leonard Woolf (Hogarth Press).

Mrs Dalloway, Orlando: A Biography, and Between the Acts by Virginia Woolf.
About the authors
All quotations taken from the above titles additionally reprinted by permission of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing
Company.

Every effort has been made to contact all holders. The publishers will be glad to make good in future editions any
omissions brought to their attention.

Zena Alkayat is a bestselling author, book editor, and journalist from London. With many years of experience in media and
publishing, she has covered subjects from tea and cake to concrete, cocktails, and Coco Chanel.

Nina Cosford is a freelance illustrator based in the southeast of England. She works across editorial, advertising, education,
typography, and book illustration and has created work for clients from Nokia to Marie Claire.