Reading (and hugely enjoying) The Memory Library by Kate Storey, (see Readings) the books used within the narrative did indeed take me back. I was inspired to try Virginia Woolf again and I was directed to begin with Mrs Dalloway. I found it an enchanting read, almost a love song to London. It was published in 1925 and followed the pattern of James Joyce’s Ulysses that was printed in 1922. The story takes place within one day. Inevitably that gives the book a tightness of plot, so little time elapses between events.
Having enjoyed the read, I then found there was a film starting Vanessa Redgrave. Her casting as Mrs Dalloway is inspired. Her performance is divine aided by her tall, slim elegance.
This then led me to a film called The Hours. I had never seen this before but remembered rather a publicity fuss about Nicole Kidman sitting in make up for ages to have her prosthetic nose applied. The nose was to make her look like Virginia Woolf. I loved the film. It pulled the Mrs Dalloway story apart and with great intelligence made it into a modern version of itself. Meryl Streep was a brilliant Mrs Dalloway.
Then I looked up the book of The Hours by Michael Cunningham and am really enjoying reading it … all from The Memory Library.