Scan barcode
mmc6661's review against another edition
3.0
It was King what more can I say. Theres no such thing as a bad Stephen King although I kept expecting more from this one.
wakejald's review against another edition
4.0
The fourth and final story of the Different Seasons collection is, in many ways, an outlier when compared to the novellas that preceded it. It's shorter, stranger, and it's the one that treads furtherest into King's typical "horror" wheelhouse. It's actually more of a story within a story, and while that may seem unnecessary for an already somewhat short piece of writing, it actually makes sense within its structure and format.
The "outer" story (and the one that I personally find to be a little more interesting) follows and older man named David Adley who gets invited to a mysterious club by a superior at the law-firm where he works. At first this seems like a pretty standard affair, but when he gets to "The Club", it's actually an extremely bizarre and uncanny place. There seems to be an infinite number of rooms and corridors, its library is filled with books and authors that don't seem to actually exist in the real world, and the butler, Stevens, is a very enigmatic figure who actually lives in The Club, and seems not to age. It all seems like something straight out of The Twilight Zone, or maybe some weird Twin Peaks spinoff, but the entire setting has an awesome atmosphere, and the one that I think best plays into the "Different Seasons" shtick running throughout this collection with King doing a really marvelous job of painting a picture of a cold winter night in New York. But The Club, and really this whole part of the story, effectively just exists as a framing device for the "inner" story of The Breathing Method.
Essentially, the members of The Club gather around every night to hear someone tell a story to the group. It becomes more of an event around Christmas, however, when the stories are specifically supposed to be scary or deal with the macabre in some way. So on this particular holiday season, we get a story told by a doctor named Emlyn McCarron about a patient of his, a single pregnant woman named Sandra Stansfield, who is determined to give birth despite how societally taboo single-motherhood was at that time and place. Being the incredibly brave and driven person she is, however, she doesn't take any grief from anyone, and is steadfast in her goal. Sandra begins to practice Dr. McCarron's "breathing method" designed to help women through the various stages of labor. Unfortunately, as Sandra is in labor and on the way to the hospital, the taxi she is in spins out on the icy roads and crashed into a statue, decapitating her. But despite what should be instant death, her headless body continues using the breathing method just long enough for Dr. McCaron to deliver the baby. And just before her death, her separated head mouths the words "thank you" to Dr. McCarron.
The writing here is a genuinely interesting mixture of the grotesque and the elegantly beautiful. The supernatural will of Sandra to deliver her baby is just as affecting as the fact that the body giving birth is essentially a corpse, but for completely different reasons. When McCarron's story is over, we get another couple pages at The Club, but none of its mystery or enigma is ever explained or given further detail, which is actually something I appreciate. King very well could have tried to hamfist some explanation for the weird idiosyncrasies happening all around this place, but the fact that he doesn't works to solidify its pure, unexplainable strangeness. Of the novellas collected in Different Seasons, this is probably the least emotionally profound, and the one with the least discernible "message", but I don't think those were its goals in the first place. It exists to paint an uncanny picture that just leaves you feeling a little... weird. And by those standards, I think it does a wonderful job. I don't know what exactly happens in The Club, or why, but maybe that's for the best anyway.
The "outer" story (and the one that I personally find to be a little more interesting) follows and older man named David Adley who gets invited to a mysterious club by a superior at the law-firm where he works. At first this seems like a pretty standard affair, but when he gets to "The Club", it's actually an extremely bizarre and uncanny place. There seems to be an infinite number of rooms and corridors, its library is filled with books and authors that don't seem to actually exist in the real world, and the butler, Stevens, is a very enigmatic figure who actually lives in The Club, and seems not to age. It all seems like something straight out of The Twilight Zone, or maybe some weird Twin Peaks spinoff, but the entire setting has an awesome atmosphere, and the one that I think best plays into the "Different Seasons" shtick running throughout this collection with King doing a really marvelous job of painting a picture of a cold winter night in New York. But The Club, and really this whole part of the story, effectively just exists as a framing device for the "inner" story of The Breathing Method.
Essentially, the members of The Club gather around every night to hear someone tell a story to the group. It becomes more of an event around Christmas, however, when the stories are specifically supposed to be scary or deal with the macabre in some way. So on this particular holiday season, we get a story told by a doctor named Emlyn McCarron about a patient of his, a single pregnant woman named Sandra Stansfield, who is determined to give birth despite how societally taboo single-motherhood was at that time and place. Being the incredibly brave and driven person she is, however, she doesn't take any grief from anyone, and is steadfast in her goal. Sandra begins to practice Dr. McCarron's "breathing method" designed to help women through the various stages of labor. Unfortunately, as Sandra is in labor and on the way to the hospital, the taxi she is in spins out on the icy roads and crashed into a statue, decapitating her. But despite what should be instant death, her headless body continues using the breathing method just long enough for Dr. McCaron to deliver the baby. And just before her death, her separated head mouths the words "thank you" to Dr. McCarron.
The writing here is a genuinely interesting mixture of the grotesque and the elegantly beautiful. The supernatural will of Sandra to deliver her baby is just as affecting as the fact that the body giving birth is essentially a corpse, but for completely different reasons. When McCarron's story is over, we get another couple pages at The Club, but none of its mystery or enigma is ever explained or given further detail, which is actually something I appreciate. King very well could have tried to hamfist some explanation for the weird idiosyncrasies happening all around this place, but the fact that he doesn't works to solidify its pure, unexplainable strangeness. Of the novellas collected in Different Seasons, this is probably the least emotionally profound, and the one with the least discernible "message", but I don't think those were its goals in the first place. It exists to paint an uncanny picture that just leaves you feeling a little... weird. And by those standards, I think it does a wonderful job. I don't know what exactly happens in The Club, or why, but maybe that's for the best anyway.
kaci_read's review against another edition
challenging
dark
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
eecipriano's review against another edition
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
emmahardin's review against another edition
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
I feel like the first part went on for too long and was a little slow; also the timeline of it was very confusing, but I guess that’s the point? I enjoyed the actual breathing method part of the breathing method though.
szachary's review against another edition
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
danley_jr's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent
bovinejoni's review against another edition
4.0
You got me there Mr. King. I haven't expected the last and shortest story of "Different Seasons", to have such an ending. It's really different than the other 3.
I really enjoyed the feeling of this story. It gave me some kind of coziness. A library with a huge chimney, a cold and snowy city...awesome. It leaves me with the longing to visit the club again. To hear more stories.
I really enjoyed the feeling of this story. It gave me some kind of coziness. A library with a huge chimney, a cold and snowy city...awesome. It leaves me with the longing to visit the club again. To hear more stories.
princessmatina's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
Τρεις μικρές νουβέλες με ευφανταστο θεμα υπερφυσικού κ τρόμου δλδ κλασικός Κινγκ με τέλος που δεν το περιμένεις και σε αφήνει έκπληκτο
Διαβάζονται εύκολα και γρήγορα χωρίς να χρειάζονται ιδιαίτερη συγκέντρωση, ιδανικό για ένα χαλαρό απόγευμα
Διαβάζονται εύκολα και γρήγορα χωρίς να χρειάζονται ιδιαίτερη συγκέντρωση, ιδανικό για ένα χαλαρό απόγευμα