To the Lighthouse

By: Virginia Woolf

Narrated by: Nicole Kidman

Length: 6 hrs and 37 mins

Publisher's summary

To the Lighthouse is Virginia Woolf’s arresting analysis of domestic family life, centering on the Ramseys and their visits to the Isle of Skye in Scotland in the early 1900s. Nicole Kidman (Moulin Rouge, Eyes Wide Shut), who won an Oscar for her portrayal of Woolf in the film adaptation of Michael Cunningham’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel The Hours, brings the impressionistic prose of this classic to vibrant life.

Split into three parts, the story observes Mrs. Ramsay, Mr. Ramsey, and their children at their vacation house on the Isle of Skye. While the novel follows seemingly trivial events between the family members, the plot takes a backseat to philosophical introspection, which gave the novel its fame as an icon of modernist literature. The Ramseys' quest to recapture meaning creates a powerful allegory of man’s impermanent battle with the tangible world.

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©1927 Virginia Woolf (P)2012 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

"If Virginia Woolf herself can’t narrate her 1927 novel To the Lighthouse, then Nicole Kidman - who won an Oscar for her role as Woolf in 'The Hours' - is the next best thing. With her cut-glass Australian enunciation, Kidman skips nimbly between the minds of each character at the Ramsays’ Scottish summer cottage, slowing and softening to convey the sobriety of Mrs. Ramsay’s maternal guilt ('she was certain that he was thinking, we are not going to the Lighthouse tomorrow; and she thought, he will remember that all his life'), and tightening her voice to reiterate time and again one houseguest’s sneer that women 'can’t paint, can’t write.'” (The New York Times Book Review)

A mesmerizing work of intimate brilliance

This is only the second work of Woolf's I've read, and overall it presents an intimate portrait of a family who lives near a lighthouse. The frail assumptions, the insecurities, the tiny triumphs, the rare moments of insight are all captured here with a stream of consciousness technique that is as lovely and flowing as the sea. The many wars play a fundamental role in shaping the narrative as male and female characters explore the meaning of the opposite sex and both fail to understand the needs and desires of the other. These inner conflicts are amplified by the moment to moment actions of this story's cast. A loving experience, I wish I could have experienced this work with fewer daily distractions myself. I can't wait to read the rest of Woolf's all too short bibliography.

Simply Beautiful.

One is struck by the knowledge that this work of art would be best left on the page in its original form. Where the reader can slow down or stop at times to let the depth and beauty of Ms. Woolf’s creation resonate. It truly is a masterpiece.
I am unaware of how a narrator is chosen, but Ms. Kidman’s voice, accent, cadence, and pace is wonderfully symbiotic to Ms. Woolf’s poetic stream of consciousness driven narrative in the characters created. The two forces together create an environment where one could actually “tune out” and rest enjoyably, or “hone in” and concentrate on every syllable. My favorite part about this book is that it’s true purpose and depth is cloaked in seemingly mundane affairs of epic proportions. Underneath the simplest events one is presented at times with so much depth, and meaning that it feels like the crescendo of a symphony.
Thank you Audible.

Virginia Woolf masterpiece To the Lighthouse

Woolf's intense stream-of-consciousness work with almost no dialogue is far from ideal material for an audio version. Although Nicole Kidman manages many poignant moments in her rendering, her Australo-American accent doesn't suit this very English novel, and often she reads too fast for the reader to take in the meaning. Nonetheless there is much to admire.

Beautiful

Deeply introspective, beautifully poeticly worded, this book was on the list of greatest novels ever written and in my mind it certainly is that

A Classic For Sure

Read for book group. I enjoyed this story. It is beautifully written and you get to live inside the heads of each of the characters for a bit.

Nicole Kidman is a good reader but she missed some words and it was distracting. I read my paper novel along with the narration for emphasis.

A book that will challenge you to think.

Earlier this year I read A Room of One's Own which was so unbelievably good that I was blown away. I was shocked by Ms Woolf's smart and intuitive view of the roles of gender. She took problems that I have seen in American society over the last 50 years, and explored the causes and the solutions. She was opining on the problems for women who lived a century and a half ago -- and yet it felt completely modern. That book could have been written in 2017. I will recommend it to every woman I meet for the rest of my life.

So I was very excited to read more of her writings. I purchased this one and Mrs Dalloway. I think this book is probably a five star read -- but it is NOT an easy read. One cannot be distracted or tired. One cannot allow her mind to wander away from the words on the page. This is not a book that entertains. It makes one think. It allows the reader to revel in the beauty of language. It challenges. I will be reading it again soon in hopes that I will digest more of the story she told, because I think I missed much too much of it this time.

Nicole Kidman played Ms Woolf beautifully in film and read her words equally as beautifully here.

I will try this again later

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

5 and 1/2 hours in.......No. A migraine ensued upon listening to this. A swirling dreamlike journey akin to whittling a block of wood whilst daydreaming of other peoples lives, delivered by an airy tired voice.

What was most disappointing about Virginia Woolf’s story?

The over embellished melodramatic inner lives of the characters were irritating. It is chock full of near run on sentences speckled with flavorful imagery. The writing at times is like being in a candy shop, but then mellows back into a wasteland of gray drivel until the next high or low. If you needed a touchstone to take you to manic depressed state, this book is or you.

How could the performance have been better?

There is another version with a different narrator. I think I will try that one and give this "classic" another shot.

If this book were a movie would you go see it?

no

Any additional comments?

I really disliked nicole kidman as a narrator.....tiresome.....

Nicole Kidman is the fastest reader on earth

Nicole Kidman’s narration was great, but man does she read fast! Had to pause and rewind a few times. As for the story, I read this book probably 10+ years ago and thought I remembered enjoying soo figured I’d listen to it since I didn’t remember much. I’m not sure it was worth the second read.

Not crazy about this book

I had such a hard time getting into and understanding this book. I went online and read Cliff notes so I could get a grasp of it. I've never read Virginia Woolf before so I don't know if this is her style. Nicole Kidman's voice and narrating is THE BEST PART of the book.

Inspired audio performance

Fascinating and intelligent reading that truly gives the feel of stream of consciousness. You have listen breathlessly.