August 9 - "L.T.'s Theory of Pets"

Sunday’s with Uncle Stevie“L.T.’s Theory of Pets”
by Stephen King
Everything’s Eventual (2002)

* * * (Good) Realistic

L.T. shares the story of how his marriage to Lulubelle ended and of how the pets they bought each other as anniversary gifts became attached to the wrong person.

King wrote in his introduction to this story how it was his favorite of the collection, but I just don’t see it. Maybe it has to do with my lack of an emotional connection to the concept of pets. Actually, in reading why he believes this story has a great impact on the reader – the whole notion of people forging lasting connections with their pets – I’m sure that’s the reason it doesn’t do as much for me. In fact, without that emotional connection, I don’t feel there is much to this story. It is well written and enjoyable enough on a superficial level. It’s just one of those times where a story can’t please everyone (me).

August 2 - "Strawberry Spring"

Sundays with Uncle Stevie“Strawberry Spring”
by Stephen King
Night Shift (1979)

* * * (Good) Horror

Hidden in the fog, a killer haunts the campus of the New Sharon Teacher’s College during the strawberry spring of 1968.

King does a better job with the setting and the mood of the story here than he does with developing the characters. Which is unusual. That’s not to say that he foregoes setting and mood in his greater works – in fact they are a large part of many of his stories – but they are usually combined with interesting, realistic characters. Here the narrator does little more than recollect fragments of that time when Springheel Jack stalked the campus, killing coeds in the fog. The twist at the end of the story is of little surprise, and by the end, it doesn’t appear to be much more than your average slasher/horror story.

[This story was read on August 2. The review was not posted until later due to laziness on my part.]

July 26 - "Trucks"

Sundays with Uncle Stevie“Trucks”
by Stephen King
Night Shift (1979)

* * * * (Great) Supernatural

A small group of people find themselves trapped inside a truck stop surrounded by an increasing number of murderous trucks.

This is the kind of story that would have really excited me – creatively and in my imagination – when I was a kid and spent my summers traveling by semi across the country, staying many nights in truck stops, constantly surrounded by vehicles such as these monstrous trucks. That’s not to say that I didn’t enjoy it now; it did bring back memories, and I could very vividly picture all of the little details right down to the smells and sounds. It actually reminded me of King’s very similar story, The Mist, which I recently rewatched on DVD. In fact, this story of stranded survivors surrounded by overwhelming odds could almost be viewed as a sort of inspiration for the later story.

July 19 - "The Man Who Loved Flowers"

Sundays with Uncle Stevie“The Man Who Loved Flowers”
by Stephen King
Night Shift (1979)

* * * (Good) Horror

A young man with a secret peacefully walks the streets of New York City before purchasing a bundle of flowers and setting off in search of his girl, Norma.

Sometimes all it takes is a single small moment, a clue hidden into the narrative so that the twist ending doesn’t come out of nowhere, to spoil a story. I’m not saying that I enjoyed the story less by recognizing this story beat, but the tale did become predictable from that point forward. But I was a bit disappointed here because the story started off so differently that any other King story I’d read. It was a story about a man in love and things were grand and I didn’t know where it was going to lead me. Once I knew there was a hammer killer on the loose, it was apparent who he was and what he was going to do and how the story would end. It was a fine story with an apt ending, but my excitement vanished long before that point.

July 12 - "N."

Sundays with Uncle Stevie“N.”
by Stephen King
Just After Sunset (2008)

* * * * * (Excellent) Supernatural

Dr. Bonsaint works with patient, N., to help him overcome the obsessive compulsions that keep him from sleep and health. Only the doctor comes to find that these compulsions stem from a fear – as impossible as it sounds – that might be real.

And suddenly my obsessive compulsion to double check that the garage door is down doesn’t seem so strange. At least I don’t count things – worry about bad numbers – or place things to the extent that N. does in an attempt to keep the evil at bay. The story does include the “Pandora effect” that many horror stories suffer from – that curiosity that always leads to disaster. Here it fits the story – the curiosity created for the characters is overwhelming – and the results, while tragic, make the story enjoyable, and a little scary. There’s even a Dark Tower reference: the field of the story is a thinny, and we all know there is little good inside one of those.

July 5 - "Popsy"

Sundays with Uncle Stevie“Popsy”
by Stephen King
Nightmares & Dreamscapes (1993)

* * * (Good) Supernatural

In an attempt to earn the money to cover a gambling debt, Briggs Sheridan kidnaps the wrong child with monstrous consequences.

There’s not much to this story. On one hand, the story suffers from a lack of propelling action – it deals mainly with Sheridan’s character and his addiction to cards and gambling – but on the other hand, if the story were any longer the “fruit” of the story would spoil. Sometimes an idea only supports so many words. The twist ending comes as less of a surprise than simply a fun way to end a story. This is only a serviceable example of King’s work.

June 28 - "Everything's Eventual"

Sundays with Uncle Stevie“Everything’s Eventual”
by Stephen King
Everything’s Eventual (2002)

* * * * * (Excellent) Supernatural

Dinky Earnshaw has the ability to compose messages that compel people to kill themselves. This ability does not go unnoticed and soon Dinky is working for the Trans Corporation, sending emails and the occasional letter out into the world. Eventually Dinky begins to question his role in these deaths.

Ah, the introduction to a character I came across in the Dark Tower series. I’ve always been a huge fan for the interconnectedness of stories – probably why I enjoy comics, book series, and television as much as I do. Add to this the supernatural ability to kill people through letters and email (not in itself a unique ability – many other stories have done the same, or something similar), and the story is a winner. In fact, most of the story is just Dinky explaining how he lives, day to day, week after week. You wouldn’t think that to be a fascinating read, but King makes it all seem so real and engaging. Dinky becomes a character you are curious to follow, and with his eventual appearance at the end of the Dark Tower series, you get that chance to see how things worked out for him.

June 21 - "Battleground"

Sundays with Uncle Stevie“Battleground”
by Stephen King
Night Shift (1979)

* * * * * (Excellent) Supernatural

Mr. Renshaw goes to war in his apartment against a box full of tiny toy soldiers flying helicopters, driving jeeps, and armed for battle with bazookas, rocker launchers, and more.

This was my favorite adaptation in the TNT mini-series, Nightmares & Dreamscapes. This dialogue-free hour of television starring William Hurt was a load of fun and quite entertaining. I hoped the story would be as good, and it was. A person would think that fighting off a small army of tiny toy soldiers would be no big deal, but much like the debate about the deadliness of slow-moving zombies, give an opponent enough time – no matter how outclassed – and they will win the battle. And who wouldn’t be entertained with the images of little green army dudes taking it to a giant?!

June 7 - "Morality"

Sundays with Uncle Stevie“Morality”
by Stephen King
Esquire, July 2009

* * * * (Great) Realistic

A dying man presents Nora the opportunity to make $200,000 for committing an act of sin.

There is a great build up to the eventual act. King does a masterful job of surrounding the event in tension-building mystery. We know how the story should end – will end – and with a title of “Morality,” how else could it end? But it is like watching cars crash or accidents as we pass by, we’re fascinated by the destruction. This one act, designed to fulfill the dreams of a money-challenged couple, ends up driving the two apart. My only complaint is that Nora, while fully realized as a character, does not appear as original as King’s characters so often do.

[And I had to include the cover to this issue of Esquire promoting the story. Wow.]

May 31 - "The Night Flier"

Sundays with Uncle Stevie“The Night Flier”
by Stephen King
Nightmares & Dreamscapes (1993)

* * * * (Great) Horror

Tabloid report Richard Dees follows the story of a serial killer preying on the people that run small airports along the East coast. His nose for the “blood and guts” story leads him to an encounter with the Night Flier he will never forget.

This is the type of horror story I enjoy. It’s the building tension and suspense – the mystery – that draw me into stories. I don’t mind the carnage –the blood and guts – but only if they fit the story, if they are the right element for the moment. As "The Night Flier" progresses, each section gives you another piece to the puzzle, with the past and present coming together at the end. There’s a spectacular bit of plane-crashing action before Dees finally meets up with the Night Flier. It’s a confrontation King excels at writing, leaving both the character and the reader in awe of the monster King has gleefully created.

May 24 - "Graduation Afternoon"

Sundays with Uncle Stevie“Graduation Afternoon”
by Stephen King
Just After Sunset (2008)

* * * * (Great) Realistic

Janice contemplates the end of her relationship with Bruce – Buddy – at his graduation party, the backdrop for an unexpected nuclear attack on New York City.

Lacking any horror, except for the true horror – a conceivable horror these days – of a nuclear attack, the story is still a great study in character. Janice is believable as a graduating high school student. She’s hopeful, realistic, and honest. She knows what’s best for her, even if it includes the loss of her rich boyfriend – no real loss she understands. And then the unthinkable happens – the bomb – and you feel so terribly bad for this girl you know was on her way toward a happy and successful life. The shock of the bomb hits the reader nearly as hard as it does the character, a sign the author has done justice to his creation.

May 17 - "The Boogeyman"

Sundays with Uncle Stevie“The Boogeyman”
by Stephen King
Night Shift (1979)

* * * * (Great) Horror

Lester Billings discusses his guilt over the death of his three young children with a shrink. He didn’t kill the children – not exactly – he just didn’t protect them from the Boogeyman.

Speaking as a person who still jumps at sounds and bumps in the night, a story written about the Boogeyman terrorizing a family hits me where I still feel some fear. King does a great job of justifying, in character, why Lester would continue to leave his children alone in the dark, easy prey for the Boogeyman even he is convinced exists. After the first child’s death, you as reader wonder why he doesn’t learn and protect the other children. His upbringing – and then fear – are offered as explanation, not excuses, and they fit the character and thus end the questions we readers were asking. My only complaint is the ending. The story could have gone a few different ways, but took the easy route: the Scooby Doo ending. A monster in a mask is weak.

May 10 - "The Things They Left Behind"

Sundays with Uncle Stevie“The Things They Left Behind”
by Stephen King
Just After Sunset (2008)

* * * * * (Excellent) Supernatural

After avoiding death during the 9/11 attacks in New York City, Scott Staley is haunted by memories brought to the surface by a collection mysterious objects that appear in his apartment.

King’s propensity to include pop culture references throughout his writing is blatantly apparent in this story. Almost to the point of distraction. What saves the story is the delicate mix of the supernatural and the realistic. The story retains all of those elements that make Stephen King the writer he is – the character digressions, the hiding horror, those pop culture influences, etc. – while also tackling a serious event in American history. It also helps that the story deals with issues of memory and guilt – topics and themes I enjoy exploring in my reading. Serious King is just as good as Scary King.

May 3 - "The Little Sisters of Eluria"

Sundays with Uncle Stevie“The Little Sisters of Eluria”
by Stephen King
Everything’s Eventual (2002)

* * * * * (Excellent) Pulp

After an unfortunate encounter with a gang of green folk – slow mutants – Roland, the Gunslinger, is nursed back to health by the sinister Little Sisters of Eluria.

A missing chapter from the Dark Tower saga, this not-so-brief adventure takes place before Roland catches Walter, the man in black, of the first novel, The Gunslinger. King does an excellent job setting the scene as Roland first enters Eluria, the eeriness of it all creates such a sense of dread you can’t help but wonder – and hope for – the evil hiding in the silence and shadows. The time Roland spends in the care of the Little Sisters is also a delightfully tension-filled collection of pages. There’s a reason King is a master of suspense, his craft is exceptional. My only complaint with the story is that the language of the series, the narrator’s manner of speech (Do ya ken it?), seems absent. This could be due to the fact that King wrote this tale before finishing the final books, where the language of Roland’s time in Hambry and the Calla seemed to more deeply permeate the narrator’s voice.

April 26 - "The Mangler"

Sundays with Uncle Stevie“The Mangler”
by Stephen King
Night Shift (1979)

* * * * (Great) Supernatural

After a horrific accident at an industrial wash facility, suspecting the Hadley-Watson Model-6 Speed Ironer and Folder to be possessed, the local police officer races to exorcise the blood-hungry demon before it kills again.

This story is an excellent example of pacing. The story builds from the first slow and apprehensive paragraph through to the tense, terrifying, and quick final moments. There are no extraneous details or wasted words. Even the quick aside about a killer refrigerator (was this mentioned in ’Salem’s Lot as well?) fits in with the overall flow of the story. I’m sure it’s not unusual with prolific authors writing for decades, but I can tell the time period in which the story was written; it mirrors the tone and style of King’s other works of the same time. It’s an interesting thing to watch – style – as it evolves over time.

As a random note: this is the second story this year with an obscure, possessed machine. First was Brown’s evil Linotype machine, and now the Mangler. I’m sure there is an entire sub-genre of supernatural machine literature I don’t even know exists. Weird.

April 19 - "I Am the Doorway"

Sundays with Uncle Stevie“I Am the Doorway”
by Stephen King
Night Shift (1979)

* * (Okay) Science Fiction

An astronaut returned from a trip around Venus worries about the mysterious, itchy growths hidden under the bandages covering his hands.

There is a mix of science fiction and horror elements in this story that simply doesn’t add up to anything spectacular. The story seems run-of-the-mill – a recycled mass of 50’s and 60’s, B-class sci fi. Very little of King’s voice is apparent in the prose here. Granted, this is an earlier work, but while reading I found very little of the author I’ve come to enjoy so much.

April 12 - "In the Deathroom"

Sundays with Uncle Stevie“In the Deathroom”
by Stephen King
Everything’s Eventual (2002)

* * * * (Great) Suspense

Fletcher is dragged into a deathroom and placed in a chair facing three individuals wishing to have a conversation – interrogation – about the mysterious and rebellious El Condor. His only hope for survival is escape.

A little bit of torture in the deathroom. You see and read so much about torture and its impact becomes something less than horrific. Yes, it is still often cringe-worthy, but no longer so much in idea, but in the various new methods people invent. I enjoyed that King put us in the mind of Fletcher so that we could better experience the thrill of fighting back, of escape. I think it not unusual for people to place themselves in situations such as this (or time in prison, or being shot, or fighting for your life) in an attempt to test the limits of their own courage or fortitude. That we have stories such as this allows us that experience. It is well done and you come away feeling – hoping – you are half as strong as Fletcher. Not all stories have happy endings, but sometimes a little hope isn’t such a bad thing.

April 5 - "Night Surf"

Sundays with Uncle Stevie“Night Surf”
by Stephen King
Night Shift (1979)

* * (Okay) Realistic

In the aftermath of the A6 super flu – Captain Trips – a group of friends spend the night on a deserted beach after burning a dying man on the pier.

Wow, that’s bleak. And unfortunately, boring. In what appears to be the seed of the larger – greater – story, The Stand, we are introduced to the idea of the final few survivors of a super flu that decimates the world’s population. Where this story fails to achieve the normal Kingian levels of greatness is in its brevity. We are given just a snapshot of these characters and this situation. I’m more interested in who they are, and how they came together, and where they go from here. Instead, we are offered just a few hours of one night – even the burning of the body is told in only a paragraph or two of flashback. The whole – story? – was simply less than expected. It’s a great idea, only not fully realized (yet).

March 29 - "The Death of Jack Hamilton"

Sundays with Uncle Stevie“The Death of Jack Hamilton”
by Stephen King
Everything’s Eventual (2002)

* * * * * (Excellent) Realistic

Homer Van Meter, a member of the Dillinger Gang, shares the unknown tale behind the scar on John Dillinger’s lip. It’s a tale of robberies, firefights and speeding cars, lassoing flies, and the death of a friend, Jack “Red” Hamilton.

Now I really want to see Michael Mann’s Public Enemies starring Johnny Depp as John Dillinger. If Dillinger and his gang are anything like King portrays them in this “myth”, then the movie will be an enormous success. In this tale we learn the supposed “true story” about how Dillinger’s luck finally ran out. Narrated by Van Meter, you get a strong sense of the time through the dialogue, and of Dillinger’s charm in his interactions with each and every person he meets, be it a car-jack victim or close confidant. King perfectly captures his anti-heroic/outlaw appeal. This story teases a genre King could very easily branch out into: crime, or cops and robbers. (To be honest, I’m such a supporter that I believe King could write anything and it would succeed.) And the idea of lassoing flies creates an amazing image. That someone has the patience, skill, and dexterity to accomplish such of a feat is unbelievable, but the thought of those white threads attached to the flies floating in the air is just as funny and beautiful to me as it was to the dying Jack Hamilton.

March 22 - "Graveyard Shift"

Sundays with Uncle Stevie“Graveyard Shift”
by Stephen King
Night Shift (1979)

* * (Okay) Horror

Hall and a handful of other men volunteer to clean the long-abandoned, rat-infested basement of the mill during the Fourth of July shut down. No one expected to find the old wooden door leading down to a forgotten sub-basement, and the evils lurking beneath the mill.

If you did not already dislike rats before reading this story, I imagine you’d look upon them now in a new, disgusted light. In this tale King spends too much time on the atmosphere and setting, ignoring the story. I never had a feel for the character of Hall, something unusual in a story penned by King, and that lack of connection kept me coolly aloof as a reader. While it is a creepy tale, and you can easily imagine the glassy-blind black eyes staring out at you from the shadows of the room, you reach the end and can do little but shrug your indifferent shoulders. Horrific, yes; entertaining, not so much.