Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.5 AVERAGE
3.5 AVERAGE
Stephen King often refers to Bachman as his dark side, and one only has to read "The Dark Half" to get his point. What people often forget is that there are very few deeply bleak King novels that remain that way. "Pet Sematary" and "Cujo" come to mind, but while there are always losses, the good guys generally seem to survive for the better at the end of the novel.
"Thinner" does what all good Bachman novels do, stay as bleak as possible for as long as possible. And make no mistake, Billy Halleck is not a good guy. Is he a victim? Sure. But he's a fucking asshole. I think he deserves the ending he gets, if only others didn't have to suffer because of his stupidity.
In terms of pure writing style, King nails it. The story is efficient and compelling. The unraveling of Halleck's world and his discovery of what is happening to him is perfect. This book's continuing refrain is thinner and as always, King is a master at a phrase that makes your skin crawl, even if it's not as omnipresent in our culture as REDRUM.
One thing that really holds me back from enjoying the read is that the characterization of the Romani people (pejoratively referred to as Gypsies). On one hand, we can look at this as the rare Stephen King novel that touches on race at all. (Because mostly everyone is white and fine with it, thank you very much in King's version of Maine and most of the US.) And maybe it's indicative of King's goals that my sympathies lied with the Romani more than the white people in this novel. But at the same time, their justified revenge is cloaked with descriptions that make them appear monstrous or a sex toy depending on the gender, generic mysticism to fuel the central conflict, and their role as antagonists. What a more interesting novel this would have made had this been told from one of their perspectives, but then again, that might have had as many tropes, stereotypes, and racism as well. Ginelli as an Italian ganster doesn't improve upon that either, as colorful as a character he may be.
So while I'd love to see a film adaptation due justice to the rapidly decaying Halleck, maybe this book is best left in at the bottom of the closet, pulsing as a strawberry pie might...
"Thinner" does what all good Bachman novels do, stay as bleak as possible for as long as possible. And make no mistake, Billy Halleck is not a good guy. Is he a victim? Sure. But he's a fucking asshole. I think he deserves the ending he gets, if only others didn't have to suffer because of his stupidity.
In terms of pure writing style, King nails it. The story is efficient and compelling. The unraveling of Halleck's world and his discovery of what is happening to him is perfect. This book's continuing refrain is thinner and as always, King is a master at a phrase that makes your skin crawl, even if it's not as omnipresent in our culture as REDRUM.
One thing that really holds me back from enjoying the read is that the characterization of the Romani people (pejoratively referred to as Gypsies). On one hand, we can look at this as the rare Stephen King novel that touches on race at all. (Because mostly everyone is white and fine with it, thank you very much in King's version of Maine and most of the US.) And maybe it's indicative of King's goals that my sympathies lied with the Romani more than the white people in this novel. But at the same time, their justified revenge is cloaked with descriptions that make them appear monstrous or a sex toy depending on the gender, generic mysticism to fuel the central conflict, and their role as antagonists. What a more interesting novel this would have made had this been told from one of their perspectives, but then again, that might have had as many tropes, stereotypes, and racism as well. Ginelli as an Italian ganster doesn't improve upon that either, as colorful as a character he may be.
So while I'd love to see a film adaptation due justice to the rapidly decaying Halleck, maybe this book is best left in at the bottom of the closet, pulsing as a strawberry pie might...
dark
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Surprisingly, even more effective than I'd expected. The narration was great and the scoring added a lot. Highly recommend this one.
Not King's best work. I read this knowing the basic plot, as I watched the movie as a child. I think it's very interesting in concept- a curse that makes a man grow thinner and thinner everyday. However, I just didn't get hooked in this book like I did other King novels. I would have liked a little more info on the curses other men got, and the whole "push" explanation didn't make much sense to me. That might just be my fault for multitasking.
All that being said, I like that he shone a light on privilege and race inequality. How the gypsies are just moved from town to town like cattle was truly heartbreaking. One of them gets hurt and there is no justice, over and over and over. I would have cursed White Man From Town too!
Overall, it wasn't my favorite King (Bachman, really) book, but it wasn't my least favorite.
All that being said, I like that he shone a light on privilege and race inequality. How the gypsies are just moved from town to town like cattle was truly heartbreaking. One of them gets hurt and there is no justice, over and over and over. I would have cursed White Man From Town too!
Overall, it wasn't my favorite King (Bachman, really) book, but it wasn't my least favorite.
so first let me just say this books is ~problematic~ in its very nature, specifically its characterization of Romani people. Like yikes its not good folks. The book tries to be somewhat progressive in how it tries to depict the plight and systematic suffering of the Romani, however the books main premise is a "G*psy" Curse, so it really can't be that progressive of a book. However, if we put that aside (which it really shouldn't be) I liked the writing style, I thought Billy as a character was really complex and interesting. Did not care for the mobster aspects of the book. Thought the books inclusion of societal issues was well done, however they were undercut by what is mentioned above. Liked the ending! Its kinda a goofy book that does not take itself too seriously, and if it had better more nuanced characterization of Romani people and did not have the mobster plot lines probably would have given it a solid 4 stars
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
tense
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:
Yes
I was blown away by how much King showed about human morality within this book. The reality is, there is no eye for an eye, but there is such a thing as karma, and the scales always find a way to balance.
It is always interesting when an author successfully writes an unreliable narrator and leads you down the road of empathizing for a bad person. You feel for Billie at times, but you also have to step back and remind yourself he is a narcissist who won’t take responsibility for his actions. He wants to blame others and he convinces himself he isn’t responsible for what Richard does in his name. The ending was perfect though to put in perspective his choices throughout the book.
It is always interesting when an author successfully writes an unreliable narrator and leads you down the road of empathizing for a bad person. You feel for Billie at times, but you also have to step back and remind yourself he is a narcissist who won’t take responsibility for his actions. He wants to blame others and he convinces himself he isn’t responsible for what Richard does in his name. The ending was perfect though to put in perspective his choices throughout the book.
This was an addicting and enjoyable book to read!
It’s a great revenge novel and I enjoyed reading about how Billy Halleck goes from a big, fat man to something rather morbid.
Billy Halleck, an upscale attorney accidentally hits and kills an old gypsy woman in his car when she steps out from the sidewalk. Now is he guilty of vehicular manslaughter or not? Unfortunately for Billy, an old gypsy man believes he is and puts a curse on him. The old gypsy man touches his check and says "THINNER".
Or did he? It seems like Billy’s wife, doctor and friends think that he’s losing his mind and reaching for why he’s suddenly losing weight at a very rapid pace.
"Gypsy curse?!
You're crazy Billy Halleck."
So, Billy decides to prove them all wrong and contact the others that were involved with the gypsies that fateful day. This is a story of revenge, being resentful towards others and having to live with the decisions you make in life.
King really did well on the character development in this book and the ending sure blew me away! I did not see that coming.
This is a must read for [a:Stephen King|3389|Stephen King|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1362814142p2/3389.jpg] fans or anyone that loves creepy ass books.
It’s a great revenge novel and I enjoyed reading about how Billy Halleck goes from a big, fat man to something rather morbid.
Billy Halleck, an upscale attorney accidentally hits and kills an old gypsy woman in his car when she steps out from the sidewalk. Now is he guilty of vehicular manslaughter or not? Unfortunately for Billy, an old gypsy man believes he is and puts a curse on him. The old gypsy man touches his check and says "THINNER".
Or did he? It seems like Billy’s wife, doctor and friends think that he’s losing his mind and reaching for why he’s suddenly losing weight at a very rapid pace.
"Gypsy curse?!
You're crazy Billy Halleck."
So, Billy decides to prove them all wrong and contact the others that were involved with the gypsies that fateful day. This is a story of revenge, being resentful towards others and having to live with the decisions you make in life.
King really did well on the character development in this book and the ending sure blew me away! I did not see that coming.
This is a must read for [a:Stephen King|3389|Stephen King|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1362814142p2/3389.jpg] fans or anyone that loves creepy ass books.