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This thread is to discuss We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson.

Pages: 146 pages

Length: 1 month (October)

Participants: Nori, Michelle, Marleen, Saha

Everyone reads at their own pace during a Buddy Read. Because participants can be at different parts of the book at different times, it is extremely important to mark spoilers so that the book is not ruined for someone who is not as far along as others!!!

Mark spoilers by placing {spoiler} before the text and {/spoiler} after the text but use the < and > instead of the { and }.

cool i want to read this

Anima wrote: "cool i want to read this"

Awesome, the more of us the better! :)

I'm going to start the book today. I recently read The Lottery and Other Stories by the same author and I liked it a lot, although it was not quite what I expected. I thought it was going to be more traditional horror, but instead it was basically contemporary short stories, although very, very unsettling in places, and wonderfully written.

So now I don't really know what to expect from this one, but I'm excited to find out!

I want ro read this... can I join?

Christene Paula� wrote: "I want ro read this... can I join?"

Of course! :)

I just started the book and am enjoying it so far. It's been on my TBR for ages. I've also read The Lottery and Just an Ordinary Day: The Uncollected Stories. She's got an interesting, quiet way of writing.

I need someone to help me navigate through this book please. (view spoiler)[
Are Merricat or Constance dead throughout the story? Do they die after the house burns down? Is any main character (other than Uncle Julian) dead in the story? I keep reading these theories online (reddit mostly) but nobody gives a definitive answer. Every theory I read has one flaw or another.

What is the purpose of cousin Charles visit? Is he there to meet his weird cousins? Does he want to steal their father's possessions and wealth? After the house burns down there's barely any mention of him (except the one part at the end when he comes knocking at the door).

Why does Constance hid her face with Uncle Julian's scarf when she's running away from the other people? Like Shirley really emphasized on the fact that she kept fiddling around with the scarf to make sure it covered her entire face.

Was Merricat sent to an orphanage or something? Uncle Julian mentions this somewhere in the book and it's been bugging me ever since. Is it one of his convoluted memories which doesn't make sense or does this have some relevance to the plot.
(hide spoiler)]

Thanks.

Hello all. I would love to talk about this book with you! I will try to reread it this month.

gorfad. wrote: "I need someone to help me navigate through this book please. "
General spoilers for the book ahead:
(view spoiler)[
Are Merricat or Constance dead throughout the story?
No, I read it pretty literally - the people who are shown alive are alive. I'm not familiar with the theories you reference, though.

What is the purpose of cousin Charles visit?
Theft or grift is my take on it.

Why does Constance hid her face with Uncle Julian's scarf when she's running away from the other people?
I just read this as a desire to be away from them. I haven't read it in two or three years though, so I will reread.

Was Merricat sent to an orphanage or something?
I take that as just Uncle Julian being strange. Merricat was raised by Constance after the rest of the family died.
(hide spoiler)]

I'd be interested to know what your own theories are, gorfad.

Amy (Other Amy) wrote: "Hello all. I would love to talk about this book with you! I will try to reread it this month.

gorfad. wrote: "I need someone to help me navigate through this book please. "
General spoilers for th..."

Hey! I've moved on from the book now but here's some context for the first question.
Spoilers ahead
(view spoiler)[
Somebody asked:
At the end of the book are Merricat and Constance still alive or did they actually die in the fire as the townsfolk believe? It seems implausible they could survive on their own in a burned-down ruin, were they supposed to be ghosts at the end?

And the answer was:
OMG! That explains so much! why they are so happy together at the end in their dilapidated house! - like Merricat was always a ghost, and kept wanting Constance to "live on the moon with her".... That explains why they never went to Julians funeral, and if they are torturing the townspeople, all the "i'm sorry" baskets of food at the end suddenly makes sense. And finally why Constance never inherited her Mother's house in the middle of town! Thank you! you just explained everything.

The only reason I feel like it might be true is because there's no interaction with Merricat or Constance at the end of the story. On the other hand, nobody with their sanity intact would send baskets of food to people that are dead. As you said, since it’s not mentioned whether they’re dead at any point, I’ll assume they’re alive throughout the story. Shirley did something similar in The Haunting of Hill House where she left lots of questions unanswered. I guess it depends on the readers point of view and what they want to think.
(hide spoiler)]

Thanks for the reply :)

gorfad. wrote: "Amy (Other Amy) wrote: "Hello all. I would love to talk about this book with you! I will try to reread it this month."

(view spoiler)[
That's interesting. Thanks for sharing! It's always fun to reread with a theory to test in mind.

Shirley did something similar in The Haunting of Hill House where she left lots of questions unanswered.

She always does. It's one of the enjoyable things about her writing. (Some writers leave open questions in a really unsatisfying way, but she does it in a really satisfying way, if that makes sense.)
(hide spoiler)]

I read Dark Tales last year and I do absolutely recommend it for anyone who wants more Jackson after this book and The Haunting of Hill House.

I will join! HappyOctober

Good book!

(view spoiler)[I enjoyed reading the thoughts from all of you. Yes, I felt the ending was a little open-ended, but that Merricat and Constance were ghosts (Especially after the fire) makes a lot of sense to me. I am raising my rating to 4 stars now!

Someone asked if Merricat was in an orphanage? She was while Constance was on trial. (hide spoiler)]

Welcome, Anima!

It took me longer than I thought it would, but I finished the book today. It wasn't entirely what I expected, but I feel like I'm starting to get the hang of Shirley Jackson's brand of horror now. I plan to read The Haunting of Hill House too sometimes soon, and I feel like I have to rethink what I expect that book to be.

This one definitely gave me a lot to think about and I will be back later with some better articulated thoughts :)

I also finished it. Great narration on audible! Intriguing story_ what year is it supposed to be?

how does this work? do we talk about the story now?