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davehershey 's review for:
Hearts in Atlantis
by Stephen King
Fantastic.
I read this while on a camping vacation (well, glamping...in a cabin) with my wife and kids. Its brilliant. The first story, Low Men in Yellow Coats, is about young Bobby Garfield and his father figure Ted Brautigan. It connects to the Dark Tower series, which is cool. I also thought Bobby was the perfect age. Ted tells him to be on the lookout for odd looking men in yellow coats, as well as other signs they are near. When Bobby sees these signs he hesitates to tell. If Bobby was a bit older, he probably would have thought Ted was a wacko for even asking Bobby to look and if Bobby was younger he'd have been terrified and run to Ted immediately. Bobby was an entirely believable 11 year old, looking for what Ted said but not telling him when he saw it.
The second story, Hearts in Atlantis, is about freshman in college who are obsessed with the game Hearts. One character from the first story shows up here, Carol. This is also the story where the theme of the Vietnam War comes in. As the boys fail out of college they risk being sent to fight in the jungles of Vietnam. I found it a funny thing to be addicted to, but the way they couldn't stop despite knowing the risks was tragic and probably true.
The final three stories are much shorter. We get one about Willie, a minor character in the first story, and how he makes his living two decades after the horrors of Vietnam. Then we spend some time with Sully, Bobby and Carol's friend, as he reflects on Vietnam at a friend's funeral. Finally, we end with Bobby and Carol meeting up for the first time in decades.
Overall, a beautifully written set of stories. There's a bit of fantasy for King fans who want that sort of thing as well as food for thought on war and Vietnam. Beside that, there's just some great storytelling with wonderful characters.
I read this while on a camping vacation (well, glamping...in a cabin) with my wife and kids. Its brilliant. The first story, Low Men in Yellow Coats, is about young Bobby Garfield and his father figure Ted Brautigan. It connects to the Dark Tower series, which is cool. I also thought Bobby was the perfect age. Ted tells him to be on the lookout for odd looking men in yellow coats, as well as other signs they are near. When Bobby sees these signs he hesitates to tell. If Bobby was a bit older, he probably would have thought Ted was a wacko for even asking Bobby to look and if Bobby was younger he'd have been terrified and run to Ted immediately. Bobby was an entirely believable 11 year old, looking for what Ted said but not telling him when he saw it.
The second story, Hearts in Atlantis, is about freshman in college who are obsessed with the game Hearts. One character from the first story shows up here, Carol. This is also the story where the theme of the Vietnam War comes in. As the boys fail out of college they risk being sent to fight in the jungles of Vietnam. I found it a funny thing to be addicted to, but the way they couldn't stop despite knowing the risks was tragic and probably true.
The final three stories are much shorter. We get one about Willie, a minor character in the first story, and how he makes his living two decades after the horrors of Vietnam. Then we spend some time with Sully, Bobby and Carol's friend, as he reflects on Vietnam at a friend's funeral. Finally, we end with Bobby and Carol meeting up for the first time in decades.
Overall, a beautifully written set of stories. There's a bit of fantasy for King fans who want that sort of thing as well as food for thought on war and Vietnam. Beside that, there's just some great storytelling with wonderful characters.