The first time I read this book, I finished it feeling pretty horrified. After reading this book for the second time, I find myself still pretty horrified. I don't even know what it is about it, but I can definitely see why it earned the genre title of 'horror'. 
 I would perhaps have never heard of this book if it had not been recommended to me as an add-in part of my English coursework, which is on alienation and links in with female madness, and this fits the bill entirely, but I am glad that I did hear of it. It is interesting, a quick read that leaves you thinking. 
 The narrator herself is extremely unreliable, and instead of being annoyed by this I think that it just heightens the experience and more gives the sense and feeling of what this woman is going through, as you see it through her eyes and do not know whether you should actually feel what she feels (view spoiler)[for example suspicion for John and his sister; or even small things such as if the wallpaper actually smells, or if it is just another hallucination of hers (hide spoiler)]. 
 I think it also highlights the feeling of women, especially the way they are treated by men at this time. They had their thoughts and feelings trivialised so much and practically being ignored, even by men that apparently loved them and cared for them, and even though this was the norm, they were not happy about this. There is also aspects of the same thing happening with other women, for example the way John's sister acts, highlighting the lack of sisterhood. It makes sense why this short story is seen as one of the first feminist writings. 
 Another thing I like about this is the way that it manages to treat mental illness. It is treated pretty well, although being a horror, and without stigma that some more modern books adopt, be they Young Adult or Adult. There is also not, what I had previously called, a "dreamy edge of romanticisation" or plain oversimplification of mental illnesses that I find in quite a few books, especially Young Adult books, but also in some Adult books (although the romanticisation is unfortunately aimed at books about eating disorders, which this book is not about). 
 In short, I think that this was an important and interesting (as well as quick!) read if you are interested in history, feminism, and/or mental illness, and I would recommend it well.