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3.41 AVERAGE
3.41 AVERAGE
A while back I had heard that, in the light of all the school shootings, Stephen King had requested to have Rage pulled from publication. Ever since then, I had been on a quest to find a copy and read it. Well, I finally was able to find a copy, and I sat down to give it a read through.
The story line is relatively simple: a slightly off-balance high school student, Charlie Decker, snaps one day, kills two teachers, and takes a classroom of students hostage and threatens to start shooting if he doesn't get what he wants. The problem is, there's no clear indication of what he wants except to toy with the police and the administration. Then four hours later, he lets them go. Very anti-climactic.
Personally, I don't see why this relatively short novel has been pulled from publication. It's tame compared to what's going on in the world today. And the copy on the cover... "His twisted mind turned a quiet classroom into a dangerous world of terror." You don't get that feeling at all. Well, maybe in the beginning, but eventually you get the idea that these kids are all friends and they know Charlie isn't going to do anything to them. Hell, one girl even leaves the room to go to the bathroom. Instead of making a break for it, which any normal individual would have done found in the same situation, she actually comes back to the room and takes her seat. Reading it, I felt more like I was in an AA meeting or something other 12 Steps program, where each student confesses something about their past or their home life, maybe something they're not too proud of. All very touchy-feely. Well, all the students but one -- Ted Jones. He seems to be the only one reacting poorly to the situation, and he harbors so much anger and hatred for Charlie, yet it's never clear why. Yeah, the guy's a psycho and he's got a gun and anything can set him off so we should all be afraid for our lives, but nobody else seems to feel that way. In fact, they all seem to sympathize with Charlie's situation. Sure, he's a troubled kid, but based on what we've learned about him, nothing in his past prepares us for the situation we find ourselves in. **SPOILER** And unless I'm missing something, it's unclear as to why the students turn on Ted in the end. Maybe he's a scape goat, and by tormenting and traumatizing him, they're really transferring their emotions toward Charlie onto Ted, but the reader doesn't get that feeling. It's also unclear as to why Ted had such a reaction to what the students did. Maybe it was something they said to him, but we're not privy to that.
All in all, it was a good book, but hardly the scandalous read I had been expecting, especially after hearing so much about it. But then again, that seems to be the trouble with hype. So much stuff fails to live up to the expectations you have after hearing so much praise for a book or movie. Rating: 3 of 5 stars.
The story line is relatively simple: a slightly off-balance high school student, Charlie Decker, snaps one day, kills two teachers, and takes a classroom of students hostage and threatens to start shooting if he doesn't get what he wants. The problem is, there's no clear indication of what he wants except to toy with the police and the administration. Then four hours later, he lets them go. Very anti-climactic.
Personally, I don't see why this relatively short novel has been pulled from publication. It's tame compared to what's going on in the world today. And the copy on the cover... "His twisted mind turned a quiet classroom into a dangerous world of terror." You don't get that feeling at all. Well, maybe in the beginning, but eventually you get the idea that these kids are all friends and they know Charlie isn't going to do anything to them. Hell, one girl even leaves the room to go to the bathroom. Instead of making a break for it, which any normal individual would have done found in the same situation, she actually comes back to the room and takes her seat. Reading it, I felt more like I was in an AA meeting or something other 12 Steps program, where each student confesses something about their past or their home life, maybe something they're not too proud of. All very touchy-feely. Well, all the students but one -- Ted Jones. He seems to be the only one reacting poorly to the situation, and he harbors so much anger and hatred for Charlie, yet it's never clear why. Yeah, the guy's a psycho and he's got a gun and anything can set him off so we should all be afraid for our lives, but nobody else seems to feel that way. In fact, they all seem to sympathize with Charlie's situation. Sure, he's a troubled kid, but based on what we've learned about him, nothing in his past prepares us for the situation we find ourselves in. **SPOILER** And unless I'm missing something, it's unclear as to why the students turn on Ted in the end. Maybe he's a scape goat, and by tormenting and traumatizing him, they're really transferring their emotions toward Charlie onto Ted, but the reader doesn't get that feeling. It's also unclear as to why Ted had such a reaction to what the students did. Maybe it was something they said to him, but we're not privy to that.
All in all, it was a good book, but hardly the scandalous read I had been expecting, especially after hearing so much about it. But then again, that seems to be the trouble with hype. So much stuff fails to live up to the expectations you have after hearing so much praise for a book or movie. Rating: 3 of 5 stars.
Weird juvenilia from King that reads like an unholy (and unsuccessful) mash up of Lord of the Flies and The Breakfast Club. There are flashes of interesting writing here, but mostly it’s just kind of dull.
Rage é um livro curto escrito pelo Stephen King sob o pseudônimo de Richard Bachman, sendo assim um dos famosos livros de Bachman. Porém Rage conta a história de um garoto, Charlie, que mata dois professores aos tiros e faz sua turma de escola refém, ele foi encontrado com um atirador real que invadiu uma escola a tiros, foi citado por outro, entre outros casos, e passou a pesar na consciência do King, que tirou o livro de circulação e proibiu sua reimpressão. Ele fala mais sobre isso no ensaio "Guns" (disponível em inglês no kindle unlimited) que eu li depois de ler Rage, para entender mais o ponto de vista do autor na questão da posse de armas e desarmamento nos EUA.
Em Guns, King tenta chegar num consenso com os apoiadores do desarmamento e aqueles que defendem a posse de armas, oferecendo alternativas que saciariam os dois, porque essa questão é muito complicada nos Estados Unidos e uma solução radical seria praticamente impossível. Quando ele fala sobre Rage, King não culpa o livro pelos ataques que aconteceram, mas pensa que seria certo retirá-lo das livrarias. "
Em Guns, King tenta chegar num consenso com os apoiadores do desarmamento e aqueles que defendem a posse de armas, oferecendo alternativas que saciariam os dois, porque essa questão é muito complicada nos Estados Unidos e uma solução radical seria praticamente impossível. Quando ele fala sobre Rage, King não culpa o livro pelos ataques que aconteceram, mas pensa que seria certo retirá-lo das livrarias. "
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
It's difficult to review this short story, knowing that the author pulled the publication in the late 90's. Understandably so, as some school shooters were associated with their fascination of this novella. I feel it was a respectably responsible move to stop producing this story.
As far as the writing goes, it's very raw and young SK. I really enjoyed the short choppy chapters and the flashbacks of the story. I do feel it ended on a dull ending and I felt the wanting to know more about some of the side characters. Overall, it's early SK writing and not anything that needs to be revered or sought after (since it's out of publication). I'm glad I read it, simply for completing SK's backlog sake, but I'm not going to re-read it. It would not be shocking or scandalous in today's age, but I can see how it was in the 1970s-1990s.
As far as the writing goes, it's very raw and young SK. I really enjoyed the short choppy chapters and the flashbacks of the story. I do feel it ended on a dull ending and I felt the wanting to know more about some of the side characters. Overall, it's early SK writing and not anything that needs to be revered or sought after (since it's out of publication). I'm glad I read it, simply for completing SK's backlog sake, but I'm not going to re-read it. It would not be shocking or scandalous in today's age, but I can see how it was in the 1970s-1990s.
dark
emotional
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
well that was…. Something.
This was an incredibly enjoyable read and not at all what I expected. This book is no longer in print, and for a good reason: it virtually romanticizes school shootings. Some argue that this book may have influenced individuals such as those who participated in Columbine, however I think that’s totally ludicrous. If those boys wanted to do what they wanted to do, this book wouldn’t have persuaded them either way.
Basically, this book is “the Breakfast Club” under that of the circumstances said above. It isn’t really about a shooting. It’s about insanity, and how insanity isn’t something that’s predictable. There’s no formula for it.
Stephen King never ceases to amaze me. Books are about people. That’s what this book is about.
This was an incredibly enjoyable read and not at all what I expected. This book is no longer in print, and for a good reason: it virtually romanticizes school shootings. Some argue that this book may have influenced individuals such as those who participated in Columbine, however I think that’s totally ludicrous. If those boys wanted to do what they wanted to do, this book wouldn’t have persuaded them either way.
Basically, this book is “the Breakfast Club” under that of the circumstances said above. It isn’t really about a shooting. It’s about insanity, and how insanity isn’t something that’s predictable. There’s no formula for it.
Stephen King never ceases to amaze me. Books are about people. That’s what this book is about.
Well, I was hoping this book would be more interesting than it turned out to be. The beginning showed promise but it just fell flat. Not terrible, but just not that great either. Plus in today's America, where we're terrorized by school shootings every week or two, it's hard to get behind this protagonist.
challenging
emotional
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Loveable characters:
No
dark
emotional
tense
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
This was actually really good! It was compulsively readable. I obvi want to know what was reacted in Joe’s letter at the end of the book. It really gave dark Breakfast Club.