Nellie
New Member
ISBN: 978-0-141-19143-0
Published: 2009
Published By: Penguin Modern Classics
The Lottery And Other Stories is an anthology of Shirley Jackson’s short stories and many people may well have read The Lottery as it is one of her most famous pieces of writing and caused an outcry when it was first published in 1948. The story centres around a macabre lottery in a small community which left me quite horrified. The book contains a variety of stories, some of which combine ordinary life with elements of the occult and horror. The strongest theme for me however, was “lost opportunities”. All the protagonists are trapped in their mundane lives, wondering if it could be better and in one way or another they don’t spot a wonderful opportunity that would improve things and carry on oblivious to what they have missed. I was particularly moved by “The Flower Garden” about a woman trapped in an unsatisfactory marriage. She meets a lady who lives down the road and it seems as though a wonderful and fulfilling friendship will develop until a decision by one of the women leads to the community pressurising the relationship. This is a sensitively observed piece about how racism does not need to be violent to be damaging. Other stories explore why children with talent may choose to hide it and how loneliness can drive people to behave in extreme ways.
The stories are thought provoking and wise and draw the reader in by the ordinariness of their setting and characters. The Lottery however is one of the most shocking things I have ever read, sadly because although fiction, I fear it could easily be reality.
Published: 2009
Published By: Penguin Modern Classics
The Lottery And Other Stories is an anthology of Shirley Jackson’s short stories and many people may well have read The Lottery as it is one of her most famous pieces of writing and caused an outcry when it was first published in 1948. The story centres around a macabre lottery in a small community which left me quite horrified. The book contains a variety of stories, some of which combine ordinary life with elements of the occult and horror. The strongest theme for me however, was “lost opportunities”. All the protagonists are trapped in their mundane lives, wondering if it could be better and in one way or another they don’t spot a wonderful opportunity that would improve things and carry on oblivious to what they have missed. I was particularly moved by “The Flower Garden” about a woman trapped in an unsatisfactory marriage. She meets a lady who lives down the road and it seems as though a wonderful and fulfilling friendship will develop until a decision by one of the women leads to the community pressurising the relationship. This is a sensitively observed piece about how racism does not need to be violent to be damaging. Other stories explore why children with talent may choose to hide it and how loneliness can drive people to behave in extreme ways.
The stories are thought provoking and wise and draw the reader in by the ordinariness of their setting and characters. The Lottery however is one of the most shocking things I have ever read, sadly because although fiction, I fear it could easily be reality.
