The Shining

If I had to pick one horror novel to take with me to...let's go with a creepy old house...it would have to be Stephen King's The Shining.

A lot of people get snooty when it comes to horror-fiction. Maybe it's the crudeness of some of the characters' lines, the typical gore-factor, and jump out at you cheap scares that Hollywood has shoved down our throats for quite some time. See, a scary book is generally the opposite of its big screen counterpart. When you can't watch the scene unfold with eerie music wearing thin your already frayed nerves, well, you have to manipulate your audience through literary means into a state of edginess without losing the quality of the writing. The Shining does this perfectly!
While I'm a sucker for a scary anything, I'm more critical of my favorite genre than the others-- books most of all. If I can't enjoy reading their tale, I won't get to the creepy. If for some unknown reason I trudge onward just out of morbid curiosity, I usually feel disappointed when something happens. I really have to connect with the main character(/s) in order to envelop myself in the novel...even if they're flawed.

Stephen King shines with a small cast- it's a fact I could debate for who knows how long. In The Shining he has three and a half characters to develop and that's it. Some would think this is boring and won't lead to grizzly deaths or whatever, but you're wrong: all three of the Torrances are expertly crafted. Each of the parents (Jack -the main character- and Wendy) is not perfect, but that's what makes them honestly feel real! Their son Danny is gifted with a form of second sight, a staple King plot device, though he's not a brilliant adult-in-a-kid's-body sort of deal. When sections focus on his perspective, well, he has trouble connecting certain things and finds himself struggling to find a word, and you're along for the frustration/confusion ride with him...Enjoy it, because King was never able to create another believable child character. Lastly is an important character who doesn't get much page-time, and I'll leave it up to anyone who hasn't seen/read The Shining to find out on your own (ha!).

Anyway, you've all probably seen the movie, so I won't waste time on the plot; however, the Kubrick version deviates so far from the actual story that I can't watch it. The miniseries from '97, I believe, starring Stephen Weber was an accurate adaptation, and rather good sans the actor playing Danny. But I digress. In a nutshell: Jack takes a job as a caretaker for a massive hotel in the Rockies (The Overlook) and brings his family. Turns out it's haunted and the spirits want to add the Torrances to their roster. Especially Danny.

This is by FAR my favorite Stephen King novel, and I've read most of his work. I cannot recommend this book enough. The character development is superb, the setting claustrophobic, and has some genuinely creepy moments where my breathing became so shallow I was nearly, well, not. Read. This. Book. Now I'm going to down some medicine for my inexplicable headache and relax...Be back Thursday, folks.