Changes?

Hello everyone. I hope you're all having a great Saturday. I've been thinking of changing some things here on my awesome blog (ha!). I've changed my profile picture and about me as most of you have probably noticed (and if you have not, feel free to look over now), but those are small changes. I want my blog to appeal to more people, not just avid Stephen King readers - and writing about King's works exclusively is counter-productive to that. I love having a blog and want to keep this one up. So I am thinking of changing my url and blog title to something a bit more general...maybe I could write about other novels besides King's. However, I mostly read King so I would be writing about what I think of his stuff the majority of the time, but maybe I can write about other books, too. And who says this blog can only be about books? I love music, too - maybe I can write up a CD review or two. Who knows. I've tried similar things on previous blogs, and I never seem to follow through with it, but I think I just might this time.

I know I don't have many readers (again, that's because most folks don't read Stephen King books, which is a sad but true fact) and I don't want to grow bored with only writing about one author's work. So I'm deeply considering this.

In the meantime, I have started the journey to the Dark Tower once again, and will be posting my thoughts on the first novel in the 7-part series. I hope you enjoy those posts. And if you don't, then my apologies. I have a feeling they are going to be a LOT of fun to write about. I can't wait to be in the depths of the strange world that is like ours, but it's not ours, with Roland leading the way. I can't wait to travel with Eddie, Susannah, Jake, and Oy. I can't wait to find myself wanting to get to the tower again, much like the characters on the page. The journey begins...

The man in black fled across the desert, and the gunslinger followed...

Happy reading,
Cody

The Shining - Part II

Hi guys. Sorry for the brief hiatus. I've been reading just as much King as always (as well as some Koontz and Dekker - other excellent authors!), I simply haven't been posting. I'm not entirely sure why. I guess it's just the fact that trying to write about how I feel when I finish a novel by Sai King is like trying to write about what love really is - why we love, how we love, and how to define it, if that makes sense - I'm not entirely sure that it does. Anyway, I am finally writing (and posting) the second and final part of my thoughts on King's 1977 novel The Shining. Enjoy!

In my last post, I stated that the Overlook Hotel was trying to use its powers to get to Danny through Jack. Why would it do that? Well, you see, "the shining" is a way of saying that Danny can read others' emotions and thoughts, quite frankly. Danny is picking up on a lot of vibes from the hotel, seeing things that are there (or aren't there?) and it's frightening him. He is, after all, only five years old. Jack and Wendy are both worried about the little guy - what parents wouldn't be? Yet, at the same time, the Hotel (said with a capital letter and with the utmost respect, as Stuart Ullman does) is overwhelming Jack - pushing him into his alcoholic tendencies and making him give into his temper, and he doesn't even realize it. It's a shame, really, to see how fast this guy crumbles and breaks. But Stephen King makes all of it incredibly believable, which is one of his strongest traits as an author. We really get inside Jack Torrance's mind, see what makes him tick, and what eventually makes him turn into a puppet controlled by the Overlook. It's heartbreaking, but above all, King's novels are a study in everyday people going through crazy circumstances, and if they come out of it. Sometimes they win, sometimes they don't. That's exactly how real life is.

All the while, the snow is falling outside. Welcome to winter in Colorado. Since the Overlook Hotel is so far away from any civilization, and it's in the mountains, there is no easy way to quickly leave - especially in horrible conditions. Imagine the claustrophobia, the tension. Cabin fever can do some crazy things to ordinary people under everyday circumstances without a hotel with an awful past filled with demons all bent on murder (REDRUM). So imagine what kind of hell the hotel eventually becomes for the Torrances. The novel throbs and aches, and then turns into a whirlwind of destruction and fear. Some of King's most cut-throat scenes are contained in this very novel. I will never forget the scene in the hotel's playground, when Danny just wants to play. It goes smoothly at first, then a chill sets over the boy. I was biting my fingernails (a horrible habit I need to break, but oh well) while reading that part. And then, he decides to make a break for the hotel, to bolt inside the front door and away from the terror which he feels lies in that snowy playground...and out of the corner of his eye, he notices movement. Oh, hell. He turns and looks at the topiary garden, filled with fake lions, dogs, and the like. It all looks ordinary, nothing out of place...so he turns away again, moving slowly toward the hotel, trying to move through the snow. The hand of fear and panic is beginning to settle quite nicely on the back of little Danny's neck, the boy with the shining and the ability to sense things others don't. He turns around again. Are those things closer now? Who changed their positions? Do they seem a bit more...life-like...? Uh-oh... Danny panics, runs for the door, and makes it onto the porch just in time. Man, that was scary!

There are several other scenes here that almost made me soil my pants, honestly. Back in the day, King's writing style was take-no-prisoners. He went straight for the jugular. That's not to say he isn't talented now - but there is a reason I jumped at every sound I heard when I closed this book. Who could forget the naked ghost-lady in the bath-tub, the fire extinguisher, or Jack busting through the door with a roquet mallet to get to his wife, Wendy? Who could forget Jack's conversation with the ghostly bartender Lloyd, or the mysterious, sinister party where he has the conversation about how a man should always get respect from his family - NO MATTER WHAT - with the former care-taker from many, many, many years ago?

I'm not going to go into every detail of the book in this post because I'd be typing for hours. Let me just say that this book is frightening, and places you in the hallways of the Overlook Hotel. Beware of room 217 - you don't know what's in there! Don't walk past any fire extinguishers, they might be trickier than you think. But no matter where you run, no matter where you hide, the Hotel will come for you. The Hotel is alive, and it cannot be stopped...right?

I suppose the thing you're wondering is if the Torrances make it out of the hotel. Does Jack really give into his temptations to drink, and does he really have such a bad temper? Are there any deaths, like in King's other books? I really don't want to tell you, because I think that would spoil some of your entertainment of this book. This is a book best enjoyed without knowing what will happen next, definitely. It has a constant pedal-to-the-metal pace, and that's one thing (of many) I love about this novel.

The theme(s) of this novel is pretty easy to pick out for me, although some of you may have a different opinion altogether. Alcoholism and abuse are very real things - things that shouldn't be taken so lightly. And even more than that, this is a book about ghosts - not spook ghosts, but ghosts of our pasts - skeletons in the closet, if you will. Don't let these things get to you, drive you mad - like Jack's did. Don't let them get the best of you. Because they CAN and they WILL if given a chance. All they need is a small opening and for you to invite them to take over your soul, heart, and mind. They'll take it from there.

Do I recommend this novel? Whole-heartily, yes I do. It's King at a peak in his career (and he has had several!) and it's a serious, scary, brooding novel. In my opinion, it's also one of his finest. So pick this one up, kick back, relax, and enjoy. But don't read it when you're alone.

And remember: all work and no play made Jack a VERY dull boy.

Happy reading!
Cody

The Shining - Part I

Hi, all. I've decided to change things up a bit and separate the next King book I am posting about into two separate parts. You may ask why (although I doubt you're wondering and you know I'll tell you, anyway). Honestly, I've only read the first three parts of this story (recently, anyway), which take up about half the length of this 446 page (paper-back) novel. I've read this book before but it's been a few months since I last gave it a reading and I wanted it all to be fresh on my mind as I wrote about it. And like the previous times, I've been scared almost witless due to some of the passages found in The Shining and it's a feeling I love. Other Stephen King books have scared me too, but nothing compares to this one (and I'm not even covering the TRULY scary parts in this post - that will come in part II!) and no, that isn't just hype.

The Shining, Stephen King's third novel that was released in 1977, is about the Torrances - Jack, the father; Wendy, the mother; and Danny, their five-year-old son that has "the shining", the ability to pick up on others' thoughts and emotions. Danny is often thought of by his parents to be smart, albeit a bit too serious compared to other kids his age. There are a few other characters that show up in this novel, but the focus is almost always on these three and their dynamics as a family.

The story starts out with Jack being interviewed for the job of the winter care-taker of the Overlook Hotel (which is where this story takes place) in Boulder, Colorado by the hotel's owner, Stuart Ullman. The first couple of lines of this story are perhaps some of the most...perfect lines found in a King book:

"Jack Torrance thought: officious little prick.
Ullman stood five-five, and when he moved, it was with the prissy speed that seems to be the exclusive domain of all small plump men. The part in his hair was exact, and his dark suit was sober but comforting. I am a man you can bring your problems to, that suit said to the paying customer. To the hired help it spoke more curtly: This had better be good, you. There was a red carnation in the lapel, perhaps so that no one on the street would mistake Stuart Ullman for the local undertaker."

I'm not completely sure why, but that passage is one of my favorites.

In the first three parts of this novel, we find out that Jack is (was...just was...not is, right?) an alcoholic. He was one, anyway. He's trying to stop drinking cold turkey, because it was tearing the Torrance family apart. Also, Jack can get a temper sometimes and it's his temper that cost him his job, teaching high school English, thus why Jack is trying to get the job of the Overlook Hotel's maintenance man. He gets the job, and away we go to the hotel.

The Overlook is a massive hotel in the middle of nowhere in the Colorado mountains. It's beautiful. At first, the family is happy to be staying here for the winter months (and they've mostly forgotten all the troubles Jack's drinking and temper have caused them in the past couple of years...for the moment, anyway) but soon after, cabin fever begins to sink in. Please remember that we are in Colorado here, in the mountains, and the story is set from September-January or so. The closest town, Sidewinder, is a good, long drive away...and there's no one else in the hotel but the three Torrances.

Before we go any further, please understand that Jack Torrance is not a mean guy by any means. While reading this book, I was drawn to all three of the Torrances. They all have good things about themselves, as well as bad things. No one person is completely bad, even if that person deals with alcohol problems and can be abusive sometimes. Everyone has redemption value. That theme is explored more fully and better in this book than I could ever try to write. This is a story about a guy trying to get his act together - he thinks being all alone with his family for months will help them grow closer and fix some problems they've been having over the course of the past few years. Also, Jack is continuing to work on the play he's been writing for what seems like ever. He is an aspiring writer, and he hopes being cut off from society will help get the creative juices flowing. And writing is a very good distraction from the need to drink...for a while, anyway. However, despite his good intentions...he can't help being tempted to drink every now and then (try every other minute, or so it seems to Jack) and it's causing him pain. You can feel the desperate battle between wanting so badly to drink and the wanting to stay sober for his family's sake in Jack's mind. All the while, Wendy is beginning to worry more and more about Jack...she's used to his temper but he seems too be holding his horrible temper in...and that's scaring her even more. What's going on? And poor Danny can pick up on it all (or most of it, anyway - we know that he begins to become more and more lost by the vibes he picks up from Jack) and it's weighing on his shoulders, and maybe the Overlook Hotel, what with its confused and scandalous past (we find out several murders and suicides have happened in the Overlook, as well as many other awful things - every hotel has its ghost and the Overlook seems to have many) isn't just trying to get to Jack...but Danny, too. Danny - the kid with the shining. And maybe the hotel doesn't like that shinin' business too much.

You may be wondering why I claimed earlier that this book is the scariest novel by Stephen King, at least in my opinion. And quite frankly, it's simple. King takes the basic idea of a haunted house (and c'mon...we've all been scared of the thought of being trapped in an old, deserted, run-down "haunted house - or maybe that was just me) and blows it up into something bigger than that. The Overlook Hotel has many ghosts and by golly, they all wanna play. And maybe more than that  - on a realistic level that we all can relate to - the basic horror of abuse and alcohol make this one frightening. Jack is a guy, while drunk (and sometimes sober), that isn't afraid to break his own son's arm out of anger or beat one of his own students up because the kid slashed his tires. And dang it, Jack doesn't have much will-power. So, while cooped up in the Overlook Hotel, Jack is battling demons of the internal kind and Danny is battling demons of the external kind, thanks to his special sense. It doesn't help that that darn cabin fever is taking over - slowly, but ever-so-surely.

I've probably slaughtered this book in trying to describe it, but please believe me when I say this book is far better than I can say. At its core, it's about the darkness of addiction and the horror that can ensue when giving into those addictions. And since King himself was a drunk while writing this story, I can't help but feel that he put bits of himself into Jack's character, which makes it much more personal, and thus, it's an even darker story. Alcoholism and abuse aren't myths - they're very real things. And you know what? I don't completely disbelieve in spirits and ghosts, either. Anything is possible, I guess.

I'm sorry that this post most likely doesn't make sense in some parts - I hate reading reviews, overviews, etc., of books and movies that give away massive spoilers. I've given away a couple here, but nothing too major. I must say however, it is very hard to keep my lips zipped tight as I type this. I hope you enjoyed reading what I said (and oh, I could have said much more) and maybe you'll come visit again when I post part II. So stay happy and healthy...and stay away from the REDRUM.

Happy reading,
Cody

IT

Hello friends. It's been quite a while since I last posted, hasn't it? That doesn't mean I've been slacking on my Stephen King intake, no not at all. In the past few months I've devoured stories long and short alike by my favorite author, such as Cujo, Carrie, Salem's Lot, The Stand, Full Dark No Stars, Lisey's Story and I am waist-deep in Dreamcatcher as I speak (err... type?). What can I say, I am a fan-boy.

I've decided to write about a book that has hit home for me perhaps more than any other King book has, that book being his mid-80's classic IT. I would bet a million bucks on when you hear the word "it", you automatically thinking of an evil clown that kills children by doing horrible things that the human mind doesn't want to comprehend. And, well, that's what IT is. Sort of. IT is a creature, that yes, takes the form of a clown quite often - but NOT always. It takes the form of whatever is its next victim's deepest fear - a spider, a leper, etc. You see, I am not at all terrified of clowns (I am in the minority on that one, I know - I guess I can thank this book and the movie based on it for that) but the thought of this creature being able to take the form of whatever would scare me the most...that is terrifying. That's what kept me up for hours at night while I was in the process of reading this novel, thinking.

But this novel is not just about horror, gore, murder. This is a tale of six childhood friends - Bill, Beverly,  Richie, Eddie, Ben, Stan and Mike - fighting this demon not once, but twice. Once in the summer of their eleventh year in the '50's, and the other time taking place in the mid-1980's, 26-and-a-half years later in the haunted town of Derry, Maine.

I loved King's detail and attention to these six kids' friendship and how exactly they became bonded together so closely. This book's main focus isn't on IT (who's name is actually Pennywise, for those who didn't know) a good amount of times. A lot of the attention is on these six kids that I loved getting to know. We see the heartbreak that childhood puppy love brings (and since Beverly was the only girl in the group of friends...that made for some problems), these guys fighting off bullies that are bigger and stronger than they, the kids hanging out in the Barrens and in their clubhouse, and we get to see them grow up.  It was fun to imagine myself as being a part of their group, The Losers Club.

This book touched my heart in many ways and made me come away from it with a different point of view on a couple of things, such as my own childhood and how I can overcome monsters (metaphorically, not physically) I face in everyday situations. This novel made me feel as though I had really became good friends with Ben (I really related to him the most), Henry, Beverly, Stan, Richie, Eddie, and Mike. Their worries became my worries; their triumphs became my triumphs. Few books have had that affect on me, but this one most certainly did. So pick this one up soon, and enjoy the journey. I believe I am due for another trip to Derry, Maine quite soon.

Oh! Also, dear reader, please stay away from the sewers and sinks.

We all float down here.

Happy reading,
Cody