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 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 7 - "Nightmare at 20,000 Feet"

“Nightmare at 20,000 Feet”
by Richard Matheson
The Incredible Shrinking Man (1994)

* * * * (Great) Supernatural

Arthur Wilson is not a fan of flying. Already ill at ease with the flight, Wilson is shocked to see a man out on the wing, sabotaging the engines. His attempts to warn the crew of the plane fall on deaf ears, and thus he decides to take matters into his own hands.

It is funny how certain things stay with you. A movie that came out when I was three – though I didn’t see it until a few years later – has a segment based on the story I read today, twenty plus years later, and I was vividly able to recall the tale almost scene for scene. Now I’m not saying that the movie segment followed the story exactly – it’s been years since I’ve seen it – but the main beats of the story were there in my mind. In fact, it was almost as though I’d been there – on the plane – and this story was just a reminder of that moment in my life. Memory is a weird thing. Regardless, if an idea sticks with you as much as this one has, then there must be little wrong with it.

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 27 - "The Flints of Memory Lane"

“The Flints of Memory Lane”
by Neil Gaiman
Fragile Things (2006)

* * * * * (Excellent) Supernatural

The narrator recalls the moment he met the ghost of a gypsy woman one night when he was 15 and on his way to a friend’s home.

I’m intrigued with the idea of preferring to share only “story-shaped” tales. These would be stories with clear beginnings, middles, and ends. Everything explained and neatly in place. I tend to prefer this type of tale, myself. That’s not to say I don’t occasionally mind when a story is just a rambling mess of amazing sentences. I’m sucker for interesting sentences, such as this:

“She was not my girlfriend (my girlfriend lived in Croydon, where I went to school, a gray-eyed blonde of unimaginable beauty who was, as she often complained to me, puzzled, never able to figure out why she was going out with me), but she was a friend, and she lived about a ten-minute walk away from me, beyond the fields, in the older part of town.”

But, the more “story-shaped” a tale, the more enjoyment I find, even if the tale is short, simple, and true thing with questions left unanswered and possibly not all that entertaining in the retelling to begin with.

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 13 - "Shock Wave"

A Week of Richard Matheson“Shock Wave”
by Richard Matheson
Button, Button: Uncanny Stories (2008)

* * (Okay) Supernatural

Mr. Moffat is convinced that there is something wrong with the old church organ. Moffat and his cousin Wendall listen with increasing fear as the organ behaves unnaturally during church service.

There really must be a sub-genre of possessed machines. That being the case, this story doesn’t quite measure up. The slowly building tension is so slow that when the organ does begin tearing the church down, you have little interest in the destruction other than its signal to the end of the tale. I did find it fascinating to learn a little more about those massive church organs; they are a lot more involved and complex than I’d ever imagined.

June 11 - "Mute"

A Week of Richard Matheson“Mute”
by Richard Matheson
Button, Button: Uncanny Stories (2008)

* * * (Good) Supernatural

A mysterious German arrives in town looking for the young mute boy who survived the house fire that killed his parents.

The story seemed overly long for what little detail it paid to the point of the piece. The idea of raising a child to communicate telepathically is interesting enough that it might be able to sustain a story of 40 pages length; however, this story only hints at the idea for 30+ pages, cramming the “good stuff” into only few measly pages. This seems to be the pattern of the past few days: cool concept, mediocre execution.

June 10 - "Clothes Make the Man"

A Week of Richard Matheson“Clothes Make the Man”
by Richard Matheson
Button, Button: Uncanny Stories (2008)

* * (Okay) Supernatural

A drunken man corners a guest at a party and tells him the tragic tale of his brother’s losing battle with his wardrobe.

There were moments when the story rose above silliness. In fact, in those brief moments the tale had some real potential for terror. In the end it was the drunken rambling that put me out of the story. Every moment away from Charlie and his increasingly finicky wardrobe was excruciating. Even the quote unquote surprise reveal at the end was wasted because of its proximity to the toxic narrator. So much potential here, squandered.

June 8 - "No Such Thing as a Vampire"

A Week of Richard Matheson“No Such Thing as a Vampire”
by Richard Matheson
Button, Button: Uncanny Stories (2008)

* * * * (Great) Supernatural

A mysterious attacker collects blood from Madame Gheria’s neck every night. Her husband finally calls on the younger Dr. Vares in an attempt to solve the problem once and for all.

Oh, such a delicious twist ending. It’s a rare beast of an ending that sneaks up and surprises me. While the ending does come as a bit of a surprise – it was not set up from the start of the story – it works well with the story, so can be forgiven its abruptness. In fact, the title of the story serves its purpose well. It challenges you to at first believe its veracity, and then question it, leaving you primed and ready for the perfect ending. A nice little tweaking of conventions.

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.

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 1 - "An Indian Ghost in England"

“An Indian Ghost in England”
by Rudyard Kipling
Tales of Horror & Fantasy (2008)

* * * (Good) Supernatural

A weary man on horseback decides to spend the night in a small town not far from his destination. After his meal he turns in to bed only to hear the not-so-distant wail of the ghost said to haunt this very village.

Kipling does a great job, in some fine and rambling sentences, of describing the setting of the story. In fact, aside from a few key actions, this story is essentially a painted picture of rural England in the chill and breeze of February. There is beautiful imagery, but not enough narrative. I’ve come to assume the twist ending, but this ending fell flat. You come expecting a ghost story – the setup and description and atmosphere promise as much – and you walk away with something…less. Grumbling aside, I thought the second paragraph – the one with the abundance of dashes (which I love to use and see) – was a treat. Following the meandering flow of the sentences was its own kind of grammatical adventure.

March 22 - "Jerusalem's Lot"

Sundays with Uncle Stevie“Jerusalem’s Lot”
by Stephen King
Night Shift (1979)

* * * * (Great) Supernatural

A correspondence of letters tells of the mysteries and horrors Charles Boone encounters upon taking up residence at Chapelwaite, near the deserted, evil town of Jerusalem’s Lot in 1850.

In a change of format and style, King provides the history behind the town of ‘Salem’s Lot, the setting of his wonderful novel of the same name. Having read some stories from the 1800’s, King does an adequate job of capturing the cadence of the time through the voice of Charles Boone in his letters to close friends. There is the trademark suspense and tension that builds as Boone investigates the “bad house” and the tales surrounding the deserted town close by. The story’s only fault comes at the end, where things begin ape the Cthulhu mythos (maybe respectfully so, but I am not a fan – yet – of the Lovecraftian old ones), complete with conquering worms. As a fan of the novel, 'Salem’s Lot, I was curious throughout, wondering how this story fit with the novel’s larger world. It acts as prequel, setting up the horror of the house in which the vampire resides. It is a nice little Easter egg of information that adds a new level of story to an already dense and defined work.

March 20 - "Deadman's Road"

“Deadman’s Road”
by Joe R. Lansdale
The Shadows, Kith and Kin (2007)

* * * * * (Excellent) Supernatural

The road-weary Reverend Jebidiah Rains agreed to help a deputy transport a criminal to Nacogdoches for hanging, insisting they travel by Deadman’s Road after hearing the Old Timer tell tale of an evil haunting that way.

The story I was searching for all week. I had been in the mood for a western – not old-timesy and tame, but something brutal and fierce. The addition of a supernatural element only added another level of pleasure to this tale. Lansdale knows how to write the west, and horror. The slow build from dinnertime ghost story to supernatural showdown added a sense of tension and terror that kept me shifting in my seat. There simply aren’t nearly enough well-written horror/westerns out there to keep me satiated. And the descriptions: wow.

“The evening sun had rolled down and blown out in a bloody wad, and the white, full moon had rolled up like an enormous ball of tightly wrapped twine.”

Amazingly bleak, and yet wonderfully western.

March 19 - "Etaoin Shrdlu"

“Etaoin Shrdlu”
by Fredric Brown
From These Ashes (2000)

* * * * (Great) Supernatural

After allowing a little guy with a pimple to use the linotype machine to print off a secret message, profitable and strange happenings begin to occur with the changed linotype machine.

While not entirely original in concept, the slow build and fascinating machine kept me anxiously turning pages. The themes of avarice and power are nothing new, but paired with a now obsolete machine, they work together to create an engaging story. This is the Brown I enjoyed in Night of the Jabberwock - a tale also involving a small-town newspaper editor, similar enough that I thought it might have been the impetus for this story (no proof – but similar enough in character – and machine – and nine years before Jabberwock’s publication). It says something about the story when you feel the need to do some research – such a fascinating machine – upon completion. The title, for example: did you know that “etaoin shrdlu” are actually the first two columns of keys on the linotype machine? If you made a mistake, it was easier to just run down these two rows, creating a bad slug, than hand-correcting a mistake in the type. Knowledge, huh? Completely entertaining, regardless of the time period; even if you have no knowledge of a linotype machine, the story is a joy to follow.

March 18 - "20th Century Ghost"

“20th Century Ghost”
by Joe Hill
20th Century Ghosts (2007)

* * * * * (Excellent) Supernatural

The ghost of Imogene Gilchrist has haunted the Rosebud theater from the first screening of The Wizard of Oz through the theater’s restoration, always eager to discuss the movies that excite her.

It is funny how certain stories come along at just the right moment in time. All week I’ve been thinking about ghost stories, trying to develop this idea of mine into something more. And here is the prime example of everything I was hoping to achieve. It is both a daunting example (how could I even match a story of this caliber?) and a gauntlet thrown (can I rise to the challenge?). In this story the ghost is not the star, not the main attraction, but rather a device – an interesting and engaging and tragic device – that connects us to the theater and its patrons as we follow them through the years. It is as much an appreciation for the movie-going experience as it is a tale of the supernatural. It’s fantastic.

March 15 - "Suffer the Little Children"

Sundays with Uncle Stevie“Suffer the Little Children”
by Stephen King
Nightmares & Dreamscapes (1993)

* * * (Good) Supernatural

Miss Sidley began to notice a change in some of her third grade students. They no longer feared her; they had become something to be feared.

It would be difficult to do your job if everywhere you looked you saw evil. If even the innocent and innocuous became things of terror, it might be enough to drive a person mad. King does a wonderful job – as always – taking a sane, if not entirely good person, and detailing her descent into madness. Miss Sidley’s reaction to these monstrous children is not something we tend to joke about in the current day, but it fits the story. The most chilling aspect of the tale is at the end, when this awareness of the evil inside children – all children – becomes apparent to even those placed in charge of Miss Sidley's care. Is it madness passing, or something far worse?

March 9 - "Don't Ask Jack"

“Don’t Ask Jack”
by Neil Gaiman
Smoke and Mirrors (1998)

* * * (Good) Supernatural

The Jack-in-the-Box would not open. The children would tell stories of that hidden Jack, but could barely stand to touch it, or look upon its intricately carved box, until the night it called them each forth to play.

For as short as this story is in length, it packs quite a peck of ominous feeling. It is the type of short tale that aches to be expanded. The story ends with more questions left dangling than answers neatly tied in bows. With some stories those unanswered questions add to the strength – the atmosphere – of the overall tale, but here they need answered. They are holes without explanation. Still, you can’t fault a story that leaves lingering snapshots of horror out on the table of your mind, scenes of small children inching closer to a hidden, malevolent, Jack, smiling and whispering. There’s some fine, fantastic, imagery in these few quick pages.