Helpful Score: 1
I absolutely love this collection and can't wait to have it permanently. Almost all the stories are classic, undeniable Stephen King at his best. Whether it be the emotional and tragic "Last Rung On The Ladder", the chilling and terrifying "The Mangler" or the creepy crawly goodness of "Night Shift" king delivers. I don't keep many audio books but when I get my hands on this I'm keeping it!
Andrew L. (mythreeblondes) reviewed The Stephen King Collection : Stories from Night Shift on + 55 more book reviews
(This review is of the audio version of the book.)
Good adaptation. I had read Night Shift a zillion years ago, so I knew the stories; the audiobook was to keep me awake & alert while driving to & from work. The reading was by John Glover, a character actor who was big in the 1980s and 1990s -- see here: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001278/
Glover is a good voice actor; the stories cover a broad range from King's early career, so some gross/icky, some spooky, some more thoughtful, and he did a good job with all of them.
I disagree with the review below that said King's early works pale in comparison with his latter stuff. Most reviewers seem to think he was putting out much better (and much less unnecessarily verbose) work early on.
Good adaptation. I had read Night Shift a zillion years ago, so I knew the stories; the audiobook was to keep me awake & alert while driving to & from work. The reading was by John Glover, a character actor who was big in the 1980s and 1990s -- see here: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001278/
Glover is a good voice actor; the stories cover a broad range from King's early career, so some gross/icky, some spooky, some more thoughtful, and he did a good job with all of them.
I disagree with the review below that said King's early works pale in comparison with his latter stuff. Most reviewers seem to think he was putting out much better (and much less unnecessarily verbose) work early on.
It's so unfair to an author that their early work has to be compared to their later--much more eloquent--work, but I guess that's life. This collection pales in comparison to Kings work in the 21st Century, but it is indicative of his work in the 70's and early 80's. Today King's short stories and novels have exhaustive endings, even sometimes including epigraphs. But these stories end abruptly with the kinds of cliff hangers many readers hate. There are truly some real nuggets of inspiration here, and for the King fan this is definitely a must-read if only to experience the early development of a master. But like anyone working on their craft, there are some real clunkers in this batch of stories. Not even remotely on par with Just After Sunset, Full Dark No Stars, or even Everything's Eventual, but still King nevertheless.
