Stephen King - Just After Sunset

Stephen King - Just After Sunset Review



Overall 5.00 of 5 (by 1 user)
 




2009 Advisor
MikeMaroon
Chattanooga, TN

Just After Sunset is just the right time for these stories.

5 star rating

a fiction reader, read for fun
Pros

    It's Stephen King, Very Entertaining, More than one story

Cons
    Might scare the crap out of you

MAR
27
2009
 
I would just be regurgitating what's already been said by a thousand reviewers by calling Stephen King the "Master of Horror".  So, I won't.  Call him the "Master of Horror".  Even though he is the "Master of Horror".  I won't call him that.  Ok.  But he is.  The "Master of Horror".  But,  with more than 45 novels and collections of short stories, King is a legend in pop-culturedom and with over 300 million books sold, is probably the most widely read author alive.  I think the reason is his work is so, well, readable.  That might sound like a I have a marvelous grasp of the obvious, but it's deeper than you think.  See,  King can do what few others can.  He can make characters seem like real people you might know who just happen to get themselves mixed up in something you are glad happened to them and not you.  Plus, dude can flat spin a yarn.

Just After Sunset is not A yarn, but his latest collection of them.  Instead of a novel this time, Mr King gave us a gift of something he does best, short stories.   If you've read his collections, you know he is capable of all kinds of tales and they are almost always fun, if sometimes creepy to read.

There are 13 short stories here, and I doubt that's coincidence.  If ever a man had a macabre sense of humor, it's Stephen King.  I mean, here is a man once quoted as saying, "I have the heart of a small boy……and I keep it in a jar on my desk."   Some are indeed short, coming in at as few as eleven pages, while others are longer, 45 pages or so, but all are engrossing and raise some emotion in the reader.

The first yarn, Willa, takes place in a train station in Wyoming and its surrounding area.  While, like most King stories it deals with the supernatural, it is mostly the tale of eternal love, literally.  That and about the lengths a man might go to for his woman.

The Gingerbread Girl is about a young woman running from her estranged husband all the way to Florida only to find herself running from something much, much worse and far more horrifying than a divorce.

Harvey's Dream finds King writing about a dream he had and probing the mind of a old man who who's had a nightmare he's afraid might turn out to be all too real.

King's inspiration comes from a real event in Rest Stop.  He turns a late night experience he had at a real rest stop into a fantasy about the real bravado every guy hopes he would  display in such a situation.

If you think cats are evil demon spawn ( I sure do) you will appreciate The Cat From Hell, in which the protagonist cat is just that. 

One of my favorites is Stationary Bike.  Anyone who has ever ridden one knows its the most boring thing since watching paint dry or listening to Rush Limbaugh pontificate.  Wouldn't it be great to, as our hero in this story does,  paint a mural on the wall in front of your bike and imagine you are riding through the country-side as you sweat off the pounds?  After reading this you might not think so.

N is the story of a man who becomes so obsessed with a field, it brings him to mental ruin and his doctor along with him.    It also hints that, beyond this reality is a far more frightening one we chose to not see.

Anya brings us a little girl with a gift for healing, but her gift,  if bestowed upon you comes with great responsibility.  The question is raised, is it worth it?

In Mute, a husband rants to a strange mute man he's picked up about his wife's embezzling money from the government, not realizing the old hitchhiker may be more alert than he seems.

My favorite is The Things They Leave Behind, a touching blend of the supernatural with the events of 9/11.  King's tribute to those horrible events does what King does so well, deals with the scars of the people who lived through it.

THE BOTTOM LINE

Stephen King is much more than a pop-fiction horror writer. All his stories not only entertain and frighten, and boy, they do that.  But, often King shows us he is a master of observation in addressing the human condition.  He reaches in and touches the real fears in us and makes us confront them, thankfully by making someone else confront them in a fictional setting. 

When King is at his best, as he is here, he not only gives us the creeps, but he makes think. These people seem real to us, wondering the same things as us and facing the same inner dark places as us.  Mr King presents us with tales of things that go bump in the night, for sure.  But sometimes, those things ARE us.  GRADE: A

 

Last edited on Mar 27, 2009



I_thumb_up Stephen King - Just After Sunset is recommended by MikeMaroon

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I_comment_shdw24 Comments about MikeMaroon’s Review

 


MikeMaroon wrote on Apr 9, 2009 at 1:32AM

In response to ladym33's comment from Apr 8, 2009 at 8:41PM:

That was punny.

ladym33 wrote on Apr 8, 2009 at 8:41PM

Sounds hauntingly good.

MikeMaroon wrote on Apr 3, 2009 at 1:13AM

In response to Meri's comment from Apr 2, 2009 at 11:49PM:

These would, mostly because they are so good!

MikeMaroon wrote on Apr 3, 2009 at 1:12AM

In response to deniseb66's comment from Mar 29, 2009 at 2:00PM:

Thanks!

MikeMaroon wrote on Apr 3, 2009 at 1:12AM

In response to jasyjen's comment from Mar 29, 2009 at 7:41AM:

He actually has a very, very good NON-fiction book called, "One Writing"...

Meri wrote on Apr 2, 2009 at 11:49PM

Great review, Mike. I keep a book of short stories next to my bed in case I can't sleep. These would probably keep me awake longer! LOL

deniseb66 wrote on Mar 29, 2009 at 2:00PM

Hey, I really like your review. Im a really big fan of Stephen King books and movies too... He's Great..

LaurieM wrote on Mar 29, 2009 at 10:45AM

In response to MikeMaroon's comment from Mar 29, 2009 at 12:42AM:

Maybe I could borrow yours??? lol ;)

jasyjen wrote on Mar 29, 2009 at 7:41AM

King's short stories are always so great. His books are great non-fiction too! LOL (i'm a dork!)

MikeMaroon wrote on Mar 29, 2009 at 12:44AM

In response to PattyTherre's comment from Mar 28, 2009 at 10:09PM:

Well, even though he IS the "Master of Horror"...I didn't want to be redundant...;P

MikeMaroon wrote on Mar 29, 2009 at 12:43AM

In response to onyx95's comment from Mar 28, 2009 at 7:50PM:

Well, wonder no more! Thanks for reading!

MikeMaroon wrote on Mar 29, 2009 at 12:42AM

In response to LaurieM's comment from Mar 27, 2009 at 5:45PM:

I'm surprised you don't have a anti-nail biting product that keeps you from doing that!! :)

PattyTherre wrote on Mar 28, 2009 at 10:09PM

Wow, I'm surprised you didn't call King the "Master of Horror". Because he is, you know. ;)

onyx95 wrote on Mar 28, 2009 at 7:50PM

Oh, thanks for the information, I had been wondering about this one.

LaurieM wrote on Mar 27, 2009 at 5:45PM

Too scarey for me!!! *biting nails* Great review as always though Mike!


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