This probably is my favourite King novel overall, and I find your criticisms valid. It shows him both at his best and his most excessive, and it could definitely be trimmed in places. His protagonists are often a bit dull, but if we’re feeling generous, we can say that their dullness serves to make the settings and interactions with other characters feel so alive by contrast. And they do feel vivid. I remember those scenes in late-50s early-60s Texas like they were parts of my own life. Anyway, I’m also glad this wasn’t the first King book you read, and I hope it won’t be the last.
Definitely won't be my last! I finished From a Buick 8 a few days ago, in fact!
You know, I probably should have spent some time here discussing how bizarre it is for a time travel novel to become a hangout novel but it is one of the more interesting aspects. And you're exactly right about how well he captures that time. Maybe his best character work in a book of his that I've read yet.
Very interested to hear your thoughts on Buick 8. It’s another of my favourites but it’s not highly-regarded among fans because “nothing happens.” (I disagree.)
Thanks for the indepth review. SK has been so ever present publicly commenting on this and that for years on social media it's hard to take him tabula rasa.
I liked The Stand (low on your list) but that was before I ran across his every waking opinion.
I'm glad to have your serious assessment. Alternative histories are hard to pull off. I think my favorite is The Plot Against America by Philip Roth. I wonder how they compare?
I liked the book better than you did—not going to do spoilers here, but there was a twist I really liked. But I agree with you that King’s dialogue, which was once such a strong aspect of his writing, has become calcified in the past. Too many of his characters sound anachronistic now.
I can understand not enjoying the narrator and vivid descriptions of the 60's and 70's. Yet I am a child of that time period and it definitely took me back which I enjoyed immensely. Everything King described was real and vivid as I remember. Maybe need to be part of that time to fully appreciate.
This probably is my favourite King novel overall, and I find your criticisms valid. It shows him both at his best and his most excessive, and it could definitely be trimmed in places. His protagonists are often a bit dull, but if we’re feeling generous, we can say that their dullness serves to make the settings and interactions with other characters feel so alive by contrast. And they do feel vivid. I remember those scenes in late-50s early-60s Texas like they were parts of my own life. Anyway, I’m also glad this wasn’t the first King book you read, and I hope it won’t be the last.
Definitely won't be my last! I finished From a Buick 8 a few days ago, in fact!
You know, I probably should have spent some time here discussing how bizarre it is for a time travel novel to become a hangout novel but it is one of the more interesting aspects. And you're exactly right about how well he captures that time. Maybe his best character work in a book of his that I've read yet.
Very interested to hear your thoughts on Buick 8. It’s another of my favourites but it’s not highly-regarded among fans because “nothing happens.” (I disagree.)
It's a bottle episode!
Thanks for the indepth review. SK has been so ever present publicly commenting on this and that for years on social media it's hard to take him tabula rasa.
I liked The Stand (low on your list) but that was before I ran across his every waking opinion.
I'm glad to have your serious assessment. Alternative histories are hard to pull off. I think my favorite is The Plot Against America by Philip Roth. I wonder how they compare?
Theyre pretty different, if only because this also includes time travel.
But in other ways, they're extremely similar since they're both largely about people rather than the large systems and movements of history.
I liked the book better than you did—not going to do spoilers here, but there was a twist I really liked. But I agree with you that King’s dialogue, which was once such a strong aspect of his writing, has become calcified in the past. Too many of his characters sound anachronistic now.
good stuff!
I can understand not enjoying the narrator and vivid descriptions of the 60's and 70's. Yet I am a child of that time period and it definitely took me back which I enjoyed immensely. Everything King described was real and vivid as I remember. Maybe need to be part of that time to fully appreciate.