Virginia Woolf: A Portrait

Winner of the prestigious Prix Goncourt award for biography, this remarkable portrait sheds new light on Virginia WoolfÕs relationships with her family and friends and how they shaped her work. ForresterÕs biography draws on revelations about the author that often remain buried and carefully applies them to a narrative of her development and influence. Virginia Woolf: A Portrait blends recently unearthed documents, key primary sources, and personal interviews with WoolfÕs relatives and other acquaintances to render in unmatched detail the authorÕs complicated relationship with her husband, Leonard; her father, Leslie Stephen; and her half-sister, Vanessa Bell. Forrester connects these figures to WoolfÕs mental breakdown while introducing the concept of ÒVirginia seule,Ó or Virginia alone: an uncommon paragon of female strength and conviction. ForresterÕs biography inhabits her characters and vivifies their perspective, weaving a colorful, intense drama that forces readers to rethink their understanding of Woolf and her world.