It would be impossible to convey the wonder and the horror of Stephen King's latest novel in just a few words. Suffice it to say that Duma Key, the story of Edgar Freemantle and his recovery from the terrible nightmare-inducing accident that stole his arm and ended his marriage, is Stephen King's most brilliant novel to date (outside of the Dark Tower novels, in which case each is arguably his best work). Duma Key is as rich and rewarding as Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption (yes, that Shawshank Redemption), and as truly scary as anything King has written (and that's saying a lot). Readers who have "always wanted to try Stephen King" but never known where to start should try a few pages of Duma Key -- the frankness with which Edgar reveals his desperate, sputtering rages and thoughts of suicide is King at the top of his game. And that's just the first thirty pages... --Daphne Durham, Editorial Review
- The Talisman - written in conjuction with Peter Straub. (My first SK experience; I've read it 3 times and plan on a 4th before the miniseries comes out)
- The Green Mile - recent series. (I shouldn't have to tell you that the books are better than the movie)
- Bag of Bones
- Dreamcatcher
- Misery - excellent!!
It was described by The Wall Street Journal as follows: "Remarkable and revealing... Memoir, style manual, autobiography - the inspiring On Writing seems almost unclassifiable." (according to the first page)
That's it, really. I have no qualms or doubts about reading it again. More than likely I'll be reading it with a notepad and pencil in hand. There were absolute gems held within those pages, and I can't wait to start implementing them into my writing. I already write more like him, which he assures in the book is perfectly natural, but it's with great satisfaction that I find the words are still mine.
I'm still able to write in my own voice.
I've just been given the go-ahead to tell it like I see it, and not in the pretty fluffy words that are imposed on us by uptight teachers and professors.
In the last few days, I've read the pages aloud to my husband, either while he's watching TV (I love our DVR), or working... but mostly it was while he was driving during our commute home from work. And the sections I read to him have sparked conversations that were important for both of us. My husband is no idiot, thank God, and he understands how important writing is to me. He is also another perspective on what may impress me. Help me see something I'm not considering, or applaud my ability to point out something he missed.
Something else that's important to me: my husband doesn't believe me to be an idiot, either. I think he also sees how happy just reading about writing makes me. He sees how encouraged I am by reading Mr. King's book. He assured me that he has faith in my abilities, and that I have the kind of raw talent that could be molded by Mr. King's advice (when compared to another author I've been reading who approaches writing like there's a map you can follow and find success buried under that damned X).
In case you're wondering, I'm deliberately referring to SK as Mr. King
because I've never met the man, don't know him personally at all, and therefore refuse to address him as Stephen or any other derivation. I'm not just some whack-job fan who thinks she can emulate him and become rich and famous. I am however, a very real fan. I'm serious about developing the craft... if I have any talent to be developed, that is. And as he says in the final pages:"Some of this book - perhaps too much - has been about how I learned to do it. Much of it has been about how you can do it better. The rest of it - and perhaps the best of it - is a permission slip: you can, you should, and if you're brave enough to start, you will. Writing is magic, as much the water of life as any other creative art. The water is free. So drink. Drink and be filled up."
Went to the movies for the first time in a long while and saw Jumper with Hayden Christensen (lil' Darth in the recent Star Wars chapters), Diane Lane and Samuel L. Jackson. It's about a guy who develops the ability to "teleport" when he was but a mere teenaged boy. It was purely by accident, by his understanding. He'd fallen in a frozen-over river, been swept under the ice by the current, and under the threat of death, "teleported" himself to the public library.
You realize pretty much immediately that you're being drawn into love with the kid. His mom took off when he was five, his dad was a real jerk. And he had this hopeless, puppy-dog love for a girl named Millie. Oh, not to mention he was picked on heavily (the bully called him "Rice bowl", which I learned later was because his name is David Rice).
He sees the potential for this power, and decides to run away. ("If my mom could run away, so could I"... which proves to be quite a little tie-in, trust me) What is a fifteen-year-old to do? He hops on a bus and flees to New York City. Rents a room the size of my guest closet and learns more about his abilities.
He realizes that if he can visualize the place he needs to go, he can be there. He just has to close his eyes and concentrate, and wham, he's on the top of the Empire State Building.
You can see where this is going right?
1) What the hell is he going to do for money? Well, he goes to a bank, sees the inside of the vault, and there you have it. Money.
2) What kind of future does this life of crime lead him? Well, golly, he can't get caught 'cause he doesn't touch anything but the stuff he takes. Eight years down the road and he has posh apartments, travels the globe daily, and shows himself to be increadibly lazy (there is a small part where he's sitting on his designer couch in his designer apartment and can't reach the remote... instead of LEANING over, he teleports to the other end of the couch for the remote).
3) Where's the conflict? Enter Samuel L. Jackson, playing Roland the paladin. A "knight" who tracks down jumpers with his organization in tow. And when he finds these "jumpers" (the people who can teleport), he traps them and kills them.
Aha! That's satisfaction right there - plenty of conflict. Because suddenly, a lead breaks free and they find our friend, David the Jumper. He flees, after grabbing a token bag-full of cash, and goes home.
I won't outline the entire film. I will say that I have a love-hate attitude for it, though.
It has originality going for it. The special effects and "powers" expressed were impressive and fun to watch.
The short list of items I found annoying is a little longer...
Open ending, almost hopeful that the studio would have a reason to make a sequel. Gag.
Cardboard motives, cardboard love story, cardboard cardboard cardboard. There's only so much fiber you can take in before you're stuck in the potty room wishing you'd never done whatever it is that brought you there in the first place.
As much as the populace has enjoyed it in the past, the "story of the golden-hearted criminal" motif is getting just a smidge old. What's pathetic is that I was hoping they (the writers of this movie) would actually tackle the "hard" angle - have him use his abilities to make money legally. A naive notion, yes, not the least of which was encouraged by my having not seen the preview. Instead, we're expected to embrace his bank robberies because he leaves IOUs. (WTF? What kind of person leaves an IOU from a bank robbery? and how is he going to pay it back? Robbing another bank? Gag again.)
All in all, glad I saw it. Was a nice little break from reality, and like I said, originality helped to dampen my other concerns. I'm a little miffed that I paid $17+ bucks (2 tickets and a soda later...) to see it, but not enough to actively complain about it or anything.
I can assure anyone reading that if a sequel comes out, I'll wait for it to hit DVD. The only real draw to seeing this imaginary sequel will be to watch someone of significance die, and see how the other characters react. That's the only way the sequel could interest me I think, which is sad. It's pretty bad when a character must suffer to get my attention. Poor things.
I know it's lame, but I just had to come back and mention that I recently finished the book, Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen.
It's a WONDERFUL book. Well-written, acclaimed, yadda yadda. Anyone who enjoys reading should give it a try. I warn you: the cover calls the story "gritty" for a reason, but it is still, over-all, a very pleasant, very entertaining book. It took me by surprise and left me aching to find out where I could get hold of Ms. Gruen's other books. When I've acquired and read them, I'll let you know.
I purchased - quite by accident, mind you - the Book Club edition, which houses in its last few pages an interesting interview of the author, as well as some in-depth and thought-provoking discussion questions.
The story captures the imagination, delving into an unknown realm and revealing secrets to us like it's child's play. I never knew anything about circuses or even all that much about Depression-era America.
And, as a matter of course, the characters were amazing. Some were comical, others maniacal. With this novel, delivered to your hands is a reintroduction to the past, a family... oh, and love, and jealousy, and all those fun human interactions we wrap ourselves around, cheering the characters on in silent, sadistic glee.
The ending is somewhat whimsical, but I won't spoil it for you. It's worth reading the whole book to find out what happens in the end. And it's a fitting end, if I do say so myself.
Click here to see a review at novelstore.blogspot.com
Click here to see what Amazon has to say about it
