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joshkiba13's review against another edition
- 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
"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
Graphic: Gore
Moderate: Sexual content and Racial slurs
americattt's review against another edition
- 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
2.5
favorite short story: the Body
Graphic: Car accident, Violence, Gore, and Murder
Moderate: Racial slurs, Animal cruelty, and Rape
Minor: Homophobia
thecatsmum's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
I'm not going to tell you that this collection of four novellas are bad or should be avoided. Two are excellent, one is pretty good, and one is awful. They are all graphic and disturbing.
Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption and The Body are great and have been adapted into what are now classic films. The novellas are much more explicit than the films, so check the content warnings. The Breathing Method is a classic gothic feeling King tale. The less said about Apt Pupil the better.
Graphic: Car accident, Racial slurs, Child death, Fatphobia, Gore, Grief, Gun violence, Violence, Vomit, Medical content, Trafficking, Homophobia, Bullying, Torture, Sexual violence, Kidnapping, and Injury/Injury detail
uhm_kai's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Racial slurs, Body horror, Car accident, Gore, Hate crime, Alcoholism, Murder, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Racism, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Antisemitism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Child death, Child abuse, Death, and Genocide
yasmin_raev's review against another edition
Graphic: Car accident, Gore, Confinement, Cursing, Medical content, Rape, Physical abuse, and Pregnancy
Minor: Racial slurs
queergoth_reads's review against another edition
- 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
3.0
Graphic: Death, Child death, Gore, Murder, and Antisemitism
Moderate: Racial slurs, Animal cruelty, Misogyny, Animal death, Suicide, Racism, and Rape
Minor: Alcoholism, Homophobia, Addiction, Alcohol, Fatphobia, Ableism, and Abortion
sunny_not's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Antisemitism, Blood, Bullying, Car accident, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Suicidal thoughts, Pregnancy, Physical abuse, Murder, and Medical content
fleetfoxes's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Body horror, Car accident, Gore, Medical content, Murder, Pregnancy, Suicidal thoughts, and Violence
Moderate: Death, Mental illness, Cursing, Child abuse, and Emotional abuse
Minor: Racial slurs and Homophobia
caidyn's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Alcoholism, Blood, Death, Gore, and Gun violence
grace_machine's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Graphic: Rape and Sexual assault
Moderate: Gore