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Johann (jobis89)

https://johannslibrary.blogspot.co.uk/

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Johann (jobis89) is Currently Reading

Johann (jobis89) is currently reading

Summer of Night

by Dan Simmons

bookshelves: favorites, currently-reading

Reading for the 2nd time

read in September, 2016

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Johann (jobis89) said: " "Old Central School still stood upright, holding its secrets and silences firmly within. Eighty-four years of chalkdust floated in the rare shafts of sunlight inside while the memories of more than eight decades of varnishings rose from the dark stai "Old Central School still stood upright, holding its secrets and silences firmly within. Eighty-four years of chalkdust floated in the rare shafts of sunlight inside while the memories of more than eight decades of varnishings rose from the dark stairs and floors to tinge the trapped air with the mahogany scent of coffins."

This book is a story about five 12-year old boys who live in Elm Haven in 1960. It follows them through their summer holidays as they encounter a number of strange happenings within their town and as they come to realize evil is lurking in their town, and they must stop it.

THIS BOOK. Honestly. One of the best books I've ever read. I thoroughly enjoyed every page of this book. Dan Simmons created such amazing characters and a little town that I felt like I knew inside out.

I'm a huge King fan, obviously, so I am no stranger to horror, but this book scared the shit outta me. This is potentially my fault for doing most of my reading at night, but there were definitely a few restless nights. The tension created, the building of the story to an absolutely terrifying conclusion...these are some of the best things about this book. Yes, it does take a while to start, and I think it's maybe a hundred or more pages into the book before something scary actually happens, but you can feel it building and that makes the horror somehow worse.

The kids themselves were impeccably developed, each with their own personality and unique traits, as well as different family set-ups. I felt a connection to each one, particularly Duane, but I want to keep this review spoiler-free so I won't go into how much I loved Duane and how I felt about his story arc. The kids riding around on bikes is heavily reminiscent of Stephen King's IT. In fact, quite a number of different themes within this book remind me of IT, but this is its own unique story, believe me. Other similarities include the themes of childhood friendship, friends coming together to combat a bigger evil in their town and the story being set in the 60s, of course. It's terrifying on so many levels, what these young boys are enduring.

Simmons takes certain situations, which might be considered cliche, such as things hiding under your bed, a presence at your window, walking through a cemetery, and yet somehow seems to reinvent them in a way which makes you think twice about glancing out through your window in the dead of night.

I cannot praise this book highly enough, definitely one of the best and scariest books I've ever read. Simmons has acquired a new fan! ...more "

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(page 128 of 473)
"Just as amazing on a reread!!" — Aug 11, 2020 04:02PM

Aug 08, 2020 01:12AM · see review

Johann (jobis89) is currently reading

Such a Fun Age

by Kiley Reid

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Aug 07, 2020 05:49AM

Johann (jobis89) is currently reading

Different Seasons

by Stephen King (Goodreads Author)

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Reading for the 2nd time

read in May, 2017

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Johann (jobis89) said: " "Fear can hold you prisoner. Hope can set you free."

Considered by many to be King's best collection of stories/novellas, Different Seasons contains two stories that were ultimately developed into two of the greatest movies of all-time: The Body, whic "Fear can hold you prisoner. Hope can set you free."

Considered by many to be King's best collection of stories/novellas, Different Seasons contains two stories that were ultimately developed into two of the greatest movies of all-time: The Body, which became Stand by Me, of course, and Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption - the movie is obvious, no?

Sometimes I really hate reading an awesome Stephen King book... no, I'm not crazy. I just get stressed about where I'm going to rank it in my top books list and what other books are gonna get pushed down the list!! Different Seasons is simply a masterpiece. Having read most of King's epic stories, I thought I'd seen King at this best - but no, this is his best. The writing, the characters, the storylines, it feels like everything is turned up a notch here. This is a prime example of how King is so much more than just horror.

Let's start off with Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption. Now I've already seen the movie, along with the majority of the population, but somehow that didn't matter. I still raced through each page, eager to see what comes next, even though I already knew the outcome! It's a story ultimately about hope, resilience and survival. Set against the backdrop of a bleak prison, these themes shine through even more prominently. A touching, emotional story and now one of my favourites.

Next up was Apt Pupil. Now I really liked this one. A former Nazi finds a willing student in young Todd Bowden and what follows is pure horror. The most unsettling parts of this novella were those wherein Dussander relays stories from the concentration camps in WWII. Having visited Auschwitz only last year, the atrocities that happened there just feel more real. This novella is a terrifying look at evil and the darkness that resides in these evil humans. Todd has to be one of the most hateful characters I've ever encountered in literature, a sexual sadist, a psychopath, just downright disgusting. Nevermind Dussander himself! Yet this story is absorbing, once it hooks you in, you can't get back out.

The horrific nature of Apt Pupil is swiftly followed by the nostalgic novella, The Body. Reading this novella is similar to being transported back in time to when you were a child, when all you wanted to do was hang out with your friends. You'd leave the house early morning and not come back again until it got dark. It's a beautiful story, and yet also quite tragic. Each of the boys come from homes or backgrounds that aren't entirely supportive and they are able to find true friendship and support within each other. In particular, the friendship between Gordie and Chris is touching, Chris is such a great character - wise beyond his years and he really cares for Gordie. Overall, this is a great look into those years where you "grow up" and relinquish your innocence, symbolised by the dead body out in the woods. Simply amazing!

Lastly, The Breathing Method - I actually read this one first as Abbie recommended to me. It is considered to be the "stinker" of the collection, and therefore I decided to read it first, so as not to end the collection on a bum note. But to be honest, I quite liked it! I liked the gentleman's club and their penchant for telling stories, it kinda sounded like a cool set-up that I'd love to be a part of. Miss Stansfield herself was a pretty badass woman, determined and strong. I don't really understand why people would forget about this one, or just cast it off as the "other story" in this collection. Granted, it's not as brilliant as the others, but it still left a lasting impression with me.

Overall, this book was just unbelievable. I lost count of the number of times where I just felt completely blown away by King's writing. This is a great, GREAT collection and now one of my favourite King books. ...more "

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(page 301 of 527)
"Just finished my reread of Apt Pupil. Another incredible novella in this collection! Dark and disturbing. A favourite." — Jul 22, 2020 12:24PM

Apr 21, 2020 08:33AM · see review

See all 9 books that Johann (jobis89) is reading…

Johann (jobis89)’s Quotes

“You think Okay, I get it, I'm prepared for the worst, but you hold out that small hope, see, and that's what fucks you up. That's what kills you.”
― Stephen King, Joyland

201 likes

“It’s hard to let go. Even when what you’re holding onto is full of thorns, it’s hard to let go. Maybe especially then.”
― Stephen King, Joyland

tags: let-go

236 likes

“Sometimes she'd go a whole day without thinking of him or missing him. Why not? She had quite a full life, and really, he'd often been hard to deal with and hard to live with. A project, the Yankee oldtimers like her very own Dad might have said. And then sometimes a day would come, a gray one (or a sunny one) when she missed him so fiercely she felt empty, not a woman at all anymore but just a dead tree filled with cold November blow. She felt like that now, felt like hollering his name and hollering him home, and her heart turned sick with the thought of the years ahead and she wondered what good love was if it came to this, to even ten seconds of feeling like this.”
― Stephen King, Lisey's Story

tags: grief, love

129 likes

“October Country . . . that country where it is always turning late in the year. That country where the hills are fog and the rivers are mist; where noons go quickly, dusks and twilights linger, and mid-nights stay. That country composed in the main of cellars, sub-cellars, coal-bins, closets, attics, and pantries faced away from the sun. That country whose people are autumn people, thinking only autumn thoughts. Whose people passing at night on the empty walks sound like rain. . . .”
― Ray Bradbury, The October Country

110 likes

“There was a lot they didn’t tell you about death, she had discovered, and one of the biggies was how long it took the ones you loved most to die in your heart.”
― Stephen King, Lisey's Story

tags: death, love, stephen-king

169 likes

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