The Hours

The novel unfolds over the course of a single day and follows three interrelated stories spanning different decades and locations:
Virginia Woolf in 1923 London: The fictionalized Woolf struggles with mental illness as she begins writing Mrs. Dalloway, foreshadowing her eventual suicide.
Laura Brown in 1949 Los Angeles: A troubled housewife reads Mrs. Dalloway as she navigates feelings of confinement and dissatisfaction in her conventional suburban life.
Clarissa Vaughan in 1999 New York City: A modern-day lesbian editor organizes a party for her poetic friend and former lover Richard, who is dying of AIDS.
These narratives interlace reflections on mental health, sexuality, family, and mortality, echoing Woolf’s themes while creating new resonances in contemporary contexts