We Have Always Lived in the Castle is the first book I’ve read by Shirley Jackson. I have heard about this from many people. So I decided to read it as the spooky book of the month. I thought that October was quite suitable for reading such a book. However, it was far from the book I was hoping to read.
This book, unfortunately, did not meet my expectations. I guess I was expecting a darker story that would make me feel scared a little. After all, this book is mentioned as one of the best examples of gothic literature. Of course, not meeting my expectations does not mean that it is not a good book. I plan to read a few more books of Shirley Jackson because the characters in this book were great. Did you read it? What did you think?
About the book: We Have Always Lived in the Castle
Living in the Blackwood family home with only her sister Constance and her Uncle Julian for company, Merricat just wants to preserve their delicate way of life. But ever since Constance was acquitted of murdering the rest of the family, the world isn’t leaving the Blackwoods alone. And when Cousin Charles arrives, armed with overtures of friendship and a desperate need to get into the safe, Merricat must do everything in her power to protect the remaining family.
Shirley Jackson was born in California in 1916. When her short story The Lottery was first published in The New Yorker in 1948, readers were so horrified they sent her hate mail; it has since become one of the most iconic American stories of all time. Her first novel, The Road Through the Wall, was published in the same year and was followed by five more: Hangsaman, The Bird’s Nest, The Sundial, The Haunting of Hill House and We Have Always Lived in the Castle, widely seen as her masterpiece. In addition to her dark, brilliant novels, she wrote lightly fictionalized magazine pieces about family life with her four children and her husband, the critic Stanley Edgar Hyman. Shirley Jackson died in her sleep in 1965 at the age of 48.
About the author: Shirley Jackson
Shirley Hardie Jackson was an American writer, known primarily for her works of horror and mystery. Over the duration of her writing career, which spanned over two decades, she composed six novels, two memoirs, and more than 200 short stories.
Reading this book contributed to these challenges:
