This Short Story collection is King's best work in recent years. Unlike Nightmares and Dreamscapes it only has 14 stories, but most are high quality stories that are fascinating for how easy the stories flow. I have this novel twice in softcover and once in hardcover. Here is a story-by-story breakdown.
# 1 - Autopsy Room Four - A man is paralyzed after getting bitten by a rare snake on a golf course. Everyone thinks he is dead, which is the reason he is in an autopsy room. This story has the uncomfortable feeling that you would also get from being buried alive. King is a master at getting his readers to feel what his main characters feel. This is a top-notch story and a great way to start out the book. Story Grade - A+
# 2 - The Man In The Black Suit - Imagine meeting the devil in a very real-world setting. This is basically what this story is in a nutshell. It comes off much better than it sounds. King won an award for best short fiction for this story and it is well deserved. Story Grade - A+
# 3 - All That You Love Will Be Carried Away - An unsettling story about a traveling salesman on the verge of committing suicide. This is a story that makes you wonder if we all have a preset destiny or if we can change the way our lives go. An interesting story, not the best but certainly not among the worst either. Story Grade - B
# 4 - The Death Of Jack Hamilton - This story is based on the true story of the death of a member of John Dillinger's first gang. Normally I don't go for western, or outlaw stories, but King drew me in with this one. It was a great story and I was glad to read it. King does a great job of telling the story from the first-person point of view. Story Grade - A
# 5 - In The Deathroom - An unusual King story that has a happy ending. Still throughout much of the story it doesn't seem like it will go that way. A former reporter for the New York Times is captured by a South American government. The reporter is held in what is known as "The Deathroom" where he is repeatedly interrogated about a Communist insurgancy that he has been supporting. Despite his captor's claim that he will be set free if he reveals all, the ex-reporter knows that is not in the plans. He stays calm despite the tortures he faces and strives to fight back and survive his terrible ordeal. Again King makes you feel like the lead character feels. He makes the situation relatable and horrifying. Story Grade - A+
# 6 - The Little Sisters Of Eluria - This is a Dark Towers-related story. I do not follow that series so I never read this story. Dark Towers is too fantasy based for my taste so most of the stories related to that series I tend to not read. I'll skip the story grade because I did not read this story so it would be wrong to grade it.
# 7 - Everything's Eventual - This story is one of King's best ever in my opinion. It's about a boy who has been bullied, until he realizes his powers and fights back against the bullies. Unlike Carrie or Firestarter, this is a boy with superpowers. The lead character is a bit of a nerd, but he is easy to feel sorry for. Recruited by the government he sets about using his powers to writer letters or emails to people causing them to committ suicide. For this work he is given a free house, a car, almost anything he wants by way of the cleaners that come around once a week. He does not contact them in person but leaves messages on the fridge for what he wants, from food to an copied painting by Rembrant, to an autographed picture of Nichole Kidman. He also gets cd's & movies before they are released to the general public. Dinky (the main character) also gets paid, a whopping sum of $70 a week and uses the money for trips to McDonalds, the movies, gas money etc. It's not about the cash though, it's about the benefits. One thing is that Dinky must begin the week broke and end the week broke. You might wonder why he has to shred the money or toss the change down a sewer drain. But there are good reasons for everything. The story ends on a bit of a cliffhanger. I would like to read a sequel to this one day. Story Grade - A+
# 8 - LT's Theory Of Pets - A fascinating story about the breakup of a marriage and how similar the relationships between dogs and cats are to a married couple. The main character (LT) is pretty lighthearted throughout much of the story, but throws a surprise towards the end. This story takes you on an emotional roller-coaster and is the kind of story to be told around a campfire. Like Everything's Eventual, this story is one of King's best works ever. Stroy Grade - A+
# 9 - The Road Virus Heads North - This story is basically another inspired by a painting King has. Those paintings that seem to move before your very eyes. Unlike those drawings/paintings, this one haunts the author who bought it at a yardsale. After awhile he tries to get rid of the painting only to have it come back and haunt him and the driver of the car in the painting follows the author's trail. Richard Kinnell (the writer) hears of the brutal death of the woman who sold the painting to him. The story basically says that we are all destined to our own fate. Story Grade - A
# 10 - Lunch At The Gotham Cafe - This story is about a couple getting a divorce and how much of the ordeal is a waking nightmare. As the couple argue over petty things, the maitre d is going crazy and stabs the wife's lawyer. Most of the crowd escapes unharmed, but the couple is faced with having to fight off a crazed maitre d in the kitchen. This is a story that is twisted, but you can imagine something like this happening. Another great story in this collection! Story Grade - A+
# 11 - That Feeling, You Can Only Say What It Is In French - Deja Vu. A woman traveling with her husband experiences a repeat of events from flying on an airplane (that crashes and blows up) to traveling in a limo to the airplane. This story shows how repeating events could be very tiring, but still a good story nonetheless. Story Grade - B
# 12 - 1408 - This is a haunted hotel room story King started in his novel On Writing. It was basically to show fans how to writer a story that's been told a thousand times but do so in a way where it comes off as new & original. You almost can feel that this story takes place in one of the rooms of the Overlook hotel (The Shining). Anything more would spoil the story. Story Grade - A+
# 13 - Riding The Bullet - Originally it was an online book. A simple tale of a character facing death. He is hitchhiking to visit his mother who just suffered a massive stroke. He falls asleep in a cemetary, unknown to him that the headstone he sleeps near is the next driver who will pick him up. Alan Parker (the main character) is forced to face the death of his mother. If he doesn't choose her to die it will be Alan himself who dies. A great story that reminds us that we are not immune to death and neither are our loved ones. Much much better than that pathetic movie adaptation in 2004. Story Grade - A+
# 14 - Luckey Quarter - A woman is tipped a lucky quarter from a man in a gambling hotel. She envisions herself gambling the quarter and winning over and over again. The woman is the mother of two children, her teenage daughter and her sickly young son. She is poor and when the fantasy ends she gives the quarter to her son who was visiting her at work and he precedes to win when he gambles it. Just like her fantasy he wins over and over again. The woman is left to say to herself "Lucky me, lucky me"
One thing I didn't get about the story was that King made it sound as if the boy was very young, so what is he doing gambling? A nice positive story, which is rare for King. Not one of the best and not one of the worst. Story Grade - B
I have this book twice in softcover and once in hardcover. I highly recommend it. One of King's best works ever!
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On some level I believed him completely, as we always believe, on some level, the worst thing our hearts can imagine.Highlighted by 260 Kindle readers- If you need to be there, show up five minutes early. If they need you to be there, show up five minutes late.Highlighted by 254 Kindle readers
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Reviews with images
Great Book!
If you’re a King fan, you can’t go wrong with this one! This is by far my favorite compilation of his short stories. All are very entertaining, yet unique. The book arrived in perfect condition and shipping was fast!
Top reviews from other countries
pranjeev baruah
Exquisite reading, fine printint of the copy. A five star product.
Reviewed in India on April 1, 2022
