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3.57 AVERAGE
3.57 AVERAGE
This book really was a mixed bag. First of all this book is non-fiction which already makes it a much harder read for me since there is no real story to follow. I saw it more as a sort of textbook meant for teaching a class about the Horror genre from 1950-1980 within American culture. The book goes below and above that timespan aswell but stays mostly within these lines.
The subjects range from horror movies, TV shows, novels, radio shows and so on. These were sometimes interesting to learn about and other times it was a chore to get through.
The best parts however in this book for me were the little snippets of information that King gave about his own life and childhood. These little gems made, at least to me, the book worth reading through.
This non-fiction book was a challenge for me to read but a challenge i accepted wholeheartedly. And in the end, i'm glad i finished it. Would i recommend it? That depends, if you like the Horror genre and want Kings' view on the subject, then yes. If you don't, then i wouldn't really bother.
The subjects range from horror movies, TV shows, novels, radio shows and so on. These were sometimes interesting to learn about and other times it was a chore to get through.
The best parts however in this book for me were the little snippets of information that King gave about his own life and childhood. These little gems made, at least to me, the book worth reading through.
This non-fiction book was a challenge for me to read but a challenge i accepted wholeheartedly. And in the end, i'm glad i finished it. Would i recommend it? That depends, if you like the Horror genre and want Kings' view on the subject, then yes. If you don't, then i wouldn't really bother.
This was another audiobook for me, and the reader saved it, I think. King, by his own admission, can get a bit carried away and go off on tangents. But he also knows his pop culture very well. The reader, in this case, tried to pull off his best Uncle Stevie impression full of sarcasm and tongue in cheek commentary. King lost me a few times with some of his rants, but he also got me to go back and look at some great books and movies I had missed. To be fair, this book was written in the 70's and covers material from the 1940's. At times he was dealing with popular culture that wasn't popular anymore, so the references were lost on me.This book got me to read the Shining, so for that alone it is successful.
challenging
informative
inspiring
slow-paced
When my husband and I were dating, we started collecting original editions of everything Stephen King ever wrote. We are both big fans, and it was fun poking around in used book stores searching for decent hardback copies. Several years ago now, I vowed that I was going to start at the beginning and reread everything he's written. Unfortunately he writes faster than I read. "Danse Macabre" was one that I hadn't read before. It was interesting to get a peek in to King's mind and philosophy on horror fiction, but there were sections that I struggled through. Plus, having been written in 1980, it's dated. I had to keep reminding myself that x, y, or z hadn't been written/filmed yet. All in all, glad I read it, but it won't make a list of rereads (if I ever do this again).
Okay, I decided to read this book again. The first time I read it was back when it came out and it just didn't pay off for me. Now, all these years later and many of those pursuing the craft of writing horror fiction, I have come to this book with a whole new appreciation.
King does tend to ramble on a bit in what is otherwise a very long essay on horror entertainment. Did his rambling bother me? Not in the slightest. It worked best for me when he was going off on his tangents because it was so reminiscent of the myriads of such conversations I've had with other horror authors and fans of the genre. I really felt like he was speaking to me instead of lecturing me like other texts tend to do.
Not only was this book entertaining and educational, it was inspirational for me.
If you're looking for a good horror novel, like so many other people seemed to be based on their scathing reviews over at Amazon, please understand that you are not going to get that from this book. It is NOT a novel. Jesus people, I thought you could read.
If you're looking for a fun nostalgic trip through a few decades of horror entertainment then this is the book for you. Yes, it's a bit outdated but it still holds up very well. There are a few statements the King makes that I wonder if he'd change his mind about now seeing that we've actually got some pretty good horror available on TV these days.
Actually, I'd love to see King do a newer book on the same subject regarding the genre post the original's time frame. I'd love to read that.
King does tend to ramble on a bit in what is otherwise a very long essay on horror entertainment. Did his rambling bother me? Not in the slightest. It worked best for me when he was going off on his tangents because it was so reminiscent of the myriads of such conversations I've had with other horror authors and fans of the genre. I really felt like he was speaking to me instead of lecturing me like other texts tend to do.
Not only was this book entertaining and educational, it was inspirational for me.
If you're looking for a good horror novel, like so many other people seemed to be based on their scathing reviews over at Amazon, please understand that you are not going to get that from this book. It is NOT a novel. Jesus people, I thought you could read.
If you're looking for a fun nostalgic trip through a few decades of horror entertainment then this is the book for you. Yes, it's a bit outdated but it still holds up very well. There are a few statements the King makes that I wonder if he'd change his mind about now seeing that we've actually got some pretty good horror available on TV these days.
Actually, I'd love to see King do a newer book on the same subject regarding the genre post the original's time frame. I'd love to read that.
I don’t think I was the right reader for this. I hated it, and only forced myself to finish it so I could cross it off my Stephen King list. I had to skim read the last 100 pages because I just couldn’t do it anymore.
I am a fan of Stephen King so it gives me no pleasure to write this but...this book was pretty bad.
I started with high expectations as I really don't like horror books and prefer when King writes non-horror (my favorite King book is "On Writing").
So this book is a look at horror books, movies, comics, t.v. shows and of course horror readers/writers - what makes them tick, what makes them work (or not work), motivation, analysis etc. etc. etc.
This would have been a great 30-50 page paper for college but King drags it out to a novel length book and just goes on and on and on about every little detail, plot twist and character of (it seems) every movie & book ever written between 1950-1980 whether you've seen them/read them or not.
The book just seemed to never end - that is a good thing when you're reading "The Stand" but not when you're reading this uninspired bore.
Only read this if you're a die hard King fan or a die hard horror fan.
I'll give it 2 stars but only because I really do enjoy his style of writing.
I started with high expectations as I really don't like horror books and prefer when King writes non-horror (my favorite King book is "On Writing").
So this book is a look at horror books, movies, comics, t.v. shows and of course horror readers/writers - what makes them tick, what makes them work (or not work), motivation, analysis etc. etc. etc.
This would have been a great 30-50 page paper for college but King drags it out to a novel length book and just goes on and on and on about every little detail, plot twist and character of (it seems) every movie & book ever written between 1950-1980 whether you've seen them/read them or not.
The book just seemed to never end - that is a good thing when you're reading "The Stand" but not when you're reading this uninspired bore.
Only read this if you're a die hard King fan or a die hard horror fan.
I'll give it 2 stars but only because I really do enjoy his style of writing.
informative
slow-paced
informative
inspiring
fast-paced
challenging
informative
reflective
medium-paced