Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

Length: 417 pages. UPDATED December 15, 2014: I had the great good fortune to read an advance copy of The Evil Hours, a biography of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. It's an outstanding nonfiction book about PTSDS, but what struck me most was the similarity of the victims of PTSD and Stephen King's writing of several of the characters in Revival, in their side effects following their 'miraculous cures. My point is this: we all know King, just as does any respectable author, a good deal of research before writing. In Revival, it is obvious King researched certain aspects, which also served as a premise utilized by Lovecraft. What is not so readily deduced is the, at least I think, research King did in regards to PTSD and how well he slipped it into this story. In my opinion, this is masterfully done. Why? Because he never refers to it as PTSD, and nevers draws any parallels with combat veterans. Yet, I now am certain, he discussed the issue with either victims, medical staff, or VA counsellors. Therefore, I encourage readers to read Revival AND to read The Evil Hours when it becomes available January 26, 2015. There are four Stephen Kings. 1 Nonfiction Stephen King. This is probably the Stephen King I like most. When he introduces a novel, or writes about himself, or On Writing, he connects with me in some deep ancestral recess hidden from entry by most anybody. 2 Phone it in Stephen King writes novels that are better than 90 percent of all the writers out there, but that seem to be just rehashes of other stories or that just didn't seem worthy of the master. 3 Milkman Stephen King. This is when he has clearly written a story from a different angle but that is meant to sell to those who bought the original and wanted more of the same. 4 Vintage, Master Stephen King. This is the guy who wrote Carrie, Misery, The Stand, and The Green Mile. This is also the author who wrote Revival. Don't get me wrong. Even the worst book authored by Stephen King exceeds the best writing that I or most any contemporary writer will ever achieve. For my money, the great writers who have shown an uncanny ability to pen fiction and nonfiction are limited to a handful. My favorites? Stephen King, Isaac Asimov, Carl Sagan. What King does best is developing characters whom I feel are every bit as real as my boyhood chums and nemeses. But, usually, I think he is writing about the goofballs and geeks that he knew in the classes he taught in school. Or else he was writing of youngsters he knew but did not associate with while he was young. What I mean is that he objectively observed other kids who were friends of his younger brothers or cousins or something, since I don't believe he had any siblings. But I digress. My point is, Revival is so very different. King, I think, is writing more from his own recollections of his own childhood, to a degree, than he did in his other novels. I really feel that, if readers want to see how Stephen King sees himself, at his core, they have got to read this book. The ending, I hope, is not a premonition. I already lived long enough to learn how tragic life was for Robin Williams. That is more dread than I care to feel. My point is simply this: if you have ever enjoyed a Stephen King novel, this is a must read. If you are a writer wanting to understand what makes for good, mesmerizing reading, read Revival. If you are a psychologist desiring an understanding of the genius that makes Stephen King tick, read Revival. I am delighted to see Vintage Stephen King developing characters that I can call my friends and adversaries from 1960-ish Southern California.