Book Review: "Dark Tales" by Shirley Jackson

I read this book initially a few years' ago and honestly, it was back before I even had Vocal and so, I couldn't write about it. I was recently revisiting some old books and found my copy of 'Dark Tales' amongst the rubble. This is one of those anthologies that Shirley Jackson is famous for. Yes, we have her novels like 'The Haunting of Hill House' and 'We Have Always Lived in the Castle'. But we must remember her short stories are also awesome features of making the ordinary days of our lives look terrifying. Shirley Jackson was always the best at that. She could scare the pants off everyone in the room and she doesn't need jump scares.

A really good story is called The Possibility of Evil in which Shirley Jackson does not make everything look horrible and so, it feels very oddly okay for a while (you know you're a great horror writer when things are odd if they are going alright) and then we delve deeper into the life of Miss Strangeworth. She is this kind of twisted old woman who thinks upon her townspeople as hers because of her family legacy. Honestly, until the last line, you really don't think this story is going anywhere. But you can't have that realisation if you don't read the rest of the story.

Next, I'd like to introduce you to a story called Louisa, Please Come Home. It is about a girl who ran away from home three years before. She reveals her plan about how she managed to not leave a trail as she ran away and took the train. She talks about a raincoat that she wears and how she abandoned her short jacket that her mother had picked out. It feels so anxious even though there is not a lot that physically happens. It is that special Shirley Jackson atmosphere that I can only describe as tip-toeing in the dark, trying not to make a sound. There's a present-tense narrative in which our narrator is talking to an elusive and judgemental Mrs Peacock. The ending is so damn weird. The more you think about the ending, the more terrifying it gets.

One of the stories I'd like you to pay attention to is called What a Thought in which a woman is thinking about the difference between her husband being alive and being dead. She has this 'no I don't want him to be dead' moment but then it is followed by 'if I killed him, they'd never catch me because I don't have a motive.' This woman is clearly psychotic and her husband is so confused because he thinks she is nervous and sick, feeling her forehead to see if she's okay. The question in her mind goes from thinking about his enemies to see if she could really go through with it. It is filled with anxiety. Absolutely filled with anxiety.

Another story is called A Visit, sometimes published as The Lovely House, which you will notice reminds you of The Haunting of Hill House in the way the house itself becomes the main character and each room is themed in a creepy way. Margaret is another main character who is told about a woman living in a tower, locking herself away, also named Margaret. She is old and withered and her relations to the other characters are not entirely known. Everything in this book seems a bit off, like someone playing two consecutive notes on a piano at the same time. If you enjoyed The Haunting of Hill House then you will love this one - Margaret is a little bit less neurotic than Eleanor though.

One of the other stories you might want to check out is called The Man in the Woods which feels very folklorish. Christopher could be anyone in a forest in a fairytale, like Hansel for example. Again, Shirley Jackson seems to use the setting as a character and as the setting changes so do the characteristics of it. Christopher's realisation happens after the dread that builds for the whole story. We initially don't know why it builds this way, but when we find out what has actually been happening all this time, it is not climactic - but just really upsetting.

The last one I'll talk about is The Summer People which is about a couple who overstays their welcome at a home on the lake because nobody ever stays into the autumn and past Labour Day. The couple are adamant to stay because they wanted to enjoy the area for as long as possible. However, they are surprised when nobody else is there and the couple themselves start to experience strange things that almost reminds me of the cult mentality of The Lottery. It feels very eerie, nearly unfinished and then we have that ending - which is wild and suggests so many things.

Even though there are more stories within, I think that these really represent the talents of Shirley Jackson the most within this book. The stories are dark and atmospheric, suburban and strange - they really have a great quality of filling the reader with nervousness. The sheer anxiety is greater than any jump scare or gore-fest. It is simply a feeling that does not go away long after the book has been finished.