Reviews tagging 'Forced institutionalization'

The Institute, by Stephen King

37 reviews

secre's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

The Institute is a slow burn, creepy, and unnerving novel. It's not terrifying or gory or over the top in the way some of King's horror books can go, but it's got a quiet horror for the fact that it's fairly realistic. The supernatural elements come in the telekinetic and telepathic powers of the children depicted, but the abuse of power and conditions in which the kids are kept is something you can see happening.

The novel opens with Tim Jamieson taking a chance and hitch hiking after losing his job as a police officer, only to find himself in the small town of DuPray. His journey stalls and he takes on the job of Night Knocker for the small little town. For a while I wondered what this had to do with the main plot, but before too long we switch to Luke, a genius child with a small parlour trick gift for telekenesis. That small gift however is enough to get him noticed and he's kidnapped in the middle of the night, his parents killed. He finds himself in the Institute, with a handful of other kids with similar powers. Those in the Front Half endure tests and shots, but they all know it's better than what happens in the Back Half. Yet it is the Back Half that they are all destined for in fairly short order.

This is a book that has taken me a long time to read, despite being relatively short for a King novel - just shy of 600 pages instead of well over a thousand. A lot of the horror is in the nitty gritty details of the children's lives. The tests and abuses and humiliations heaped upon them, even as those who behave earn tokens and those who don't endure punishments. The Institute itself is brought to life with it's bleakness and often petty cruelty. It's a slow build, where the tension is built throughout the novel as the cruelties ramp up and the stakes - always high - become more visible and tangible.

It's fairly tame for a King novel, yet it's disturbing in a creepy, realistic way rather than body horror and massacres. It's more of a YA novel than some other King novels I've read, yet it's also horrifying on a psychological level. He brings the tortures and abuses to live, even as the adults perpetrating the horror continue to justify their actions all the way to the very end.

All in all, a solid success for King here and one that reminds me how much I enjoy some - if not all - of his work. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Death, Murder, Child abuse, Forced institutionalization, and Violence

Moderate: Child death, Kidnapping, and Suicide

Minor: Terminal illness

farrington's review against another edition

dark sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Confinement, Death, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Kidnapping, Torture, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Physical abuse, and Murder

horrorhomebodies's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

Stephen King’s ability to write a simple sentence with a plethora of meaning is absolutely brilliant. I gave 4.25 stars because the ending was a bit lackluster for my taste, but still warmed my heart enough to earn the .25 of the rating. I wish there had been a bit more of an insight into the characters backstory, but overall it was an enticing read. It really made me think beyond the scope of fiction, which is a large part of why I loved The Institute. Well worth the read in my opinion!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Murder, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Torture, Death, Kidnapping, Violence, Confinement, Medical content, Medical trauma, and Forced institutionalization

Minor: Cancer, Mental illness, Chronic illness, Injury/injury detail, War, and Suicide

raelinton's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

The structure was a little strange, but the end packed an emotional punch.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, and Physical abuse

Moderate: Gun violence, Suicide, Physical abuse, Medical trauma, and Forced institutionalization

Minor: Excrement, Forced institutionalization, Confinement, Medical content, Addiction, Bullying, Injury/injury detail, Racial slurs, and War

mel_s_bookshelf's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Forced institutionalization, Child death, Suicide, Murder, Gun violence, Kidnapping, Medical content, Death of parent, Torture, and Child abuse

Moderate: Terminal illness

directorpurry's review against another edition

dark hopeful sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Injury/injury detail, Kidnapping, Body horror, Medical trauma, Torture, Violence, Emotional abuse, Child abuse, Death, Forced institutionalization, Gun violence, Medical content, Physical abuse, Confinement, Mental illness, Murder, and Suicide

Moderate: Alcohol, Drug use, and Death of parent

omarhabib's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Forced institutionalization, and Emotional abuse

bethboo's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

Wowzzaaaa this was a good book!! 
I fell in love with the main character. I feel like the author did well with the POV of a child and reminding us that even though Luke's a genius he doesn't know everything. The story was fascinating and well paced. I definitely cried at least 4 times. I'm just sensitive to kid trauma. A criticism I do have that didn't really affect my rating for it was the dialogue. It felt kind of cheesy and unrealistic, especially for kids. Used a lot of idioms and colloquial sayings, too many. It made conversations more interesting but people don't talk like that in real life. 
I also wouldn't consider this book Horror, more likely Dark Fiction or Psychological Thriller or something like that. 

Parts that absolutely killed me:
-When Luke said that someone upstairs must like him (because some lucky things lined up for him) but thought of his dead parents and thought that they must not like him enough
-When Maureen says she chose Luke over everyone else 
-When Tim told the kids that the world wasn't their responsibility
-When Tim hugged Nick

Two reasons that the book isn't 5 star: 
1- Stephen King is so fucking weird with the female children. He has to describe their prepubescent bodies in the weirdest creepiest ways. I do not feel comfortable with the way he treated the children characters that were girls. 
2- The ending wasn't super satisfying 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Torture, Child abuse, Forced institutionalization, and Kidnapping

tilde_c_s's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective tense

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Physical abuse, Murder, Child abuse, Death of parent, Forced institutionalization, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, and Torture

Minor: Grief, Alcohol, Suicide, and Injury/injury detail

lukerik's review against another edition

adventurous emotional tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This really got under my skin. Probably because it’s horrible things happening to kids. I think you could probably read the whole thing as a big metaphor for the treatment of Native American and Aboriginal children by the British Empire. There are a couple of apparently off-hand comments about England that might be there to point your brain in that direction, but there are also comments about the Holocaust so perhaps King wasn’t intending such a specific reading. 

There’s actually quite a lot going on in the novel, more than usual with King, with some interesting Biblical parallels. When they’re in the tunnel and there’re 11 of them (minus the traitor), which would make the hero Jesus Christ. And some clever techniques to make you fear for the hero’s fate. 

I also think King might be sitting there with his middle finger cocked at Stranger Things and a big shit-eating grin on his face. You’re got a bunch of kids, a worn out cop and an evil government institute in the woods. There’s even a character called Winona. There are also call-backs to eighties things but because Stephen King is a legend his call-backs are to his own books, notable Firestarter. And he’s done it in under 500 pages and without any self indulgence and padding. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Death of parent, Confinement, Physical abuse, Death, Forced institutionalization, Violence, Murder, Emotional abuse, and Torture