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A review by eisenbuns
The Shining by Stephen King
5.0
Almost everyone can relate Stephen King’s name to being the ultimate ‘king’ (no pun intended) of Horror Fiction. Your parents probably saw the movies when they first came out - The Shining, Carrie, Christine - the list could go on and on. Needless to say, he’s a well-known author, and as such, I’ve always assumed that he’s pretty good at what he does. However, until this year, I’d never read any of King’s work, and I decided to change that. After some careful consideration about which book to start with, I eventually chose The Shining, because this story-line appealed to me the most: a family goes into the mountains to stay in a creepy, haunted hotel for the winter, and are snowed in. Some crazy stuff happens, and there’s sure to be murder and horror abound! Pretty sure I definitely made the right choice here.
First, I’d like to comment on King’s writing style. I know that this is one of his earlier novels (published in 1977), and “constant readers” would argue that his style has changed significantly since then, or that he has improved greatly. To be honest, I can’t really see what there would be to improve upon! King has a magnificent vocabulary at his disposal, but his writing isn’t elevated - at least, not to the point where the average reader could get confused. He chooses his words carefully, so as to portray whatever mood he wants to get across effectively. Most of the time, this involves scaring the reader shitless. (Trust me, he does it very well!) He also manages to distinguish, just by his diction and with slight structural changes, between the three main characters who narrate the story: Jack, Wendy, and Danny. This range of characters is quite remarkable, as each one has their own ‘voice’ so to speak - Jack is a troubled man, at the end of his rope in way of trying to find his way in life; Wendy is Jack’s wife, torn between protection of her son, love for her husband, and not wanting to be like her mother; and Danny is a unique, five year-old boy, wise beyond his years. King vocalizes each character differently and effectively, so that these characters are all very well fleshed-out.
The plot of the novel is pretty simple, as I described before. Jack, a man with a drinking problem and a tendency to lose jobs, takes on the position of winter caretaker at The Overlook Hotel in Colorado. The path closes during winter, due to heavy snow, and no one can go up the mountain (and, of course, no one can come down, either). Jack brings his wife and child along in hopes that the time alone might mend their strained connection, and help them as a family unit. Of course, every Hotel has its ghosts, and when the Hotel sets its sights on Danny, the couple’s five year-old son who has a unique ability - things start to get a little crazy. Because of this element of uncertainty, the various twists and turns that take place within the text are fairly unpredictable. At the same time, the reader has a gnawing sense of certainty of what will happen in the end (thanks to King’s masterful placement of foreshadowing), but he or she continues reading, hoping that this feeling is wrong.
Regarding characterization- This is perhaps where I am most impressed by King’s craftsmanship. I said before how each character was unique in his or her own way, thanks to the writing style. That doesn’t even begin to cover the way that the characters are brought to life, and I’m not sure that I can even explain it properly. However, I will say that it is very difficult to get me to care about a single character in any given book. In The Shining, I found myself hurting along with all of them - Jack, Danny and Wendy - every single one. I identified with every character in some way, on a deeper level than I expected, and by the time the novel was finished there were tears in my eyes, and I found that I was not ready to let go of them all just yet. Overall, spectacular - Well done, Mr. King.
Overall, this book truly encompasses everything that I could want in a story - the writing is superb (some of the best I’ve read), the structure and overarching execution is perfect, and the characters are some that I know I will carry with me. The story itself is haunting, disturbing in places, and I can certainly appreciate that for what it is. I enjoyed it very much, and I would absolutely recommend it to anyone who is looking to get into (or is already a fan of) Horror Fiction, or - like me - just wants to try out some Stephen King and wants a great place to start.
So, here’s to you, Mr. King, for a job well done. Thank you for sharing their story.
First, I’d like to comment on King’s writing style. I know that this is one of his earlier novels (published in 1977), and “constant readers” would argue that his style has changed significantly since then, or that he has improved greatly. To be honest, I can’t really see what there would be to improve upon! King has a magnificent vocabulary at his disposal, but his writing isn’t elevated - at least, not to the point where the average reader could get confused. He chooses his words carefully, so as to portray whatever mood he wants to get across effectively. Most of the time, this involves scaring the reader shitless. (Trust me, he does it very well!) He also manages to distinguish, just by his diction and with slight structural changes, between the three main characters who narrate the story: Jack, Wendy, and Danny. This range of characters is quite remarkable, as each one has their own ‘voice’ so to speak - Jack is a troubled man, at the end of his rope in way of trying to find his way in life; Wendy is Jack’s wife, torn between protection of her son, love for her husband, and not wanting to be like her mother; and Danny is a unique, five year-old boy, wise beyond his years. King vocalizes each character differently and effectively, so that these characters are all very well fleshed-out.
The plot of the novel is pretty simple, as I described before. Jack, a man with a drinking problem and a tendency to lose jobs, takes on the position of winter caretaker at The Overlook Hotel in Colorado. The path closes during winter, due to heavy snow, and no one can go up the mountain (and, of course, no one can come down, either). Jack brings his wife and child along in hopes that the time alone might mend their strained connection, and help them as a family unit. Of course, every Hotel has its ghosts, and when the Hotel sets its sights on Danny, the couple’s five year-old son who has a unique ability - things start to get a little crazy. Because of this element of uncertainty, the various twists and turns that take place within the text are fairly unpredictable. At the same time, the reader has a gnawing sense of certainty of what will happen in the end (thanks to King’s masterful placement of foreshadowing), but he or she continues reading, hoping that this feeling is wrong.
Regarding characterization- This is perhaps where I am most impressed by King’s craftsmanship. I said before how each character was unique in his or her own way, thanks to the writing style. That doesn’t even begin to cover the way that the characters are brought to life, and I’m not sure that I can even explain it properly. However, I will say that it is very difficult to get me to care about a single character in any given book. In The Shining, I found myself hurting along with all of them - Jack, Danny and Wendy - every single one. I identified with every character in some way, on a deeper level than I expected, and by the time the novel was finished there were tears in my eyes, and I found that I was not ready to let go of them all just yet. Overall, spectacular - Well done, Mr. King.
Overall, this book truly encompasses everything that I could want in a story - the writing is superb (some of the best I’ve read), the structure and overarching execution is perfect, and the characters are some that I know I will carry with me. The story itself is haunting, disturbing in places, and I can certainly appreciate that for what it is. I enjoyed it very much, and I would absolutely recommend it to anyone who is looking to get into (or is already a fan of) Horror Fiction, or - like me - just wants to try out some Stephen King and wants a great place to start.
So, here’s to you, Mr. King, for a job well done. Thank you for sharing their story.