30 review for The Summer People

1. 

   4 out of 5

   Zoe – Aug 26, 2014

   I read it after Labor Day

2. 

   4 out of 5

   debbicat *made of stardust* – Sep 18, 2020

   This was a for-real short story. I love Shirley Jackson. She quickly became a favorite after I read the Haunting of Hill House for the first time. Have read a lot of her work by now, which I have highly rated. This was a bit too brief for my tastes. It’s good! But, I was left wanting a bit more. I want to know what happened to those ppl! Great mood and atmosphere. I always (ALWAYS) do a All Hallows Eve Reading Challenge. It it my favorite genre and time of year. So, I started early, not tooo ear This was a for-real short story. I love Shirley Jackson. She quickly became a favorite after I read the Haunting of Hill House for the first time. Have read a lot of her work by now, which I have highly rated. This was a bit too brief for my tastes. It’s good! But, I was left wanting a bit more. I want to know what happened to those ppl! Great mood and atmosphere. I always (ALWAYS) do a All Hallows Eve Reading Challenge. It it my favorite genre and time of year. So, I started early, not tooo early tho. And this is my second selection for it.

3. 

   4 out of 5

   Laura – Jul 09, 2014

   The ending definitely sneaks up on you. This is a very short story, with really no suspicions or feelings of dread until nearly the end. Mostly about an older couple who decide to stay a month longer after their summer vacation and everyone in town is surprised because NO ONE stays after. It does finish with the kinda ending that could be interpreted as mildly annoying (small issues like groceries can't be delivered, out of gas, car busted, phone problems) or could be interpreted as much more si The ending definitely sneaks up on you. This is a very short story, with really no suspicions or feelings of dread until nearly the end. Mostly about an older couple who decide to stay a month longer after their summer vacation and everyone in town is surprised because NO ONE stays after. It does finish with the kinda ending that could be interpreted as mildly annoying (small issues like groceries can't be delivered, out of gas, car busted, phone problems) or could be interpreted as much more sinister (car tampered with, phone lines cut, letter from son is not what it seems)... Given Jackson wrote it, and her frequent theme of people being untrustworthy/generally sinister, the latter is the more likely. The great thing about Jackson is her skill in portraying subtle suspense. In this story the reader is mostly waiting for something to happen and then it kiiiiiinda does and then it's over. I can definitely see that being disappointing for most readers but I still like the skillfull way Jackson incorporates subtle dread.

4. 

   5 out of 5

   cindy – May 02, 2016

   what happened to them after that? whaaatttt??!? aaarggghhh..... mrs jackson, you are messing with my head again!! (-_-)

5. 

   4 out of 5

   Lianna – Sep 13, 2016

   I like to think the story ends with the townspeople throwing the old couple a surprise party and then their children show up too. Apple pie for everyone! Or maybe the townspeople really want to wear white after Labor Day and not get made fun of by high-falutin' city folk. I like to think the story ends with the townspeople throwing the old couple a surprise party and then their children show up too. Apple pie for everyone! Or maybe the townspeople really want to wear white after Labor Day and not get made fun of by high-falutin' city folk.

6. 

   5 out of 5

   Skylar Phelps – Dec 24, 2017

   3.5 Stars Yeah, I’m mildly suspicious of my neighbors now... and I live on a lane surrounded by family in the country. I guess I better stock up on kerosene, just in case.

7. 

   4 out of 5

   Jay C – Sep 24, 2014

   The third story I've read by Shirley Jackson, and all three have been superb. This one has really gotten me thinking about how well we really know the "worlds" with which we believe ourselves familiar, and how infused our own vision of them might be depending on the specifics of season or time of day... A couple from new york spend their summers at a country house on a lake. One year, despite the incredulity of their seasonal neighbors, they decide to stay an extra month ("past Labor Day") and fi The third story I've read by Shirley Jackson, and all three have been superb. This one has really gotten me thinking about how well we really know the "worlds" with which we believe ourselves familiar, and how infused our own vision of them might be depending on the specifics of season or time of day... A couple from new york spend their summers at a country house on a lake. One year, despite the incredulity of their seasonal neighbors, they decide to stay an extra month ("past Labor Day") and find that their 'summer eden' can be a very, very different place.

8. 

   4 out of 5

   Olga Kowalska (WielkiBuk) – Jul 12, 2014

   One of those stories that makes reader freaked out with fear when there is nothing that obvious to fear really. Or maybe there is... Creeping and closing, waiting for the perfect moment to attack.

9. 

   4 out of 5

   Maria Fernanda Gama – Sep 03, 2018

   Definitely one of her best short stories. I think I'll wonder about the ending for a really long time. P.S. I just realized that today is labor day in the US and now I'm extra scared :| Definitely one of her best short stories. I think I'll wonder about the ending for a really long time. P.S. I just realized that today is labor day in the US and now I'm extra scared :|

10. 

    5 out of 5

    Enid – May 23, 2014

    I didn't realize it was a very short story until it was over and then I said, "What?". Not sure I should even give it three stars...just seemed to end and left me dissatisfied. I didn't realize it was a very short story until it was over and then I said, "What?". Not sure I should even give it three stars...just seemed to end and left me dissatisfied.

11. 

    5 out of 5

    Samantha – Dec 09, 2018

    Lesson Learned: Once Labor Day rolls around, don’t stay in your summer cottage. You’ll regret it.

12. 

    4 out of 5

    Asha – Nov 04, 2017

    Jackson is master of the short and creepy. Everything is not what it seems at the lake and staying after Labor Day comes with consequences. What those consequences are depends on how vivid and morbid your imagination is.

13. 

    5 out of 5

    Gary Vassallo – Feb 12, 2021

    A chilling short story that builds to a foreboding end. Highly recommended, a story I am sure I will read again.

14. 

    4 out of 5

    Laura – Feb 03, 2021

    Deliciously macabre, as per usual.

15. 

    4 out of 5

    Camilú – Apr 23, 2018

    great

16. 

    5 out of 5

    Erika – Mar 30, 2018

    Yeah, yeah I know what happened, but I really want to KNOW what happened. Also, makes bolded and italicized note in calendar when Labor Day is.

17. 

    4 out of 5

    Christian Tempest – Sep 12, 2019

    Less is more, especially in the hands of a writer as skilled as Shirley Jackson. She has a knack for making even the most mundane and ordinary of things come across as strangely sinister. This short is a perfect example of such restraint. Here the signs of impending danger are revealed slowly, but the sense of hopelessness grows to feel inescapable even before anything vaguely threatening rears it’s head. Not only is that solid and ominous suspense building, it’s also terrific storytelling, and Less is more, especially in the hands of a writer as skilled as Shirley Jackson. She has a knack for making even the most mundane and ordinary of things come across as strangely sinister. This short is a perfect example of such restraint. Here the signs of impending danger are revealed slowly, but the sense of hopelessness grows to feel inescapable even before anything vaguely threatening rears it’s head. Not only is that solid and ominous suspense building, it’s also terrific storytelling, and it’s why Shirley Jackson is still considered one of the best.

18. 

    4 out of 5

    Neha – Oct 03, 2019

    This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. A short story about the plight of the people who choose to stay behind in the country after the "Labor's Day" was over. I felt really sad for the couple and seeing their stay turning worse each hour.I get that the country people had their limitations and were unwilling to help them by going out of their way when majority of visitors. What felt wrong was them going out of their way to make things difficult for the couple by tampering with the car or the phone lines. If you can't provide aid to some A short story about the plight of the people who choose to stay behind in the country after the "Labor's Day" was over. I felt really sad for the couple and seeing their stay turning worse each hour.I get that the country people had their limitations and were unwilling to help them by going out of their way when majority of visitors. What felt wrong was them going out of their way to make things difficult for the couple by tampering with the car or the phone lines. If you can't provide aid to someone, you shouldn't go out of your way to make it difficult for them. This as the only thought I was left with towards the end.

19. 

    4 out of 5

    Steph – Sep 07, 2019

    this is a true story. i grew up on cape cod & live there still & this story is why all visitors should leave the cape on labor day. it's open season on out-of-state license plates after labor day weekend. heh heh heh. wonderful job, ms. jackson. this is a true story. i grew up on cape cod & live there still & this story is why all visitors should leave the cape on labor day. it's open season on out-of-state license plates after labor day weekend. heh heh heh. wonderful job, ms. jackson.

20. 

    4 out of 5

    Darinda – Feb 09, 2017

    Short story. A couple stays at their summer cottage past Labor Day. Sinister and enjoyable.

21. 

    4 out of 5

    Rawan – May 10, 2018

    3 stars because I feel unresolved and unsatisfied. I wanted more!! Shirley Jackson is a master short story-teller, though.

22. 

    5 out of 5

    Zlatina – Jan 04, 2020

    I see why people liked it so much, but I guess is not my thing. Well build short story it terms of getting familiar with the characters and the atmosphere. You kind of feel for the people in it, wait for something very bad to happen to them any moment and when things finally go there, just before you get the answer why is this happening, it's over. Personally I just don't like open end like this. I was expecting much scarier story with explanation what happens to the couple. Don't really like to I see why people liked it so much, but I guess is not my thing. Well build short story it terms of getting familiar with the characters and the atmosphere. You kind of feel for the people in it, wait for something very bad to happen to them any moment and when things finally go there, just before you get the answer why is this happening, it's over. Personally I just don't like open end like this. I was expecting much scarier story with explanation what happens to the couple. Don't really like to assume why, what and how anybody could have done anything to them, or even suspecting them - snapped and went crazier then just stay longer in the cottage. Overall it was alright of a story, just not for me.

23. 

    4 out of 5

    Glen Engel-Cox – Oct 09, 2019

    A quiet horror story about an older, near elderly couple, who decide to change from routine and stay past Labor Day at their summer cottage. Of course, that’s a bad idea, although no one tells them directly, just the recurring, “…no one’s stayed past Labor Day before.” It all proceeds as expected, and the ending is a question mark, although you’re pretty convinced that what is about to happen is not good. Enjoyable, but not Jackson’s best.

24. 

    5 out of 5

    Jess at TeamAsthers.co.uk – Aug 10, 2018

    Of course there's an unresolved ending. I want to know what happennnnns!! Is everyone cannibals? Are the Allison's going to get eaten? Do they make it through the night? Does anyone die? Is everything as sinister as it seems? I need answers. Of course there's an unresolved ending. I want to know what happennnnns!! Is everyone cannibals? Are the Allison's going to get eaten? Do they make it through the night? Does anyone die? Is everything as sinister as it seems? I need answers.

25. 

    4 out of 5

    Renata – Jun 07, 2020

    A short story about an elderly couple that decides to extend their stay at a summer cottage. What happens when tourists turn full time residents? A sinister take on the relationship between locals and tourists and the outcome when these lines are blurred.

26. 

    4 out of 5

    Jenifer – May 31, 2017

    I loved the sense of foreboding in this story. Jackson can do so much with such a few words.

27. 

    5 out of 5

    Madi Smith – Oct 07, 2017

    When I got to the ending of this, I didn't actually realize that it was the end until I ran out of pages. A great story with a perfect ending, left up to your own interpretation. Loved it. When I got to the ending of this, I didn't actually realize that it was the end until I ran out of pages. A great story with a perfect ending, left up to your own interpretation. Loved it.

28. 

    5 out of 5

    Wen – Nov 03, 2017

    I enjoyed the little book.. quite a different read....play style. glad I read it.

29. 

    5 out of 5

    Alisa Cupcakeland – May 05, 2018

    This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I had recently read The Lottery so of course I was all the time looking for the sudden plot twist that never arrived. It's not bad, it's just that I liked far better The Lottery. I had recently read The Lottery so of course I was all the time looking for the sudden plot twist that never arrived. It's not bad, it's just that I liked far better The Lottery.

30. 

    5 out of 5

    Marco Matadamas – Dec 13, 2018

    it is cool story and i would like to read today