Shirley Jackson: Hangsaman

Hi

Hangsaman is my second Shirley Jackson novel (I read We Have Always Lived in the Castle a few months ago).
It has 218 pages and a 5-page Foreword by Francine Prose.
I got it from The Book Depository.

“Seventeen-year-old Natalie Waite longs to escape home for college. Her father is a domineering and egotistical writer who keeps a tight rein on Natalie and her long-suffering mother. When Natalie finally does get away, however, college life doesn’t bring the happiness she expected. Little by little, Natalie is no longer certain of anything—even where reality ends and her dark imaginings begin. Chilling and suspenseful, Hangsaman is loosely based on the real-life disappearance of a Bennington College sophomore in 1946.”

I enjoyed this novel enormously.
It’s very different and unique. The prose is absolutely beautiful, elegant and it makes for a truly believable story. The atmosphere created is dark, claustrophobic and haunting but not throughout.

The story is about the aftermath of trauma; what can happen after someone or something changed you and your life. What happened is never explicitly stated nor dwelt upon but it influences every sentence after.
It’s also about finding your place in the world, your part in it and figuring out who you are.

Hangsaman is definitely recommended!

Happy reading.
Helena