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A review by tomasthanes
Joyland by Надя Баева, Stephen King, Stephen King
5.0
This is the second book by Stephen King that I've read; the first was "The Colorado Kid". Neither of which were "mainstream Stephen King".
This book may be the best written book I've read this year. It was carefully crafted, like a tapestry which had each individual thread in exactly the right place. There were no superfluous (or dangling) objects in the story; each had its place.
Neil Gaiman interviewed Stephen King on NPR where the latter said the the novel sprang from "...a single image he had had for 20 years of a boy in a wheelchair flying a Jesus kite on a beach" [Wikipedia]. That pretty much captures one of the primary trusses supporting the plot.
King also said that "...Canobie Lake Park, an amusement park in Salem, NH, was one of the main sources of inspiration for the novel [Wikipedia].
I can't imagine the research that Stephen King did to capture the "carny cant" spoken by the experienced employees of Joyland. It leant the story a deep credibility that is otherwise hard to obtain. It makes you want to sneak between one of the tents at your local County Fair and listen to the people who work the shys.
There is a higher level of profanity in the book that I'm comfortable with. Consider the source and leave it at that.
This book may be the best written book I've read this year. It was carefully crafted, like a tapestry which had each individual thread in exactly the right place. There were no superfluous (or dangling) objects in the story; each had its place.
Neil Gaiman interviewed Stephen King on NPR where the latter said the the novel sprang from "...a single image he had had for 20 years of a boy in a wheelchair flying a Jesus kite on a beach" [Wikipedia]. That pretty much captures one of the primary trusses supporting the plot.
King also said that "...Canobie Lake Park, an amusement park in Salem, NH, was one of the main sources of inspiration for the novel [Wikipedia].
I can't imagine the research that Stephen King did to capture the "carny cant" spoken by the experienced employees of Joyland. It leant the story a deep credibility that is otherwise hard to obtain. It makes you want to sneak between one of the tents at your local County Fair and listen to the people who work the shys.
There is a higher level of profanity in the book that I'm comfortable with. Consider the source and leave it at that.