Shirley Jackson and the Chaos Box is the third book in the Icons Series, which detailed different incarnations of The Doctor meeting various famous people throughout the history. Apart from American novelist Shirley Jackson, the series featured Mexican artist Frida Kahlo, Nigerian musician Fela Kuti, and the much, much better known Charles Darwin.
In this book, the 15th Doctor and his companion Ruby Sunday visit North Bennington, Vermont, where Jackson resided when she wrote her most famous short story “The Lottery” (1948). They then travel further back to 1937 when Jackson was studying journalism at Syracuse University in central New York.
Apparently, Jackson is one of the Doctor’s favourite writers. In his words: “She wrote all kinds of tales, but her horror stories? Those were the ones that stuck with me. Her writing has a way of burrowing under your skin, making your heart race with every turn of the page.”
“Her imagination was a force to be reckoned with. It was one of those rare talents that could reach out from the page and take hold of you. I suppose that’s why her stories have stayed with me all this time. They remind me that the most fantastic adventures often begin in the corners of our minds, where fear and dreams collide.”
Many of us know Jackson through the film and TV adaptations of her horror novels The Haunting of Hill House (1959) and We Have Always Lived in the Castle (1962). But the Doctor describes “The Lottery” as the “one story in particular that kept me up all night the first time I read it”. His analysis of that story is one of the most memorable parts of this book.
The Doctor and Ruby enlist Jackson’s help in their investigation of a mysterious box that appears to be controlling people’s minds. At one stage, Jackson becomes influenced by the box’s power and reveals a previously unseen side of her personality.
This is a subtle yet brilliant moment in the book, and demonstrates how the author understands Jackson’s life and writing as a woman novelist in the 1940s and 1950s. Unfortunately, those readers who know nothing or very little about Jackson – and those who just want a thrilling, action-packed Doctor Who story with a bit of horror thrown in – may find this book somewhat disappointing.
The Doctor puts it mildly: “She had all these big ideas in a time, this time, when women with big ideas were seen as a threat.” The book may be seen as the author’s tribute to Jackson, who is said to have influenced many successful authors, including but not limited to Neil Gaiman, Stephen King, and Richard Matheson.
Highly recommended, but please read “The Lottery” first.
Note: This book review was originally titled “Rediscovering a literary genius” and published under the title “Rediscovering literary genius” by Ranges Trader Star Mail, August 18, 2026, P.17.
Voices under the Sun 陽光下的聲音 