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
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