The Green Mile : The Complete Serial Novel
by Stephen King

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Book Reviews of The Green Mile : The Complete Serial Novel

Book Review: A new high mark
Summary: 5 Stars

Of course, the story isn't without it's flaws. Most noticeable is the fact that this was originally a serial novel. Stephen King may be a good writer, but he's not Charles Dickens. There are about five or ten pages in here that are nothing more than straight reprints of what you, as the owner of an omnibus, just red not five minutes ago. That can be annoying--it certainly interrupts the flow of the narrative--but it's not really that destructive to the experience. Of greater concern is the narrative itself--there's a lot of time jumping, and sometimes it's hard to keep track of just where things are. That occasionally interferes with the main story of the novel (set in the Depression), interrupting moments of strong flow for dubious reasons.

King's characterization is good, as usual, though I do have one substantial objection. I believe that Paul Edgecomb, the narrator, is as old as he claims about as much as I believe there's a monster running around in the sewers in Maine. Simply put, he doesn't sound like any old person I've ever talked to. This is only reinforced by the fact that the voice of Paul Edgecomb, the narrator from the past is, so far as I can tell, indistinguishable. It doesn't feel as though Paul has changed at all as a result of the events that he's described. It's certainly not apparent in the novel's presentation.

These shortcomings, are minor blemishes at best on the face of an otherwise great book. I should say that this is in no way a horror story. Stephen King seems to have outgrown the genre to an extent, and if you're looking for a cheap dimestore thrill a minute type experience (a format some of his earlier writing fits with), you'll likely be disappointed. If that's the case, though, I wouldn't recommend you read anything at all that he's published since 1996.

I would recommend the Green Mile, then, to almost any reader. While his earlier fans may be somewhat disappointed, anybody looking for a novel that's a little more mature, with some depth and fine characterization will not be disappointed.

Summary of The Green Mile : The Complete Serial Novel

Edgecomb has sent seventy-eight inmates to their date with "old sparky," but he's never encountered one like Coffey -- a man who wants to die, yet has the power to heal. And in this place of ultimate retribution, Edgecomb discovers the terrible truth about Coffey's gift, a truth that challenges his most cherished beliefs -- and ours.

Originally published in 1996 in six self-contained monthly installments, The Green Mile is an astonishingly rich and complex novel that delivers over and over again. Each individual volume became a huge success when first published, and all six were on the New York Times bestseller list simultaneously. Three years later, when Frank Darabont made The Green Mile into an award-winning movie starring Tom Hanks and Michael Clarke Duncan, the book returned to the bestseller list -- and stayed there for months.

And now -- with a new introduction by King's foreign agent Ralph Vicinanza, as well as the author's own foreword -- we have the first hardcover edition of this magnificent novel in which "King surpasses our expectations, leaves us spellbound and hungry for the next twist of plot" (The Boston Globe).

With illustrations and a new frontispiece for this edition by Mark Geyer.

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