How Stephen King Got Me Reading on a Kobo

I have enjoyed the stories and novels of Stephen King for a long time. He is a gifted writer with a brilliant imagination. I devour, especially, his short stories; Four Past Midnight , Everything’s Eventual,  and Just After Sunset.

And now, blog, readers, I come to today’s recommendation, The Bazaar of Bad Dreams, another book of his remarkable stories.

But, there has always been one thing I didn’t like about his works. They’re too darn heavy. I mean physically heavy. Some years ago a friend gave me the hardcover edition of Under The Dome. A very nice gesture, a lovely gift from a friend who knew my proclivities, but after just a few chapters I had to put it down. 

I just couldn’t read it. Problem? It's too heavy. The darn thing was heavy and thick as a brick. About killed these old shoulders of mine. Because it was a gift, I really tried. I sat in a straight backed chair and placed it on my lap. Maybe that's the way you're supposed to read encyclopediac sized tomes. Didn't work. I like reading, propped up in bed, an easy chair, or lying on the couch, and that's that.

My friend Walter, told me this story. He was in New York City to speak at a conference.  He had a day to kill and decided to enjoy it walking around, seeing the sights and reading a novel. It too, was a tome.  Walter's solution: he would walk, stop somewhere for coffee or a glass of wine, read 50 pages or so, tear them off the book and put them in the garbage and then go on his way. At each reading, the book got lighter. He also mentioned that some observers were aghast, that he would mutilate a book like that.

For a long time The Stand was my favourite novel of all time. A number of years ago I pounced upon an uncut paperback edition of it in a dusty, used book store. But even the paperback was four inches thick. And thick paperbacks are more unwieldy to read than hardcovers, So, as I had learned from Walter, I broke the binding apart in three places and made three regular sized paperbacks out of it. Where there’s a will and all that. 

Maybe Stephen King novels are books you shouldn’t get too comfortable with in bed, without looking under the bed, or in the closet, and of course, making sure all door locks are securely fastened. Maybe they're meant to be heavy, to keep you on your toes.

This brings me to my Kobo Touch. My eReader is as light as a feather and always weighs the same no matter how many books I put on it. Now, I can read Stephen King with impunity. Maybe you have a Kindle or read on your iPad or iPhone, but I recommend it. This has transformed my Stephen King buying habits. (I don't have to wait until they come out in paper back and then tear them apart.)

Although, I love King’s novels, (some of the visual pictures still stick in my mind), it is his short stories which I enjoy even better. When I’d heard that he had a new volume of stories out with personal notes included for each one I was first in line.

Here is how Bazaar of Bad Dreams begins:

I’ve made some things for you, Constant Reader; you see them laid out before you in the moonlight But before you look at the little handcrafted treasures I have for sale, let’s talk about them for a bit, shall we? It won’t take long. Here, sit down beside me. And so come a little closer. I don’t bite.

After a beginning like that, how can you not be drawn in? You can almost see the wizened little man rubbing the skeletonous fingers of his hands together inviting you into the book.

Go in. Do. You won't be disappointed. 

Here are a few of the more haunting tales in the book:

Under the Weather 

You get to spend time with a very ordinary man going about his very ordinary and detailed business day at work (meetings, phone calls) while he keeps a horrific secret at home.

Bad Little Kid 

Oh my. What can we say about this one? I’m about King’s age and so I remember Nancy’s friend Sluggo from the funnies. (They were called “funnies” back then, and not comic strips.) It will make you see differently all of the bullying stories you’ve read in the papers. And, you’ll be on the lookout for this kid.

Mr. Yummy 

A story about age and death and family. As only King can tell it.

Mile 81
This one is reminiscent of Christine, his most famous car story. I will not drive by an abandoned rest area in Maine without thinking about this. And being from New Brunswick in Canada, we drive through Maine a lot.

A couple of things that set King apart are his quirky characters and his dialogue. With his dialogue alone, and you can see them standing in front of you. Every story has a quirky character or two.

I loved his personal comments throughout, almost as much as the stories themselves. He writes that he doesn’t always know the ending before he gets there. I like that, because I’m that way too, and I always figured it a liability. Maybe it’s not.

This tee shirt picture keeps coming up on my Facebook feed (Maybe it’s because I’ve “liked” Stephen King’s “page.") but I love the comment along the bottom: 

 We make up horrors to help us cope with the real ones.

To conclude - In King’s own words:

"I always feel like a street vendor, one who sells only at midnight."

In two weeks: Another movie review - Ex Machina.