Blogging Woolf

Speaking of books that mention Virginia Woolf, here is one I want to read: When I Forgot by Finnish journalist and filmmaker Elina Hirvonen.

At the beginning of the novel, the author places her main character, Anna, in a cafe where she is attempting to read Michael Cunningham’s The Hours.

In the novel, Anna experiences a long, reflective “moment in April” much like Clarissa Dalloway’s “moment of June,” according to the New York Times review. She wonders what the rocks looked like that Woolf used to fill her pockets before she walked into the River Ouse. She speculates about Woolf’s thoughts as she sank under the water. She wonders if Woolf had regrets.

In the process, Anna also recalls her introduction to Woolf via a seminar where her writing teacher talked about Woolf as “this dazzlingly intelligent woman who lived a hundred years ago and who wanted to capture even the tiniest movements of the mind.”

You can read an excerpt from When I Forgot here. It includes the section about Woolf.