Glad to see Jackson getting some love on TH-cam. It's crazy how underappreciated she is, considering how influential she's been on modern horror media. My ranking: 1 - Castle 2 - Hangsaman 3 - Sundial 4 - Haunting Haven't read Bird's Nest and The Road yet. I'm curious, have you ever read Nelly's Version by Eva Figes? It's a really great psychological mystery novel. Starts with a woman checking into a hotel with no memory of who she is. She goes to her room, opens up her suitcase to find it full of money. That's all I'm going to say. 😁 Definitely recommended for Jackson fans.
I read We Have Always Lived in the Castle when I was a young teen . My first Shirley book . I fell in love with her work! The Yellow wallpaper is definitely chilling .
Same here. It was my first experience with her work, too. And it was love at first read 😊I remember bewildering my friends by always saying 'silly Merryicat' whenever there was a mistake or a confusion. The expression is still on the tip of my tongue years later.
I read several of her short stories last year and wow! I was swept off my feet. I am ready to read more this year and around this time (fall) I find it to be the best for mood setting. The short stories are so dark with a dystopic flavor, sometimes so much so their unsettling effect lasts throughout the day. I also find I have the strangest dreams when I read Jackson.... I find I examine my own thinking, I can't help but think at isolation, alienation. They are in their own canon. I haven't read anything quite like them. Thank you for sharing the love here. It is hard to find videos about her works. If you ever are inclined, check out Carson Mc Cullers, another underrated writer.
Hi Justbeayoga. I'd never heard of Carson McCullers. How did she slip past my radar!? Just looked her up on Goodreads and think I will put Heart is a Lonely Hunter on my TBR. Thanks for the suggestion.
Really enjoyed this thank you! Just finished the Sundial, marking the end of a five year journey reading Jackson’s novels, and was feeling quite emotional about it. I’d say for my preliminary ranking (I haven’t reread all of them and some of them it’s been a while) The Bird’s Nest, The Road Through the Wall, Hangsaman, The Sundial, We Have Always Lived in the Castle, to my favourite Hill House. Think I’m going to read the biography ‘A Rather Haunted Life’ and the Let Me Tell You collection before I dig into rereading them again. I have no idea how a writer manages to be simultaneously so unsettling and so comforting somehow. So glad there’s so many short stories to get to at least!
I definitely agree with your idea that Castle shows Jackson coming to terms with many of the issues she had dealt with in her previous novels (small town persecution for example). I also think it shows her coming to terms with the conflicts between people which characterised much of her novels and her personal life. Mary-Katherine and Constance form two parts of a whole: Constance is passive and Mary-Katherine is assertive. In previous novels these to characters come into conflict (in Hill House, Eleanor (passive) and Theodora (assertive) have a tumultuous relationship), but in Castle these two characters types have come to a kind of symbiosis. Constance cares for Mary-Katherine and Mary-Katherine protects Constance from the outside world (e.g. Charles). Like you, I also like to think that Jackson found a bit of inner peace through writing Castle. Castle is a masterpiece and it's also my number 1 Jackson novel. Thanks for the video! Very interesting to hear you speak about the novels. I didnt realise that The Yellow Wallpaper influenced Hill House, but that makes a lot of a sense now you point it out.
“The Sundial” begins brilliantly. The first two chapters are tops. Then, for me anyway, it unravels. A few interesting sections here and there (like the car ride when one of the characters tries to leave the house), but overall it’s too unbelievable. I’ve read it twice, the second time hoping I’d catch something I might have missed the first time around, then I realized the problem wasn’t mine; it was the book’s.
That's a fair take, and I'm inclined to agree. I do apreciate how she took chances, though. They don't always work out, but at least she stayed away from the 'safe'.
Surfer Dude Michael is an interesting look. Kindle: The Lottery, We have Always In The Castle, The Yellow Wallpaper and Other Stories by Charlotte Perkins Gilman. I'll add these. I believe I saw The Haunting when it was in the theatre. Cats are so much fun. 440 subs to go. Great content.
😁Surfer Dude in land-locked Budapest, Hungary. Typical Michael: wrong guy in the wrong place. The Yellow Wallpaper should be public domain. If you don't want to spend the money, I'm pretty sure you could find it online for free.
I think Shirley Jackson's 2 biggest enemies were her husband and her mother, followed by small-town New England (she was a native San Franciscan, and I think she never felt secure on the east coast). But hey. I'm probably full of it. Still, I love her work. For humor, with really surprising occasional dark undertones, her ladies' magazine publishing catalog is pretty good, too. She wrote a lot of baffled housewife genre short stories, in which the rage simmers, usually (but not always) just below the surface.
She does a good job expressing (or venting) her frustrations and anger with her husband in Hangsaman. I've discovered a lot about the undertones in that book in recent months. It's so richly layered and cryptic. Thanks for watching and sharing your feedback😀
I love we have always lived in the castle! But I would probably have hangsaman as my second and haunting of hillhouse as third! Maybe it’s because I’ve just finished reading it
Hangsaman has grown on me over the years (the longer it marinates in my head). If I were to update this video, I'd do it like you: 1 - Castle 2 - Hangsaman. I recently wrote a study guide for it. There are so many layers to it! If you're interested. Here it is: docs.google.com/document/d/1U70C-PL-JDtBMVXCaRa1vNXPiWF9WDAX4t5nCvhEXpQ/edit#heading=h.8eyig450t7ti
My problem with Hill House is that whenever Eleanor isn't spotlighted it kind of drags. Eleanor is my favorite protagonist (yes, even more than Merricat), however. So like, I'd put Hangsaman before Hill House because we never leave Natalie in Hangsaman; not even for a moment. Castle is her obvious magnum opus
The lottery is like 7 pages. Sure, read the Lottery. Here's a PDF: docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&pid=sites&srcid=bmF1LmVkdXxtcy1jcm90dHMtLWVuZ2xpc2gtOC05fGd4OjFkZTBmMzBkZDdiYTVkZg
"The Lottery" is what I started with, since we read it in school. Then I read We Have Always Lived in the Castle, more of her short stories, and The Haunting of Hill House.
I absolutely love this video!!!!! I have only read one Shirley Jackson book so far, We Have Always Lived in the Castle. I did a review video of it, I hope you will take a look and share your thoughts on my video. :)
Hi Rod. Thanks for the kind words. 😃If I had a bit more stability in my life and stopped moving from country to country every few years, I would also like to keep hardcover copies of the books I love. We Have Always Lived in the Castle would definetly be one. ( Frankenstein, not so much 😋).
Hangsaman is truly haunting. I think David Lynch owes a thank you to this novel.
I need to read that one
Glad to see Jackson getting some love on TH-cam. It's crazy how underappreciated she is, considering how influential she's been on modern horror media.
My ranking:
1 - Castle
2 - Hangsaman
3 - Sundial
4 - Haunting
Haven't read Bird's Nest and The Road yet.
I'm curious, have you ever read Nelly's Version by Eva Figes? It's a really great psychological mystery novel. Starts with a woman checking into a hotel with no memory of who she is. She goes to her room, opens up her suitcase to find it full of money. That's all I'm going to say. 😁 Definitely recommended for Jackson fans.
Thanks for the recommendation.
I read We Have Always Lived in the Castle when I was a young teen . My first Shirley book . I fell in love with her work!
The Yellow wallpaper is definitely chilling .
Same here. It was my first experience with her work, too. And it was love at first read 😊I remember bewildering my friends by always saying 'silly Merryicat' whenever there was a mistake or a confusion. The expression is still on the tip of my tongue years later.
After I watched this I read hill house and castle thanks for your amazing videos & recommendations
Hi Brian. Thanks for the kind words😁I'm happy the propoganda is working and we have a new convert 😁
Im reading The Bird's Nest. My 1st Jackson Novel.
I read several of her short stories last year and wow! I was swept off my feet. I am ready to read more this year and around this time (fall) I find it to be the best for mood setting. The short stories are so dark with a dystopic flavor, sometimes so much so their unsettling effect lasts throughout the day. I also find I have the strangest dreams when I read Jackson.... I find I examine my own thinking, I can't help but think at isolation, alienation. They are in their own canon. I haven't read anything quite like them. Thank you for sharing the love here. It is hard to find videos about her works. If you ever are inclined, check out Carson Mc Cullers, another underrated writer.
Hi Justbeayoga. I'd never heard of Carson McCullers. How did she slip past my radar!? Just looked her up on Goodreads and think I will put Heart is a Lonely Hunter on my TBR. Thanks for the suggestion.
Really enjoyed this thank you! Just finished the Sundial, marking the end of a five year journey reading Jackson’s novels, and was feeling quite emotional about it. I’d say for my preliminary ranking (I haven’t reread all of them and some of them it’s been a while) The Bird’s Nest, The Road Through the Wall, Hangsaman, The Sundial, We Have Always Lived in the Castle, to my favourite Hill House. Think I’m going to read the biography ‘A Rather Haunted Life’ and the Let Me Tell You collection before I dig into rereading them again. I have no idea how a writer manages to be simultaneously so unsettling and so comforting somehow. So glad there’s so many short stories to get to at least!
'Simultaneously so unsettling and so comforting' that's a brilliant way to describe her writing! I agree :)
I definitely agree with your idea that Castle shows Jackson coming to terms with many of the issues she had dealt with in her previous novels (small town persecution for example). I also think it shows her coming to terms with the conflicts between people which characterised much of her novels and her personal life. Mary-Katherine and Constance form two parts of a whole: Constance is passive and Mary-Katherine is assertive. In previous novels these to characters come into conflict (in Hill House, Eleanor (passive) and Theodora (assertive) have a tumultuous relationship), but in Castle these two characters types have come to a kind of symbiosis. Constance cares for Mary-Katherine and Mary-Katherine protects Constance from the outside world (e.g. Charles). Like you, I also like to think that Jackson found a bit of inner peace through writing Castle. Castle is a masterpiece and it's also my number 1 Jackson novel.
Thanks for the video! Very interesting to hear you speak about the novels. I didnt realise that The Yellow Wallpaper influenced Hill House, but that makes a lot of a sense now you point it out.
She's amazing. I love her short stories, too
Was happy to see that the only Shirley Jackson i read was your favorite, You motivated me to read @2 & 3, Thank you!
“The Sundial” begins brilliantly. The first two chapters are tops. Then, for me anyway, it unravels. A few interesting sections here and there (like the car ride when one of the characters tries to leave the house), but overall it’s too unbelievable. I’ve read it twice, the second time hoping I’d catch something I might have missed the first time around, then I realized the problem wasn’t mine; it was the book’s.
That's a fair take, and I'm inclined to agree. I do apreciate how she took chances, though. They don't always work out, but at least she stayed away from the 'safe'.
All videos should end like the way this one did, 😍😍😍😍😍
😁I named her Zvyezda (Star in Slavic languages) because I knew she's be a star
Surfer Dude Michael is an interesting look.
Kindle: The Lottery, We have Always In The Castle, The Yellow Wallpaper and Other Stories by Charlotte Perkins Gilman. I'll add these.
I believe I saw The Haunting when it was in the theatre.
Cats are so much fun.
440 subs to go. Great content.
😁Surfer Dude in land-locked Budapest, Hungary. Typical Michael: wrong guy in the wrong place. The Yellow Wallpaper should be public domain. If you don't want to spend the money, I'm pretty sure you could find it online for free.
Loved this video!!
I think Shirley Jackson's 2 biggest enemies were her husband and her mother, followed by small-town New England (she was a native San Franciscan, and I think she never felt secure on the east coast). But hey. I'm probably full of it. Still, I love her work. For humor, with really surprising occasional dark undertones, her ladies' magazine publishing catalog is pretty good, too. She wrote a lot of baffled housewife genre short stories, in which the rage simmers, usually (but not always) just below the surface.
She does a good job expressing (or venting) her frustrations and anger with her husband in Hangsaman. I've discovered a lot about the undertones in that book in recent months. It's so richly layered and cryptic. Thanks for watching and sharing your feedback😀
The haunting of hill house
I love we have always lived in the castle! But I would probably have hangsaman as my second and haunting of hillhouse as third! Maybe it’s because I’ve just finished reading it
Hangsaman has grown on me over the years (the longer it marinates in my head). If I were to update this video, I'd do it like you: 1 - Castle 2 - Hangsaman. I recently wrote a study guide for it. There are so many layers to it! If you're interested. Here it is: docs.google.com/document/d/1U70C-PL-JDtBMVXCaRa1vNXPiWF9WDAX4t5nCvhEXpQ/edit#heading=h.8eyig450t7ti
@@Michael_Wertenbergooh! I’ll certainly take a look :)
My problem with Hill House is that whenever Eleanor isn't spotlighted it kind of drags. Eleanor is my favorite protagonist (yes, even more than Merricat), however. So like, I'd put Hangsaman before Hill House because we never leave Natalie in Hangsaman; not even for a moment. Castle is her obvious magnum opus
Well put. My appreciation for Hangsaman keeps growing as time goes by and the more its mood and ideas stir in my imagination.
I haven't read her books yet. I was thinking of starting with the Lottery though, or would you recommend starting with the others though?
The lottery is like 7 pages. Sure, read the Lottery. Here's a PDF: docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&pid=sites&srcid=bmF1LmVkdXxtcy1jcm90dHMtLWVuZ2xpc2gtOC05fGd4OjFkZTBmMzBkZDdiYTVkZg
Very different feel and experience than her novels.
"The Lottery" is what I started with, since we read it in school. Then I read We Have Always Lived in the Castle, more of her short stories, and The Haunting of Hill House.
I absolutely love this video!!!!! I have only read one Shirley Jackson book so far, We Have Always Lived in the Castle. I did a review video of it, I hope you will take a look and share your thoughts on my video. :)
Hi Rod. Thanks for the kind words. 😃If I had a bit more stability in my life and stopped moving from country to country every few years, I would also like to keep hardcover copies of the books I love. We Have Always Lived in the Castle would definetly be one. ( Frankenstein, not so much 😋).
I found too many similarities between The Snining and The hunting of the Hill house.
Even more with ROSE RED
@@scotnick59 What is Rose Red? I'm not familiar with that work.
King wrote in the preface of the shining that hothh inspired him at that time