Woolf online

Isabel Squirrel on the Virginia Woolf Summer Course: Live Online

I discovered Virginia Woolf’s writings in my thirties as a lay reader and was keen to understand her and her novels in more depth. I was delighted to come across the Literature Cambridge summer school in which I could join with other readers, learn from scholars and discuss Woolf’s work with a group of like-minded people from all over the world.

We focused in on five novels over five days and enjoyed lectures, small-group supervisions and other talks for the length of the course. The course is rigorous and light-hearted and there is a rich sense of community that I found meaningful, especially when I returned to familiar faces the second year.

Being online, the participant can still continue with daily commitments but at the same time it is a strikingly immersive experience. I also valued how the online nature of the course gives participants the opportunity to attend from a range of time zones. The group then benefits from a collection of perspectives from people of different cultures and ages.

I am very thankful for Literature Cambridge for creating a space much like a university (without the assessments) for the lifelong learner!

Isabel Squirrel
England

Isabel was a participant in the live online summer courses on Virginia Woolf and Childhood (2024) and Virginia Woolf: Writing Life (2025)

Our summer course runs twice: first, live online, then in person in Cambridge. For more information, see our website for the live online summer course, 9-13 July 2026 and the summer course in person in Cambridge, 2-7 August 2026.