PERHAPS A GIFT VOUCHER FOR MUM?: MOTHER'S DAY
ABBEY'S BOOKSELLER PICK ----- Perhaps my favourite of Shirley Jackson's work, We Have Always Lived in the Castle tells the story of the outcast Blackwood sisters and their lives living in seclusion occupying their family estate following the murder of their entire family by eldest sister Constance. Riveting with a hint of nostalgic gothicism, Jackson really knows how to haunt a house. Hailie Brown
Shirley Jackson's masterpiece- the deliciously dark and funny story of Merricat, tomboy teenager, beloved sister - and possible mass murderer
Shirley Jackson was born in San Francisco in 1919. She first received wide critical acclaim for her short story 'The Lottery', which was published in 1948. Her novels - which include The Sundial, The Bird's Nest, Hangsaman, The Road through the Wall, We Have Always Lived in the Castle and The Haunting of Hill House - are characterised by her use of realistic settings for tales that often involve elements of horror and the occult. Raising Demons and Life Among the Savages are her two works of nonfiction. Come Along With Me is a collection of stories, lectures, and part of the novel she was working on when she died in 1965.
ABBEY'S BOOKSELLER PICK ----- Perhaps my favourite of Shirley Jackson's work, We Have Always Lived in the Castle tells the story of the outcast Blackwood sisters and their lives living in seclusion occupying their family estate following the murder of their entire family by eldest sister Constance. Riveting with a hint of nostalgic gothicism, Jackson really knows how to haunt a house. Hailie Brown
Her greatest book ... at once whimsical and harrowing, a miniaturist's charmingly detailed fantasy sketched inside a mausoleum ... Through depths and depths and bloodwarm depths we fall, until the surface is only an eerie gleam high above, nearly forgotten; and the deeper we sink, the deeper we want to go -- Donna Tartt An amazing writer -- Neil Gaiman The world of Shirley Jackson is eerie and unforgettable ... She is a true master -- A. M. Homes A masterpiece of Gothic suspense -- Joyce Carol Oates For me, it is that unique and dreamlike book ... that stands as her masterpiece -- Jonathan Lethem We Have Always Lived in the Castle is Jackson's masterpiece ... Stunning -- Elaine Showalter Manages the ironic miracle of convincing the reader that a house inhabited by a lunatic, a poisoner, and a pyromaniac is a world more rich in sympathy, love and subtlety than the world outside Time A witch's brew of eerie power and startling novelty The New York Times A marvellous elucidation of life ... a story full of craft and full of mystery The New York Times Book Review
