The Shirley Jackson Book Cover Project

A gallery of over 500 Shirley Jackson covers.

Siempre hemos vivido en el castillo (We Have Always Lived In The Castle)

We Have Always Lived In The Castle - Front Cover
Front Cover
We Have Always Lived In The Castle - Back Cover
Back Cover
Back Cover Text:

«Me llamo Mary Katherine Blackwood. Tengo dieciocho años y vivo con mi hermana Constance. A menudo pienso que con un poco de suerte podría haber sido una mujer lobo, porque mis dedos medio y anular son igual de largos, pero he tenido que contentarme con lo que soy. No me gusta lavarme, ni los perros, ni el ruido. Me gusta mi hermana Constance, y Ricardo Plantagenet, y la Amanita phalloides, la oronja mortal. El resto de mi familia ha muerto.» Con estas palabras se presenta Merricat, la protagonista de Siempre hemos vivido en el castillo, que lleva una vida solitaria en una gran casa apartada del pueblo. Allí pasa las horas recluida con su bella hermana mayor y su anciano tío Julian, que va en silla de ruedas y escribe y reescribe sus memorias. La buena cocina, la jardinería y el gato Jonas concentran la atención de las jóvenes. En el hogar de los Blackwood los días discurrirían apacibles si no fuera porque los otros miembros de la familia murieron envenenados allí mismo, en el comedor, seis años atrás.

Translation (via Google Translate):

"My name is Mary Katherine Blackwood. I am eighteen years old and live with my sister Constance. I often think that with a little luck I could have been a werewolf, because my middle and ring fingers are the same length, but I have had to content myself with what I am. I dislike washing, dogs, and noise. I like my sister Constance, Richard Plantagenet, and Amanita phalloides, the death cap mushroom. The rest of my family is dead." With these words, Merricat — the protagonist of We Have Always Lived in the Castle — introduces herself; she leads a solitary life in a large house set apart from the village. There, she spends her days in seclusion with her beautiful older sister and their elderly Uncle Julian, who uses a wheelchair and endlessly writes and rewrites his memoirs. Fine cooking, gardening, and their cat, Jonas, occupy the young women's attention. Life in the Blackwood household would be peaceful were it not for the fact that the other family members died of poisoning right there in the dining room six years earlier.