BOOK REVIEW
This Devastating Fever by Sophie Cunningham
“Sex sold your first book.”
Summary
This Devastating Fever is a story of an author writing a story about an author who was the husband of another well-known author. All of the aforementioned authors lived through a worldwide pandemic although not the same worldwide pandemic.
Alice, the modern-day protagonist set herself the task of telling the story of Leonard Woolf, aka husband of Virginia Woolf. What started as a simple enough task resulted in a many-layered, many-flavoured project that lasted for decades.
She gets to know both Leonard and Virginia through her research as she reads their diaries and letters, in her mind, she is conversing with them to the point that they are commenting on her life and the events of modern times up to and including the Covid lockdowns in Melbourne, VIC.
The story jumps back and forth between Alice’s experiences in modern times and Leonard’s experiences starting as a Civil Servant in Ceylon (later Sri Lanka) 1904–1911 through his courtship and marriage to Virginia (Woolf), WW I, WW II, and up to his death in 1969.
The two storylines are at times intertwined and mirror each other, comment and make observations of each other, and are interesting to read about in their own way as an outsider looking in on the choices people make during the time in which they live.
Every time is complicated to live in.
My Feelings
At the start, I didn’t like the book. I found it difficult to follow the storylines and to build connections with the characters.
While I’ve heard of Virginia Woolf, I’ve not read any of her writings. The Bloomsbury Group are entirely unknown to me except for John Maynard Keynes who I know only through reference to him in an economics course I took 30 years ago.
But I persevered and about a third of the way in, the characters and stories settled into their respective spaces, I cared about Alice and was interested in Leonard. Finally, I could see the parallels and intersections between the two storylines and the relevance of including both. I felt drawn into the story and began reading to uncover what happened next.
Quotes
At one particular meeting with her publisher, Alice is on the receiving end of some tough love advice about this story she is writing about Leonard Woolf.
“Frankly, the sex life of the Bloomsbury group is possibly the most interesting thing about them.”
and
“Sex sold your first book.”
Upon arriving home after this chastising luncheon, Alice passive-aggressively emailed back to her publisher a long and annotated “Sex list” (aka Who F*cked Who) of the Bloomsbury group. It has 22 entries about who was married to whom and who was sleeping with whom. Marriage seemed to be more of a guideline than a rule.
The Victorian and Edwardian periods may appear unsexy but the diaries and letters tell other stories.
This scene is a turning point in Alice’s story. Her publisher drew a line that either Alice polishes up this story and quits wasting Sarah’s time or Alice can find another publisher.
As the reader, I felt the pace of the story pick up. There was more happening and less plodding along which improved my experience.
My Favourite Parts
Throughout the book, there are quotes from both Leonard Woolf and Virginia Woolf as well as other members of the Bloomsbury group.
“We, both of us, want a marriage that is a tremendous living thing, always alive, always hot, not dead and easy in parts as most marriages are.” Virginia Stephen to Leonard Woolf, 1 May 1912
Virginia Stephen and Leonard Woolf were married on 12 August 1912.
“I have never known a house that had such strong character, a personality of its own — romantic, gentle, melancholy.” Leonard Woolf, 1964
and
“I can’t even write this properly. I can’t read. What I want to say is I love all the happiness of my life to you . . . I don’t think any two people could have been happier than we have been.” Virginia Woolf, 28 March 1941
Recommendation
For anyone looking for a contemporary Australia (Melbourne) based novel, this is a book to read.
For anyone interested in the Bloomsbury group, specifically Leonard Woolf and Virginia Woolf, this is a book to read.
This Devastating Fever touches on British imperialism and colonisation, Leonard Woolf’s experiences being Jewish in a non-Jewish-friendly world, WW I, the Spanish flu pandemic, WW II, environmental issues, the return of Fascism happening now, wars, and coping with the end of life of loved ones.
A large load for a novel, and it is all handled beautifully.
If you have ever felt alone as you are dealing with
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Ann Leach mostly writes book reviews, about living carfree, homeschooling, homemaking, and Stoicism. Subscribe here to receive her free newsletter.