Books at Bedtime By Calming Anxiety - The Man Who Loved his Kind - By Virginia Woolf

The Man Who Loved His Kind by Virginia Woolf — Full Short Story Read Aloud | Sleep Story for Insomnia, Anxiety & Deep Sleep | Books at Bedtime



A calming bedtime story to help you fall asleep — the complete, unabridged short story The Man Who Loved His Kind by Virginia Woolf, narrated slowly and softly for anyone lying awake with insomnia, anxiety or a racing mind in the small hours.



Trotting through Deans Yard one afternoon, Prickett Ellis runs straight into Richard Dalloway. They were at school together and haven't met in twenty years. There's an invitation to a party that evening, accepted before either man quite means it — and Prickett Ellis, a plain, hard-working barrister who has never cared for society, spends the whole night standing against a wall in a borrowed dress suit, watching people he has decided to despise. You can listen offline, any time you wake in the night, in the Anchored app —

👉 download on iOS: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/anchored-panic-anxiety/id6785035669



That morning he had done something genuinely good: won a case for the Brunners without taking a fee, and been given a clock in thanks by two elderly people in their best clothes. He puts it on his mantelpiece and it is the proudest moment of his life. And all evening he cannot stop needing someone in that room to know about it.



Then he is introduced to Miss O'Keefe — arrogant, abrupt, and carrying her own private ache about a tired woman and two children shut out of a locked garden square. They sit together in the empty garden with the towers of Westminster above them, and they do each other quiet harm. Two people who love humanity, who cannot manage one conversation.



This is one of Virginia Woolf's Mrs Dalloway party stories, set at the same Westminster gathering as the novel, and it is a beautifully observed piece about pride, self-consciousness and the loneliness of being certain you are right. Woolf never takes a side. Perfect for anyone who finds classic literature and long-form audiobooks more restful than silence.



There is nothing to keep track of, no jeopardy, and nothing to solve. Just a summer evening, a party going on upstairs, and two people in a garden. If you drift off in the first few minutes, that is exactly what this reading is for.



This is our seventh Virginia Woolf reading in the Books at Bedtime series, following Kew Gardens, The Mark on the Wall, Solid Objects, The Lady in the Looking Glass, A Haunted House and In the Orchard — all of which are in the feed if this one suits you. The Man Who Loved His Kind was written around the time of Mrs Dalloway and first published in 1944, in the posthumous collection A Haunted House and Other Short Stories, assembled by Leonard Woolf after her death.



Books at Bedtime is the sleep story and classic audiobook series from Calming Anxiety, hosted and narrated by clinical hypnotherapist and former paramedic Martin Hewlett — alongside Coffee Break for the Soul and the daily ten-minute guided meditations for anxiety, panic attacks and sleep. If long-form bedtime stories for adults help you sleep, this series is written for those long, wakeful hours.



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Download Anchored on iOS. Access over 3,000 searchable, offline-ready audio sessions, sleep stories with Books at Bedtime, and built-in nightlight features for the small hours.


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If this reading helped you sleep, please share it with someone who lies awake, and leave a 30-second rating or review on Apple Podcasts — it is the single kindest thing you can do for a small independent show.



Sleep well. And until tomorrow …be kind.



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Ready for More Calm?Thank you for listening to the Calming Anxiety Podcast, featuring guided meditation, mindfulness, and sleep hypnosis sessions with Martin Hewlett. Our mission is to provide you with proven tools for anxiety relief, stress reduction, and a path toward deep relaxation. Use this episode anytime you need to calm your mind and feel more at ease.