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huntour's review against another edition
4.0
My introduction to Stephen King's short stories. There were some GREAT stories and some alright stories. None of them were bad, though. My favorites were Graveyard Shift, The Mangler, The Boogeyman, Battleground, The Ledge, The Lawnmower Man, and Quitters, Inc. I highly recommend them if you are into horror and want something quick to digest.
athirah_idrus's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
I’m not a fan of horror and for the longest time, I’ve been avoiding the genre like a plague! I feel like I scare easily but it’s mostly my overactive mind that does the ‘scaring’ long after I’ve watched or read anything within the genre.
However, there is something about the way King writes that draws me in. I have to admit that I am both wary and attracted to the weird and extraordinary, which is something King excels in. His writing might not be my cup of tea but I relish his stories that many of the scenes in his books remain on my mind for years. In the past, I’ve also realized that many of the movies especially those pertaining the supernatural that I had enjoyed, were adapted from King’s books. While I lament every time I get into his books because I’m not fond of his writing, his stories are impeccable and I’d be pressed to name another author who writes bizarre stories the way he does.
Night Shift is a collection of his short horror stories, and I have to say I enjoyed many of the stories more than I expected to. While it falls under general horror, I was delighted to find stories that ranged between the macabre, weird beasts, unexplained phenomena and the simpler run-of-the-mill haunted areas. I realized most that I enjoyed were the ones recalled by small communities about scary happenings and my least favorites were the more scifi-ish beasts or dimensions. My favorite stories featured in this book were The Boogeyman and Quitters, Inc.
foxylostinfairytales's review against another edition
4.0
I’ll admit, for a long time, I struggled to get into Stephen King’s books, and I didn’t read them at all. Then one day, something changed, and I was finally able to appreciate them. Since then, I’ve really come to love how his stories can send shivers down my spine.
Night Shift consists of 21 chilling short stories. Naturally, some are scarier and others less intense than the rest. But one thing is certain: it’s pure King. He has a way of turning even the most ordinary things into something terrifying.
Some stories end in a way that leaves the conclusion up to the reader, which, makes them even scarier. By leaving things open-ended, King lets the story linger in your mind, without offering a comforting—or not so comforting—resolution.
It’s the perfect choice if you only have a few pages’ worth of time but still want to get spooked, or if you want a little “break” between two longer books.
Night Shift consists of 21 chilling short stories. Naturally, some are scarier and others less intense than the rest. But one thing is certain: it’s pure King. He has a way of turning even the most ordinary things into something terrifying.
Some stories end in a way that leaves the conclusion up to the reader, which, makes them even scarier. By leaving things open-ended, King lets the story linger in your mind, without offering a comforting—or not so comforting—resolution.
It’s the perfect choice if you only have a few pages’ worth of time but still want to get spooked, or if you want a little “break” between two longer books.
wilwheaton's review against another edition
4.0
I reread this book, because I'm about to start working on my own collection of short stories, and I wanted to reconnect to the book that inspired me to be a writer, 35 years ago.
I enjoyed it so much more as an adult than I did as a kid, because I have lived more and have more of my own experiences to relate to the stories, characters, and experiences in the different chapters.
But the thing I loved the most about this was how much it inspired me to write my own stories, and how much it reminded me about plot, structure, and narrative in stories that are about 5000 words, each.
Really glad I read this again. Thanks, Stephen King!
I enjoyed it so much more as an adult than I did as a kid, because I have lived more and have more of my own experiences to relate to the stories, characters, and experiences in the different chapters.
But the thing I loved the most about this was how much it inspired me to write my own stories, and how much it reminded me about plot, structure, and narrative in stories that are about 5000 words, each.
Really glad I read this again. Thanks, Stephen King!
batrock's review against another edition
4.0
Stephen King’s first short story collection is from the olden days when genre short stories ruled the earth, and people would just read them where they lay — in the pages of Penthouse, no less, when you really could read them for the articles. Of Night Shift’s 20 stories, a full 80% were published ahead of collection, and half of them were published ahead of Carrie. The short story mode is completely different to the novel, and King was rightfully confident in this early selection. There are some remarkably strong entries in here, several of which became films — in at least one case, entirely too many films — the embryos of later works, and a couple of continuations of ‘Salem’s Lot (which are now published in modern reprints of same).
Night Shift is a collection of short stories for people who no longer believe in them, and because of the form and era, not all endings have to be neat or happy, or undisturbing. King has a bit of everything in here, and few weaknesses.
Opening with “Jerusalem’s Lot”, an extended homage to the movement of the worm, King provides an alternate take on everyone’s favourite abandoned town. Vividly illustrated while only hinting at the shape of the madness the Boone family is subjected to, it’s a fine mood piece. Later in the collection King offers a more conventional sequel to ‘Salem’s Lot in “One For the Road”, about the dangers of getting stuck in a snowstorm on the outskirts of a ghost town. In that regard it’s quite similar to “Children of the Corn” — which to date has spawned ten movies — but they have different feels. “Children of the Corn” exists without precedent and tells much of its story through implication rather than exposition. You might not be able to tell it from his longer works, but in Night Shift, King is a firm believer that less is more.
An early stand out is “Night Surf”, which would go on to inspire The Stand, King’s first true “giant” novel. This much shorter incarnation embodies much of what King’s stories have to offer. Many of the books in this collection exist as second acts: no need to set up the action, and endings that are often either open ended, ambiguous, or just moments away from total carnage.
“Night Surf” begins after Captain Trips (a name that would endure across the years) has struck, one of those sweet lulls in a post-apocalyptic scenario where people have settled into a sort of routine but don’t know if they’re safe yet. It scratches an itch that is not often visited, and one that King himself would only briefly indulge himself in The Stand proper.
Another benefit of short stories is that some of these concepts could not sustain a novel or a film: “The Mangler”, about a possessed laundry press, is a piece of genius in short form; it reveals everything that it needs to without trying to give a sort of history to the machine in question, and it manages to maintain its sense of menace. That said, it is one of the stories in Night Shift that became a movie, directed by Tobe Hooper, no less.
“Trucks”, which King himself directed as Maximum Overdrive, is one of the true highlights. Without the need for the structure of a film, “Trucks” presents a “The Mist”-like story of a group of people stranded in a diner as they try to resist the murderous intent of sentient vehicles. With no introduction or conclusion, it’s a thrilling and ominous sound-byte of a story. King may have written Maximum Overdrive but, by his own admission, he had no idea what he was doing.
One of the more bitter stories King presents is “Quitters, Inc.”, a deeply uncomfortable story about the willpower needed to quit smoking. The titular corporation doesn’t have any obligation to the reader to be morally upright, and so it isn’t. It’s not even a metaphor for unsavoury business practises, it’s just … unsavoury business practice, focusing on how results matter more than procedure. Is a score really settled if you’re not the one paying the price? “Quitters, Inc.” has bite, and along with “Graveyard Shift”, suggests King’s sympathies lie with the proletariat more than the bourgeoisie.
King surprises most of all with the final story, “The Woman in the Room”, which deals with the horrors of mortality as they pertain to terminal illness and the final push. It’s not scary at all, but it is quite affecting, and it sparked the relationship between King and Frank Darabont that continues to this day.
Of course, not everything in Night Shift is great. None of the weaker entries go too long, but you could go to your grave without having read “The Man Who Loved Flowers” and be no worse off; “Strawberry Spring” offers a conclusion that was possibly shocking once, years before King ever dusted it off; “The Boogeyman” doesn’t properly click. Three lesser stories out of twenty is a good ratio for a collection, especially one from a single author.
Night Shift is a relic of a bygone era, but it’s the sort that you polish and give pride of place to. King doesn’t have a 100% hit rate with these pieces, but there are several true classics in here, some of which are genuinely disquieting. Early in his career, King was already dominant; it is little surprise that with so much strong material so soon that he was able to capture the American imagination. Night Shift is a firm distillation of King’s voice: while there’s no reason not to start from Carrie, you can dip into almost anything in Night Shift to get an accurate first taste of his work.
Night Shift is a collection of short stories for people who no longer believe in them, and because of the form and era, not all endings have to be neat or happy, or undisturbing. King has a bit of everything in here, and few weaknesses.
Opening with “Jerusalem’s Lot”, an extended homage to the movement of the worm, King provides an alternate take on everyone’s favourite abandoned town. Vividly illustrated while only hinting at the shape of the madness the Boone family is subjected to, it’s a fine mood piece. Later in the collection King offers a more conventional sequel to ‘Salem’s Lot in “One For the Road”, about the dangers of getting stuck in a snowstorm on the outskirts of a ghost town. In that regard it’s quite similar to “Children of the Corn” — which to date has spawned ten movies — but they have different feels. “Children of the Corn” exists without precedent and tells much of its story through implication rather than exposition. You might not be able to tell it from his longer works, but in Night Shift, King is a firm believer that less is more.
An early stand out is “Night Surf”, which would go on to inspire The Stand, King’s first true “giant” novel. This much shorter incarnation embodies much of what King’s stories have to offer. Many of the books in this collection exist as second acts: no need to set up the action, and endings that are often either open ended, ambiguous, or just moments away from total carnage.
“Night Surf” begins after Captain Trips (a name that would endure across the years) has struck, one of those sweet lulls in a post-apocalyptic scenario where people have settled into a sort of routine but don’t know if they’re safe yet. It scratches an itch that is not often visited, and one that King himself would only briefly indulge himself in The Stand proper.
Another benefit of short stories is that some of these concepts could not sustain a novel or a film: “The Mangler”, about a possessed laundry press, is a piece of genius in short form; it reveals everything that it needs to without trying to give a sort of history to the machine in question, and it manages to maintain its sense of menace. That said, it is one of the stories in Night Shift that became a movie, directed by Tobe Hooper, no less.
“Trucks”, which King himself directed as Maximum Overdrive, is one of the true highlights. Without the need for the structure of a film, “Trucks” presents a “The Mist”-like story of a group of people stranded in a diner as they try to resist the murderous intent of sentient vehicles. With no introduction or conclusion, it’s a thrilling and ominous sound-byte of a story. King may have written Maximum Overdrive but, by his own admission, he had no idea what he was doing.
One of the more bitter stories King presents is “Quitters, Inc.”, a deeply uncomfortable story about the willpower needed to quit smoking. The titular corporation doesn’t have any obligation to the reader to be morally upright, and so it isn’t. It’s not even a metaphor for unsavoury business practises, it’s just … unsavoury business practice, focusing on how results matter more than procedure. Is a score really settled if you’re not the one paying the price? “Quitters, Inc.” has bite, and along with “Graveyard Shift”, suggests King’s sympathies lie with the proletariat more than the bourgeoisie.
King surprises most of all with the final story, “The Woman in the Room”, which deals with the horrors of mortality as they pertain to terminal illness and the final push. It’s not scary at all, but it is quite affecting, and it sparked the relationship between King and Frank Darabont that continues to this day.
Of course, not everything in Night Shift is great. None of the weaker entries go too long, but you could go to your grave without having read “The Man Who Loved Flowers” and be no worse off; “Strawberry Spring” offers a conclusion that was possibly shocking once, years before King ever dusted it off; “The Boogeyman” doesn’t properly click. Three lesser stories out of twenty is a good ratio for a collection, especially one from a single author.
Night Shift is a relic of a bygone era, but it’s the sort that you polish and give pride of place to. King doesn’t have a 100% hit rate with these pieces, but there are several true classics in here, some of which are genuinely disquieting. Early in his career, King was already dominant; it is little surprise that with so much strong material so soon that he was able to capture the American imagination. Night Shift is a firm distillation of King’s voice: while there’s no reason not to start from Carrie, you can dip into almost anything in Night Shift to get an accurate first taste of his work.
hannahrox23's review against another edition
challenging
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
chuckb4's review against another edition
4.0
Not as good as skeleton crew, but still some very good stories in this collection
ethaninglis72's review against another edition
5.0
A pitch perfect collection with a loose ranking— all of them 5/5 in my eyes.
1. Children of the Corn
2. The Last Rung on the Ladder
3. Quitters, Inc.
4. Sometimes They Come Back
5. The Mangler
6. The Boogeyman
7. Graveyard Shift
8. The Ledge
9. One for the Road
10. Jerusalem’s Lot
11. Gray Matter
12. I Am The Doorway
13. The Woman in the Room
14. The Lawnmower Man
15. I Know What You Need
16. Battleground
17. Trucks
18. The Man Who Loved Flowers
19. Strawberry Spring
20. Night Surf
1. Children of the Corn
2. The Last Rung on the Ladder
3. Quitters, Inc.
4. Sometimes They Come Back
5. The Mangler
6. The Boogeyman
7. Graveyard Shift
8. The Ledge
9. One for the Road
10. Jerusalem’s Lot
11. Gray Matter
12. I Am The Doorway
13. The Woman in the Room
14. The Lawnmower Man
15. I Know What You Need
16. Battleground
17. Trucks
18. The Man Who Loved Flowers
19. Strawberry Spring
20. Night Surf