Skeleton Crew by Stephen King
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Book Reviews of Skeleton Crew
Book Review: 4 1/2 stars; superb
Summary: 5 Stars
For the casual fan of Stephen King or just the Stephen King fan who has only read his longer work, this is an excellent book. The collection features 22 works, which includes nineteen short stories, a novella ("The Mist"), and two poems ("Paranoid: A Chant" and "For Owen"). In addition to the introduction, in which King directly addresses his readers in his signature conversational style, Skeleton Crew features an epilogue of sorts entitled "Notes" wherein King discusses the origins of several stories in the collection. The stories are collected from science-fiction and horror anthologies (Dark Forces, Shadows, Terrors, and New Terrors) genre magazine publications (Twilight Zone, Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, Startling Mystery Stories, Weirdbook and Fantasy and Science Fiction) and popular magazines (Redbook, Gallery, Yankee and Playboy).
The opening story, "The Mist," is, simply put, great. After a thunderstorm in Maine, David Drayton and his son Billy go to a supermarket, only to find the building surrounded by mist from the outside. This is a completely engrossing and compelling read. Frank Darabont, who directed "The Shawshank Redmption" and "The Green Mile," also King works, made a film version of the story in 2007, and that is definitely worth seeing, as well.
To me, this book rivals "The Stand" or "It" as one of King's best. Just about every story here is excellent, and through the course of reading the book, one can really appreciate his versatility as a writer.
Book Review: A Different Type of Frightening and Touching Masterpiece
Summary: 5 Stars
I was at first quite skeptical with "Skeleton Crew". I had just finished reading every novella and story from one of Stephen King's "Night Shift", which impressed me to no compare. I am an avid Stephen King fanatic, but I don't let that come in front of my judgement of his books. I do believe King is a genius and a brilliant mastermind of an author, but he has dissapointed me before. Skeleton Crew seemed a little, well hoky before hand. I read the back, and the comments, and wondered if it could live up to "Night Shift". I opened up the book and picked a story called "The Ballad of the Flexible Bullet", because it sounded so intresting. I became hooked. That one story was so intriging, that I put the book down after reading it to interpret it in my head. The next story I chose was "Mrs. Todd's Shortcut", and then I fell in love with the book. "Shortcut" was touching and heartfelt. I won't babble on too much further, but the stories in the terrific masterpiece that stick out are the incredibly captivating and frightening "The Jaunt", the rose morse and sullen "Nona", the bouncy camp schlock-ness of "The Mist" and "The Raft", the alluring and terrfying "Gramma", and pretty much every story in this wonderful book. King lives up to his standard of excellence.Book Review: King as his mesmerizing best!
Summary: 5 Stars
Stephen King has written some powerful, scary, touching novels. But his best fiction remains, arguably, his short fiction. His love for the short story is obvious--he has thrown together several collections, each one about as thick as one of his novels.
The stories in "Skeleton Crew" are horrifying and touching. There's "The Mist," a tale of a strange fog that beseiges a small town...and the deadly creatures it shrouds. In "The Wedding Gig," a jazz band plays for the Mafia...and makes some unusual acquaintances. "Survivor Type" details how far a man is willing to go in order to survive, while the poem "Paranoia: A Chant" is both amusing and disturbing. "The Ballad of the Flexible Bullet" dives into a writer's psyche, and ponders just where all those stories come from. The power of God is imprisoned in a typewriter in "Word Processor of the Gods" and a toy monkey in "The Monkey." "The Jaunt" is a horrifying tale of science fiction, while a woman finds the ultimate shortcut--through Hell--in "Mrs. Todd's Shortcut."
Some of the stories in here are fun and entertaining, such as "The Mist" and "The Wedding Gig." Others, such as "Cain Rose Up" and "Gramma", are downright disturbing. Stephen King shows his skills here, in "Skeleton Crew"--a collection of stories spanning decades, all from the same master of modern fiction.
Book Review: Another Great Masterpiece
Summary: 5 Stars
In my opinion "Skeleton Crew" is even better than "Night Shift" was, and Night Shift has the possibility of giving you awful Kafka-like dreams.Among my favorites are: the Jaunt, Gramma, the Mist, Survivor Type, Vain Rose Up, and many others make up this book.
Each story is frightening in its own way. For mist, it's because of that "survivor" stance- people having to survive some cataclysm. King has a way of bringing terror out of you slowly, progressively, and then hitting a climax that knocks your socks off.
I enjoyed almost every story, and have read every one except "The Reach" which, I admit, doesn't appeal to me as a 17 year old as much as Survivor Type or Jaunt.
For someone debating whether or not to buy the book, buy it. Some have criticized the book's diversity but I applaud it. There is something for every genre of the literary world- science fiction, Jaunt and Beachworld cataclysm survival, Survivor Type and the Mist simple horror, Gramma People going insane, Survivor Type, Cain Rose Up and Ballad of the Flexible Bullet and many more. Readers who aren't strictly horror story lovers will find a great diversity in the book which is also found in "Night Shift."
I recommend buying it. King fans and simple horror fans will love it.
Book Review: The Skeleton Crew delivers you to a world of evil
Summary: 5 Stars
Stephen King makes a wonderful effort in this, his second collection of short stories. All of the stories in this novel had been published in various magazines before they were collected together in this marvellous adventure into the unknown depths of King's imagination.The first story to appear in the book, "The Mist", definetly is the cherry on the top. Where else could you see a supermarket being the site for one of the last battles for humankind?
The Jaunt is another amazing story, with parallels to "The Fly". The Jaunt invovles transportation technology, and the length of time a human mind experiences having to pass through it while being conscious.
The Raft and The Reach are also most noteworthy creations from King's mind. The Raft was actually a re-written version of a story King had written earlier called The Float, but the idea was similar. King's The Reach show's that he can write all kinds of genres, not just the horror.
Overall, I would highly recommend this book to anyone who is a fan of Stephen King, and anyone who wants to be. An excellent place to start if you are new to the world of Stpehen King, or a great book if you have read King before, and are looking for more.