Reading this year was very special. My biggest and most enjoyable accomplishments were taking a class on all of Jane Austen’s novels and another on the Iliad and adjacent texts. Reading these books within a class was like being a part of the best book groups ever. I was left with so much to think about.
I most highly recommend Emily Wilson’s translation of the Iliad. Anyone who picks that up should definitely take the time to read the introduction. Parts of it were deeply moving. I also loved The Song of Achilles.
Some of the books that I really enjoyed this year were The Correspondent, Mona’s Eyes, The Killing Stones, This Book Made Me Think of You, At Midnight Comes the Cry, Winter, Silent Bones, The Eights, The Memory Garden, By Your Side, The Mademoiselle Alliance, A Case of Mice and Murder, Atmosphere, The Secret of Orange Blossom Cake…and the list could go on forever. Have you read and enjoyed any of these? Will you put any on your list?
Some of the titles that I am looking forward to in 2026 are:
So, here’s to lots of good reads, good blogs, good friends in the reading community.
Unique, original, funny, poignant…I find that all of these words can be overused when praising books but this time, in my opinion, they are truly deserved. This novel is like none other that I have read although there is some connection to The Nine Lives of Rose Napolitano in terms of what does it mean to become a parent when a woman does/did not wish to. Otherwise, the protagonists of the two books are quite different.
Lessons in Chemistry includes such a wonder box of treasures. Why is there a dog named 6:30 of all things? What will you think of his tragedy early in the book but his vigilance afterwards? Will you enjoy his empathy and understanding along with his understanding of a wide vocabulary? What would lead a baby to be named Mad? What are ergs doing in the story?
Readers become intimately acquainted with the idiosyncratic Elizabeth Zott. She is a woman placed in the wrong time by history. It is the 1950s into the 60s. She WANTS to be a chemist and a working woman who is respected but the times challenge her. Look for her work around to solve this.
Lessons in Chemistry refers, in part, to the science of cooking. What leads Elizabeth to be the host of TV cooking show? She is no Julia Child to be sure.
I loved this book! There were times when I laughed out loud. Anyone who may have found the transition to a life full of baby demands will know what Elizabeth is experiencing. There were many moments when I felt for the characters as they tried to get through their lives.
I highly recommend this title. Let me know what you think.
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions are my own.
This book will be published on 05 Apr 2022.
From the Publisher
“[An] energetic debut…A more adorable plea for rationalism and gender equality would be hard to find.” —Kirkus (starred review) “Indefatigable and formidable, Elizabeth pushes the bounds of how women and their work are perceived in this thoroughly engaging debut novel.” —Booklist
I have read Mrs. Dalloway at least three times. Every time I spend time with the novel, I think about, and learn something new.
Within a short novel that is structured around a single day, Woolf seems to take on all of life. There are so many themes; among them are love, regret, choices, empire, mental illness, the after effects of war, parents & children, youth & aging, and so much more.
So, I had already thought a fair amount about Mrs. Dalloway by the time I picked up this book, as noted above. Reading Mendelson’s work deepened my knowledge of, and appreciation for the book, even more.
Mendelson is a trusted guide to Woolf and Mrs. Dalloway. He focuses, to good effect, on three areas-medicine, empire and love, in sections that are based on lectures that he gave.
I recommend this title to those who are studying the novel or to those, reading it on their own, who are seeking some deeper insights.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Columbia University Press for this title. All thoughts are my own.
Pub date: 02 September 2025
Post first published on 30 December 2025
Description:
Mrs. Dalloway is a novel about almost everything. The story of a single day in London after the First World War, it travels backward and forward in time and consciousness, venturing beyond the ordinary world into epic, mythic, and mystical modes. The novel is a work of extraordinary richness, as much for its interwoven webs of meaning as for its moral and psychological vision.
Edward Mendelson explores the novel’s deepest questions, focusing on the core themes of medicine, empire, and love. He traces how Virginia Woolf thought and wrote, considering the complexities and resonances of her works. Mendelson casts Mrs. Dalloway as an extended protest against authorities that wield power over others and a defense of the equality of inner lives. He also examines the place of the book in literary history going back to Homer, Dante, and Shakespeare as well as its influence on later writers from Erich Auerbach through Zadie Smith. Both incisive and passionate, this book is at once a wide-ranging critical study of Virginia Woolf’s writing and a love letter to a great novel.
Editorial Reviews:
A rip-roaring tribute to a canonical work forged from diverse literary and philosophical traditions. ― London Review of Books
In Edward Mendelson, Virginia Woolf has found a profoundly generous and intelligent reader, one who considers Mrs. Dalloway in its full complexity. Elegant and eloquent―this book is excellent company. — Anne Fernald, editor of The Oxford Handbook of Virginia Woolf
In Mrs. Dalloway, Virginia Woolf set out to “dig out beautiful caves behind [her] characters.” Edward Mendelson’s triumph of scholarship shines a light into the beautiful caves behind Woolf herself and the fascinating, complex characters, major and minor, who populate her novel: to read this masterpiece through his eyes is to appreciate anew its myriad connections, its moral vision, its humanity, and its enduring pleasure. Mrs. Dalloway offers a transformative reading experience, and Mendelson is the ideal companion to guide us, with deft erudition, through Clarissa’s day. — Francesca Wade, author of Square Haunting: Five Writers in London Between the Wars
Thanks to Edward Mendelson, I’ve lived Mrs. Dalloway all over again, and seen and felt the novel anew. Rare for literary criticism to act like a revelation, but The Inner Life of Mrs. Dalloway does just that, showing how Virginia Woolf creates dramas of intimacy and epiphany in the larger contexts of empire, and medical and emotional coercion. A work of admirable acuity and ethical force. — Rosanna Warren, author of So Forth and Max Jacob: A Life in Art and Letters
About the Author:
Edward Mendelson is the Lionel Trilling Professor in the Humanities at Columbia University. His books include Early Auden, Later Auden: A Critical Biography (2017); Moral Agents: Eight Twentieth-Century American Writers (2015); and The Things That Matter: What Seven Classic Novels Have to Say About the Stages of Life (2007). His essays and reviews have appeared in the New York Review of Books, the New York Times Book Review, the London Review of Books, and the Times Literary Supplement.
Review
A rip-roaring tribute to a canonical work forged from diverse literary and philosophical traditions. ― London Review of Books
In Edward Mendelson, Virginia Woolf has found a profoundly generous and intelligent reader, one who considers Mrs. Dalloway in its full complexity. Elegant and eloquent―this book is excellent company. — Anne Fernald, editor of The Oxford Handbook of Virginia Woolf
In Mrs. Dalloway, Virginia Woolf set out to “dig out beautiful caves behind [her] characters.” Edward Mendelson’s triumph of scholarship shines a light into the beautiful caves behind Woolf herself and the fascinating, complex characters, major and minor, who populate her novel: to read this masterpiece through his eyes is to appreciate anew its myriad connections, its moral vision, its humanity, and its enduring pleasure. Mrs. Dalloway offers a transformative reading experience, and Mendelson is the ideal companion to guide us, with deft erudition, through Clarissa’s day. — Francesca Wade, author of Square Haunting: Five Writers in London Between the Wars
Did you know that the Germans occupied the British island of Guernsey for five years during WW II? In this epistolary novel, through the eyes of Juliet, the authors tell the stories of islanders of all ages and backgrounds. The characters are portrayed with a deft touch as their foibles and humanity are explored. There is even some romance. It is trite to say but the characters felt like friends with whom I wanted to spend lots of time. Highly recommended! Enjoy finding out what the pie is and why it was created.
The NYT published a booklist not long ago and this title was on it. Encouraged by someone I know, I finally read this long and immersive novel.
A simple description of the plot-a boy and hismother are at The Met when there is an explosion. Theo’s mother is killed. Theo, without fully meaning to, finds himself in possession of the famous Goldfinch painting. The book is about what happens from that point on.
The novel is rich with characters. To name a few, start with Boris. He is a schemer and survivor who becomes Theo’s friend. There are the females in nTheo’s life, especially Pippa (whom he adores) and upper class Kitsey, sister of close friend Andy. Also important is father figure Hobie. All this just scratches the surface in a book with many people.
There are also many places including. New York, Las Vegas and Amsterdam. All are important to Theo, the painting and the plot.
This is a modern Dickensian novel. I am still thinking about how it ended.
Blog readers, what was your opinion on this one? I would love to know.
As soon as I saw the title of this book, I wanted to read it. The magic word, of course, was bookshop. I also found the cover to be very appealing. So, I initially judged this one by its cover. That said, I wasn’t disappointed.
This novel’s protagonist, Grace, is a young woman who recently lost her mother. Along with her best friend, Viv, she moves to London to stay with a family friend. The two arrive only to have war declared not long after. Viv enters one of the women’s units while Grace remains with her mother’s friend. She takes a position in a bookshop and the shop is also a character in the book.
This story points out the importance of literature. In a lovely scene, Grace goes underground during a bombing raid where she begins reading Middlemarch to those who are stuck in the shelter over night. Those stuck there look forward to additional chapters when the next call to go underground comes.
Grace organized the bookshop and develops a relationship with its curmudgeonly owner. She studies way to make the shop successful and, for example, advertises buying books to read while unable to sleep in one’s beds due to the bombings.
The author does a good job of portraying wartime Britain. There are losses of people, property, usual foods, a way of life. There are also the joys of friendship, love, books and connection.
There are so many WWII set novels being written now. My theory is that, awful as the war was, it is more reassuring to look back at that time than our current one. For all of the suffering, the reader knows that eventually Britain will declare victory.
I think that this title is worth reading. Let me know what you think!
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this title. All opinions are my own.
Joyce's mystery and fiction book reviews with some non-fiction too! 