This is the day I finally finished reading 11/22/63 by Uncle Stevie. As the very dedicated Gentle Readers will recall, I became too scared to continue reading this book when I first began reading it in the fall of 2012. Yes, 11/22/63 sat on the floor with the pile of “in progress” books untouched for well over a year. Uncle Stevie wove into this story tiny bits of It and this scared the crap out of me. Also, Hubby’s family name was used on the back cover which I didn’t notice until after reading about Bev and Rich near the Barrens. But as of today, I finished reading the remaining 700 or so pages in about 12 over hours over the span of the past three days. As I continued reading, the red and white 1958 Plymouth Fury kept showing up and I really wanted to smack Uncle Stevie across the face. There was also a line about a Saint Bernard being a nice dog but still shooting it if it had rabies. I grant you that I may read far too much into these books, but I know Uncle Stevie likes to throw this things in just to make sure you’re paying attention.
The saddest part of all is that the book is over. I’ve read it. I wish it hadn’t ended. Granted, I just got Doctor Sleep and will begin reading that tomorrow, but I really liked 11/22/63. Especially that it scared the crap out of me. And I wish it hadn’t ended. Jake was a lovely character. He had a lot of strength and loyalty. I didn’t want to leave his world(s). But eventually I came to page 842 and was left with only the “Afterword” (which is always fulfilling for a geek like me). I left the world(s) of Jake and space time continuums, threads, butterfly effects, and lost love. Back into good old 2014. Sure, 2014 is only five days old, but it’s still the “good old” reality.
The idea of ghosts, echoes, and harmonies existing in the world is something I could read about forever. Don’t misunderstand, the story is not quite a ghost story, but the idea of shadows, ghosts, lingering and leaving their imprints. We are ghosts. We leave our memories wherever we have been. The walls can talk-we just forget to listen a lot of the time. When was the last time you sat in your own home, with complete quiet? All the televisions, computers, smart phones, and video games turned off. Just listening to the sound of your house, with all its settling and sounds of your family’s life breathing in and out in the quiet? There’s something about reading a book in the silence, dedicated time for reading, that helps make the book come alive even more than when you read in a place with noise to pass the time. Think about when you read a book (paper or virtual, though I still prefer the paper kind) while waiting at the doctor’s office. Or on your lunch break in the office, removed from your coworkers, but still able to hear the ebb and flow of an office. That reading is different than the reading you do at home, with everything turned off so your house is quiet. The best reading is at night in the glow of a reading lamp, with the outside filled with darkness surrounding you and hiding reality so you can delve into the book’s reality.
And when the book is about alternate realities it’s even better. The science of 11/22/63, when Jake is speaking with Zack about the strings, is a conversation that was blessedly short and not overly scientific. When I even briefly think about chaos theory and string theory, my mind starts to swirl and I question the world far too much. I like my ignorance in this area, thank you very much. The last 100 pages of the story raised my blood pressure (my doc won’t be happy about that, it’s been running high just lately) but it’ll calm itself as the vividness starts to fade.
Some stories never fade, do they? It haunts me constantly. I swear, when I walk Rex, I think he knows about Pennywise because he is very leery of storm drains and sewers. Does he know that we all float down here? I don’t think I actually need my tattered copy of Night Shift to read “One for the Road”. It’s pretty much there in my memory whenever I want it. “Strawberry Spring” too. Hubby even recalled “One for the Road”. He read it to me, over a decade ago, one night to help me fall asleep (yes, Uncle Stevie helps me sleep). I mentioned it the other evening and he remembered it. He remembered reading it. It lingers with me…is she still waiting for her goodnight kiss?
11/22/63 will linger for a while, not like It has since I first read that in 1986, but for a while at least. Then there’s Doctor Sleep. It’s getting to harder to keep my reserved King books in reserve. I’m curious. I want to enter their worlds. But the reserved ones will have to keep. Plus, Uncle Stevie keeps on writing. And I keep on reading.
ohbloodyhell8 