donaldanthonyhicks 's review for:

Danse Macabre by Stephen King

5.0

---

I first read Danse Macabre in high school, (perhaps twelve or thirteen years ago) and, in hindsight, it’s astonishing to me how utterly comprehensively King laid the groundwork for my personal involvement in the genre, as well as my basic notions of film and literary theory. In that respect, it was a pleasure to revisit his treatise on the field I’ve grown to love so dearly. But independent of my own history with the book, this is simply an entertaining look at a vast cultural phenomenon that’s only seemed to gain momentum in the intervening years since the book’s publication. King approaches the subject less as an academician and more like a mechanic fiddling under the hood of a Chevy, explaining in astute but straight-forward terms how all this stuff works, why it does, and most importantly, what for. A boon for anyone with even a passing interest in the ghoulish and the macabre.