Monthly Archives: September 2021

The Haunting of Hill House – Shirley Jackson

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So, this book came onto my radar because of the Netflix show. I am a huge fan of all scary stuff and I DEVOURED the show. I guess I didn’t pay attention to the part of the credits where it said it was based on a book. I’m kind of crazy with things like this and prefer to watch the show/movie AFTER reading the book/books but clearly I messed up for this. I also now realize that I did this with the show YOU but I have heard that the books aren’t very good. I will probably still read them because I am addicted to reading. Plus, I like to see the similarities and differences between both the book and the show. Do not even get me started about Game of Thrones. I will do a complete blog post about that one day when my anger simmers down. I am still salty about the TV show.

The Haunting of Hill House book and TV show are very different, so if you’re coming into the book after watching the show, you’ll be in for a bit of a surprise. The show is about a family that moves into Hill House which does not happen in the book, even though some of the characters are the same.

Dr. Montague is an occult specialist looking for evidence of a haunting at Hill house. He decides to recruit people to spend time with him, including Theodora, Eleanor, who has communicated with spirits and Luke who is the heir of Hill House. The book is not, in my opinion, scary, but more spooky. I enjoyed it because of the way the characters interact and the personality of the house. I find the basic storyline of a haunted house can be sometimes boring because it can be the same story over and over again whereas Hill House has a personality in both the book and the show (because of the inhabitants) and I guess that is part of the book’s charm.

I also enjoy the character development between everyone involved. In the show, Eleanor and Theodora are sisters and in the book, they develop a friendship that brings them close until it unravels thanks to Hill House. I won’t give to much away about that because then there’s no point in reading the book yourself. The house literally confuses everyone in it and while Eleanor is the main character in all of this, she is the most affected by the house and all its bizarre elements. It really does a number on your psyche because of the feeling reading this book gives you, it’s spooky and a perfect fall read to get you in the mood for Halloween! I definitely suggest you read it and give yourself a little scare!

Summer is Ending!

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Does anyone else feel drained? I have always been a sociable person, if you don’t believe me, ask anyone I know! I’ve never been able to sit still, I have to always be doing something with minimal relaxation. Whether it’s travelling to a different country, a weekend away somewhere around Montreal or just a dinner or a night out at a bar. Even roaming aimlessly around downtown Montreal. Now, it takes all of my strength to go grocery shopping. I feel like I really haven’t done much with my summer and that’s okay. I’ll update you all on that in another summer wrap up blog post but if anything, I have learned to relax more during this pandemic situation. It’s forced me to stay in and not do anything.

One major thing I have hated the most about the pandemic is talking about the pandemic. I realize that this is hypocritical as I am talking about it currently but I am so frustrated about everything. I like to follow news channels on social media but have mostly snoozed them all because literally Covid is all they can talk about. I like to stay involved with what’s happening in the world but when it’s been the same shit for almost TWO YEARS it gets a little repetitive. If you are suffering from this kind of mental exhaustion I would suggest muting the news also. It’s lifted so much negative shit from my daily life it’s awesome. The only problem is, you can’t mute people in your every day life who constantly talk about it. I have gotten really good at saying I don’t want to talk about it anymore or like CAN WE NOT TALK ABOUT COVID. Sorry I really needed to get that all out of my system because I am having a moment of frustration. On to other things.

While I have felt unaccomplished with my summer, I am looking forward to kicking into high gear for the fall which is my favourite season. I wish it could be fall all year long. I love the temperature, the clothes, the food AND you better believe that I’ve already had 3 pumpkin spice lattes at Starbucks. I know it sounds extremely basic but I loved fall before it was basic and I did it without the UGG boots. Those were for winter and I bought only two pairs before I realized how stupid it was to wear boots that aren’t water proof in cold and wet Canada. Sorry to all the people who still wear them. Sometimes I feel stuck in this place of being young and trendy (I never really was to be honest) and older and comfortable. I mean I guess I can be kind of trendy and comfortable these days because athleisurewear is going to be the norm for people on a daily basis thanks to staying home all the time. I mean I didn’t but I work in yoga pants so it doesn’t really bother me because I’m used to it.

Something I have been doing a lot is reading. I’m way behind in my book reviews but they are coming. I honestly cannot believe that I’ve been reading so much this year. It actually gives me a bit of anxiety knowing that I won’t be able to read as much now that things have opened up. I could make the conscious decision to read and not go out but I think that I’ll try and make a pact with myself to at least read a half an hour a day and do whatever I feel like doing other than that whether it’s dinner or a sports game or some sort of event like a concert. I am going to try not to be so hard on myself for not doing stuff. It’s hard because I want to always do so many things because you never know what can happen or how much time you have. I think that’s why I’m so anxious about not doing a lot this past year. It was nice to do nothing but I really missed my friends and family. It honestly was the hardest part. Now I’ve started seeing more people and it’s lovely but I just have to get my momentum going again which will happen more and more as time goes by! Small steps is key. Can’t wait for some normalcy again!