From the Bookshelf of Never too Late to Read Classics…

The Turn of the Screw

Henry James

Start date: February 1, 2020

Finish date: February 29, 2020

Discussion leader: Rosemarie

Find A Copy At

Libraries

Group Discussions About This Book

No group discussions for this book yet.

What Members Thought

Sep 02, 2017 Chrissie rated it really liked it

Shelves: philo-psychol, mystery, classics, shorts, 2017-read, victorian, audible-us

Finally, a mystery that I really like. A creepy Gothic mystery. The question is if the governess is crazy. Are the apparitions only in her head? I will not tell you what else she does. Or does she? You are meant to think. You are not reading this to be given definitive answers. We each draw our own conclusion. I like the ambiguity. I like that readers can discuss this from all different angles.

I like this novella because it grabs your attention right from the start, and then it never lets you g ...more

75 likes · Like · see review

Nov 09, 2021 Kelly_Hunsaker_reads ... rated it really liked it

Shelves: read-in-2021, 60-before-60, american-lit, classics, 1001-books, gothic-lit

I started this book at least once before and it just didn't grab me, but I have included it on my list of 60 books to read before I turn 60 in October 2022, so this time I stuck with it.

My rating is between 3 and 4, somewhere...

Henry James' prose is difficult for me. It is very structured and tight, which makes it difficult for me to connect. And the tone of the story is dramatic, emotional, and personal, which I find very interesting. The combination of very different style and tone is quite un ...more

4 likes · Like · see review

Feb 13, 2008 Laura rated it really liked it

Shelves: classics, 1001-books-you-must-read-before-you

"The Turn of the Screw" tells of a nameless young governess sent to a country house to take charge of two orphans, Miles and Flora. Unsettled by a dark foreboding of menace within the house, she soon comes to believe that something malevolent is stalking the children in her care. ...more

4 likes · Like · see review

Dec 03, 2008 Laura added it

Shelves: for-class

Read for my Intro to Opera class. Quite an interesting book. I love the psychological aspect, which the opera lost. Madness or ghosts?

1 like · Like · see review

Nov 24, 2021 Natalie rated it it was amazing

Shelves: classics

A gripping tale of a governess who sees evil spirits trying to attack the boy and girl she watches over. The main character is sympathetic. She is bold despite the frightening situation. The gentleman of the house is oddly absent whenever she sees the evil spirits and the children are oddly not afraid of them. The tale seems to be about a growing evil but the notes from literary critics in the second half of the volume I have reveal it is actually growing insanity. This twist on the story makes ...more

Like · see review