A review by erboe501
The Letters of Shirley Jackson by Shirley Jackson

5.0

Shirley Jackson is one of my favorite authors. Her turns of phrase are so unique and clever, even just when she was corresponding with family and close friends. I found it slightly heartbreaking to read the collection cover to cover, knowing that her untimely death was looming over her great plans for her life and writing career. There's so much goodness to dig into with these letters, as a portrait of family life in the mid century, as a woman balancing career with family, as a fan of Jackson's novels seeing how plots and characters develop during her writing process. This book pairs nicely with her biography, as I needed to keep in mind that everything Jackson shared in letters to others was how she wanted her circumstances to be perceived. Things were not always so jolly.

This collection reaffirmed that Jackson is a true master of the written word.