#182 in Classics
Orlando: A Biography
- 226
- Pages
- about 4 h
- Reading time
- Film 1992 +1
- On screen
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Our view
As mock biography and as satire of English literary history, “Orlando” lives by Virginia Woolf’s wit and invention. Its hero is a poet who lasts through centuries, turns from man into woman and meets the great names of English letters. Some readers find almost no plot, with events dissolving into description and reflection, and feel the change of sex and the long life go unexplored. It is read as a feminist classic.
The view of the BookRank editors, written from readers’ ratings and comments. It does not affect the score or the book’s place in a ranking.
About the book
Orlando: A Biography is a novel by Virginia Woolf, first published on 11 October 1928, inspired by the tumultuous family history of the aristocratic poet and novelist Vita Sackville-West, Woolf's lover and close friend. It is a history of English literature in satiric form. The book describes the adventures of a poet who changes from man to woman and lives for centuries, meeting the key figures of English literary history. Considered a feminist classic, the book has been written about extensively by scholars of women's writing and gender and transgender studies.
On screen
This book has been adapted for the screen 2 times — from 1992 to 2023.
Adaptation data: Wikidata · On screen →
Where the score comes from
The sources average 7.6 across 271 ratings — not yet many, so the reader vote carries 65% of the weight and the rest pulls toward the Classics average of 7.7. That is how 7.8 comes out.
| Source | Average | Ratings | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Open Library | 8.2 | 22 | 8% |
| Hardcover | 7.6 | 249 | 92% |
Frequently asked
How long is Orlando: A Biography?
It has 226 pages — shorter than 98% of the ranked books in Classics.
In this book
Themes this book shares with others — each leads to the best books on it.
If you liked this
Same shelf — Classics — with scores between 7.7 and 7.8, closest to this book.
