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La ragazza scomparsa
Il mondo di Shirley Jackson in miniatura: tre superbi racconti, uniti dal brivido di scoprire che l'orrore di cui leggi sta capitando a te.
Contiene:
- La ragazza scomparsa (The Missing Girl)
- Viaggio con signora (Journey with a Lady)
- Incubo (Nightmare)
Contiene:
- La ragazza scomparsa (The Missing Girl)
- Viaggio con signora (Journey with a Lady)
- Incubo (Nightmare)
78 pages, Paperback
First published February 22, 2018
93 people are currently reading
4675 people want to read
About the author
Shirley Jackson
340 books11.2k followersShirley Jackson was an influential American author. A popular writer in her time, her work has received increasing attention from literary critics in recent years. She has influenced such writers as Stephen King, Nigel Kneale, and Richard Matheson.
She is best known for her dystopian short story, "The Lottery" (1948), which suggests there is a deeply unsettling underside to bucolic, smalltown America. In her critical biography of Shirley Jackson, Lenemaja Friedman notes that when Shirley Jackson's story "The Lottery" was published in the June 28, 1948, issue of The New Yorker, it received a response that "no New Yorker story had ever received." Hundreds of letters poured in that were characterized by, as Jackson put it, "bewilderment, speculation and old-fashioned abuse."
Jackson's husband, the literary critic Stanley Edgar Hyman, wrote in his preface to a posthumous anthology of her work that "she consistently refused to be interviewed, to explain or promote her work in any fashion, or to take public stands and be the pundit of the Sunday supplements. She believed that her books would speak for her clearly enough over the years." Hyman insisted the darker aspects of Jackson's works were not, as some critics claimed, the product of "personal, even neurotic, fantasies", but that Jackson intended, as "a sensitive and faithful anatomy of our times, fitting symbols for our distressing world of the concentration camp and the Bomb", to mirror humanity's Cold War-era fears. Jackson may even have taken pleasure in the subversive impact of her work, as revealed by Hyman's statement that she "was always proud that the Union of South Africa banned The Lottery', and she felt that they at least understood the story".
In 1965, Jackson died of heart failure in her sleep, at her home in North Bennington Vermont, at the age of 48.
She is best known for her dystopian short story, "The Lottery" (1948), which suggests there is a deeply unsettling underside to bucolic, smalltown America. In her critical biography of Shirley Jackson, Lenemaja Friedman notes that when Shirley Jackson's story "The Lottery" was published in the June 28, 1948, issue of The New Yorker, it received a response that "no New Yorker story had ever received." Hundreds of letters poured in that were characterized by, as Jackson put it, "bewilderment, speculation and old-fashioned abuse."
Jackson's husband, the literary critic Stanley Edgar Hyman, wrote in his preface to a posthumous anthology of her work that "she consistently refused to be interviewed, to explain or promote her work in any fashion, or to take public stands and be the pundit of the Sunday supplements. She believed that her books would speak for her clearly enough over the years." Hyman insisted the darker aspects of Jackson's works were not, as some critics claimed, the product of "personal, even neurotic, fantasies", but that Jackson intended, as "a sensitive and faithful anatomy of our times, fitting symbols for our distressing world of the concentration camp and the Bomb", to mirror humanity's Cold War-era fears. Jackson may even have taken pleasure in the subversive impact of her work, as revealed by Hyman's statement that she "was always proud that the Union of South Africa banned The Lottery', and she felt that they at least understood the story".
In 1965, Jackson died of heart failure in her sleep, at her home in North Bennington Vermont, at the age of 48.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 672 reviews
September 10, 2021
i am slumping so terribly...tiny shirley jackson book, please cure me
update: not her best but i finished it, and that's more than most can say right now
(paul wrote the perfect review so read that and i will abscond)
update: not her best but i finished it, and that's more than most can say right now
(paul wrote the perfect review so read that and i will abscond)
March 15, 2018
Penguin seems to release a new range of dinky paperbacks every year now for one flimsy reason or another. This Penguin Modern series is to celebrate Penguin Modern Classics’ 50th Anniversary or something - meh. I guess these tiny books do serve as fairly decent amuse-bouches of a writer’s style but, as someone familiar with her books, Shirley Jackson’s The Missing Girl isn’t the best representative of her excellent craft.
This book contains three short stories: The Missing Girl, Journey with a Lady and Nightmare, all previously published in the Just An Ordinary Day collection. The Missing Girl is the best of the three. A teenage girl goes missing from a summer camp and no-one can find her. The characters have unusually fanciful names like Woodsprite, Hook and Will Scarlett, adding to an increasing sense of unreality, and after a time you even begin wondering if the missing girl existed in the first place. That powerful sense of unease and weirdness is characteristic of Jackson’s style, which I love. The ending though is a bit weak.
Journey with a Lady is about a young boy who goes on a train journey alone to his grandpa’s place and meets a strange lady onboard who turns out to be more interesting than she first appears. It’s the most accessible story of the three and unusually straightforward for Jackson. I think that’s why I was unimpressed with it as I expect more invention and creepiness from her than what is a rather bland and unmemorable story.
Nightmare has the most compelling premise of the three but Jackson’s laborious treatment makes it the dullest story here. A woman sets out to deliver her employer’s parcel on foot across town. A truck with a loudspeaker then starts blaring out “Find Miss X! Win a prize!” and describes “Miss X” exactly as our protagonist. She slowly realises that “Miss X” is her – but why? Who’s set all of this up? What’s going on?!
The story lives up to its title and features several of Jackson’s common themes of instability, confusion and a hostile world. It’s just such a boring, repetitive read that, like that song by Journey, goes on and on and on and on… Besides being unsatisfying, the ending is somewhat artless too, underscoring what’s fairly obvious long before that point.
The Missing Girl is a well-written collection of stories showcasing Shirley Jackson’s unique brand of understated, everyday horror that makes her arguably the greatest horror writer of all time. But she’s written far better, scarier, and more engaging stories than these like The Tooth, another small paperback also from Penguin, and her best collection, The Lottery and Other Stories, which is a gosh darn masterpiece; I recommend checking those out over this lacklustre book.
This book contains three short stories: The Missing Girl, Journey with a Lady and Nightmare, all previously published in the Just An Ordinary Day collection. The Missing Girl is the best of the three. A teenage girl goes missing from a summer camp and no-one can find her. The characters have unusually fanciful names like Woodsprite, Hook and Will Scarlett, adding to an increasing sense of unreality, and after a time you even begin wondering if the missing girl existed in the first place. That powerful sense of unease and weirdness is characteristic of Jackson’s style, which I love. The ending though is a bit weak.
Journey with a Lady is about a young boy who goes on a train journey alone to his grandpa’s place and meets a strange lady onboard who turns out to be more interesting than she first appears. It’s the most accessible story of the three and unusually straightforward for Jackson. I think that’s why I was unimpressed with it as I expect more invention and creepiness from her than what is a rather bland and unmemorable story.
Nightmare has the most compelling premise of the three but Jackson’s laborious treatment makes it the dullest story here. A woman sets out to deliver her employer’s parcel on foot across town. A truck with a loudspeaker then starts blaring out “Find Miss X! Win a prize!” and describes “Miss X” exactly as our protagonist. She slowly realises that “Miss X” is her – but why? Who’s set all of this up? What’s going on?!
The story lives up to its title and features several of Jackson’s common themes of instability, confusion and a hostile world. It’s just such a boring, repetitive read that, like that song by Journey, goes on and on and on and on… Besides being unsatisfying, the ending is somewhat artless too, underscoring what’s fairly obvious long before that point.
The Missing Girl is a well-written collection of stories showcasing Shirley Jackson’s unique brand of understated, everyday horror that makes her arguably the greatest horror writer of all time. But she’s written far better, scarier, and more engaging stories than these like The Tooth, another small paperback also from Penguin, and her best collection, The Lottery and Other Stories, which is a gosh darn masterpiece; I recommend checking those out over this lacklustre book.
October 13, 2021
Shirley Jackson is an amazing horror writer, as The Haunting of Hill House makes clear. These stories, however, only briefly dabble in that genre, which makes them a bit disappointing, even as they remain well written and captivating.
"The Missing Girl" reads almost like satire, with its plethora of oddball names and increasingly likely possibility that the girl in question never existed. But the ending is abrupt and throws all of the rest of it into question – but not in a good way. Similarly, "Nightmare" is a good story with moments of unease that ends abruptly and weirdly – again, not in a good way. "Just an Ordinary Day" is a fairly straightforward story that, although initially raising the alarm of any parent reading it, lapses into an interesting but rather anodyne tale of a boy meeting a thief on a train.
This might be more a 3.5-star book, but I rounded up because Jackson is such a fun and interesting writer.
"The Missing Girl" reads almost like satire, with its plethora of oddball names and increasingly likely possibility that the girl in question never existed. But the ending is abrupt and throws all of the rest of it into question – but not in a good way. Similarly, "Nightmare" is a good story with moments of unease that ends abruptly and weirdly – again, not in a good way. "Just an Ordinary Day" is a fairly straightforward story that, although initially raising the alarm of any parent reading it, lapses into an interesting but rather anodyne tale of a boy meeting a thief on a train.
This might be more a 3.5-star book, but I rounded up because Jackson is such a fun and interesting writer.
October 3, 2025
This tiny book contains three short stories that are quite different from each other, but they all feel very much like Shirley Jackson. I have a lot of love for her work—I keep trying to chase the high I got from We Have Always Lived in the Castle, but I haven't quite found it again.
Still, I enjoyed the read. I don't know how she does it, but she has this uncanny ability to create a general vibe of anxiety and distress out of almost nothing—and I love it.
Still, I enjoyed the read. I don't know how she does it, but she has this uncanny ability to create a general vibe of anxiety and distress out of almost nothing—and I love it.
October 22, 2019
3½/5
Molto interessante!
Molto interessante!
April 30, 2018
The Missing Girl - 4.5/5 stars
Journey with a Lady - 5/5 stars
Nightmare - 3.5/5 stars
Journey with a Lady - 5/5 stars
Nightmare - 3.5/5 stars
March 23, 2021
In questo volume sono inclusi tre racconti: "La ragazza scomparsa", "Viaggio con signora" e "Incubo" (presente anche nella raccolta "La luna di miele di Mrs. Smith"). Come in ogni suo scritto, Shirley Jackson riesce a giocare con il lettore, usando poche parole e costruendo quell'aria misteriosa e opprimente che caratterizza gran parte della sua produzione.
Il primo racconto prende spunto da un fatto di cronaca e riesce a tessere i fili del sospetto, fino alla rivelazione finale, in grado di disorientare il lettore più esperto.
Il secondo racconto è narrato dal punto di vista di un bambino di 9 anni, con ironia pungente e curiosità tipiche di questa età.
Il terzo racconto ci mostra un gioco perverso, quasi un reality show, in cui una ragazza si ritrova, suo malgrado, a far parte.
La capacità della Jackson di caratterizzare i personaggi in poche battute, pur mantenendo una struttura breve e concisa, mi stupisce ogni volta.
Insieme a "Paranoia" e "La luna di miele di Mrs. Smith", un piccolo gioiellino da custodire nella propria libreria.
Il primo racconto prende spunto da un fatto di cronaca e riesce a tessere i fili del sospetto, fino alla rivelazione finale, in grado di disorientare il lettore più esperto.
Il secondo racconto è narrato dal punto di vista di un bambino di 9 anni, con ironia pungente e curiosità tipiche di questa età.
Il terzo racconto ci mostra un gioco perverso, quasi un reality show, in cui una ragazza si ritrova, suo malgrado, a far parte.
La capacità della Jackson di caratterizzare i personaggi in poche battute, pur mantenendo una struttura breve e concisa, mi stupisce ogni volta.
Insieme a "Paranoia" e "La luna di miele di Mrs. Smith", un piccolo gioiellino da custodire nella propria libreria.
March 23, 2019
Come si fa, in racconti così piccoli, a concentrare un tale livello di ansia?
Il segreto doveva conoscerlo solo lei, Shirley Jackson, che senza "alzare la voce" come ha detto giustamente Stephen King è capace di piantarti nel cuore una inquietudine persistente.
Ho trovato il primo racconto più "tradizionale" e il secondo divertente, mentre l'ultimo il cui titolo è "Incubo" mi ha lasciata senza parole. Per me il migliore.
L'unica pecca è che i racconti siano solo tre.
Il segreto doveva conoscerlo solo lei, Shirley Jackson, che senza "alzare la voce" come ha detto giustamente Stephen King è capace di piantarti nel cuore una inquietudine persistente.
Ho trovato il primo racconto più "tradizionale" e il secondo divertente, mentre l'ultimo il cui titolo è "Incubo" mi ha lasciata senza parole. Per me il migliore.
L'unica pecca è che i racconti siano solo tre.
February 23, 2018
This was such a lovely, short and creepy read! All three stories in this small volume (The Missing Girl, Journey With A Lady and Nightmare) manage to convey the creeping unease that's so characteristic for Shirley Jackson's writing. She manages to turn the seemingly mundane or ordinary (a receptionist running an errand for her boss, a boy taking the train to visit his grandfather) into the absurd, the sinister or the weird in a rather brilliant way.
I feel like this short volume would work as a great introduction into Shirley Jackson's short stories, because if you like the three stories in this, you're probably also going to enjoy her other ones (specifically, my personal favourite collection Dark Tales.)
I feel like this short volume would work as a great introduction into Shirley Jackson's short stories, because if you like the three stories in this, you're probably also going to enjoy her other ones (specifically, my personal favourite collection Dark Tales.)
March 28, 2019
Potrebbero anche pubblicare la lista della spesa di Shirley Jackson e io la leggerei lo stesso. Quello che provo per lei è amore, vero, autentico amore viscerale. Adelphiedizioni ci ha voluto fare questo regalo, dopo “Paranoia” esce “La ragazza scomparsa”, volume composto da tre racconti brevi. Il genere del racconto è incompreso, non è certamente immersivo come quello del romanzo, ma regala intuizioni, come sottili fenditure i racconti aprono possibilità.
In questi Shirley Jackson gioca con i lati oscuri che si nascondono nella normalità, rende manifeste le ossessioni e mostra alla luce del giorno gli incubi. Sempre con la presenza della sottile denuncia al cieco conformismo che caratterizza tutte le sue storie, e che la rende ancora così incredibilmente attuale.
In questi Shirley Jackson gioca con i lati oscuri che si nascondono nella normalità, rende manifeste le ossessioni e mostra alla luce del giorno gli incubi. Sempre con la presenza della sottile denuncia al cieco conformismo che caratterizza tutte le sue storie, e che la rende ancora così incredibilmente attuale.
June 7, 2022
This is a splendid taster selection of three short stories from Shirley Jackson. They've been curated well to show off her various sides. The first is ambiguous and deliberately left open to a range of interpretations. The second is lighter with a high entertainment factor though not without a dark edge. And the third is a stunning example of territory that Jackson has made her own, where everyday urban life gradually morphs and takes on a paranoid, jittery quality with more than a touch of Big Brother.
September 22, 2018
I loved this so much. Definefely these three short stories are already some of my favorites from her. The first one, which gives the book its name, it's absolutely wonderful. So obscure, and puzzling, and mysterious... I like this side of her writing, that doesn't feel obliged to explain things, very much. I've seen it before in another one of her short stories, "The Summer People", and she just never lets the ball drop when she goes down this path. "Journey with a lady", the second story in this book, although very different from her usual style, is also great and unexpectedly moving. I love how much is radically different from her other short story featuring a small child being approached by a mysterious stranger while on a train, "The Witch". And lastly, "Nightmare", the last story, has, from what I've gathered, received generally lower reviews in here, to which I respectfully disagree. I think this little metaphor of a person wandering alone in a big city, surrounded by bureaucracies, and deadlines, and order, and tall buildings everywhere is very appealing. Who can say they've never felt like they were worth way more than people give them credit for, and never felt upset and invisible for not being recognized and praised when they deserve it?
Each time I finish one of this amazing woman's stories, I'm already anxious for the next one. Luckily, two of her novels lie still wrapped in plastic in my shelf, and I can't wait to get started with them.
Each time I finish one of this amazing woman's stories, I'm already anxious for the next one. Luckily, two of her novels lie still wrapped in plastic in my shelf, and I can't wait to get started with them.
April 24, 2019
Ho capito che il mio problema con Shirley Jackson è che costruisce tutto magistralmente e poi non mi da la soluzione: non pretendo che mi si spieghi tutto parola per parola, ma darmi una chiave di lettura univoca mi renderebbe molto più piacevole la lettura dei suoi racconti; mi sembra tutti delle splendide pietre che non sono ancora state lavorate come si deve.
Lo stile è sempre superbo (meticoloso, enigmatico, preciso, pungente), ho apprezzato più questa raccolta de La lotteria, ma il mio giudizio non cambia, troppo rumore per nulla.
Possiamo spendere due secondi per apprezzare la bellezza di questa copertina? Adelphi è sempre la migliore.
Lo stile è sempre superbo (meticoloso, enigmatico, preciso, pungente), ho apprezzato più questa raccolta de La lotteria, ma il mio giudizio non cambia, troppo rumore per nulla.
Possiamo spendere due secondi per apprezzare la bellezza di questa copertina? Adelphi è sempre la migliore.
June 7, 2021
Tre brevi racconti di Shirley Jackson raccolti in una settantina di pagine. I primi due carini, ma quello che per me ha fatto la differenza è stato l'ultimo, Incubo. Mi ha ricordato moltissimo l'episodio Orso Bianco di Black Mirror. Davvero angosciante.
May 10, 2019
I love Jackson’s writing. There is always something unsettling just below the surface of her stories. I enjoyed these shorts but I’ve preferred some of her other work more.
Final rating: 3.5 stars
Final rating: 3.5 stars
May 23, 2022
[3.5] Skillfully written stories, laced with just enough apprehension to keep the reader unsettled. An enjoyable taste of Jackson but these three stories only a hint at her power.
Penguin Modern Classics
#1 - Letter from Birmingham Jail by Martin Luther King, Jr.
#2 - Television Was a Baby Crawling Toward That Deathchamber by Allen Ginsberg
#3 - The Breakthrough by Daphne Du Maurier
#4 - The Custard Heart by Dorothy Parker
#5 - Three Japanese Short Stories (3 authors)
#6 - The Veiled Woman by Anais Nin
#7 - Notes on Nationalism by George Orwell
#8 - Food by Gertrude Stein
#9 - The Three Electroknights by Stanislaw Lem
#10 - The Great Hunger by Patrick Kavanagh
#11 - The Legend of the Sleepers by Danilo Kis
#12 - The Black Ball by Ralph Ellison
#13 - Till September Petronella by Jean Rhys
#14 - Investigations of a Dog by Franz Kafka
#15 - Daydream and Drunkenness of a Young Lady by Clarice Lispector
#16 - An Advertisement for Toothpaste by Ryszard Kapuscinski
#17 - Create Dangerously by Albert Camus
#18 - The Vigilante by John Steinbeck
#19 - I Have More Souls than One by Fernando Pessoa
#20 - The Missing Girl by Shirlely Jackson
Penguin Modern Classics
#1 - Letter from Birmingham Jail by Martin Luther King, Jr.
#2 - Television Was a Baby Crawling Toward That Deathchamber by Allen Ginsberg
#3 - The Breakthrough by Daphne Du Maurier
#4 - The Custard Heart by Dorothy Parker
#5 - Three Japanese Short Stories (3 authors)
#6 - The Veiled Woman by Anais Nin
#7 - Notes on Nationalism by George Orwell
#8 - Food by Gertrude Stein
#9 - The Three Electroknights by Stanislaw Lem
#10 - The Great Hunger by Patrick Kavanagh
#11 - The Legend of the Sleepers by Danilo Kis
#12 - The Black Ball by Ralph Ellison
#13 - Till September Petronella by Jean Rhys
#14 - Investigations of a Dog by Franz Kafka
#15 - Daydream and Drunkenness of a Young Lady by Clarice Lispector
#16 - An Advertisement for Toothpaste by Ryszard Kapuscinski
#17 - Create Dangerously by Albert Camus
#18 - The Vigilante by John Steinbeck
#19 - I Have More Souls than One by Fernando Pessoa
#20 - The Missing Girl by Shirlely Jackson
July 30, 2024
3 short stories, “nightmare” being my favourite, easy and fun to read. I have been meaning to read Shirley Jackson for a while now and this made me want to pick up her novels
March 10, 2019
‘The Missing Girl’ (1957) is an enigmatic story. So enigmatic that I didn't actually understand the ending at first – I was looking for a more conventional or more horrifying conclusion, just something more solid than what Jackson is willing to provide. A girl at summer camp goes missing, but at every turn, efforts to find her are rendered useless. Nobody can remember what she looked like or whether she was in one of their classes, and the witnesses who might've spotted her give vague and contradictory accounts of her appearance. It's an unsettling, bleak narrative about the horror of being forgotten.
‘Journey with a Lady’ (1952) is the weakest link in this three-story collection – a gently funny tale about a petulant 9-year-old boy who meets a woman on the train. At first he's annoyed that her patronising questions are distracting him from his comic book, but the situation changes radically when he discovers she's a criminal on the run. It's effective, but lacks the unnerving power of the other two stories; the amusing tone makes it something of an odd choice to collect alongside them.
‘Nightmare’ (not sure of the original date for this one; first published posthumously in 1997) is just brilliant. Terrifying and unbearably tense. It starts innocently enough, with a secretary, Toni Morgan, being tasked with the personal delivery of a package by her boss. Setting off across New York, she finds herself constantly assailed by advertisements for a competition in which one only has to find and approach 'Miss X' in order to win a series of valuable prizes. The reader notices something is amiss before Toni does, since the list of prizes – holidays, large sums of money, a yacht, a new home in any city in the world – soon becomes so extravagant as to be impossible. And then Toni realises the description of Miss X matches her appearance and outfit exactly.
It's impossible not to put yourself in Toni's shoes (dark blue, with the faintest line of red edging the sole). The feeling that she is under attack amps up until it reaches squirm-inducing, nail-biting levels. And all the while, you're wondering what this mysterious package is, and why Toni must deliver it in person. Like 'The Missing Girl', 'Nightmare' ends with a vagueness that only amplifies its disturbing elements.
TinyLetter | Twitter | Instagram | Tumblr
‘Journey with a Lady’ (1952) is the weakest link in this three-story collection – a gently funny tale about a petulant 9-year-old boy who meets a woman on the train. At first he's annoyed that her patronising questions are distracting him from his comic book, but the situation changes radically when he discovers she's a criminal on the run. It's effective, but lacks the unnerving power of the other two stories; the amusing tone makes it something of an odd choice to collect alongside them.
‘Nightmare’ (not sure of the original date for this one; first published posthumously in 1997) is just brilliant. Terrifying and unbearably tense. It starts innocently enough, with a secretary, Toni Morgan, being tasked with the personal delivery of a package by her boss. Setting off across New York, she finds herself constantly assailed by advertisements for a competition in which one only has to find and approach 'Miss X' in order to win a series of valuable prizes. The reader notices something is amiss before Toni does, since the list of prizes – holidays, large sums of money, a yacht, a new home in any city in the world – soon becomes so extravagant as to be impossible. And then Toni realises the description of Miss X matches her appearance and outfit exactly.
It's impossible not to put yourself in Toni's shoes (dark blue, with the faintest line of red edging the sole). The feeling that she is under attack amps up until it reaches squirm-inducing, nail-biting levels. And all the while, you're wondering what this mysterious package is, and why Toni must deliver it in person. Like 'The Missing Girl', 'Nightmare' ends with a vagueness that only amplifies its disturbing elements.
TinyLetter | Twitter | Instagram | Tumblr
May 9, 2019
Tre racconti della Jackson: i primi due già pubblicati su rivista negli anni '50, mentre l'ultimo, che è quello che ho preferito, rimasto inedito fino agli anni '90.
La ragazza scomparsa: mi ha ricordato come atmosfere La settimana bianca di Carrère, ma è molto più surreale e anche "comico". Inquetante? Sì, ma non troppo. Lascia il dubbio. 3 stelline.
Viaggo con signora: fermo restando che è un piacere leggere la Jackson, qui però non c'è quasi nulla che faccia paura. Un bel racconto ma mi aspettavo altro. 3 stelline.
Incubo: la quintessenza della mania di persecuzione, sempre che di mania si tratti. Non ne ho amato (o capito?) il finale, ma resta una spanna sopra gli altri e mi ha fatto provare qualche brivido sul genere di quelli provati durante la lettura di quel capolavoro che è La lotteria (nel senso del racconto singolo, non della raccolta omonima di cui fa parte). 4 stelline.
La ragazza scomparsa: mi ha ricordato come atmosfere La settimana bianca di Carrère, ma è molto più surreale e anche "comico". Inquetante? Sì, ma non troppo. Lascia il dubbio. 3 stelline.
Viaggo con signora: fermo restando che è un piacere leggere la Jackson, qui però non c'è quasi nulla che faccia paura. Un bel racconto ma mi aspettavo altro. 3 stelline.
Incubo: la quintessenza della mania di persecuzione, sempre che di mania si tratti. Non ne ho amato (o capito?) il finale, ma resta una spanna sopra gli altri e mi ha fatto provare qualche brivido sul genere di quelli provati durante la lettura di quel capolavoro che è La lotteria (nel senso del racconto singolo, non della raccolta omonima di cui fa parte). 4 stelline.
October 18, 2020
My first delve into Shirley Jackson's work! Going in, I thought these would be spookier, but each of them dealt with deception in some way which, depending on the reader, could be considered spooky in its own right. I was quite intimidated by Shirley Jackson before picking this up because I was unsure whether or not I would jive well with her writing. But her writing was a breeze to get through and was actually really captivating! I don't think this was the best place to start with Shirley Jackson because it's not exactly what you would expect from her as one of the classic horror writers, but I'm fairly open minded and even though it wasn't at all what I was expecting, I still really loved it. Would recommend!
June 22, 2019
Una raccolta di tre racconti legati dal clima di tensione e di timore che dietro l’angolo (o alla prossima riga) possa succedere qualcosa di orribile, tipico della bibliografia della Jackson. Non posso esprimermi ampiamente essendo essi racconti di 20 pagine l’uno, ma il mio voto singolo ad ognuno di loro è:
La ragazza scomparsa: 2/5 ⭐️
Viaggio con signora: 1/5 ⭐️
Incubo 5/5⭐️ (una puntata di Black Mirror, praticamente)
Parere non richiesto: 7€ per 79 pagine sono un po’ eccessivi, soprattutto visto che l’edizione inglese della Penguin viene poco più di 1€.
La ragazza scomparsa: 2/5 ⭐️
Viaggio con signora: 1/5 ⭐️
Incubo 5/5⭐️ (una puntata di Black Mirror, praticamente)
Parere non richiesto: 7€ per 79 pagine sono un po’ eccessivi, soprattutto visto che l’edizione inglese della Penguin viene poco più di 1€.
September 22, 2022
The Missing Girl : ★★☆☆☆
Journey With a Lady: ★★★☆☆
The Nightmare: ★★★★★
I do love when Shirley Jackson makes her stories terrifying and unanswered. The nightmare is definetly the standout in this short collection
Journey With a Lady: ★★★☆☆
The Nightmare: ★★★★★
I do love when Shirley Jackson makes her stories terrifying and unanswered. The nightmare is definetly the standout in this short collection
August 16, 2023
Questi tre brevi racconti sono davvero alienanti. Mi sono sentita un po' angosciata, soprattutto quando ho letto Incubo. Non sono particolarmente spaventosi, ma mi hanno confusa, in senso positivo. Lettura interessante.
March 31, 2025
This one just did not work for me all that much sadly. I found it all over the place. The stories didn't seem to be going anywhere or were left a bit open. I like the idea of having confusing elements, which could leave the story to the imagination but I just needed something more from these.I know what was being said or what was going on but it just didn't keep my interest.These stories were more confusing than thrilling.
- The first story has quite a sad element to it and it did have me wanting to find out more.
- The second was tied up from start to finish so this made sense in all it was but was also left open to interpretation.
- The last I just couldn't really make sense of and it didn't feeI like it could be the main characters real life or a nightmare.
I have still to read once we lived in a castle by this Author and this wouldn't put me off but I hope it's not the same type of style.
- The first story has quite a sad element to it and it did have me wanting to find out more.
- The second was tied up from start to finish so this made sense in all it was but was also left open to interpretation.
- The last I just couldn't really make sense of and it didn't feeI like it could be the main characters real life or a nightmare.
I have still to read once we lived in a castle by this Author and this wouldn't put me off but I hope it's not the same type of style.
March 9, 2018
Shirley Jackson's three short stories are published as part of the Penguin Modern series, a collection of fifty books celebrating Penguin Modern Classics.
The three stories in this edition are very short & overall very enjoyable. I've given ratings for each & here they are:
THE MISSING GIRL
A moderately entertaining tale of a young girl's disappearance. 3/5
JOURNEY WITH A LADY
A delightful 1952 story about a young boy's train journey, & his meeting with a passenger who is far more interesting than she first appears to be. 4/5
NIGHTMARE
A competition to win huge prizes turns one woman's walk through New York City into a progressively unnerving journey in the best of the three. 5/5
The three stories in this edition are very short & overall very enjoyable. I've given ratings for each & here they are:
THE MISSING GIRL
A moderately entertaining tale of a young girl's disappearance. 3/5
JOURNEY WITH A LADY
A delightful 1952 story about a young boy's train journey, & his meeting with a passenger who is far more interesting than she first appears to be. 4/5
NIGHTMARE
A competition to win huge prizes turns one woman's walk through New York City into a progressively unnerving journey in the best of the three. 5/5
June 27, 2018
Originally posted on A Frolic Through Fiction
Broken into several short stories of deception in what would otherwise be the average American life, this one was…interesting, at least. The first one – The Missing Girl – left a little more to be desired come the end. I was reading it, intrigued to find out what happened, and then the ending happened and I just didn’t get it. Plus it started grating on me how ditsy all of the characters seemed. So we’re not off to a great start. Moving onto the second story, Journey with a Lady, I’m happy to say I at least understood this one. It felt weirdly whimsical because of how accepting all of the characters were of strange events, and yet held a darker side to it that made it unnerving to read because it just felt wrong. And that’s exactly what I was expecting from this book! I was happy to have found it at last. Only I lost that enjoyment again, when moving onto the third and final story, Nightmare. I just did not understand it at all. I thought there would be a revolutionary twist at the end that would stick with me for years. But nope. Just more confusion. I even tried Googling for explanations but can’t seem to find any, so I don’t know whether it’s just me that didn’t get it or whether it’s a universal confusion. I’m hoping for the latter.
January 26, 2023
Un gioiellino.
Una raccolta di 3 racconti che ti rapiscono e ti portano via. Tutti bellissimi a mio avviso
Una raccolta di 3 racconti che ti rapiscono e ti portano via. Tutti bellissimi a mio avviso
October 27, 2022
Shirley Jackson only writes about death because she can't write about life.
Ok, that might be mean, but I've never seen her write a story that doesn't only have flat characters and a boring murder? Clearly I just don't understand horror as a genre lol
Ok, that might be mean, but I've never seen her write a story that doesn't only have flat characters and a boring murder? Clearly I just don't understand horror as a genre lol
April 22, 2023
My dilemma is wether to rate with 3 or 4 stars, since it was an easy read, held my attention all the way, I generally like to read short stories, these were mysterious and I like mysteries,and the language used is just as I like it.
The plot in all three stories is almost nonexistent, they all send some kind of message about humans and their nature (I guess; thats how I got it).
I think I got the point in first two stories but for the third I have no idea what the writer wanted to say. Definitely want to read again later in life.
My favorite was the second story: A journey with a Lady, this one I really liked.
All in all, would recommend.
The plot in all three stories is almost nonexistent, they all send some kind of message about humans and their nature (I guess; thats how I got it).
I think I got the point in first two stories but for the third I have no idea what the writer wanted to say. Definitely want to read again later in life.
My favorite was the second story: A journey with a Lady, this one I really liked.
All in all, would recommend.
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