Scan barcode
david611's review
5.0
Short story #5 from [b:The Bazaar of Bad Dreams|23512999|The Bazaar of Bad Dreams|Stephen King|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1468705688s/23512999.jpg|43116154]: This was an amazing horror story from the book, more interesting than [b:Mile 81|12070846|Mile 81|Stephen King|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1407138212s/12070846.jpg|17038427]. A convicted child-murderer, about to be passed with a death sentence, narrates his 'unbelievable' reason for murder, to his attorney. The presence of a mysterious non-ageing boy who becomes responsible for the death of his loved ones, is entertaining and disturbing. This was a great story to read, and at some places has been compared to [b:The Green Mile|11566|The Green Mile|Stephen King|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1373903563s/11566.jpg|15599], although am not in a position to comment over that having not yet read the latter. I enjoyed reading this one slowly with all the intrinsic details (of which King is well-known of) that went about, and being the best story so far in the book. At some points, the 'presence' of the bad boy, reminded me of Pennywise from [b:It|830502|It|Stephen King|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1334416842s/830502.jpg|150259]. :D Beautiful and amazing writing with speculative horror at its best!!
megan_blackett's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
calistareads's review
4.0
Now, we're talkin'. This is a great creepy short story in the 'Bazaar of Bad Dreams' collection. This one has a supernatural element in it, so of course, I enjoy this one more.
We meet George who is in prison waiting to go to trial. He is telling his lawyer why he killed this kid. Is it really a kid, a monster, or is George simply crazy. We get to decide. This could totally be an unreliable narrator, or it could have happened. Who knows? The reader gets to decide.
The bad little kid is certainly cruel and the whole story I was wanting the kid to get his. The question is, Did he? One way to look at it is yes and another is maybe or no. This is a great story where the reader has to decide what it all means because King provides few answers really.
Great story. This is top 2 so far.
We meet George who is in prison waiting to go to trial. He is telling his lawyer why he killed this kid. Is it really a kid, a monster, or is George simply crazy. We get to decide. This could totally be an unreliable narrator, or it could have happened. Who knows? The reader gets to decide.
The bad little kid is certainly cruel and the whole story I was wanting the kid to get his. The question is, Did he? One way to look at it is yes and another is maybe or no. This is a great story where the reader has to decide what it all means because King provides few answers really.
Great story. This is top 2 so far.
katiea714's review
4.0
One of the best Stephen King short stories I've read. So sad and creepy and interesting.
ladywriter55's review
5.0
Finally a good story in the Bazaar of Bad Dreams collection.
Hallas is on death row for child murder. A week before his execution he tells his lawyer the story of his life which led to this heinous crime. If he had told it in court it may have seen him spending his days in a mental hospital instead of death row.
I really enjoyed this one. It's creepy King to the core, and has echoes of The Green Mile. A breath of fresh air in what was turning out to be a poor selection of stories
Hallas is on death row for child murder. A week before his execution he tells his lawyer the story of his life which led to this heinous crime. If he had told it in court it may have seen him spending his days in a mental hospital instead of death row.
I really enjoyed this one. It's creepy King to the core, and has echoes of The Green Mile. A breath of fresh air in what was turning out to be a poor selection of stories
More...