false http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1166552914m/13440.jpg 13440 41 In the introduction to <I>Skeleton Crew</I> (1985), his second collection of stories, King pokes fun at his penchant for "literary elephantiasis," makes scatological jokes about his muse, confesses how much money he makes (gross and net), and tells a story about getting arrested one time when he was "suffused with the sort of towering, righteous rage that only drunk undergraduates can feel." He winds up with an invitation to a scary voyage: "Grab onto my arm now. Hold tight. We are going into a number of dark places, but I think I know the way."<p> And he sure does. <I>Skeleton Crew</I> contains a superb short novel ("The Mist") that alone is worth the price of admission, plus two forgettable poems and 20 short stories on such themes as an evil toy monkey, a human-eating water slick, a machine that avenges murder, and unnatural creatures that inhabit the thick woods near Castle Rock, Maine. The short tales range from simply enjoyable to surprisingly good. <p> In addition to "The Mist," the real standout is "The Reach," a beautifully subtle story about a great-grandmother who was born on a small island off the coast of Maine and has lived there her whole life. She has never been across "the Reach," the body of water between island and mainland. This is the story that King fans give to their friends who don't read horror in order to show them how literate, how charming a storyteller he can be. Don't miss it. <I>--Fiona Webster</I> 1814 book 1985 Skeleton Crew total:9086|5:1854|4:3347|3:3205|2:627|1:53| 9086 33580 10757 239 5 5 false false Mon Jul 28 07:20:39 -0700 2008 Fri Aug 01 18:56:06 -0700 2008
I've lost three copies of this from lending it out. Don't ask--you can't borrow it! ;o)]]> 5 3 false false Wed Jul 16 23:40:27 -0700 2008 Thu Jul 17 18:44:06 -0700 2008 5 3 false false Tue Jun 03 19:23:00 -0700 2008 Sun Jun 08 07:26:08 -0700 2008 more...]]> 4 3 false false Thu Apr 01 00:00:00 -0800 2004 Wed Sep 05 07:41:29 -0700 2007 Fri Sep 14 07:11:25 -0700 2007 "A short story is a different thing all together - a short story is like a kiss in the dark from a stranger." -- from the Introduction to Skeleton Crew

It had been a while since I revisited King's short story collections, and for the most part, I wasn't disappointed.

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"The Mist" was one of those stories that stays with you -- probably as much because nothing is really explained and the ending is so open (which they screwed up in the movie -- Frank...more...]]> 5 4 false false Sun Apr 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Tue Oct 30 22:28:24 -0700 2007 Tue Oct 30 22:28:24 -0700 2007
I'm a huge fan of his, but this collection of short stories is probably my favorite. The Mist alone is worth the price of the book; I have never been so creeped out and upset by a story in my life as I was when I finished that story. It's more of a ...more...]]> 4 2 false false Fri Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 1988 Thu Jun 28 00:15:31 -0700 2007 Thu Jun 28 00:21:00 -0700 2007 more...]]> 4 2 false false Sat Mar 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Tue Apr 08 21:00:24 -0700 2008 Wed May 21 00:53:55 -0700 2008 more...]]> 5 1 false false Thu Aug 09 15:37:02 -0700 2007 Thu Aug 09 15:42:58 -0700 2007
"The Mist" was a little longer than it needed to be, but it was a good story nonetheless. I liked that it was humorous as well; even though it was frightening, I could laugh at the ...more...]]> 0 0 true false Fri Nov 06 12:00:47 -0800 2009 Fri Nov 06 12:47:59 -0800 2009 more...]]> 4 1 false false Wed Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 1997 Fri Oct 05 07:59:13 -0700 2007 Fri Oct 05 08:47:09 -0700 2007
There was another short story, The Raft, that I believe is in this book. I have lent out the book so I can't go back and chec...more...]]> 4 1 false false Sun Nov 16 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Tue Nov 25 07:34:51 -0800 2008 Tue Nov 25 07:36:17 -0800 2008 3 1 false false Wed Dec 03 15:56:01 -0800 2008 Wed Dec 03 15:56:11 -0800 2008 4 0 false false Mon Apr 20 11:06:40 -0700 2009 Mon Apr 20 11:16:16 -0700 2009 more...]]> 5 1 false false Tue Nov 25 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Mon Nov 03 16:41:59 -0800 2008 Tue Nov 25 16:57:05 -0800 2008 3 0 false false Fri Mar 06 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Sun Feb 15 13:23:31 -0800 2009 Fri Mar 06 05:48:39 -0800 2009
...more...]]> 3 0 false false Sun Mar 01 11:46:32 -0800 2009 Sun Mar 01 11:46:32 -0800 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Tue Aug 18 15:48:09 -0700 2009 Tue Aug 18 15:54:14 -0700 2009 more...]]> 3 0 false false Mon Mar 09 21:13:23 -0700 2009 Fri Dec 05 08:15:22 -0800 2008 Mon Mar 09 21:13:23 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Sat Sep 01 00:00:00 -0700 1990 Sat Sep 29 22:16:27 -0700 2007 Sat Nov 03 01:42:32 -0700 2007 Evil that breathes and walks and shrieks, brave new worlds and horror shows, human desperation bursting into deadly men...more...]]> http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=13440