Horror Aficionados discussion
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Robert R McCammon
No problem, Bob. No need to apologize. It doesn't even make sense to me, TBH, an author not wanting some of his work published.
I am about 320 pages into Swan Song, and holy crap is it good!
I need to get more of his books. Boy's Life was so sad and had me sobbing at a scene.
Just decided to bump this topic back to the top of the pig-pile, seeing as how, really, why would you NOT want to sing McCammon's praises until the end of time?
If anybody has the time, find the Pod Of Horror podcast with McCammon. He comes across as one of the nicest guys to walk this earth. I've LOVED the books I have read of his (STINGER, BOYS LIFE, SWAN SONG), and have WOLFS HOUR sitting next to me ready for reading. I was about to go on a crazy McCammon run, until life took a bad turn, and I haven't read a dang thing since last January (well, I have read three books since then, but they were quick reads, and a stack of text books). BUT, I did manage to buy every McCammon that exists before that happened. So, I am just biding my time until I can devote a lot of time to reading.
From what I have read, though, I don't get the King comparison at all, completely different writers, IMO. I'll take McCammon, personally. Nothing against King, I just think McCammon has a better gift for likable characters.
The Wolf's Hour is amazing, Carl, you're going to love it.
Since it is an older one, how is it in comparison to STINGER?
I prefer Stinger to The Wolf's Hour, but it's just a matter of opinion. The Wolf's Hour is not, exactly, a horror novel--like Stinger, it's an amalgamation of all sorts of different narrative types and genres--it's a quest novel, it's a spy novel, and it's a coming-of-age novel. (It's also a thriller, and a war story. And, of course, a werewolf tale.) It's a lot more ambitious than Stinger, and the writing is of a better, more eloquent quality. There are scenes in the novel that take my breath away. It's also much more EPIC than Stinger, which, though dealing with some pretty heavy cosmic s#it, was contained in a very small area. In The Wolf's Hour, you travel across Europe, meet many wonderful people, make love to some gorgeous women, et cetera. I can't imagine anyone not at least enJOYing The Wolf's Hour, and if you loved Stinger, you'll probably love this one too.
He is a nice guy. He agreed to having his picture taken with me, didn't he? And he didn't call me crazy when I asked him to sign a bookmark and forgot to ask him to sign one of his books...that I had just bought for him to sign! Celebrities make me nervous and that's why I'd rather never, ever meet them.
Tressa wrote: "He is a nice guy. He agreed to having his picture taken with me, didn't he? And he didn't call me crazy when I asked him to sign a bookmark and forgot to ask him to sign one of his books...that I h..."That must have been a great occasion. I've read Boy's Life and Gone South - loved both; a short story collection, Blue World, made me a fan. It's a shame that Robert McCammon is relatively less known, when compared to other writers. I've read on his website that he wrote a historical novel and no one wanted to publish it....it's a true shame when most bestselling writers can publish their grocery lists some gems might never see the light of day.
It's really puzzling to me how some writers become so famous and others exist on the edge of fame.
I'd never have discovered him if it weren't for this site. And when I was searching for his books, I discovered that most of them are out of print!Truly brilliant talents often go unnoticed, or fade into obsurity. Ira Levin, one of my favorite authors is almost forgotten today; it didn't help that almost all his titles were turned into major films. Same goes for Alastair Maclean.
I hope books by Robert McCammon will get a much needed reissue and the author will gain international recognition he truly deserves.
I'm doing what I can to keep Michael McDowell's name out there. His books are out of print, too, except for a Blackwater omnibus. If I see any at used book stores or thrift stores, I'm going to snatch them up so I can send to interested HA members.
I got my mom hooked on him. She just bought a Kindle and is unloading all of her books, but she told me she will never part with her McCammon's, and will continue to buy his in hardcopy. She just LOVES him.
That's sweet, Carl. I have some favorite authors like that.
I became a McCammon fan after coming accross Swan Song and reading it for no reason without knowing what it was about at all. I absolutely loved it and, sorry to say this, but I enjoyed it far more than the Stand. I gave both books five stars and both are among my favorite books, but Swan Song was just incredible. I've also read Stinger, Blue World, Gone South, and the beautiful and amazing novel Boy's Life. I'm reading They Thirst now.
I've read on Robert's site that he had a falling out with his agent - apparently she wanted him to change his book to aim it at the female audience - and when he declined, she gave him the wolf ticket and no publishing houses wanted to buy his novel. It was a historical piece set in WWII Russia, which now might never see the light of day.It's a damn shame that some authors can freely phone in several "books" a year, while others have to strive to get a page published.
I like to read stories by authors who step out of their comfort zone. While I enjoyed John Grisham's first two or three books, I stopped reading when I saw the way the formulaic wind was blowing. But then he wrote A Painted House--a non-law story about a southern family--I really enjoyed it. I'd love to read McCammon's historical. I loved Speaks the Nightbird.
What pet peeves me is the fact that most of his work is out of print, and the author is still alive - and popular. There were new editions of Boy's Life and Swan Song (the one I'd like to read), but his earlier work is only availible secondhand.
The Wolf's Hour was just released from (I wanna say Subterranean) some small press, as were I think a few of his other earlier novels. But you're right, most of his fantastic early work is out of print.
Meanwhile, James Patterson's new one sells another 500,000 copies.
Meanwhile, James Patterson's new one sells another 500,000 copies.
James Patterson deserves big thumbs up for his project "read kiddo read". I've never read any of his works (the one I started was v.bad and I dropped it after 20 pages or so).But, as mentioned, I have a big respect for the guy - thanks to the strenght of his name there's a real chance that his project will turn kids into lifelong readers.
What is this Read Kiddo Read of which you speak?
Tressa wrote: "I'm doing what I can to keep Michael McDowell's name out there...."yes you are! i owned Elementals (loved it) & Blackwater I (didn't care for it) & Cold Moon over Babylon (haven't read it yet) prior to reading about him here, but i added Katie to my to-buy list because of your comments.
i've noticed a series of 'Jack and Susan' books on his bibliography. do you know anything about them?
Aw, sorry to hear you didn't like Blackwater. As you know, I love it. Katie is the bomb. The Amulet is good, too, but you can tell it's one of his earlier novels. But it's still a better first horror novel than a lot.Don't know about the Jack and Susan books. Will have to look into that.
Jesse_william wrote: "What is this Read Kiddo Read of which you speak?"http://www.readkiddoread.com/home - it's a site designed for children to help them find books which might interest them. There's even a special interview section, where Patterson conducts interviews with various authors. It's truly a noble idea and I wish more people would do things like that.
Maciek wrote: "Jesse_william wrote: "What is this Read Kiddo Read of which you speak?"http://www.readkiddoread.com/home - it's a site designed for children to help them find books which might interest them. The..."
That's a killer site! I think I will have my kids dig through it today.
I didn't know about that, it's kind of cool. Bravo, Mr. Patterson.
I saw some clips with Patterson, and he comes out as a well-read and intelligent guy. One might wonder why he chose to produce these dopey thrillers.
Partly as a result of this thread, I picked up Bethany's Sin and Usher's Passing at the used book store. But I also ran across an enthusiastic recommendation from Joe Lansdale for They Thirst, so I picked that one up as well. I don't know how good they are (though I think McCammon to be generally very solid), but hell, I sometimes pick these books up just because of the wonderful cheesy cover art. And do all of you notice how it's getting harder to find these books? I also recommend McDowell. I'm not a big fan of the Blackwater series (though it starts out strong), but his stand alone novels I would put in the top tier of modern horror writers. It's a shame he died young.
The cover art for McCammon's books is consistently wonderful. At least the old MMPs. Did you ever see the cover for The Night Boat? I mean, that's really just fantastic.
Those are three McCammon novels I've yet to read, Steve. I've heard nothing but unanimous praise for They Thirst and Usher's Passing. Bethany's Sin, being his second published book, is a little iffy, but who knows?
Be sure to tell us what you think of 'em.
Those are three McCammon novels I've yet to read, Steve. I've heard nothing but unanimous praise for They Thirst and Usher's Passing. Bethany's Sin, being his second published book, is a little iffy, but who knows?
Be sure to tell us what you think of 'em.
Having read IT. All I can remember about Boy's Life was that it was disappointing.
They're totally different books, though. Heck, I don't even consider BOYS LIFE to being a Horror novel. That's kind of like saying you were disappointed in it because you read A TALE OF TWO CITIES.
I read Swan Song. It's massive! Too massive, in my opinion. I gave it 4 stars but one star was for the author. Boy's Life will always be a favorite. The opening pages are awesome.
Maciek wrote: "I saw some clips with Patterson, and he comes out as a well-read and intelligent guy. One might wonder why he chose to produce these dopey thrillers."I read three of his years ago, Along Came a Spider,Kiss the Girls and Jack & Jill. After Jack and Jill, I swore him off.
But, I have to admit, I really enjoyed Kiss the Girls. It creeped me out quite a bit.
But back to McCammon. I've only read Swan Song and Boy's Life, and thanks to the good folks here I've decided the next of his to read will either be The Wolf's Hour or Stinger.
If I can ever find them...
Phil, you're the first person I've yet met (even though this probably doesn't constitute a "meeting" in anybody's mind but my own) who was disappointed by Boy's Life. What didn't you like about it?
THE WOLFS HOUR is being re-released from Subterannean Press. Briefly looking back on this thread, that hasn't been mentioned yet.http://www.robertmccammon.com/
Jesse, I read the book a long time ago and don't really remember the exact reason. For some reason the thought that the characters were underdeveloped sticks in my mind but all I can be really sure of was the feeling I had afterwords. I wasn't trying to be mean or overly critical just relating how I felt.Jesse_william wrote: "Phil, you're the first person I've yet met (even though this probably doesn't constitute a "meeting" in anybody's mind but my own) who was disappointed by Boy's Life. What didn't you like about it?"
I love McCammon. For one Christmas my partner bought me every McCammon book ever written - he's harder to get in Australia so the internet was apparently scoured.Favourites are "Stinger", "Boy's Life" and "Swan Song".
I'm actually currently reading "Usher's Passing".
Wow, that's some dedicated partner you've got there, Caleb.
I'd love to get more novels by McCammon, but most are out of print. I don't know why there aren't any reissues. 7.99 mass-markets would sell well and personally I'd buy them all.
I'm reading Mine now. It's really good. The beginning was pretty gruesome, and misleading.
Caleb, please let us know what you think of Usher's Passing. It's one of the only books of McCammon's I haven't read. That and his new stuff I have yet to read. I keep meaning too, but it just never happens.
Stinger, Swan Song, They Thirst, and Mystery Walk were my favorites.
My favorites have been Boy's Life, Blue World, Swan Song, and Gone South. Didn't like They Thirst and Stinger as much as those but they were good. Still reading Mine and it is excellent.
I love Swan Song and Boy's Life. Great reads!!
I just saw that people are reading The Five. Are those ARCs? I didn't think this book was available yet.
Jason wrote: "Caleb, please let us know what you think of Usher's Passing. It's one of the only books of McCammon's I haven't read. That and his new stuff I have yet to read. I keep meaning too, but it just neve..."Will certainly let you know. I had a bit of a delay in reading while I was concentrating on some other novels including A Room with a View of all things.
"..some other novels..." haha. I'll get back to you in a couple days, Caleb.
Horror Aficionados
Books mentioned in this topic
The River of Souls (other topics)Blue World (other topics)
Gone South (other topics)
They Thirst (other topics)
Swan Song (other topics)
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Eh its too bad about that, but what can ya do. Check and see if your local library has something called Inter-Library Loan, in which they look at other libraries and see if they may borrow their copies, who knows you may find a copy. But if they don't I would suggest keeping an eye out for used book stores (always a joy to explore them) or just looking on line.
I am still debating about reading They Thirst, and possible Baal (maybe someday), personally to me Night Boat sounds a bit to cliche and Bethany's Sin just doesn't sound all that great to me.