Nightmare At 20,000 Feet: Horror Stories By Richard Matheson

by Richard Matheson
Nightmare At 20,000 Feet: Horror Stories By Richard Matheson  
published January 5th 2002 by Tor Books
binding Paperback
isbn 0312878273   (isbn13: 9780312878276)
pages 336
description This classic horror collection showcases the early career of one of the field's most influential and innovative writers. Much of Richard Matheson's wo...more
date added
01-10-07



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Jake
Jake rated it: 4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars
02/12/08

Read in January, 2008
recommends it for: Twilight Zone, X-Files, Stephen King fans
I'd been meaning to read Matheson for a while, and I'm ashamed I waited so long. These stories are wonderful. They drive to the heart of basic fear in a way that doesn't scare you so much as make you itchy or nervous. It's hard to read the story Mad House without going a little nutty yourself. You certainly won't be at ease in your kitchen for a while. Everyone knows the titular story, made famous by William Shatner on The Twilight Zone and then again by John Lithgow in the movie, but what astou...more
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Rob
Rob rated it: 2 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars
05/16/08

Read in May, 2008
Despite being a Twilight Zone and Trilogy of Terror fan, I didn't enjoy this collection much. The stories that have been filmed were good...but they're already such a part of the collective consciousness that I knew what was going to happen almost word for word. The stories that haven't been filmed I found rather tedious and old-fashioned. I should've expected as much, since said stories were written pre-1965, but I found myself slogging through them...determined to finish the book.
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Jamie
Jamie rated it: 3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars
03/15/08

bookshelves: just-for-fun
Read in March, 2008
I'd had this to read forever, mainly for the Prey story. I didn't much care for the title story, I found it a little murky. The stories got more to my taste as they went along, bringing to mind a conversation I had with a younger friend - who hadn't heard of Joy Division but when shown them, said he liked The National and She Wants Revenge better. I can APPRECIATE that Matheson is the creator of this type of horror, but I do LIKE Stephen King's better.

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Amber
Amber rated it: 5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars
07/09/08

bookshelves: horror
Read in July, 2008
I totally loved this!! Some of the short stories were in the I Am Legend I read a few months ago, but most of them were new to me. Also, I liked that I saw the story that seems to be the basis for Stephen King's Needful Things (The Distributor) and a story that seemed to inspire a character from Neil Gaiman's American Gods (the one with the wife, you know...).

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Kevin
Kevin rated it: 4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars
05/20/08

Fun horror stories from the 1950's and 1960's that are pleasantly gore free. The standout stories are Prey, Nightmare at 20,000 Feet, The Distributor, and The Likeness of Julie. Matheson is a master of suspense in these four classics. The rest are interesting but pale in comparison. Duel is not in this book despite it being listed on the back cover.
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Eric
Eric rated it: 4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars
01/26/08

bookshelves: currently-reading
Read in January, 2008
More Matheson....I haven't read a collection of short stories and am enjoying it....I really appreciate the talent it takes for the author to introduce character where you feel you can empathize and know them and tell a story in 20 pages. Great stuff if you're a lover of Twlight Zone like stories.
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Shawn
Shawn rated it: 4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars
01/06/08

Stephen King cites Matheson as "the author who influenced me most as a writer." You can't get better than that.
Disappearing Act is an incredible story about a man who is losing more than his identity. Creepy.
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Bill
Bill rated it: 3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars
06/15/07

Read in November, 2006

Remember the Twlight Zone episode with William Shatner seeing gremlins on the wing of the plane? Well, that's the title story. And many others in this collection are just as good.
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Patrick
Patrick rated it: 5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars
01/19/08

bookshelves: 2001
Awesome short stories from the man who probably wrote all of your favorite "Twilight Zone" episodes.
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Joanie
Joanie rated it: 4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars
12/31/07

Read in September, 2005
Short stories. Matheson's a horror genius, but I just can't get into the short stories so much.
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Lonnie
01/26/08

bookshelves: borrowed-books
Read in December, 2007
Good collection of short stories. Slaughter House was my favorite.
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stormy
stormy added it
03/05/08

bookshelves: adult-fiction
 

William Shunn
William added it
05/19/08

bookshelves: american, horror, tales
 

Bryan
Bryan added it
02/12/08

 

Chris
Chris rated it: 3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars
06/13/08

 

Ben
Ben added it
12/16/07

 

Melissa
Melissa rated it: 4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars
12/26/07

 

Zack
Zack rated it: 5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars
04/10/08

 

Andrew Huff
Andrew marked it as to-read
03/29/08

bookshelves: to-read
 

Mark
Mark rated it: 5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars
06/21/07

 


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book data (includes all editions)

avg rating (all editions): 3.97 (102 ratings)
avg rating (this edition): 3.98 (100 ratings)
number of reviews: 11






other editions

Nightmare At 20,000 Feet: Horror Stories By Richard Matheson (Hardcover)