eccentric read at four stars

I know. I tend to gravitate toward the bizarre in people. For instance, I happen to love reading about the lives of the Bloomsbury circle of friends, and easily picture myself as one of them. Virginia Woolf fascinates me, not so much for her literary prowess as for the life she led and the friends that filled that life. So, when I came across this book, even though the subject matter was peculiar, I bought it.

Mitz, though entertaining and a bit breezy (138 pages flew right out of my hands), is certainly not an empty-headed read. It’s a serious morsel of a biography about Virginia and Leonard Woolf and the ubiquitous presence in Bloomsbury society in its twilight years.

Sigrid Nunez quietly slips us into the realm of their lives as they write, entertain and travel. All the while, giving us a glimpse of the pets, in particular, Mitz the Marmoset, who shared that life with them.

This is not a book for everyone.

Only the ones who are obsessed with the behind the scenes’ lives of the writers we love to read and dream to be, will enjoy this.

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