Next on my #stephenking #readathon with @ame9022 and @wendysallison is THE SHINING, another of his earlier novels that I had not gotten around to reading yet. The story of the Torrance family as they move into the Overlook Hotel as seasonal caretakers, and their decent into hell as the hotel tries to claim young Danny Torrance, and his Shine, for its itself, through any means possible.

I'm not going to get into the specifics of the story, as I think that's been covered ad nauseam at this point. If you're familiar at all with THE SHINING, you know that SK strongly dislikes the Stanley Kubrick adaptation released in 1980, and after finally reading the book, I can understand why. There are a lot of nuances in the book that are lost in the movie, and it's made clear the book is far more about Danny Torrance, while the movie seems to focus more on Jack Torrance. There are some decidedly creeptastic and cool scenes in the book that I feel were probably left out of the movie due to visual effects constraints more than anything else, but those added so much more to the story (one thing I missed in the movie are the hedge animals - those would have been a great addition to the film had they had the ability to create them believably).

I recently discovered that there was a miniseries made in 1997 that apparently sticks far more closely to the book, and I found it on blu-ray, so will be watching that soon, so see how it compares to both the book and the original film.

Overall, I think THE SHINING is a fantastic book, and definitely one of those cases where the book is far better than the movie. The movie can exist on its own as a piece of cinematic history, because there's no denying that on its own, it's an ambitious film, but if your only experience with this story is from that film, do yourself a favor and read the book sometime.

#stephenking #horror #theshining #dannytorrance #jacktorrance #horrorbooks #horrorbookstagram #bookstagram #book #bookworm #booksbooksbooks #bookreview #frommybookshelf #frommybookshelfblog ( )

All his early books are killer, but the "The Shining" by Stephen King is a masterpiece of horror literature. Set in the ominous Overlook Hotel of the Colorado Rockies, the story follows Jack Torrance, a struggling writer and recovering alcoholic, who takes a job as the winter caretaker of the hotel with his wife Wendy and their young son Danny. No thank you. The setting alone is ripe for terrible adventures. A palpable sense of dread and isolation seeps from the pages. King's descriptive prose is vivid and immersive, drawing the reader into the chilling atmosphere of the hotel and its haunted corridors. It is a complex story of addiction, family dynamics, and the nature of evil, and a must-read for fans of suspenseful and unsettling fiction. ( )

Reading this without continually comparing it to the film is a challenge. In general, I lean towards the film's interpretation; I believe many of Kubrick's alterations, even those seemingly necessary, enhanced the overall experience – like the topiary animals. Danny's unnaturally advanced intelligence felt awkward to me, bordering on poorly written.

Nevertheless, I appreciated the nuanced portrayal of Jack Torrance in the book. I wonder how the film might have differed with a less intense actor than Nicholson.

Despite these comparisons, the book is still enjoyable and atmospheric – a diverting experience. ( )

Awesome! One of my favorite King books. I had to wait a long time for the memory of the movie to fade enough that my imagination could take over.
I really liked the narration from the 4 different points of view. ( )

The first Stephen king Novel I actually read was IT, shocking because I hate clowns. I have decided to sprinkle a few more of his novels into my year. I hated The Cell but am willing to give Dr. Sleep a chance that is My next read! ( )