Janet Hobhouse (1948–1991)
Author of The Furies
About the Author
Born in 1948, author Janet Hobhouse was raised in New York City and educated at Oxford. As an adult, she lived in both London and New York City. In the 1980's, she was primarily an art critic, which is evident in her two non-fiction works: The Bride Stripped Bare, an art study on the female nude, show more and Everybody Who Was Anybody: A Biography of Gertrude Stein. She also wrote four novels: Nellie Without Hugo, Dancing in the Dark, November, and The Furies. She died from ovarian cancer in 1991 at the age of forty-two. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Works by Janet Hobhouse
Associated Works
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Birthdate
- 1948
- Date of death
- 1991-02-01
- Gender
- female
- Nationality
- USA
- Birthplace
- Manhattan, New York, USA
- Place of death
- Manhattan, New York, USA
- Cause of death
- cancer
- Places of residence
- New York, New York, USA
London, England, UK
Oxford, Oxfordshire, England, UK - Education
- University of Oxford
Spence School, New York, New York, USA - Occupations
- writer
editor
biographer
novelist - Relationships
- Hobhouse, Henry (father)
- Organizations
- Art News
Vogue - Short biography
- Janet Hobhouse was raised in New York City and attended Oxford University. Her mother and grandmothers were both sculptors. She first won wide attention with her 1976 biography of Gertrude Stein, Everybody Who Was Anybody. She also wrote The Bride Stripped Bare, a study of the female nude in art. Ms. Hobhouse was also critically acclaimed for her novels -- Nellie Without Hugo (1982), Dancing in the Dark (1983), and November (1986). The Furies (1992), a semi-autobiographical novel, was published posthumously. She died at age 42 from cancer.
Members
Reviews
The Furies (New York Review Books Classics) by Janet Hobhouse
A beautifully well-written story of growing up as a brilliant and dysfunctional woman, in a family that mirrored and reinforced those qualities, during the mid-20th century. Also tragic because Hobhouse died of cancer in her early 40s before it was completely finished, so the pacing is a little uneven—but the first part, where she's growing up with her charismatic mess of a mother, is just gorgeous.
Janet Hobhouse was still writing The Furies when she died of ovarian cancer in 1991, at the age of 42. The book is simultaneously a memoir and a novel, with the protagonist Helen drawn very directly from Hobhouse’s life. She and her mother (Bett in the novel) were products of a strong matrilineal line, devoid of supportive men, and their relationship was unusual and intense. Bett and Helen lived in reduced financial circumstances, causing Helen no end of social difficulties during her school years. And yet she made her way from New York to Oxford, and then into a successful writing career.
But that success was tempered by dysfunctional relationships. Helen is continually restless, moving from one place to another in the blink of an eye. She has a tendency towards on again, off again relationships with men. She never quite achieves independence from Bett; they were very close, and Bett was also very needy. And yet the evolution of their relationship drew me in, especially in the latter part of the novel. I also found the last chapter -- in which Hobhouse/Helen announces her cancer diagnosis and contemplates her inevitable death -- very moving.
While The Furies is not an easy read, it’s one of those books that stays with you long after you’ve turned the last page.… (more)
But that success was tempered by dysfunctional relationships. Helen is continually restless, moving from one place to another in the blink of an eye. She has a tendency towards on again, off again relationships with men. She never quite achieves independence from Bett; they were very close, and Bett was also very needy. And yet the evolution of their relationship drew me in, especially in the latter part of the novel. I also found the last chapter -- in which Hobhouse/Helen announces her cancer diagnosis and contemplates her inevitable death -- very moving.
While The Furies is not an easy read, it’s one of those books that stays with you long after you’ve turned the last page.… (more)
I enjoyed reading and learning about this remarkable woman. she was at the start of the modern painting and literature. he had an influence on 20th century culture and she live a very radical life without making it a issue. she was someone that lived our life and her values
Janet Hobhouse's second novel from 1983, is set in a contemporaneous New York of all-night discos and easy sex but not yet of HIV and AIDS. The novel pre-dates the Springsteen song.
Gabriella and Morgan Callagher after six years of marriage are facing an uncertain future. Differing views on how they want to live are causing widening gaps in their relationship. Gabriella wants to dance all night with their gay friends, and bluff her way through work during the day; while Morgan is starting to take his career more seriously and watches his peers starting families and moving out of the city. Their lives begin to move on parallel lines; Claudio (Gabriella's guide to the gay New York scene) and then Kate ( a friend facing divorce) move into their apartment. Do the Callaghers' even want to save their marriage?
Janet Hobhouse died fairly young and only wrote a few books. I found this novel completely involving. Difficult subject matter to make so compelling. It is sharp and intelligent about issues the characters themselves find it hard to articulate, and I found myself liking and despising both Gabriella and Morgan in turn. Worth reading but don't expect a tidy, clear cut ending.… (more)
Gabriella and Morgan Callagher after six years of marriage are facing an uncertain future. Differing views on how they want to live are causing widening gaps in their relationship. Gabriella wants to dance all night with their gay friends, and bluff her way through work during the day; while Morgan is starting to take his career more seriously and watches his peers starting families and moving out of the city. Their lives begin to move on parallel lines; Claudio (Gabriella's guide to the gay New York scene) and then Kate ( a friend facing divorce) move into their apartment. Do the Callaghers' even want to save their marriage?
Janet Hobhouse died fairly young and only wrote a few books. I found this novel completely involving. Difficult subject matter to make so compelling. It is sharp and intelligent about issues the characters themselves find it hard to articulate, and I found myself liking and despising both Gabriella and Morgan in turn. Worth reading but don't expect a tidy, clear cut ending.… (more)
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