- Mass Market Paperback: 1 pages
- Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd; Reprint edition (30 Jan 1986)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0140083170
- ISBN-13: 978-0140083170
- Product Dimensions: 19.3 x 12.7 x 1.5 cm
- Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 807,437 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Mass Market Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
This novel tells of a disparate group of people living under one roof who become convinced that the world is going to end. Typically for Jackson, these people live in isolation from society and, also typically, the character at the centre of the story, Aunt Fanny, is an eccentric spinster whose repression and isolation give rise to certain psychological oddities. But Fanny lacks the deep humanity of other Jackson protagonists and Jackson gives free rein to her cynicism about humanity and society in her handling of the characters in The Sundial, none of whom are designed to enlist our sympathy. This makes this book a pleasant and often quite funny read, but it lacks the substance of some of her other books. Still, Jackson is never less than insightful and interesting, so if you like her work this is well worth reading.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Even as great a writer as Shirley Jackson has to have a worst book (worst being a relative term, of course), and The Sundial would seem to be Jackson's. The story never had a strong Jackson feel to it because the characters were fairly shallow and unworthy of this reader's sympathy. As an outcast myself, I expect to find at least one troubled soul with which to identify and commiserate when I read Jackson. I initially had trouble distinguishing between the different characters because none of them were very deeply developed. While the occasional gripe or maudlin sentiment caught my attention, I found that I did not care for or about any of the dozen or so individuals described here. The Sundial is basically a weird end-of-the-world novel; the young Mr. Halloran has just died, and his mother now assumes the coveted role of head of household (due to her own husband's infirmities). As she begins to assert her authority and basically throw a few people out of "her" house, old Aunt Fanny encounters the ghost of her father, who warns her that the world is about to end, but that he will protect everyone who stays in the house. As several people begin to believe the truth of the premonition (including Mrs. Halloran), everyone is allowed to remain there. The number is increased by an obnoxiously loud friend of the Mrs. Halloran's and her two daughters, a strange girl sent by her father for temporary housing, and a gentleman whose background escapes me. These people, as might be expected, do not get along with each other very well at all. Mrs. Halloran, born of a low station, increasingly annoys her companions by assuming a dictatorial air, eventually insisting on wearing a crown. The novel leads up to the fateful day when the prophecy is supposed to be fulfilled.
While there are elements of humor in the conversations and interactions of characters who dislike one another as much as these do, there is no deep psychological meaning to be gleaned from the story. No character strikes me as real or more than remotely human, and the general attitude expressed as to the imminent end of the world is a much different reaction than I would expect of anyone. I have been reluctant to see other Jackson novels end, but I had no trouble putting this book down once I turned the final page. For someone wondering what Shirley Jackson is all about, I would not suggest reading this novel as an introduction; this one really does not fit the mold of her other major works. A Jackson fan such as myself will want to read The Sundial, of course, simply because Shirley Jackson wrote it, and it is quite likely that some will get more out of this book than I did.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
10 reviews
17 of 18 people found the following review helpful
A "must" for Shirley Jackson fans!
8 July 1999
Format:Hardcover
Why is Shirley Jackson so often miscast as a horror writer? "Sundial" is a rich, tapestried, multi-layered work by an enormously versatile author. Those new to Ms. Jackson will be mesmerized by her characterizations, rich narrative, and subtle, unnerving detail. Those familiar with her work will recognize in "Sundial" the "undercurrent of desperation" found in her best stories, supernatural elements a la "Hill House," the complexity of "Bird's Nest," the quirkiness of "We Have Always Lived in the Castle," and the wit (and laugh-out-loud humor) of "Life Among the Savages."
"Sundial" succeeds on so many levels that a cursory summarization would be an injustice to the book. I myself am going to cogitate on its existential aspects; that is, a group of people who grate on each other forced to spend their lives together (Sartre's "No Exit").
As the character of the schoolteacher says, "This is a real real real real real real real real adventure!" It is also a must must must must read for Shirley Jackson fans!
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
Not to be Missed
16 Mar 1999
Format:Hardcover
I am a life-long fan of Shirley Jackson and, especially, "The Haunting of Hill House." It is only recently that I have had the opportunity to read many of her works which, for some unknown reason, are out-of-print. "The Sundial" is, at the same time, psychologically unnerving and immensely humorous. It is quite disturbing to read about the rantings of Aunt Fanny and the schemes of Fancy. But, at the same time, to imagine this handful of awful people who hate each other unendingly having to spend eternity with one another is incredibly funny. I must admit, I was a little disappointed when the book ended, but I realize that it must have been in the master plan of the author to leave the reader without the information which would have unnecessarily cleared up questions which will instead linger on the mind.
9 of 10 people found the following review helpful
It's the end of the world as we know it
8 April 2002
Format:Hardcover
Even as great a writer as Shirley Jackson has to have a worst book (worst being a relative term, of course), and The Sundial would seem to be Jackson's. The story never had a strong Jackson feel to it because the characters were fairly shallow and unworthy of this reader's sympathy. As an outcast myself, I expect to find at least one troubled soul with which to identify and commiserate when I read Jackson. I initially had trouble distinguishing between the different characters because none of them were very deeply developed. While the occasional gripe or maudlin sentiment caught my attention, I found that I did not care for or about any of the dozen or so individuals described here. The Sundial is basically a weird end-of-the-world novel; the young Mr. Halloran has just died, and his mother now assumes the coveted role of head of household (due to her own husband's infirmities). As she begins to assert her authority and basically throw a few people out of "her" house, old Aunt Fanny encounters the ghost of her father, who warns her that the world is about to end, but that he will protect everyone who stays in the house. As several people begin to believe the truth of the premonition (including Mrs. Halloran), everyone is allowed to remain there. The number is increased by an obnoxiously loud friend of the Mrs. Halloran's and her two daughters, a strange girl sent by her father for temporary housing, and a gentleman whose background escapes me. These people, as might be expected, do not get along with each other very well at all. Mrs. Halloran, born of a low station, increasingly annoys her companions by assuming a dictatorial air, eventually insisting on wearing a crown. The novel leads up to the fateful day when the prophecy is supposed to be fulfilled.
While there are elements of humor in the conversations and interactions of characters who dislike one another as much as these do, there is no deep psychological meaning to be gleaned from the story. No character strikes me as real or more than remotely human, and the general attitude expressed as to the imminent end of the world is a much different reaction than I would expect of anyone. I have been reluctant to see other Jackson novels end, but I had no trouble putting this book down once I turned the final page. For someone wondering what Shirley Jackson is all about, I would not suggest reading this novel as an introduction; this one really does not fit the mold of her other major works. A Jackson fan such as myself will want to read The Sundial, of course, simply because Shirley Jackson wrote it, and it is quite likely that some will get more out of this book than I did.
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