The Haunting of Hill House (Penguin Classics) by Shirley Jackson
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Book Reviews of The Haunting of Hill House (Penguin Classics)
Book Review: A Haunting Read
Summary: 4 Stars
The Haunting of Hill House is a quintessential haunted house story in the style of the classic gothic ghost stories. Written almost 50 years ago it has set the bar for all literary modern day ghost stories and still holds up under the passing years very well.
A doctor of psychic research invites three (3) strangers who have documented psychic predispositions to spend a summer together in a haunted house to record their experiences. The house is more than willing to provide this documentation by exploiting each person's vulnerability and fallibility.
All of Jackson's characters (in Hill House and other stories) are deeply flawed, and none are more flawed or susceptible to the calling of Hill House than Eleanor Vance. An old woman only in her thirties, Eleanor's demons come from a lost youth of caring for her sick mother and her lack of identity. She has no place in the world, no opportunity and nobody to care for her. It are these vulnerabilities that Hill House exploits. Eleanor's decent into madness and her acceptance of the house is more horrifying because she is such a sympathetic and sad character. She needs to feel love so badly that she mistakes the attention of the House for affection. "Journeys end in lovers meeting".
Shirley Jackson creates a tale that is both alive and subdued, and the reader is often left questioning whether the manifestations are real or just the imagination of the characters. The atmosphere is spooky and there are some psychologically frightening moments, even though you never really get introduced to specific physical horror. As with most Shirley Jackson stories, the truth isn't what you see, but what lies lurking just below the surface.
Good stuff and a must read for any horror fan
Book Review: A True Classic
Summary: 4 Stars
An absolutely classic haunted house story that is also an interesting psychological study.
Four disparate people are gathered together to study Hill House. They are Dr. Montague, a researcher; Theodora, a telepath - the pretty girl; Luke - the heir to Hill House; & Eleanora - a sheltered person who has spent most of her life caring for her dying mother. They will live in the house, sleep in the house, take meals in the house, & write about everything they experience there. The house is, of course, the fifth main character. Added into the mix are the house's single-minded caretakers, the Dudleys, Dr. Montague's wife & her sidekick, Arthur, & planchette - the spirit voice Mrs. Montague & Arthur commune with at length.
Much of the terror in the book is hidden, unexplained, minimally described. It is the movement out of the corner of your eye when no one should be near, the rapping on the walls, the slamming of doors, the sense someone might be waiting out there in the night. This is not an ornate, gothic horror - this is spare, minimalist. Events are suggested & implied allowing your imagination to fill in the blanks.
Jackson leaves most questions left unanswered & in its final scene you're left to wonder if anything happened at all.
Book Review: Disturbing, terrifying, a classic.
Summary: 4 Stars
I saw the brilliant movie version of this novel (The Haunting, 1963, directed by Robert Wise) as an adolescent in the mid-sixties. I didn't sleep for three nights. Reading the novel as an adult didn't cause me to lose sleep, but nevertheless this is a very disturbing, psychological story of the occult. It hints at possible aspects of life and death that I for one would rather not think about, and yet I am drawn to stories like this like a moth to a flame. The book describes a small gathering of diverse people called together by a parapsychologist to test some of his theories in an old house shunned for years because of its evil, diseased reputation. This book was heading for my top twenty list until the author inexplicably introduced a character at about 2/3s of the way through that devastated the mood, turning the atmosphere from one of unremitting terror to one of farce. Maybe Jackson was cracking under the horror of her own story and just had to relieve the tension some way. Nevertheless it is still the best ghost novel I have ever read.
Book Review: Creepy Classic
Summary: 4 Stars
The Haunting of Hill House is a tale told in the style of a classic ghost story. A group of young people is brought together by a professor to study the paranormal occurences that are rumored to be happening in an old house. The reader is left in the dark as much as the characters and learns about the house as they do.
The story is entertaining and spooky. I did however get a little lost and confused towards the end when things begin to really get out of hand for the main character. Things are never totally wrapped up, and the reader is left to draw their own conclusions as to the cause of the mysterious disturbances in Hill House.
All in all, a good read but with some wayward points and a few slow spots here and there.
Book Review: I expected a little bit more...
Summary: 4 Stars
It took me a long time to get around to reading this classic story. I purchased it after reading a Stephen King analysis of it and was excited to read it. Overall, I thought it was very good but I expected just a bit more when it came to the build up of terror experienced while in the house. I thought the book started strong but lagged in the middle 2/5ths of the book, coming around at the end with a strong finish. The book hasa strange flow to the narrative given the point of view of the main character and a bit like Clockwork Orange or House of Leaves (though not as complicated) it takes a bit of time to get used to it. Overall, I would recommend reading it, especially as its a relatively short read.