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jgolomb 's review for:
Needful Things: The Last Castle Rock Story
by Stephen King
"Trouble and aggravation's mostly made up of ordinary things, did you ever notice that? Undramatic things."
from Stephen King's "Needful Things"
This is the first truly disappointing experience I've had with Stephen King. It's his own damn fault for setting the bar so high. The story is quite basic…a stranger arrives in a small town and opens a store that's part antiques, part yard-sale. "In a small town, the opening of a new store is big news." The owner if this strange little store is Leland Gaunt.
"Needful Things" is Stephen King's statement on the absurdities of American consumerism. Gaunt seems to have exactly what each member of the town needs…deep in their heart of hearts. A town deputy finds a fishing rod, amazingly similar to the one he used on memorable days casting with his deceased father. A woman finds sunglasses worn by Elvis Presley, and when she wears them, she's taken to a concert, to Graceland, or to The King's bed. The price of these items is small financially, but Gaunt always insists on a 'favor' in addition to cash. When those ‘favors’ are cashed in, chaos ensues.
While negotiating with one person, Gaunt says, "Why is it that so many people think all the answers are in their wallets? It's criminally stupid…The world is full of needy people who don't understand that everything, everything, is for sale…if you're willing to pay the price."
"Keep an eye on him, I tell you. Keep an eye on everything. You've been here before, but things are about to change. I know it. I feel it. There's a storm on the way."
One of my issues with the book is the lack of much back-story on Mr. Gaunt. He's both charismatic and creepy in a very vampiric way. Think of "The Stand's" Randall Flagg, and then superimpose an evil Gandalf. There's no doubt about his evil, but King barely allows the reader to dip a toe into his enigmatic history.
"…Be patient. Wait. That's most of what life in The Rock is about -- taking it easy, being patient, and waiting for the occasional stink to blow over."
King's at his best when creating atmospheric Small Town, USA. Castle Rock, Maine is the base for many of his earlier works, so he knows its people and character very well. "And it looks like such a sleepy little town from the outside, doesn't it?" says Polly Chalmers to Sheriff Alan Pangborn when filling him in on some of the towns' more memorable and dark history.
In "Needful Things, King's characters have familiar roots and themes. The extremely good-hearted cop with a dark past. His burgeoning love, who also has a secret past, but a heart of gold. The head Selectman of Castle Rock feels awfully similar to Big Jim Rennie in "Under the Dome", which includes a family-owned car dealership. Even the eerie similarities between Gaunt and Flagg seems to evoke a sense that King was continually experimenting with the same themes, similar characterizations, and how those would interact when tossed together in a small New England town.
The book is enjoyable, but nothing in comparison to some of his other works. It's big at over 900 pages, but contains no where near the depth of "It" or "The Stand", nor the poignancy of "Bag of Bones".
from Stephen King's "Needful Things"
This is the first truly disappointing experience I've had with Stephen King. It's his own damn fault for setting the bar so high. The story is quite basic…a stranger arrives in a small town and opens a store that's part antiques, part yard-sale. "In a small town, the opening of a new store is big news." The owner if this strange little store is Leland Gaunt.
"Needful Things" is Stephen King's statement on the absurdities of American consumerism. Gaunt seems to have exactly what each member of the town needs…deep in their heart of hearts. A town deputy finds a fishing rod, amazingly similar to the one he used on memorable days casting with his deceased father. A woman finds sunglasses worn by Elvis Presley, and when she wears them, she's taken to a concert, to Graceland, or to The King's bed. The price of these items is small financially, but Gaunt always insists on a 'favor' in addition to cash. When those ‘favors’ are cashed in, chaos ensues.
While negotiating with one person, Gaunt says, "Why is it that so many people think all the answers are in their wallets? It's criminally stupid…The world is full of needy people who don't understand that everything, everything, is for sale…if you're willing to pay the price."
"Keep an eye on him, I tell you. Keep an eye on everything. You've been here before, but things are about to change. I know it. I feel it. There's a storm on the way."
One of my issues with the book is the lack of much back-story on Mr. Gaunt. He's both charismatic and creepy in a very vampiric way. Think of "The Stand's" Randall Flagg, and then superimpose an evil Gandalf. There's no doubt about his evil, but King barely allows the reader to dip a toe into his enigmatic history.
"…Be patient. Wait. That's most of what life in The Rock is about -- taking it easy, being patient, and waiting for the occasional stink to blow over."
King's at his best when creating atmospheric Small Town, USA. Castle Rock, Maine is the base for many of his earlier works, so he knows its people and character very well. "And it looks like such a sleepy little town from the outside, doesn't it?" says Polly Chalmers to Sheriff Alan Pangborn when filling him in on some of the towns' more memorable and dark history.
In "Needful Things, King's characters have familiar roots and themes. The extremely good-hearted cop with a dark past. His burgeoning love, who also has a secret past, but a heart of gold. The head Selectman of Castle Rock feels awfully similar to Big Jim Rennie in "Under the Dome", which includes a family-owned car dealership. Even the eerie similarities between Gaunt and Flagg seems to evoke a sense that King was continually experimenting with the same themes, similar characterizations, and how those would interact when tossed together in a small New England town.
The book is enjoyable, but nothing in comparison to some of his other works. It's big at over 900 pages, but contains no where near the depth of "It" or "The Stand", nor the poignancy of "Bag of Bones".