Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.79 AVERAGE
3.79 AVERAGE
slow-paced
Since it’s a collection of short stories it was hard to rate. They were hit and miss for me. I’d say the stories ranked from 2.5-5 stars so went with a 3.75, rounded up to 4.
Great compilation of stories. Some I had read before since they had been previously published in magazines and some were new to me. All were good, but some more than others. The last one was a tad depressing.
I don't love short stories but I really enjoy Stephen King. For the most part, the stories were entertaining and I would recommend this for a King fan.
Some of the stories were better than others, but all of them were at least pretty good.
King is known way too much for his pop-sensational movies and stories, but this book proves to anyone is literature that King is one awesome writer and story-teller. He's got some real gems in here, especially the one about the judge and the will. I really appreciated how he prefaced each story with his very personal motivations behind each story. I would have given this book a 5 stars, but the last couple of stories were pretty boring and distasteful, IMO. Enjoy.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book, so I went with 5 stars as it is definitely one that I'll eventually go back and reread parts of.
Individual commentary:
Mile 81: 4 stars
This story was totally bizarre and nothing like what I was expecting. I'm pretty glad I never read a synopsis on this one beforehand because I feel like having previous knowledge of the plot would have dampened the experience. Overall, it was unique and I'll definitely be thinking about it for a while. Pretty long, about an hour and 15 minutes to read. [Finished 1/2]
Premium Harmony: 4 stars
This one was surprisingly short, pretty much just a snippet of life sort of thing. An unfortunate snippet, but all the same. I can't say why, but I enjoyed it, as strange as a story it was. [Finished 1/3]
Batman and Robin Have an Altercation: 5 stars
As someone who has dealt with several people who had alzheimers or dementia, this one really resonated with me. Not much else to say, other than that once again, I enjoyed it. [Finished 1/4]
The Dune: 4 stars
I really love the idea of this one and - I don't say this much - I feel like it would make a pretty interesting movie. It had sort of a similar vibe to Duma Key, because of the two having pretty much the same setting. I'm glad this story didn't end the way I expected. [Finished 1/4]
Bad Little Kid: 5 stars
As redundant as I'm becoming, I loved this one as well. It's a big lengthier than the last few, which is no problem to me. I feel like I've heard of a story with a similar synopsis somewhere before, but can't recall what or where. Really enjoyed reading this one and I feel like it left off at the perfect place. [Finished 1/4]
A Death: 4 stars
I remember that I began reading this one quite a while back, when it was published early online somewhere that I can't recall. I didn't get too far into it then, not because I didn't like it but because I'm just not fond of reading on my computer. It reminded me of The Green Mile with an alternate ending. I was initially going to rate this one 3 stars, until the ending clicked with me and I realized it wasn't just a trick. Had me fooled. [Finished 1/4]
The Bone Church: 2 stars
I had a lot of trouble following along with this one, but I mostly blame that on the fact that I don't read much, if any, written poetry. I have too much trouble finding a rhythm in my head with it these days, usually. But from what I gathered, I feel like I would have enjoyed this were it written in a different style or in short story form. But yeah, due to my troubles with poetry I'll mostly blame the flop on myself. [Finished 1/4]
Morality: 3.5 stars
I liked this one for the most part, but I feel as though the ending was missing something. Not much else to say really. [Finished 1/4]
UR: 4.5 stars
It took me a little longer to get into this one than it did the others, but once I did and figured out how everything was going along, I enjoyed it. This is another story that I had been wanting to read, since its been out for quite some time, but I never really buy ebooks, I usually just stick with what I can get for free, so I'm glad that this one was in here. [Finished 1/5]
Herman Wouk is Still Alive: 5 stars
This one really spoke to me and I feel as though it were the realest of the bunch so far. This is another one that I think will stay with me for a while. [Finished 1/5]
Under the Weather: 5 stars
Although this one was made to be predictable, I enjoyed it nonetheless. It reminded me of a few real life accounts of similar things happening. [Finished 1/6]
Blockade Billy: 2.5 stars
Unfortunately, I found this one a bit boring and hard to follow, probably due to the fact that I've never been into sports of any sort. The ending helped it redeem itself a bit, but still definitely not once of my favorites from this collection. [Finished 1/6]
Mister Yummy: 4 stars
I liked this one was well, I feel as though it would make an interesting movie of sorts. [Finished 1/6]
Tommy: 4.5 stars
This one is immensely better than the previous poem in this collection. I enjoyed it and it really got me thinking. [Finished 1/6]
The Little Green God of Agony: 4 stars
I enjoyed this one, and didn't really expect the latter 1/3 of the story to go the way it did. Not much to say about it. [Finished 1/6]
That Bus Is Another World: 5 stars
I found this one, along with the story behind it, really intriguing. It was really simple, yet at the same time certain aspects of it mirror some thoughts that I have pretty frequently. [Finished 1/6]
Obits: 5 stars
This one reminded me a lot of death note. I really enjoyed it and feel like it would have been really awesome as a full length novel. [Finished 1/6]
Drunken Fireworks: 5 stars
Another one I heard about and was excited to get to read. I expected it to end much more tragically than it did, so I guess this one was sort of a happy ending for a King story. [Finished 1/6]
Summer Thunder: 5 stars
Talk about a depressing ending, haha. I really enjoyed it though, and of all the stories in the book, it was definitely the best to finish off with. [Finished 1/6]
Individual commentary:
Mile 81: 4 stars
This story was totally bizarre and nothing like what I was expecting. I'm pretty glad I never read a synopsis on this one beforehand because I feel like having previous knowledge of the plot would have dampened the experience. Overall, it was unique and I'll definitely be thinking about it for a while. Pretty long, about an hour and 15 minutes to read. [Finished 1/2]
Premium Harmony: 4 stars
This one was surprisingly short, pretty much just a snippet of life sort of thing. An unfortunate snippet, but all the same. I can't say why, but I enjoyed it, as strange as a story it was. [Finished 1/3]
Batman and Robin Have an Altercation: 5 stars
As someone who has dealt with several people who had alzheimers or dementia, this one really resonated with me. Not much else to say, other than that once again, I enjoyed it. [Finished 1/4]
The Dune: 4 stars
I really love the idea of this one and - I don't say this much - I feel like it would make a pretty interesting movie. It had sort of a similar vibe to Duma Key, because of the two having pretty much the same setting. I'm glad this story didn't end the way I expected. [Finished 1/4]
Bad Little Kid: 5 stars
As redundant as I'm becoming, I loved this one as well. It's a big lengthier than the last few, which is no problem to me. I feel like I've heard of a story with a similar synopsis somewhere before, but can't recall what or where. Really enjoyed reading this one and I feel like it left off at the perfect place. [Finished 1/4]
A Death: 4 stars
I remember that I began reading this one quite a while back, when it was published early online somewhere that I can't recall. I didn't get too far into it then, not because I didn't like it but because I'm just not fond of reading on my computer. It reminded me of The Green Mile with an alternate ending. I was initially going to rate this one 3 stars, until the ending clicked with me and I realized it wasn't just a trick. Had me fooled. [Finished 1/4]
The Bone Church: 2 stars
I had a lot of trouble following along with this one, but I mostly blame that on the fact that I don't read much, if any, written poetry. I have too much trouble finding a rhythm in my head with it these days, usually. But from what I gathered, I feel like I would have enjoyed this were it written in a different style or in short story form. But yeah, due to my troubles with poetry I'll mostly blame the flop on myself. [Finished 1/4]
Morality: 3.5 stars
I liked this one for the most part, but I feel as though the ending was missing something. Not much else to say really. [Finished 1/4]
UR: 4.5 stars
It took me a little longer to get into this one than it did the others, but once I did and figured out how everything was going along, I enjoyed it. This is another story that I had been wanting to read, since its been out for quite some time, but I never really buy ebooks, I usually just stick with what I can get for free, so I'm glad that this one was in here. [Finished 1/5]
Herman Wouk is Still Alive: 5 stars
This one really spoke to me and I feel as though it were the realest of the bunch so far. This is another one that I think will stay with me for a while. [Finished 1/5]
Under the Weather: 5 stars
Although this one was made to be predictable, I enjoyed it nonetheless. It reminded me of a few real life accounts of similar things happening. [Finished 1/6]
Blockade Billy: 2.5 stars
Unfortunately, I found this one a bit boring and hard to follow, probably due to the fact that I've never been into sports of any sort. The ending helped it redeem itself a bit, but still definitely not once of my favorites from this collection. [Finished 1/6]
Mister Yummy: 4 stars
I liked this one was well, I feel as though it would make an interesting movie of sorts. [Finished 1/6]
Tommy: 4.5 stars
This one is immensely better than the previous poem in this collection. I enjoyed it and it really got me thinking. [Finished 1/6]
The Little Green God of Agony: 4 stars
I enjoyed this one, and didn't really expect the latter 1/3 of the story to go the way it did. Not much to say about it. [Finished 1/6]
That Bus Is Another World: 5 stars
I found this one, along with the story behind it, really intriguing. It was really simple, yet at the same time certain aspects of it mirror some thoughts that I have pretty frequently. [Finished 1/6]
Obits: 5 stars
This one reminded me a lot of death note. I really enjoyed it and feel like it would have been really awesome as a full length novel. [Finished 1/6]
Drunken Fireworks: 5 stars
Another one I heard about and was excited to get to read. I expected it to end much more tragically than it did, so I guess this one was sort of a happy ending for a King story. [Finished 1/6]
Summer Thunder: 5 stars
Talk about a depressing ending, haha. I really enjoyed it though, and of all the stories in the book, it was definitely the best to finish off with. [Finished 1/6]
This collection of previously pub lished stories starts with a bang--at least if you're a fan of old-school King horror, like I am. The rest is uneven. There are some good chillers, and at the other end the long and inexplicable Blockade Billy. But since BB was the only story I'd read before, it was still worth it. Bonus for the audiobook having different narrators (with King's useful and often funny intros) for each story.
Depressing , intriguing and perfectly Stephen King . This book is a more mature Stephen King who is experiencing and writing about end of life in a different way. I enjoyed it. Recommend to listen to it because the readers are great
There is nothing to say that hasn't been said, meaning all the good things.