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3.35 AVERAGE
3.35 AVERAGE
Even Steve King can't make me love reading about baseball, but this wasn't too bad. The only reason I grabbed it at the library was because it says on the cover "Contains the Chilling Bonus Story 'Morality.'" So I figured I'd get a good short story even if I didn't like the baseball novella.
Still spooky novella read. A good library lend if you would like a title suggestion. It feels like a tense tale in marginally over 110 pages.
A King quickie that's nice enough, but doesn't stand out much. There are two stories here:
-Blockade Billy: A retired baseball player gives an oral history of one catcher's short career that starts promisingly and ends with a streak of violence. The twist at the end is pretty good, but there's a heck of a lot of King's patented "old timer blathers on" schtick before you get to it. I'd probably have enjoyed it a lot more if I had any interest in vintage baseball stories. But I don't, so this was a very middle-of-the-road 2.5 stars for me.
-Morality: A tidy little story about guilt's power to poison lives. Like the first story,there's nothing supernatural going on here (which I count as a good thing--I like King's human drama better than his fantastical boogeymen), but without a lot of character specificity, this lacks the heft that it could have had. Perfectly fine, definitely a minor story. 3.5 stars.
These are certainly good enough tales to be included in one of King's collections (in fact, they both later ended up in [b:The Bazaar of Bad Dreams|23512999|The Bazaar of Bad Dreams|Stephen King|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1468705688l/23512999._SY75_.jpg|43116154]), but paired as a separate release, there's just not a lot here. Three stars.
-Blockade Billy: A retired baseball player gives an oral history of one catcher's short career that starts promisingly and ends with a streak of violence. The twist at the end is pretty good, but there's a heck of a lot of King's patented "old timer blathers on" schtick before you get to it. I'd probably have enjoyed it a lot more if I had any interest in vintage baseball stories. But I don't, so this was a very middle-of-the-road 2.5 stars for me.
-Morality: A tidy little story about guilt's power to poison lives. Like the first story,
These are certainly good enough tales to be included in one of King's collections (in fact, they both later ended up in [b:The Bazaar of Bad Dreams|23512999|The Bazaar of Bad Dreams|Stephen King|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1468705688l/23512999._SY75_.jpg|43116154]), but paired as a separate release, there's just not a lot here. Three stars.
dark
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This little novella reminded me why I like Stephen King so much. Great little story that strikes just the right tone.
Morality was also vintage King. Made me cringe a little.
Morality was also vintage King. Made me cringe a little.
Perfect. If u like King's shorter work, this is a must read.
I wanted to give this 4 stars, but it needed to be longer and more fleshed-out, in my opinion. As it is, it's a good story, but that's about it. Some very nice touches, though.
Note: I did not get the second story, "Morality," with my edition, so I'm not reviewing it.
Note: I did not get the second story, "Morality," with my edition, so I'm not reviewing it.
It brought back the old time baseball feel. I kept reading and I never lost my interest. I read the Girl who Loved Tom Gordon, and this wa just as good.
A quick read that was entertaining enough; the first half reminded me a lot of the X-files episode "the Unnatural." I found the bonus story "Morality" to be just as good if not better than "Blockade Billy" itself. Well worth the short time investment.
dark
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes