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The thing about this book is that, it is pretty much hyped by my beloved communities and book reviewers.
Which means I had high expectations when I actually started reading it, and was pleased that the style suited me since I often gauge how a book fares when I like the plot, and the author's style.
It begins when Merricat introduces herself, an 18-year old girl living with her older sister Connie and Uncle in isolation away from the townsfolk. Jackson starts the book with descriptions of how the townsfolk treat poor Merricat when she goes to town to buy food and supplies. They shun her, and mock her and are also frightened by her, which, since I read the spoilers (patience is not in my virtue list) I know why.
Merricat is forbidden to use knives, and handle some other things in their house and she often acts like a child, breaking things and mirrors when she's upset but she also seems to be very smart and perceptive. She often
imagines living on the moon where everything is better and she and Connie are protected from the nasty people. I find myself rooting for her, even when it is revealed that she is slightly unhinged and is completely
unreasonable.
I like the way her imagination works, when she describes things in detail, like so:
"...in my mind I was setting the table with a green cloth and bringing out yellow dishes and strawberries in a white bowl."
"On the moon we spoke a soft liquid tongue and sang in the starlight, looking down on the dead, dried world."
"There were sparkles at the sink where a drop of water was swelling to fall. Perhaps if I held my breath until the drop fell Charles would go away, but I knew that was not true, holding my breath was too easy"
What got to me was how Merricat seems eternally childlike, around 11, which was around the time That Thing Happened. She constantly buries trinkets, and thinks of safe words to prevent future disasters. She would often create talismans of protection, like nailing books to trees or precious jewelry to prevent the bad things from entering that protected space. I remember thinking like this when I was younger; certainly not 18, and more like 7 or 8. I'd hold my breath for this time to make something bad go away, or try to think of signs from the Universe that things I'd dread won't come true if a dog barks in ten seconds, or if a rooster crows in an hour.
Even if I did read the spoilers and knew who did what, the fact that Merricat is not THAT sane would make you re-analyze the things she said happened and have doubts on whether she just imagined everything. I'm looking forward to re-reading it again, and think this would be an interesting movie--I'm thinking maybe something like Heavenly Creatures?
When it was nearing the end, I thought another Big Event would signal the end of the story, but it didn't stop there. It had quite an unpredictable ending though, and quite unreal, which would again make you want to re-assess if this was reality or Merricat's imagination.
What I think: 8 and a half unicorns
Which means I had high expectations when I actually started reading it, and was pleased that the style suited me since I often gauge how a book fares when I like the plot, and the author's style.
It begins when Merricat introduces herself, an 18-year old girl living with her older sister Connie and Uncle in isolation away from the townsfolk. Jackson starts the book with descriptions of how the townsfolk treat poor Merricat when she goes to town to buy food and supplies. They shun her, and mock her and are also frightened by her, which, since I read the spoilers (patience is not in my virtue list) I know why.
Merricat is forbidden to use knives, and handle some other things in their house and she often acts like a child, breaking things and mirrors when she's upset but she also seems to be very smart and perceptive. She often
imagines living on the moon where everything is better and she and Connie are protected from the nasty people. I find myself rooting for her, even when it is revealed that she is slightly unhinged and is completely
unreasonable.
I like the way her imagination works, when she describes things in detail, like so:
"...in my mind I was setting the table with a green cloth and bringing out yellow dishes and strawberries in a white bowl."
"On the moon we spoke a soft liquid tongue and sang in the starlight, looking down on the dead, dried world."
"There were sparkles at the sink where a drop of water was swelling to fall. Perhaps if I held my breath until the drop fell Charles would go away, but I knew that was not true, holding my breath was too easy"
What got to me was how Merricat seems eternally childlike, around 11, which was around the time That Thing Happened. She constantly buries trinkets, and thinks of safe words to prevent future disasters. She would often create talismans of protection, like nailing books to trees or precious jewelry to prevent the bad things from entering that protected space. I remember thinking like this when I was younger; certainly not 18, and more like 7 or 8. I'd hold my breath for this time to make something bad go away, or try to think of signs from the Universe that things I'd dread won't come true if a dog barks in ten seconds, or if a rooster crows in an hour.
Even if I did read the spoilers and knew who did what, the fact that Merricat is not THAT sane would make you re-analyze the things she said happened and have doubts on whether she just imagined everything. I'm looking forward to re-reading it again, and think this would be an interesting movie--I'm thinking maybe something like Heavenly Creatures?
When it was nearing the end, I thought another Big Event would signal the end of the story, but it didn't stop there. It had quite an unpredictable ending though, and quite unreal, which would again make you want to re-assess if this was reality or Merricat's imagination.
What I think: 8 and a half unicorns
