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Oct 19, 2007

Gabriel rated it:

When I first picked this up, I had seen the Johnny Depp adaptation of "Secret Window[, Secret Garden]" (the movie cut out the last half of the title) and, though the movie was far from excellent, I realized that there was more to the horror genre and to Stephen King in particular than I had previously thought. This book showed me the light.

Since reading this treatise on the genre, I have started actively seeking out more horror fiction than any other type of fiction and wr More...

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Dec 20, 2008

Mike rated it:

This is my favorite Stephen King book--I've read it considerably more times than any of his other works. I don't think it's any secret what makes this book so enjoyable--it's really what makes all of his books work--his storytelling power. He has such a friendly, compelling narrative voice--it's like he's casually sharing secrets with you, and you can't wait to hear what he has to say next.

It might help to enjoy DANSE MACABRE if you are a horror fiction/film fanatic, but then again, More...

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Dec 28, 2008

Alan rated it:

This book is truly nothing more than Stephen King riffing sloppily (as hell) about the "horror genre." There is no pretense of scholarship, and it has a folky tone which makes it quite easy to imagine what it must have been like back in the day when King got a twelve pack of beer in him, had smoked a joint, and done enough lines of coke to get him on a never ending jag about "the deal" with the genre: to put it bluntly, its about as tight as "the blob," it's ramblin More...

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Jun 15, 2011

Kelly Jo rated it:

This review is of the 2010 re-release of this book, originally published in 1981. It is loose, chatty, and full of digressions, but fun to read. Despite what all his critics say about him, and his genre, King knows a lot about American society and what drives the American mass-psyche. Why else would his novels be such best-sellers? King explains that horror is what allows us to experience The Other (Darker) side of ourselves at the same time re-enforcing the mores of traditional, conservative so More...

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Oct 28, 2008

Sherry (sethurner) rated it:

I was in a bookstore in Bangor, Maine looking at all the foreign editions of this book when a teenager mumbled that Danse Macabre is Stephen King's worst book. I beg to differ. This is a nonfiction analysis of the horror genre, both fiction and film, and it was really interesting to me. In fact, I photocopied the suggested reading in the back of the book and worked my way through the lists - it took about five years. I'm sure it's out of date, and that many of the titles he suggests are even More...

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Sep 26, 2011

Nicole rated it:

Anyone who knows me knows that I am a history buff. I love the history of just about anything that I don't already know. "Just bring it on" is my motto. So when I read Shock Value a few weeks ago and it recommended Stephen King's Danse Macabre, of course I needed to pick it up.

What is particularly interesting about this book is it's original release date--30 years ago. What this means is that King delved deep into history prior to 1981 in this book, and it was a deep hist More...

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Sep 19, 2011

Byron rated it:

As someone who does not enjoy horror in general (I scare easily) I still found much to enjoy in Stephen King's exploration of his beloved genre. Even though my experiences with horror as a kid lead me to avoid it for the most part, I really enjoyed and related to his childhood experiences with horror movies and stories. King also posits theories on the different types of horror tales can be broadened well outside the genre. Best of all, he offers a long list of books and films, many of which More...

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Jul 28, 2011

Glen added it

I have been putting off reading this book for somewhere near fifteen years. It is not that I dreaded the task; I just never got around to it. Now, I kind of wish that I did not wait so long to read the book but I will discuss more on this aspect later.

To begin, the book is Stephen King’s analysis on the genre of horror in books, television and film ranging from 1950 until 1980. He even openly admits several times within the text that even attempting this feat would be a daunting task and th More...

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Apr 16, 2011

Christine rated it:

I purchased this book back in the 1980’s when it was first published and I know I thumbed through it occasion but never really read it. In my defense, it was my “baby years” and I did not read much that was not escapism fiction. Okay, okay, I still don’t, but I sneak in some “high-brow” books every once in while now. I came across this title again as an audio download from my library and decided it was time to hear what the horror-master has to say about the horror genre.

The audio More...

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Jul 27, 2010

Aaron rated it:

Okay. It's difficult to really review a book about the state of horror as a genre when that book was first written back in 1981. With that said, my real issues with the book are not really the book's outdatedness. My big issue is that the book doesn't really seem to make a point and support it. It's more like getting high with one of your favorite writers and then just sitting and listening to him talk.

Some things that crossed my mind as I read this book:

1) It's actually More...

4 comments like (2 people liked it)

Feb 14, 2011

Tom rated it:

Who better to review a thirty year span of horror films, books, comics, and television than the master of horror himself, Stephen King? His knowledge, and passion alone suffice the prerequisites for the task nonetheless the amount of research and edits he went through to ensure it's accuracy have made this book a fantastic adventure.

After reading his two devout chapters on the horror film; where it started, where it's going, how it got to where it is now, I couldn't help, but wonder More...

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Feb 01, 2012

Stefan rated it:

This book length essay on the horror genre turned out to be much more entertaining than I expected. Even when writing a nonfiction genre-study, King cannot avoid being King. His goofy sense of humor, absolute frankness, and the occasional crass comment made me feel more like I was having a beer with the guy and discussing books than sitting in a lecture hall. King fans who want to hear where he gets his inspirations from and what authors/films he has taken enjoyment from will get a lot out of th More...

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May 02, 2011

Filippo added it

Per un americano tutto ciò che non è scritto in inglese va ascritto al novero delle curiosità folkloristiche, interessanti solo per la ristretta cerchia degli studiosi appassionati di civiltà remote.
Stephen King, in questo sua informalissima raccolta di saggi sulla letteratura fantastica e dell'orrore, non si sottrae a questo atteggiamento: e infatti traccia il suo percorso prendendo in considerazione solo ed esclusivamente opere di autori inglesi (poche) e americani (la stragrande maggioranza) More...

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Sep 03, 2010

Ryan rated it:

Stephen King has definitely become one of my favorite contemporary authors in the last year. I've devoured and LOVED two of his non-fiction books as well, this being one of them. Basically his own personal retrospective of the highlights of the horror genre in literature, film and television between 1950 and 1980 (the year the book was published), as well as the familiar archetypes of the horror genre and an armchair psychology lesson in fear: what makes something scary, and why are people dra More...

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Nov 03, 2010

w rated it:

Książka jest bardzo dobra, to znaczy świetnie się czyta jeśli się lubi (a ja uwielbiam) przedmowy czy posłowie Kinga. Właściwie to jest chyba to co lubię u niego najbardziej... Tak. Jego książki są lepsze lub gorsze, komuś mogą się nie podobać, ale ja lubię jego. Oczywiście można powiedzieć, że się go nie zna, ale jednak po takich właśnie tekstach jak przedmowy czy ta książka, to jednak czegoś tam się dowiadujemy i on... na prawdę mi siebie w dużym stopniu przypomina. No i uwielbiam jego poczuci More...

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Sep 25, 2011

Gwyn rated it:

For a fan of the genre who's always looking for more, or for someone who's interested in horror but isn't sure where to start, this is a must-read. King promises the reader an overview of horror--radio, TV, movie, and print--from the last 30 years (as of 1980), and this is exactly what he delivers. In a casual and knowledgeable tone--though by no means a scholarly or even professional one--he discusses the "purpose" of horror, horror archetypes, how what's scary changes with the times More...

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Feb 18, 2011

Larry rated it:

I had mixed reactions to this non-fiction book. As with all Stephen King books, I liked the writing style (King does an excellent job in making it feel like he's talking to you, rather than talking down to you). I also learned quite a lot about the horror genre from the period that King covers (1950-1980), a period that I had very limited knowledge.

However, I couldn't help but feel disappointed that there isn't an updated version, covering the last 3 decades. Everything here feels most More...

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Aug 17, 2011

Ronald rated it:

Stephen King's take on the culture of Horror following some of his early written and cinematic successes in the genre, and while working on his book Pet Cematary. He was asked to write a treatment of the subject — a task he accepted reluctantly, and in which he didn't take himself too seriously. His discussion of the various approaches to horror were insightful regarding the genre in general, though the fact that it was written in the late 1970s meant specific references were obviously outdated, More...

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Sep 09, 2009

Brian rated it:

The book begins with this story: on October 4, 1957, Stephen King was 10 years old, watching a Saturday matinee of Earth vs. the Flying Saucers. Just as the saucers were mounting their attack on "Our Nation's Capital," the movie was suddenly turned off. The manager of the theater walked out onto the stage and announced, "The Russians have put a space satellite into orbit around the earth. They call it ... Spootnik."

And thus began Mr. King's journey into science fi More...

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Mar 12, 2011

Christopher rated it:

Stephen King is such an anomaly. He simply has always loved horror, and he's pretty good at stepping back and looking analytically at things, and he likes writing. And so his rambling style isn't always the most polished or well-directed, but it's always entertaining and often interesting.

This book was interesting for me, because horror and humor (and sometimes science-fiction) have a lot if similarities. Breaking from the expected/comfortable.

My two notes I wrote down fo More...

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Aug 08, 2010

Allison rated it:

So, I have to say that I really did enjoy this book. It's a nonfiction review/auto-biographical account by Stephen King written in the 80s about all of his own experiences with the horror genre (in multiple mediums). I don't agree with everything he says, but I've got to give him props for not pulling any punches. He doesn't hide it or sugar coat it when he thinks something is crap (like, I think he calls the original Battlestar Galactica series a "space monkey (or space banana) of a sho More...

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Mar 19, 2011

Aaron rated it:

Sure, this book is a bit dated, it's what? Like 30 years old, and King says some things in here that I take issue with (particularly a few of the disparaging comments about comic books, but since I know for a fact his thoughts have changed and grown over the past 30 years, I'll forgive him his lapses), at the end of the read, it is clear that this man is passionate about his work. Perhaps that is the only reason he has been such a success, his passion. And it's evidenced keenly in a well thoug More...

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Apr 14, 2010

TJ rated it:

I've read it twice over the years, and it does present some good insight on the horror genre. It is a great starting point for anyone interested in the genre. Nonetheless, as it was published thirty years ago it is now very dated. Also, King sometimes writes like a prepubescent boy who's just discovered a knack for the vernacular.
The best thing would be for King to revisit and revise this book for the next thirty years. A lot of unnecessary and otherwise verbose sections could be cut com More...

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Feb 10, 2012

Lou rated it:

Stephen King gives us an insight into the world of horror, science fiction film and essential reading. I love nearly all his fiction work and his non-fiction novel On Writing was such a great insider view on his writing world. This one is more ramblings and at times became annoying yes he writes good stories but hearing one too many rambles on his view of film and fiction might not really be that captivating for other readers also. He mentions the three important horror classics the vampire, the More...

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Nov 01, 2010

Shivering William rated it:

I can't recommend this book to everyone. Unless you've got a hankering for the darker side of media, Danse Macabre will have very little to offer.

That being said, King does a remarkably thorough job of exploring the nuts and bolts of the horror genre. It's inconsistent at times, getting lost in vortex's of who wrote which episode with which stars in some obscure fifties television show you'll probably never see. But if you plod on, you'll find wonderful insights, moments as lucid More...

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Oct 25, 2011

David rated it:

This is Stephen King's account of horror fiction, movies, T.V. and commentary on the horror genre as a whole up until around 1980. I've heard some negative reviews of this book but its one I pull out every couple of years and read over again. The book is almost like having a conversation with King about all things horror and while I don't agree with everything King says in this book,he does at the same time make some good points. I've heard they're is updated version of this book being released More...

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Aug 04, 2009

Eric rated it:

An excellent review, of what was then the current field of Horror Fiction, and Horror Films. Reading it in 2009 it helps provide background on the fields, and allows a modern reader access to information on older and out of print titles.
As a result I've had to add over a dozen books and a dozen movies to my read and watch lists after reading about them in Danse Macabre.

For anyone looking for an exciting fiction from King, this is probably a wise book to skip. For those who are More...

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Jan 14, 2012

David rated it:

I have always been enamored with King's fiction. One could say that I am a fan (a claim that I certainly won't deny). I recently enjoyed reading On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft, so I decided to sample more of King's nonfiction. I started reading Danse Macabre with enthusiasm and ended up stumbling my way through, coming out a little wiser at the end.

Danse Macabre fails at being accessible. King does little to extend himself to readers who haven't already been indoctrinated into the More...

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Jul 13, 2011

Lena rated it:

This is Stephen King's nonfiction book covering the genre of horror in literature, movies, radio, etc.
I'm not usually a big reader of nonfiction, and I might have missed out on this if I'd known it was nonfiction when I picked it up. Fortunately my library had it shelved with all the other Stephen King books, and I didn't bother to read the back of it before checking it out. I just figured if it was Stephen King, I'd like it. And I did.
Sometimes it went on a little long and I did ge More...

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Jan 09, 2011

Andrew rated it:

I feel like this book doesn’t get a fair shake from most people. I think people expect something more scholarly (read: bullshitty) and focused. Basically we’re invited to an extremely lengthy lecture by Mr. King about the genre he works in. It isn’t the best book about horror, that might be Skal’s Monster Show, but it’s still really informative and interesting. I’ve read that people think that this is just a bunch of rambling and there is no point, which is half true. He rambles a lot, but he ma More...

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