Alessandra is reading…

Four years following the sudden death of his pregnant wife, Mike Noonan returns to their vacation home, Sara Laughs, to hopefully break from his writer’s block. Aside from his grief, this visit is unlike any that he’s had before, where he learns more about the town’s people and Sara Laughs’ history. 

Read the full summary here.

What I loved the most (in no particular order):

• Chapter 13
• The other authors and works integrated in the story
• A couple of quotes (discussed below)
• Mike being a resident of Derry

This SK novel was a little slower at the beginner for me to get into it. But when I got to chapter 13, King solidified my love for his storytelling. I had some reservations because it had been kind of slow and was kind of giving me Lisey’s Story vibes, which was weird because I’ve never abandoned a SK book before. I’ve put SK books off because it wasn’t the right time, but I’ve never completely abandoned one. And I was feeling somewhat intrigued but not as engaged as with my previous SK reads. But chapter 13 pulled me right back in and I got so passionate about the story and after that, this novel’s horror worked very well for me.

“‘The most brilliantly drawn character in a novel is but a bag of bones.’ I understood because that was what I felt like in those interminable, dissembling days: a bag of bones.”

This quote does a lot for me in two ways.

1. The quote in its entirety (there’s a word for it, but I can’t think of it?? Please reply if you know what this concept is) – Thomas Hardy discussing a character in a novel while the character in this novel (Mike) thinks of all these novelists he admires and acknowledges that Hardy speaks to how Mike feels. So, does he know he’s a character in a novel? *Mind blown* It’s these things that SK does that drives me crazy (in a good way) – like I need to call him and ask him but also I never want to know and just want to keep pondering that forever.
2. I also personally love when authors discuss other authors and their works. Especially with Stephen King (who’s my favorite author to date), I see it as an amazing recommendation and will possibly look into those authors.

“When I regained complete consciousness (if there is such a state)”

This is such a thought provoking and beautiful quote. Those 6 short words within the parentheses make me think [new word] – at this moment, I’m typing, thinking about what I’m writing, editing as I go along, thinking about synonyms for some words that would work better, and listening to a podcast. I think I’m doing 2 things but in reality I’m doing so many things! So I’m discussing my awareness now, but does awareness equal consciousness? Or is consciousness greater than awareness? And this all depends on your (as the reader, who is also now thinking of this) definition of consciousness. Which brings me back to trying to define consciousness in grad school and psychologists’ different definitions. (And this is why I love reading – don’t let anyone tell you fiction is a waste of time!)

I LOVE that Mike Noonan is from Derry. I’ve been thinking of rereading It and this made me want to revisit Derry. I want to, but have yet to, look into the theories where readers discuss that all the SK novels are really a part of one big story with a monster that just keeps regenerating and appearing in all these different places. Which is crazy to think of and I kind of love it. I love series but I also love stories that connect to each other outside of series. For instance, another blogger on bookstagram read my review of Rose Madder (also by SK) and told me that the bull, Erinyes, reappears in SK’s lesser known series The Dark Tower. 

(I gave a “bookstagram” short review on King’s Rose Madder, here.)

Until next time…Read and fuck the norm.