A Classic Pair: Mrs Dalloway & Howards End offers the works of two paragons of early twentieth-century literature: Virginia Woolf and E. M. Forster. Both writers, famed for innovative use of narrative form, poetic prose and focus on the emotional worlds of their characters, expertly draw upon universal themes such as class, romance, grief and the fleeting nature of life itself.

The titles included in this collection, in order of appearance, are:

Mrs Dalloway by Virginia Woolf, read by Miranda Raison

Set in post-First World War Britain, Woolf's masterpiece follows Clarissa Dalloway, a vivacious yet self-reflective upper-class woman, through a single day in her life. Preparing for a party that very evening, Clarissa keeps busy by moving through the streets of London, her thoughts drifting between past and present, revealing lost loves, secret regrets and the quiet ache of grief. Interwoven with Clarissa's narrative is that of Septimus Warren Smith, a war veteran who suffers terribly from his traumatic past. As their two lives tangentially cross, the reader is gifted with a profound commentary on time, pain, memory and the fragile beauty of life. Famed for its stream-of-consciousness style, Mrs Dalloway asserts Virginia Woolf as the literary genius she was, and it continues to move contemporary readers to this very day.

Howards End by E. M. Forster, read by Karen Crass

First published in 1910, Howards End is a witty, yet poignant, and profoundly human exploration of social connection in a rapidly changing England. It follows the Schlegel sisters, a trio of young women driven by their progressive politics and intellectual pursuits, as their lives become entangled with the wealthy Wilcox family and the impoverished Basts. Notoriously rigid in their thinking, the Wilcoxes' world is upended by the Schlegel sisters in ways both tender and tragic – particularly once Ruth Wilcox decides to leave their beloved country home, Howards End, to them in her will… Often considered Forster's greatest novel, Howards End compellingly unpacks the conflict inherent within the English class system and the cost of social harmony.

This audiobook is fully indexed. Once downloaded, each book and chapter will be listed so you can easily navigate to the individual section.

Virginia Woolf (1882–1941) was one of the most significant novelists of the twentieth century. A modernist writer and progressive thinker, she is known for her stream of consciousness narrative style and influence on feminist criticism. Her works have been translated into over fifty languages and are widely read and adapted to this day.

Edward Morgan Forster (1879–1970) was an English author, famed for his novels, short stories, speeches and essays. He was a member of the Bloomsbury Group, an assembly of British writers and philosophers in the early twentieth century. Much of Forster's work focused on the British class system, imperialism and sexuality, in the style of the realist and modernist genres.