We've got your back. With the Tough-O-Meter, you'll know whether to bring extra layers or Swiss army knives as you summit the literary mountain. (10 = Toughest)
(10) Mount Everest
Woolf's fluid, allusive stream-of-consciousness style can be heavy sledding on a normal day, and The Waves takes extra risks in experimenting with point-of-view, plot, and overall narration. You may have noticed that the style is kind of like the rhythms of the actual ocean, rising and falling in intensity throughout the story in a way that can be kind of dizzying. Is there such a thing as literary seasickness?
The novel is also pretty heavy on ambiguity; it's not always easy to tell where we are, physically and temporally, in the lives of the characters. With narrators like Rhoda, the narrative is so chock-full of abstract imagery that figuring out what's going on plot-wise is almost impossible.
But hey, knowing what's going on is overrated, right? With a beautiful prose style that brings out the complexity of human experience and the power of language to enrich it, Woolf does a good job convincing us to saddle up on our boogie boards and ride the waves with her.