Books

Octavo. Original publisher's crocus-yellow cloth boards, white label lettered in black on spine. 290,14 pp. 7� x 5 in.With 14-page publisher's catalogue at rear. Published 27 October 1922, only 1200 copies printed at 7s. 6d. Boards are cleaner than usual having been kept in an acetate dust jacket in lieu of the Vanessa Bell wrapper, which is not present on this copy. Spine label darkened with small vertical cracks; chipped at left edge causing a minute loss to the first letter in "JACOB." Top edge trimmed, others uncut. Some little edgewear, crown of spine with one fray, foretips bumped. Interior clean and unmarked. Jacob's Room examines the life of Jacob Flanders, a young man living in early 20th-century England. Rather than following a conventional narrative structure, the novel presents a fragmented and impressionistic portrayal of Jacob's experiences, thoughts, and relationships. Woolf explores the complexities of identity, gender, an d society through vivid and entirely introspective prose. Jacob's character is shaped through the perspectives of various individuals (some have counted over 120 different named characters in the novel), including family, friends, acquaintances, passersby, as well as through the objects and places associated with him. The novel delves into themes of loss, the passage of time, and the transient nature of life, ultimately painting a poignant portrait of a life cut short by tragedy. Jacob's life is noteworthy for being less of a presence than an absence. KIRKPATRICK A6a; WOOLMER 26.

Jacob's Room is Virginia Woolf's first novel to employ her distinct stream-of-consciousness narrative style. The story revolves around the life of Jacob Flanders and reflects on themes such as the effects of World War I on English society, the passage of time, and the challenges of understanding an individual's subjective experience.