Young Bloomsbury The generation that redefined love, freedom, and self-expression in 1920s England

The celebrated group of writers and artists that were known as the Bloomsbury Group came into being in the years before WWI and consisted of such eminences as Lytton Strachey, Virginia Woolf, John Maynard Keynes, and E. M. Forster. The Group disbanded during the war years but reunited in the 1920s, its members then nearing 40. At the same time, a second Bloomsbury Group emerged, made up of "Bright Young Things" in their twenties comprising Stephen Tennant, Eddy Sackville-West, Julia Strachey, and more, many more. Indeed, it's a godsend that the author has included a Dramatis Personae to help readers keep Old and Young Bloomsburies straight. Like the originals, Young Bloomsburies were mostly artists and writers, and, also like the members of Old Bloomsbury, many were queer and found, in the Group, acceptance and a family of choice. The author's group portrait is both enlightening and fond (she is herself a Strachey) and does literature a great favor by gifting them with this fascinating account.

In a twist on the ever-popular Bloomsbury story, Strachey highlights not Virginia Woolf, Lytton Strachey, et al., but the following generation, among them novelist/critic Eddy Sackville-West and photographer/designer Cecil Beaton, who revitalized their forebears. Clearly, this is an all-in-the-family affair for the author, the last Strachey to grow up at the family's Sutton Court in Somerset; she has also worked as head of Research for the National Trust.

A queer history of the infamous Bloomsbury Group and their young acolytes. In the 21st century, where ENM is used as an acronym for ethical nonmonogamy, it may be strange to think there was a time and place where people had to hide their sexual preferences and the people they loved. Of course, while much has changed for the better, so too has homophobia and discrimination been emboldened in recent years, especially against trans people. This is, in part, what motivated Strachey (a descendant of Bloomsbury's own Lytton Strachey) to write this book. The author insightfully analyzes the substance of Bloomsbury's social network, how their lives intertwined as a kind of queer chosen family, and how they adapted to heteronormative expectations while remaining true to their desires and identities. With short chapters written in lucid prose, this is a dream to read for those interested in queer history, and Strachey treats the colorful drama of her subject's lives with tact. The most delightful surprise here is learning that some of the most beloved pillars of early 20th-century Anglophone culture--e.g., Virginia Woolf, E.M. Forster, and Lytton Strachey--were not above using their literary gifts for catty missives about their fellow creatives or paramours or roommates (or some magical commingling of all three categories). Queerness has been a social constant through the ages. What's significant about this meeting of old and young Bloomsbury is how queer cultural knowledge has been exchanged from one generation to the next and how vital that transmission remains. A mistake the young make is assuming their antecedents have nothing left to contribute to an ever shifting present. On the contrary, the brilliant works produced by the luminaries of young Bloomsbury would not have happened without the nurture of old Bloomsbury. Strachey demonstrates this truth with aplomb. This compact history proves that the lived experiences of our elders are essential resource for succeeding generations. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.