It’s time for #6degrees. Start at the same place as other wonderful readers, add six books, and see where you end up.
This month we begin with We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson.
One of my kids read Castle for their Year 12 text (so of course I read along!). Also read for school that year – Ransom by David Malouf.
Ransom features a mule called Beauty… a mule is close enough to a donkey, which links me to the two miniature donkeys, Ellington and Pantaloon, in Big Swiss by Jen Beagin.
Big Swiss was one of my votes for ABC Radio National’s Top 100 Books – the winner was Trent Dalton’s Boy Swallows Universe. I loved this book and when I read it in 2019 – it made my top books of the year, alongside Charlotte Wood’s The Weekend.
When I read The Weekend, the fact that the characters were all older women stood out (you don’t see that often). The same occurred to me when I read Curtis Sittenfeld’s short story collection, Show Don’t Tell.
One of my favourite stories in Sittenfeld’s collection was about a woman who babysat for the owners of what we know as Amazon. It reminded me of Heike Geissler’s memoir, Seasonal Associate, about her time working for Amazon.
School texts, donkeys, women and Amazon – where will other chains go? Link up below or post your link in the comments section.
Next month (December 6, 2025), we’ll start with a novella that you may read as part of this year’s Novellas in November – Seascraper by Benjamin Wood.
Haha what a fun chain Kate … and with a few I’ve read including the Malouf and Wood. I loved hearing that the Malouf was a Year 12 text. That’s a great choice I think … particularly for young men.
Forgot to leave my link: https://whisperinggums.com/2025/11/01/six-degrees-of-separation-from-we-have-always-lived-in-the-castle-to/
I like the way you linked you books. I’ve only read The Weekend from those. I’ve tried Boy Swallows Universe but didn’t get far, I’ll have to try again.
I’ve read Malouf and the Weekend too. So I may not have read the starting book, but at least I’ve read a few from your chain. My chain is at https://residentjudge.com/2025/11/01/six-degrees-of-separation-from-we-have-always-lived-in-the-castle-to/
I loved reading what my girls read for school, too. It’s a while ago now, though! Honey-bunny’s texts had Looking for Alibrandi and Montana 1948, and Miss S had films, which made me realis the world had moved on without me.
I thought The Weekend was fabulous, I passed it on to my mother to read as I felt the same way – there aren’t many stories about older women. She enjoyed and appreciated the story, too.
https://rosereadsnovels.wordpress.com/2025/11/01/six-degrees-of-separation-we-have-always-lived-in-the-castle-by-shirley-jackson/
Here’s mine: https://anzlitlovers.com/2025/11/01/six-degrees-of-separation-from-we-have-always-lived-in-the-castle/
PS I couldn’t figure out why my review of Ransom started getting so many hits, it turns out that quite a few school libraries shared links to it!
Haha! It’s been on the Year 12 reading list for a few years – I imagine that lots of kids are relying on your insights for their study.
Years and years ago, a friend, who is a Yr 12 English teacher and reads my blog, noticed some elements of my review of Jasper Jones popping up in a few essays :-O (she only noticed because I’d said specific things about the cricket match) – and it coincided with me getting lots of hits on that post. There’s been too much written about Jasper Jones since then and my post would be way down the search list these days, but I suspect your Ransom post will continue to get traffic.
LOL I used to get a lot of hits on JJ as well, and some cranky comments because #understatement I disliked the book.
When WP stats were better than they are now, I could track referrers properly, and I found that quite a few school libraries and universities were linking to my reviews. I think this is smart on their part: it shows the students that yes, this might be a useful resource, but we know about it too and will recognise whatever you use from it, so you’d better acknowledge it in your sources!
Of course these days AI is writing student assignments and essays. Chat GPT shows up as a referrer all the time now. Where will it all end?
The Weekend is sitting on my bed head, waiting for me to read it. I’ve started Boy Swallows Universe a few times and never got into it. I was a bit disappointed in ABC Radion Nationals Top 100 books countdown it came in at number 1, just ahead of The Book Thief which is one of my favourite books. Does make me think that I need to keep giving it a go.
Here is my chain: https://aidanvale.blogspot.com/2025/10/six-degrees-of-separation-nov-from-we.html
I read Boy Swallows Universe when it was first released and there was no hype. I had no idea what I was going into and therefore was pleasantly surprised. Within weeks, there was lots of discussion about the twists, the genre etc and had I heard all of that, I may not have even read it. I haven’t watched the Netflix (??) series because I suspect it leans too much into the magic realism elements (not my thing usually). I reckon life’s too short to go back to books that haven’t grabbed you!
Fascinating list, and lots of books I not only don’t know, but never heard of the authors.
Here’s my list https://tcl-bookreviews.com/2025/11/01/tcls-6degrees-of-separation-for-november-1-2025/
An enjoyable chain. I love that you included the year 12 texts. I may not have always thought so at the time, but some of my favourite books are ones I studied in school.
I’m the same. One in particular stands out for me – Amy’s Children by Olga Masters (and I still have my annotated copy somewhere!).
I always love reading everyone’s chains and seeing where they go. Such clever and varied links.
Here’s mine for this month: https://portobellobookblog.com/2025/11/01/6degrees-of-separation-for-november-2025-from-we-have-always-lived-in-the-castle-by-shirley-jackson-to-the-wrong-ghost-by-victoria-connolly-booksky-%f0%9f%92%99%f0%9f%93%9a/
It’s always good to find books about older women – as you say, there aren’t a lot of them. Here’s my chain:
https://shereadsnovels.com/2025/11/01/six-degrees-of-separation-from-we-have-always-lived-in-the-castle-to-the-confessions-of-frannie-langton/
I’ve been meaning to try that Curtis Sittenfeld but I started another of hers in August, a retelling of Pride and Prejudice and keep misplacing it and going for a library book instead. The Charlotte Wood looks interesting. I think I always *knew* about We Have Always Lived in the Castle because one of the characters is named Constance but I only read it a few years ago. As I mention elsewhere, the weird thing is that my nieces’ preschool is called Merricat’s Castle School. I like literary allusions but that is an odd one! How would you explain it to parents? No, I won’t poison the little dears . . . .https://perfectretort.blogspot.com/2025/11/six-degrees-of-separation-from-we-have.html
I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t send my little ones to something called Merricat’s Castle School, no matter how much I love the story.
Merricat’s Castle School? Wow!
That is so strange about Merricat’s school!
As always, an interesting selection of books. Thanks for that.
Here is my post:
https://momobookblog.blogspot.com/2025/11/six-degrees-of-separation-we-have.html
i loved those donkeys, too. Here’s my chain: https://alifeinbooks.co.uk/2025/11/six-degrees-of-separation-we-have-always-lived-in-the-castle-to-these-precious-days/
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I haven’t read any of these books, but it is a fun chain!
I made it! It’s still Saturday in the USA. I forgot but got a post together in the nick of time https://hopewellslibraryoflife.wordpress.com/2025/11/01/six-degrees-of-seaparation-we-have-always-lived-in-the-castle/
Good chain! I think I’m the only woman alive who wasn’t in love with The Weekend.
I think when I say I ‘love’ a book it’s mostly around it being thought-provoking rather than necessarily loving the characters, if that make sense? The fact that I think about The Weekend years later rates it as a book I ‘loved’.
Makes perfect sense! I just got tired of the endless plaintive wails of “Sylvie” Good grief–we get it it already, cue the mystery music. The rest of it was ok.
I want to read all the books on your chain!! And I think I have read a couple of books featuring older women though can’t recall the names… here is my chain – https://www.ladyinreadwrites.com/moonlit-tales-of-life-and-love/
Well, of course I have to take part this month, since Shirley Jackson is one of my favourite authors ever. I adore that book!
I don’t read much in the gothic genre but I do love a bit of Jackson.
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I loved The Weekend so much (and I think it was you initially brought it to my attention!
Slightly Foxed was on our wavelength 10/31 with a article about We Have Always Lived in the Castle:
https://mailchi.mp/foxedquarterly/such-devoted-sisters-from-the-slightly-foxed-archives?e=4b0983aa05