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Blockade Billy
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Blockade Billy
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Dung Beetle
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rated it 2 stars
Jun 01, 2010 11:33AM
Has anyone else read this yet? I got it Friday evening and was done in about an hour. There are two stories in it, Blockade Billy and Morality. They were decent, but I won’t be recommending them to anyone who isn’t already a King fan.
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I got my copy over the weekend, taking it to night shift tonight, but will take another book too, I have 9 hours to kill!
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Got mine in the mail today. It's patiently waiting on my bookshelf.
I really enjoyed Morality. I read it in Esquire, like Chris, but I will buy this one too.
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I read it in about 2 hours in between checks on my patient. Being from the UK and a female to boot I had no idea of all the baseball terms but it was a good story all the same. Mortality was very good, liked that one a lot!
I liked this book a lot, but I bought the Kindle version and I didn't see Morality in there.
I just read this last night. The baseball referrences confused me but King is the Master Story Teller. "Morality" was OK. I could see that one coming a mile away.
I think I'm going to have to wait until my library gets a copy of "Blockade Billy" because I, too, read "Morality" in Esquire.
I have to admit, that as much as I liked this story most of the baseball talk just flew right over my head! lol. I think the conversational tone with Granny telling King the story helped my understanding, but I probably missed alot there. I really liked Morality. What a twisted little story. I was afraid it was going in the direction of "Indecent Proposal" (which in a way it did, I guess), but it was still a pretty twisted request. There was alot of meat there for a short story. :)
I still haven't gotten Blockade Billy, but I read Morality in Esquire, and it was such a good story. It actually reminded me more of a story in Ellery Queen or Hitchcock's magazines. Dark and twisted. Too bad there's not more of a media market for this kind of story all on it's own.I can't think if the name of it right now, but in on eof King's collections there's another baseball story. I don't care fr the sport at all, but I guess after 22 years of watching my husband and his friends play I've picked up enough of the lingo to get me by. I can't wait to read it.
Sometimes, you can't help it, I guess. :)And Morality was very twisted! And it was very sad the way their lives spiraled out of control after that.
It did have an Indecent Proposal feel to it. I've read the story, but not seen the movie, The Box, but it had the same vibe as that one as well.
I haven't seen the movie, but know the premise. I was so afraid thats where it was going. lol
It was a terrific short story if you're ever able to read it;)
Indecent Proposal is a story? I just thought it was that movie with Woody Harrelson and Demi Moore. lol. Ya learn something new everyday!
I finally got to read Blockade Billy and I've got to say... meh. *shrugs*Just didn't strike me as anything special. The story was all right, if predictable, but it didn't read like a spoken narrative, which is what it was supposed to be. I'd really only suggest it to die-hard King fans (of which I am one, so I guess it's ok, LOL).
I got the ebook so I still haven't read Morality... I need to track that one down :)
Don't get me started about the ebook. lol. First, I thought I would treat myself and buy the 1st edition from Cemetary Dance....then I figured that I would buy myself the Kindle version so that I didn't have to open up the book which was pretty well sealed.....but then I found out that the edition released in stores would have the short story, Morality...soooooo then I had to get myself a copy of that one as well. lol. I'm such a dork! Now I have 3 versions of Blockade Billy. Luckily, I too, am a die-hard King fan....so it's all good! lol
The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon is a good short read. It's about baseball sort of. I quite enjoyed it."The world had teeth and it could bite you with them anytime it wanted."
— Stephen King (The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon)
Lori, that's one of the few I haven't gotten to yet! I'm such a slacker! :(
Mod
Now, if you want some King flavored baseball, try Faithful: Two Diehard Boston Red Sox Fans Chronicle the Historic 2004 Season.
I finally broke down and ordered Blockade Billy yesterday.:D
Nah, the baseball story is Head Down, from Nightmares and Dreamscapes. Home Delivery is a zombie story.I have to admit, I don’t bother with the non-fiction baseball stuff. I love you, Steve, but I have to draw the line somewhere!
Who wants to read about real life baseball? I like my sports the same place as my vamps, crazy cars, insane women, and kids who play in the sewer, in a King book! :)
Lori wrote: "Who wants to read about real life baseball? I like my sports the same place as my vamps, crazy cars, insane women, and kids who play in the sewer, in a King book! :)"Good easy to read short story by the master of suspense. Shockingly there was not supernatural elements in this story but I knew there would be twist somewhere. Sure enough I wasn't let down. A good read although a little short. I like baseball so I was able to follow along with the play by play of the action scenes but can also understand if those not familiar with the lingo are a little lost. Since it is an easy read I would recommend it to baseball fans and non-fans alike.
Lori, I had the opportunity to read Faithful about the same time I found my love for baseball just a couple of years ago. I found the book helped me look at the sport with the same eye as someone I admired for a long time. Plus, the fact that they wrote Faithful during the 1st World Series winning season in 80 years for the Red Sox made me think that maybe, just maybe there is something just a little spooky about having Stephen King write a book about his favorite baseball team that broke the Curse of the Bambino.
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Chris that is too funny. I started to like Manny for the same reason as you but then life caught up to me and the roid issues and I'm back to not liking him at all now. Plus, the whole 'trade me or I just won't play' was a bunch of crap.
Mod
Lori wrote: "Who wants to read about real life baseball? I like my sports the same place as my vamps, crazy cars, insane women, and kids who play in the sewer, in a King book! :)"Hear hear! I completely agree, Lori! :)
I loved Blockade Billy but I am also a huge baseball fan. My husband read it after me and didn't really enjoy it all that much because a lot of the sports references went right over his head. Mortality was just so-so for me. I saw the end coming a mile away.I think it was interesting how King chose to focus on human nature and morality instead of the supernatural. It was an interesting change of pace for me.
So, the Kindle version of the book doesn't come with Morality? If they start doing this in all DTBs I might have to sell my Kindle. It really ticks me off that I missed out on it because I bought the Kindle version.
I think that Morality only came with the DTB.
I've just downloaded this one to iPad. Can't say I'm into baseball--or any sport for that matter, but for under $6 can't go wrong.
OK, I've finished it and...well...not fussed, I've gotta say. This really is one for baseball fans. To be honest, I get the feeling SK wrote this solely for himself - which is perfectly fine, of course.
Mod
As I've been doing re-reads lately, I've noticed how baseball is a part of nearly all of his longer works (and many of the shorter ones). Sometimes it's just a reference in passing, and others it's central to the story, like when King jinxed the career of Tom Gordon.
I did some research though as I read this. I tried to search for New Jersey Titans and found nothing. Maybe they really did erase it all that year. But one thing I did note was that the season in the story was the same year that the Brooklyn Dodgers and New York Giants moved to California.
Interesting read. I know nothing about baseball so a lot of the technical talk went over my head but I liked the story. I wouldn't have read this if it weren't a group pick, so thanks, everyone!
I just finished Blockade Billy and it was wonderful. Very old school classic style horror. Meaning it was thoughtful, character driven, immersive writing, and not gore. Although I love almost all of King's writing, he can really get you in the short story format. I think if this story had been published 20 or 30 years ago, it would be a classic.
Sometimes, you have to let your preconceptions of an author go while you read a story. Let the story stand on its own merits.
A simple man, with simple dreams, finds an unacceptable means to make his dreams come true. He pays penance every moment of his dream come true. I say, classic.
I read this book last week and it is another superb King story. Loved it.
SInce I live in Australia, and have no idea about any Baseball terms, would it be worth reading this? Keeping in mind ive only read: Carrie, The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon,Rose Madder and Misery
Mod
Keeping in mind ive only read: Carrie, [book:The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon|11564..."
If you weren't put off by the baseball lingo in Tom Gordon, you should be alright. While you might not know what a description of a play means to the game, you should be able to take it in context and understand the story.
I've read this one when it first came out. I bought the Cemetary Dance version and the Scribner version. I read it while waiting in my car. To be honest, it's not my favorite. I got all the baseball terms so that's not it but I think it's the way the story was supposed to have been told to someone else. I was disappointed.
I really enjoyed the book. It was a nice short read with baseball and a dose of horror - interesting mix. I am a huge baseball fan and I really enjoyed the baseball lingo. It was like talking to a coach about old memories. A good, solid short story.
I received my slip case cover for this book yesterday. I still have not unwrapped the book, i just put it in the cover. When i find a paper back copy i'll read it. Sounds like mixed reviews. I'm sure i'll like it, because IMO King doesn't write bad books. But that's just me. :)
I just got my slipcase, too! And I'm really excited about that. I've never bought myself a first edition before so I definitely thought it was worth the splurge. It was good, but not one of Uncle Stevie's best! The baseball references were completely over my head....but I liked the story.
That's how i felt about it Kathy. Only i didn't open my book, i left it wrapped up and put it in the slipcase. My first and probably my last first edition.
Lori wrote: "That's how i felt about it Kathy. Only i didn't open my book, i left it wrapped up and put it in the slipcase. My first and probably my last first edition."Until I win lotto, Lori, me too!
You got to be in it to win it. And i'm never in it.:(
I enjoyed the format a lot; the style of King sitting down with a retired baseball manager, telling him the entire story. The lingo felt authentic and flowed nicely.Certainly not the most enjoyable of King's work that I've read so far, but it was a quick and entertaining read.
Stephen King Fans
Books mentioned in this topic
Carrie (other topics)Misery (other topics)
Rose Madder (other topics)
The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon (other topics)
Faithful: Two Diehard Boston Red Sox Fans Chronicle the Historic 2004 Season (other topics)
