Reviews tagging 'Ableism'

The Road Through the Wall by Shirley Jackson

3 reviews

katewhite77's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

<strong>A creepy tale about keeping up with the Jones'</strong>

Neighbourhood politics in 1940's  USA. Clostraphobic dark and twisted.

This was a debut novel, and it shows here I feel. Plot jumps around a bit and hard to keep track of everyone and everything. 

This is an uncomfortable exploration of how dark human nature can become if not challenged.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Ableism, Body shaming, Antisemitism, Child death, Chronic illness, Classism, Fatphobia, Suicide, and Toxic friendship

toffishay's review against another edition

dark sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

Shirley Jackson really has a way with setting a scene. We learn so much about out characters over the course of the summer, learning about their flaws and times when they strive for more. I will say that there is a twist of sorts that really caught me off guard, but I'm not sure if it was in a good way. It felt a little out of nowhere and I think that other actions and characters were set up that could have been part of the final act. But I think that is the point with Shirley Jackson too: to have a cast of characters all with their own cruelties and pain and just going about life. As a first novel, it's still pretty great and you can see where she grows as a writer in her other works, most of which I love.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Sexual harassment, Religious bigotry, Ableism, Antisemitism, Blood, Child death, Fatphobia, Injury/Injury detail, Racial slurs, Suicide, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship and Alcohol

Minor: Incest

coffinfinite's review

dark tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

A cold and biting satire of middle-class America and all its pretensions, The Road Through The Wall may not be Jackson’s best work, but has become one of my favourites. Introducing us to a roster of characters who are all mundane and exhibit the casual cruelty of conformity, Jackson doesn’t hold the reader’s hand when etching out her vision of Pepper Street. I kept notes as I read to help me keep everyone - The Donalds, The Roberts, The Byrnes, and many, many more - straight in my head. The lack of distinction between each family save the number of children and religious identity feels very much a part of Jackson’s commentary. 

The story itself - what there is of a story, as much of the book is simply observations, the reader eavesdropping on conversations, pacts and trysts along with children’s games - is told in a long series of vignettes, showing different members of Pepper Street going about their lives in various combinations, the whole while building up to a tragedy. Jackson lays false paths for the reader, who knows (as is described on the blurb) something terrible is going to happen, but not quite what. When it finally does happen, you realise it couldn’t have been anything else all along.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death

Moderate: Ableism, Suicide, Religious bigotry, Racial slurs, Racism, Mental illness, and Death