VirginiaWoolfisregardedbymanyreadersandcriticsasoneofthemostinnovativewritersofthe20thcentury.Shedevelopedtechniquesinwriting,suchasinterior　monologuesandstreamofconsciousnessprose,thatearnedherdistinctionasaleaderofModernismandwhicharenowoftenusedbymodernwriters.Woolfisperhapsbestknownforhernovels,includ-ingMrsDa！loway,TotheLighthouseandOrlando-butshewasalsoaprolificwriterofdiaries,journalism,essaysandshortstories.ThisbiographytracesWoolfslife,describingtheVictorianEnglandshewasbornintoanddiscussingheraristocraticfamilyandfriends：hercentralroleintheBloomsburyGroup,whosemembersinfluencedavant-gardeartandwritingofthetime;hermarriagetoLeonardWoolfandtheirfoundingoftheHogarthPress;andherstrongfeministbeliefs.ThebookrevealstheimpactonWoolfsworkofherlifelongattacksofill-health,includingmentalillness,whichultimatelyledtohersuicide.TheauthoralsocommentsonthelastingpowerofWoolfsworkafterherdeath,andassesseswhythiswriterhasasmanydetractorsasadoringfollowers.Illustratedwithawidevarietyofperiodmaterial,frommanuscriptsanddiariesinWoolfshandintheBritishLibrarytophotographsandpaintingsinmanyothercollections,thisbookoffersanattractiveoverviewofVirginiaWoolfslifeandlegacy.　　作者简介：　　RuthWebbisalecturerinEnglishandaneducationalconsultantwhosedoctoraldissertationisbasedontheutographmanuscripts,typescriptsandproofsofVirginiaWoolfsMrsDaUoway.