Guide Note

Doris Lessing's The Golden Notebook is the story of leftist writer Anna Wulf and her attempt to combine her four personal diaries into one "Golden Notebook."

Fast Facts

1. Author: Doris Lessing
2. Genre: Fiction
3. Publication Date: 1962
4. Publisher: Simon & Schuster
5. Pages: 672
6. ISBN 006093140X
7. Awards/Distinctions: British Nobel Prize

The Golden Notebook chronicles the life of Anna Wulf. Wulf keeps four separate notebooks that chronicle chapters in her life: A black notebook that chronicles her early life, a blue notebook that she uses to record her dreams, aspirations, and free thoughts, an appropriately colored red notebook that details her time as an activist in the Communist Party, and a yellow notebook containing free verse and that deals with the loss of a lover. Together, the four books create an overall narrative for the main character's life and struggle to become a whole woman.

The Golden Notebook is considered a major work of 20th Century fiction and instantly became a favorite among feminists upon its publication in 1962.