Thursday, August 29, 2013

11/22/63 by Stephen King


11/22/63
Stephen King

849 pgs, 11/8/2011

Bought Physical Book
Goodreads Summary

If you had the chance to change the course of history, would you? Would the consequences be what you hoped?

Jake Epping 35 teaches high school English in Lisbon Falls, Maine, and cries reading the brain-damaged janitor's story of childhood Halloween massacre by their drunken father. On his deathbed, pal Al divulges a secret portal to 1958 in his diner back pantry, and enlists Jake to prevent the 11/22/1963 Dallas assassination of American President John F. Kennedy. Under the alias George Amberson, our hero joins the cigarette-hazed full-flavored world of Elvis rock n roll, Negro discrimination, and freeway gas guzzlers without seat belts. Will Jake lurk in impoverished immigrant slums beside troubled loner Lee Harvey Oswald, or share small-town friendliness with beautiful high school librarian Sadie Dunhill, the love of his life?

My Thoughts
Read this book!  Seriously, I know it’s long.  But it’s awesome and totally different for Stephen King yet still totally Stephen King. 
I looked at a blank piece of paper for awhile trying to write a summary without giving away too much and I’m stumped.  So instead here’s a mini list of reasons you should read it.
·         Time travel – I love the concept of this book, but what’s really amazing is that King pulls it off. 

·         The writing – No surprise but it’s excellent.  King may tend to be a little more detailed than I need at times, but he’s at his best here.

·         Love Story – At its heart 11/22/63 is a love story.  A beautifully developed and at times heartbreaking love story.

·         Characters – Jake, Sadie, Ellie, Deke, Al – all of the characters are fleshed out and have dimension. 

·         Educational – I am not a history buff.  I learn 90% of my history through historical fiction and this is perfect.  Well researched and the history was woven into the story so seamlessly that I never noticed it.
My Rating
Enjoyability (4 out of 5 stars)
Characters (4.5 out of 5 stars)
Writing (5 out of 5 stars)
This book will stay with me forever.
Who else out there has read it?  What did you think of the ending?

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