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gumballgirl's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
thejessiejoy's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
asourceoffiction's review against another edition
dark
hopeful
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
RITA HAYWORTH AND SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION
⭐⭐⭐⭐🌟/5
Just one of the best things King has ever written, in a little over 100 pages. The film does absolute justice to the story (though I'm pretty sure Red was originally a redhead, and Andy is supposed to be short 😂) and it lives rent-free in my heart.
It's amazing how much is packed into such a short story, given how long some of King's books go on (I'm looking at you, The Dead Zone). Andy Dufresne is almost deified the way Red tells it, because he represents hope when life is at its most hopeless. And that's what the whole novella is about, and how it ends. With hope.
APT PUPIL
⭐⭐⭐⭐/5
In stark contrast to Shawshank, there's no hope to be found in Apt Pupil. It's a study of darkness, and it only gets darker as it goes on. As the longest of the four stories by far, it's heavy. Todd scares me a lot more than Dussander as he sets everything in motion, and their association just gets creepier. I'd forgotten almost everything about this story except that ending, which haunts me.
THE BODY
⭐⭐⭐⭐/5
The first half of this is 3⭐, the second half is a solid 5⭐. It's the classic coming of age story, but has so much beauty and melancholy as the boys get further into their journey and Gordie becomes more reflective. Chris is just a wonderful character.
THE BREATHING METHOD
⭐⭐⭐/5
Wow. I mean... I read this 20 years ago and didn't remember any part of it. I think I repressed it. Only in Stephen King's mind could the Lamaze Method = horror story...
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Murder, Confinement, Rape, Car accident, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Pregnancy, Child death, and Death
alanp's review against another edition
5.0
Awesome collection of 4 novellas which I gave: 3x5 stars and 1x4 stars.
joshkiba13's review against another edition
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Four novellas 😎
"Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption" - I was surprisingly underwhelmed my this one. The film is one of my favorites of all time, but the novella seemed so much less intimate; much more distant. I didn't get that sense of hope and triumph that the film gave me.
"Apt Pupil" - By far the darkest and most grotesque work I've read by King, but it was such an alluring and interesting story watching a boy become corrupted by morbid curiosity and obsession.
"The Body" - I read this by itself back in January and really enjoyed it. King has come out and said that this story (minus the device of the body) is pretty autobiographical, so that makes it cool when you look at these 4 young boys maturing and coming into their own. Gordie comes to love telling stories, and I was so touched by Chris's grappling with who he wanted to be versus how he was expected to be.
"The Breathing Method" - I read this one in one sitting (only ~70pgs). Such a simple concept: men gathering by a fire to tell stories (or "tales"). An aged doctor tells a haunting story of a birth that widened my eyes and dropped my jaw.
King states in his Afterword that even if stories he writes aren't "horror" per se, elements of that genre always slip in, which rings true with these four stories. I was touched, I was disturbed, and entertained. I love these words with which he ends his Afterword: "I hope that you liked them, Reader; that they did for you what any good story should do---make you forget the real stuff weighing on your mind for a little while and take you away to a place you've never been. It's the most amiable sort of magic I know." -Stephen King
"Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption" - I was surprisingly underwhelmed my this one. The film is one of my favorites of all time, but the novella seemed so much less intimate; much more distant. I didn't get that sense of hope and triumph that the film gave me.
"Apt Pupil" - By far the darkest and most grotesque work I've read by King, but it was such an alluring and interesting story watching a boy become corrupted by morbid curiosity and obsession.
"The Body" - I read this by itself back in January and really enjoyed it. King has come out and said that this story (minus the device of the body) is pretty autobiographical, so that makes it cool when you look at these 4 young boys maturing and coming into their own. Gordie comes to love telling stories, and I was so touched by Chris's grappling with who he wanted to be versus how he was expected to be.
"The Breathing Method" - I read this one in one sitting (only ~70pgs). Such a simple concept: men gathering by a fire to tell stories (or "tales"). An aged doctor tells a haunting story of a birth that widened my eyes and dropped my jaw.
King states in his Afterword that even if stories he writes aren't "horror" per se, elements of that genre always slip in, which rings true with these four stories. I was touched, I was disturbed, and entertained. I love these words with which he ends his Afterword: "I hope that you liked them, Reader; that they did for you what any good story should do---make you forget the real stuff weighing on your mind for a little while and take you away to a place you've never been. It's the most amiable sort of magic I know." -Stephen King
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore
Moderate: Sexual content and Racial slurs
memydogandbooks's review against another edition
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
A brilliant collection of four novellas:
1. Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption - a brilliant story that makes me realise this is why the movie The Shawshank Redemption is so bloody amazing!
2. Apt Pupil - dark, twisted and shocking. This was written after King wrote The Shining and it shows.
3. The Body - I found this slow and hard to get into and actually prefer the movie adaptation but it might just be me.
4. The Breathing Method - an uncomfortable macabre story about women giving birth no matter what (it's hard to explain) but it's chilling!
Overall loved 3 out of the 4 novellas, The Body just didn't grip me the same as the others.
shmark's review against another edition
4.0
Shawshank Redemption and The Body are excellent. Apt Pupil and The Breathing method are so-so.
sofia_santana's review against another edition
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
1.0
geegeev's review against another edition
5.0
Shawshank is even better than the movie and the movie is good. The Body is better than the movie and the movie is good. Honestly, Steven King is always better read than watched but I'm happy to do both. His books ALWAYS bring me joy.