Too Much and Not the Mood
Ratings5
Average rating3.8
15
Ratings5
Average rating3.8
On April 11, 1931, Virginia Woolf ended her entry in A Writer's Diary with the words "too much and not the mood." She was describing how tired she was of correcting her own writing, of the "cramming in and the cutting out" to please other readers, wondering if she had anything at all that was truly worth saying. The character of that sentiment, the attitude of it, inspired Durga Chew-Bose to write and collect her own work. The result is a lyrical and piercingly insightful collection of essays and her own brand of essay-meets-prose poetry about identity and culture. Inspired by Maggie Nelson's Bluets, Lydia Davis's short prose, and Vivian Gornick's exploration of interior life, Chew-Bose captures the inner restlessness that keeps her always on the brink of creative expression. Too Much and Not the Mood is a beautiful and surprising exploration of what it means to be a first-generation, creative young woman working today.
Reviews with the most likes.
This was so beautiful. It took me a long time to read it, although I'm a fast reader, because I wanted to intentionally slow down and savor it, and because there are so many beautifully twisty turns of phrase that forced me to slow down, which is the point. These are excellent personal essays that identify highly specific emotions and scenarios that are also extremely relateable?
This is a book that I don't think is for everyone, but the people who it is for will love it.
This is a book for fans of Eula Biss.
This is a book for my heart.
