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em007jay's review against another edition
informative
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? N/A
3.5
barefootmegz's review against another edition
5.0
[This is a truncated review. The whole review with images and quotes can be read on my blog at https://barefootmeds.wordpress.com/2014/11/29/book-review-vanessa-and-her-sister-by-priya-parmar/]
Historical fiction tends to be hit or miss for me. I often DNF historical fiction simply because it is on a completely different wavelength. It’s just such a niche genre that they often miss me completely.
This was not such a case. The novel is written in diary format, from Vanessa Stephens’ (later Bell’s) pen, with some letters of correspondence interspersed. The writing style is fluid and unpretentious and gentle and BEAUTIFUL.
“When there was nothing to say, we made room for silence, like a thick blue wave rolling through the house. And then there were the arguments. Chewy, swift, loud arguments. I sat transfixed as the words sprinted through the room.”
I was fascinated by the presentation of the various characters because Parmar provokes and exploits their humanity. They would all go on to be game-changers in the literature and arts, but here we see them as pretty ordinary YOUNG people who are a little rebellious and have no idea how famous their pursuits will make them one day.
I admit I do not know much of the setting and era depicted here, but it seemed concordant with what I do know. Parmar paints with her words, and the novel becomes a beautiful English painting with bold strokes.
Vanessa’s point of view was perfect. I’ve never been a particular fan of Virginia Woolf, for no reason other than lack of exposure, but I love when a novel takes the point of view of a lesser-known individual.
Parmar’s characterization is done very well. I thought the characters were all very well rounded, and I had a distinct dislike for Virginia from the beginning! It contributes to the fact that this is, at its centre, a novel of sisterhood. Virginia is wholly unlikable to me, but Vanessa continues to love and adore her, because that is what sisters do.
“Writing is Virginia’s engine. She thrums with purpose when she writes. Her scattershot joy and frantic distraction refocus, and she funnels into her purest form. Her centre holds until the piece is over, and she comes apart again.”
In all, this was a surprising and incredibly written novel that was clearly also very well researched. It is gritty and burrowed into my heart. I would wholeheartedly recommend it to fans of historical fiction.
Historical fiction tends to be hit or miss for me. I often DNF historical fiction simply because it is on a completely different wavelength. It’s just such a niche genre that they often miss me completely.
This was not such a case. The novel is written in diary format, from Vanessa Stephens’ (later Bell’s) pen, with some letters of correspondence interspersed. The writing style is fluid and unpretentious and gentle and BEAUTIFUL.
“When there was nothing to say, we made room for silence, like a thick blue wave rolling through the house. And then there were the arguments. Chewy, swift, loud arguments. I sat transfixed as the words sprinted through the room.”
I was fascinated by the presentation of the various characters because Parmar provokes and exploits their humanity. They would all go on to be game-changers in the literature and arts, but here we see them as pretty ordinary YOUNG people who are a little rebellious and have no idea how famous their pursuits will make them one day.
I admit I do not know much of the setting and era depicted here, but it seemed concordant with what I do know. Parmar paints with her words, and the novel becomes a beautiful English painting with bold strokes.
Vanessa’s point of view was perfect. I’ve never been a particular fan of Virginia Woolf, for no reason other than lack of exposure, but I love when a novel takes the point of view of a lesser-known individual.
Parmar’s characterization is done very well. I thought the characters were all very well rounded, and I had a distinct dislike for Virginia from the beginning! It contributes to the fact that this is, at its centre, a novel of sisterhood. Virginia is wholly unlikable to me, but Vanessa continues to love and adore her, because that is what sisters do.
“Writing is Virginia’s engine. She thrums with purpose when she writes. Her scattershot joy and frantic distraction refocus, and she funnels into her purest form. Her centre holds until the piece is over, and she comes apart again.”
In all, this was a surprising and incredibly written novel that was clearly also very well researched. It is gritty and burrowed into my heart. I would wholeheartedly recommend it to fans of historical fiction.
jenni3penny's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
judithdcollins's review against another edition
4.0
A special thank you to Random House Publishing Group Ballantine and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. (Loved the front cover)!
Vanessa and Her Sister by Priya Parmar, takes you into the intimate world of intelligent, and creative group of friends and scholars known as, The Bloomsbury Group.
Set in Central London 1905— where we learn about the Stephen siblings, Thoby and Adrian; and the complicated relationship between the two sisters, Vanessa, age 27 (artist) and Virginia, age 23 (writer), one of tragedy and betrayal.
The Stephens, four middle class orphan siblings live in Bloomsbury. Vanessa and Thoby have taken over overseeing the family until the sisters are separated in their twenties by the death of their brother, Thoby and Vanessa’s marriage to Clive Bell.
The free-spirited bohemian group, Lytton Strachey, Clive Bell, Maynard Keynes, E.M. Forster and many others get together in the home. Readers learn about the complicated relationship between the two sisters, and later competing affections.
Structured primarily as Vanessa’s diary, narrated from her POV, in the format of a scrapbook, with letters, and postcards (a nice touch) over the course of 1905-1912, involving Clive, Vanessa, (triangle) and her sister after the birth of the first Bell child.
Very distinct personalities, Vanessa is the artistic one with the less than appealing, demanding, narcissistic, jealous, mentally ill and unstable bipolar writer, Virginia—for a constant and ongoing competition between sisters.
An emotionally intense portrait of the Bloomsbury group, we are thrown into an array of famous characters. The stress and anxiety Vanessa experiences having to deal with Virginia’s neediness and insecurities is sad and frustrating, especially with the further complications of her relationship with Clive. However, found myself not very sympathizing with her as she brought a lot upon herself.
I tend to agree with some of the other reviewers-would encourage readers to read the author’s notes at the end of the book, prior to starting the book for the fact/fiction clarification. Also familiarize yourself with the list of characters at the front of the book as you will be thrown into the middle of the group once you begin reading.
Even though I am captivated by books about books, and books about writers, at times I was bored, as could not hold my attention, wanting to skip ahead. Most likely due to the depressing characters, and sometimes not a real emotional connection. Would have liked to have more of the secondary characters and Bloomsbury members flushed out with more focus; however, I realize the story is primarily about the relationship between the two different sisters.
However, giving it a 4 star rating, due to the in depth research, vividly imagined diary, a good account and writing of literary historic fiction, while capturing the essence of the time and culture and social issues— with inside views of an eccentric group of famous characters, as well as the dark, intriguing and complicated life of Virginia Wolf.
Judith D. Collins Must Read Books
Vanessa and Her Sister by Priya Parmar, takes you into the intimate world of intelligent, and creative group of friends and scholars known as, The Bloomsbury Group.
Set in Central London 1905— where we learn about the Stephen siblings, Thoby and Adrian; and the complicated relationship between the two sisters, Vanessa, age 27 (artist) and Virginia, age 23 (writer), one of tragedy and betrayal.
The Stephens, four middle class orphan siblings live in Bloomsbury. Vanessa and Thoby have taken over overseeing the family until the sisters are separated in their twenties by the death of their brother, Thoby and Vanessa’s marriage to Clive Bell.
The free-spirited bohemian group, Lytton Strachey, Clive Bell, Maynard Keynes, E.M. Forster and many others get together in the home. Readers learn about the complicated relationship between the two sisters, and later competing affections.
Structured primarily as Vanessa’s diary, narrated from her POV, in the format of a scrapbook, with letters, and postcards (a nice touch) over the course of 1905-1912, involving Clive, Vanessa, (triangle) and her sister after the birth of the first Bell child.
Very distinct personalities, Vanessa is the artistic one with the less than appealing, demanding, narcissistic, jealous, mentally ill and unstable bipolar writer, Virginia—for a constant and ongoing competition between sisters.
An emotionally intense portrait of the Bloomsbury group, we are thrown into an array of famous characters. The stress and anxiety Vanessa experiences having to deal with Virginia’s neediness and insecurities is sad and frustrating, especially with the further complications of her relationship with Clive. However, found myself not very sympathizing with her as she brought a lot upon herself.
I tend to agree with some of the other reviewers-would encourage readers to read the author’s notes at the end of the book, prior to starting the book for the fact/fiction clarification. Also familiarize yourself with the list of characters at the front of the book as you will be thrown into the middle of the group once you begin reading.
Even though I am captivated by books about books, and books about writers, at times I was bored, as could not hold my attention, wanting to skip ahead. Most likely due to the depressing characters, and sometimes not a real emotional connection. Would have liked to have more of the secondary characters and Bloomsbury members flushed out with more focus; however, I realize the story is primarily about the relationship between the two different sisters.
However, giving it a 4 star rating, due to the in depth research, vividly imagined diary, a good account and writing of literary historic fiction, while capturing the essence of the time and culture and social issues— with inside views of an eccentric group of famous characters, as well as the dark, intriguing and complicated life of Virginia Wolf.
Judith D. Collins Must Read Books
dadandmom12's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
knitswithbeer's review against another edition
5.0
Beautiful language. What a needy, manipulative woman Virginia Wolfe seemed to be. Once you get over the diary format, this is a beautifully evocative period piece, whilst dealing with 'modern' - for the time - values. I think that, after Vanessa herself of course (beautifully read by Emilia Fox), my favourite character is Lytton Strachey.
whitreadslit's review against another edition
3.0
Going into this book, I really knew nothing about Virginia Woolf, Vanessa Bell, or anyone else in the Bloomsbury Group. This was the March pick for the book club at our bookstore, and seeing as I love historical fiction, I figured I would like it fairly well. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed it!
I learned so much from this novel! I had no idea that there were so many famous authors, artists, politicians, journalists, and critics that were so close to one another! I also didn’t know that they met weekly at the Stephen’s home – the home of siblings Vanessa, Virginia, Julian (Thoby), and Adrian. They lived a thoroughly bohemian lifestyle, casting off the stuffy rules of Victorian society and embracing the turn of the century with arms outstretched. I got a very Gatsby vibe from it all…and it actually happened!
There were a few things that I liked. I really enjoyed the format of the novel. It was written almost entirely in the form of a diary that Vanessa kept, chronicling all of the goings on of the Bloomsbury Group and her dealings with Virginia. The rest of the novel was done through correspondence – letters, telegrams, postcards. These were generally from the perspectives of the other characters, which I felt generally rounded out the story nicely. It was fun to see how the other people in this prestigious group saw one another.
Another thing I enjoyed was getting an inside view into what it would have been like to grow up with Virginia Woolf. I knew going into the novel that she committed suicide. Now, it did not go into this during this story, but it did go into her mental illness. At the time, they did not really know what was wrong with Virginia, but they called it madness. I looked it up, and apparently Virginia Woolf had bipolar disorder. All of the passages in the novel where Vanessa describes Virginia’s “spells” were very interesting, and well done.
One thing that created some conflicting emotions in me was Vanessa’s relationship with Virginia. Virginia was apparently obsessed with her sister, and basically wanted Vanessa to spend her entire life with her, rather than find a husband and move out. Virginia’s ways of attempting to secure Vanessa’s love and devotion were extremely frustrating. I believe this was the intent (and as it was based on a real person, I’m assuming fairly accurate). Vanessa continuously makes excuses for her sister because of her condition…and I just wanted to throttle her!! I know I was supposed to feel some sympathy for Virginia, but I really had a hard time doing so.
I will also say that I sometimes felt that the novel lost a bit of focus when it bounced around between the characters a lot. I know it was a bit unavoidable, seeing as there were so many people in their close circle, but I felt the pace lagged a bit when Parmar was trying to cover what was going on with everyone in the group, instead of focusing on the main players.
Rating:
3.5/5.0
Overall, I enjoyed the novel. I gave it 3.5 STARS. I learned a lot about the Bloomsbury Group (before which I knew absolutely nothing!). I learned a lot about Virginia Woolf and Vanessa Bell. It was a good, solid historical fiction novel.
I learned so much from this novel! I had no idea that there were so many famous authors, artists, politicians, journalists, and critics that were so close to one another! I also didn’t know that they met weekly at the Stephen’s home – the home of siblings Vanessa, Virginia, Julian (Thoby), and Adrian. They lived a thoroughly bohemian lifestyle, casting off the stuffy rules of Victorian society and embracing the turn of the century with arms outstretched. I got a very Gatsby vibe from it all…and it actually happened!
There were a few things that I liked. I really enjoyed the format of the novel. It was written almost entirely in the form of a diary that Vanessa kept, chronicling all of the goings on of the Bloomsbury Group and her dealings with Virginia. The rest of the novel was done through correspondence – letters, telegrams, postcards. These were generally from the perspectives of the other characters, which I felt generally rounded out the story nicely. It was fun to see how the other people in this prestigious group saw one another.
Another thing I enjoyed was getting an inside view into what it would have been like to grow up with Virginia Woolf. I knew going into the novel that she committed suicide. Now, it did not go into this during this story, but it did go into her mental illness. At the time, they did not really know what was wrong with Virginia, but they called it madness. I looked it up, and apparently Virginia Woolf had bipolar disorder. All of the passages in the novel where Vanessa describes Virginia’s “spells” were very interesting, and well done.
One thing that created some conflicting emotions in me was Vanessa’s relationship with Virginia. Virginia was apparently obsessed with her sister, and basically wanted Vanessa to spend her entire life with her, rather than find a husband and move out. Virginia’s ways of attempting to secure Vanessa’s love and devotion were extremely frustrating. I believe this was the intent (and as it was based on a real person, I’m assuming fairly accurate). Vanessa continuously makes excuses for her sister because of her condition…and I just wanted to throttle her!! I know I was supposed to feel some sympathy for Virginia, but I really had a hard time doing so.
I will also say that I sometimes felt that the novel lost a bit of focus when it bounced around between the characters a lot. I know it was a bit unavoidable, seeing as there were so many people in their close circle, but I felt the pace lagged a bit when Parmar was trying to cover what was going on with everyone in the group, instead of focusing on the main players.
Rating:
3.5/5.0
Overall, I enjoyed the novel. I gave it 3.5 STARS. I learned a lot about the Bloomsbury Group (before which I knew absolutely nothing!). I learned a lot about Virginia Woolf and Vanessa Bell. It was a good, solid historical fiction novel.
emilyisreading2024's review against another edition
4.0
Parmar's use of language is astounding and lovely and I appreciate the sense she gives us of what it must have been like during this time period. The relationship between Vanessa and Virginia is fraught with difficulty and there's a delicious sense of impending doom that is at times suspenseful. However, on occasion the diary format becomes tedious and the story moves a little too slowly. I received an ARC from NetGalley, which did not impact my honest review.
rdyourbookcase's review against another edition
3.0
It was a quick and interesting read. At first, I didn’t understand why the story was from Vanessa’s perspective - until I started to learn more about Virginia. Interesting! If the book would have been from Virginia’s perspective, I probably wouldn’t have learned about that part of her personality. I really enjoyed the story and the letter format.