Oct: We have always lived in the Castle

[Paul]

Tried to find it in Eason yesrerday and not a chance . Staff stared blankly at me.

[Seraphina]

Easons Paul? I thought you banned yourself from that shop over the staff lol

[Paul]

I know Seraphina but I was literally running through town and had five minutes and was too far from a real book shop

[Cathleen]

I just stopped at my town library and checked out the Agatha Christie and the Shirley Jackson books. I'm trying not to buy any books for awhile, so it's really nice that we've picked older books.

[Pamellia]

Paul, I can see why you don't think so much of that "book" store! LOL...surely a library would have it or perhaps a better quality store would order it for you. I have it on my Kindle purchased from Amazon. Good luck! It's worth investigating.

[Paul]

I'll probably pop into Gutter bookshop or chapters at some point

[Barbara]

I think I'll get the audiobook.

[Sara]

Barbara I definitely recommend the audiobook. The book has a creepy menacing and the audiobook definitely brings that...although perhaps it wasn't always the greatest choice on my late night commute home from work.

[Barbara]

Sara wrote: "Barbara I definitely recommend the audiobook. The book has a creepy menacing and the audiobook definitely brings that...although perhaps it wasn't always the greatest choice on my late night commut..."

I'll get it today or tomorrow. Thanks.

[Colleen]

I'm starting this today ;)

[Paul]

Meant to say I finally picked it up in Gutter bookshop. So hopefully myself and Trelawn will get through it over our holiday

[Susan]

What holiday are you having? We just had Columbus Day/Indigenous People Day.

I just finished this. I would never picked this out myself and yet I enjoyed it. I think I would say appreciated it. It was certainly peculiar. I can't wait until more people read it to discuss it.

[Paul]

Half way in Susan and it is very Weird. Merricat is oddly reminding me of the main character in Iain Banks Wasp Factory with the forms of protecting the property.

[Susan]

I have not read the Wasp Factory but Merricat is really an unique character to me.

[Cathleen]

Susan wrote: "What holiday are you having? We just had Columbus Day/Indigenous People Day.

I just finished this. I would never picked this out myself and yet I enjoyed it. I think I would say appreciated it. It..."

I have this next on my pile, so hoping to get to it in the next few days, after I get through all my mid-semester grading! :)

[Margo]

Started this one on audio last night. Hooked!!

[Seraphina]

Great margo, glad to see you getting involved, great to see

[Margo]

Thanks seraphina ^_^

[Margo]

Have just finished this one. Really enjoyed it, not sure why. Need to think about it. Was very surprisedat the end of the book, to hear it was published in 1962. I thought it had quite a newish feel to it!

[Susan]

I agree with you, Margo. I was surprised wpith how much I liked it.

[Paul]

I agree as well. I can't pinpoint exactly whats best about the book but really enjoyed it. Dark humour definitely helped.

[Sara]

This book was certainly a creepy read...and as I posted in my review when I finish it earlier this month...perhaps not the best choice for me to listen to on my late night commute home...The audio narration in the Audible version adds tremendously to the sense of foreboding. There were times I found myself having to pause the book in favor of music on that drive home, because it was too creepy. I also like how Shirley Jackson use child like rhymes and games.

I would get "Merricat, said Connie, would you like a cup of tea? Oh, no, said Merricat, you’ll poison me. Merricat, said Connie, would you like to go to sleep? Down in the boneyard ten feet deep!" stuck in my head at random moments of the day.

There's also description early on of Mary Catherine treating her journey into town as board game she has to play. As someone who has occasionally suffer from social anxiety (although much less severe), I can relate to her sense of isolation and treating the trip as something to be gotten through.

[Sara]

Oh and by the way Susan I think you should avoidThe Wasp Factory. I don't think it'd be your cup of tea.

[Paul]

I meant to say that as well Sara ;-) .

[Susan]

I plan to. Thanks.

[Jackie]

I have just finished We have Always lived in a Castle, thanks again Goodreads Ireland for introducing me to a book that I would have missed. Really enjoyed, I didn't realise it was written in 1962 until near the end when I looked to see who Shirley Jackson was. I didn't know she was such a influential American author. She influenced such writers as Stephen King, Nigel Kneale, and Richard Matheson.
I could only get it in audio and large print format, so this was also new for me, gave both formats a try for the first time, still not sure about audio but large print was very easy on the eye's !!

[Margo]

Jackie wrote: "I have just finished We have Always lived in a Castle, thanks again Goodreads Ireland for introducing me to a book that I would have missed. Really enjoyed, I didn't realise it was written in 1962 ..."

I listened to the audiobook and thought the narration was great (bernadette dunne). The rhythms was really creepy. These days Merricat would be labled with some "ism" and treated. That might even have saved her families life! I would query the sanity of constance. If only because she proved such easy pickings for the evil cousin. Did julien truelly believe Merricat was dead? I can't recall if he acknowledged during the book. Or did he mean she was dead to him? Or was he just an injured old man subject to confusion???

[Ruby]

than you

[Ruby]

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[Pamellia]

I love reading all these comments about The Castle. I enjoyed the book so much. For some reason the whole book made me very sad. I think in some ways it reminded me of a great local family falling from that grace that made them so great in the first place and that makes me sad for so many different reasons.

I am given to understand that many of you had never heard of Shirley Jackson. I was introduced to her work in high school, actually, in the 1960s, where we studied The Lottery. An odd story that, according to our educational system at the time, was considered an in-depth look at human behavior by an outstanding modern day author. I have enjoyed everything I have read by Jackson. I recently purchased a book of her short stories, newly published.Let Me Tell You: New Stories, Essays, and Other Writings. The first story reminded me if an old Twilight zone episode. There is also a very short writing at the beginning that one might totally miss the true horror if not read carefully. I have also read The Haunting of Hill House.

[Ruby]

nice

[Paul]

She definitely was a talented writer Pamellia. I don't think she ever made the school curricullum over here but The Lottery is definitely a great story to have in schools. I wonder what school kids these days would make of it with so much YA dystopic fiction and films with a similar premise.