Just finished listening to 1922 from the audiobook. Good GRIEF! That is a pitch black story. I suppose that's why this collection is named what it is, but I haven't heard the other stories yet. I liked it, but it would have been nice to have at least one character to root for. I thought our narrator was going to be a somewhat sympathetic character caught in a tough position forced into making a horrible decision, but then he started rocking the casual racism. He just gets worse after that. Despite all of this, seeing everything unravel was fascinating and the last scene is wonderful, of course. It felt very classically horror to me. I loved that.
It speaks to SK's skill that he can take a character like Wilfred and use his every aspect of his humanity to keep us from fully turning on him. The man doesn't have a lot of decency to speak of, but his love for his son, his love of the land, and the fact that those set against him seem somehow more malicious keep us in his corner. Oh, and his affection for a couple of his cows. OH! And I've rarely had a more cringe-worthy experience during an audiobook than when
The people in the cars around me must have thought I was dancing to rock music I was squirming around so much. A really nice murder tale. Almost an extended campfire tale.
It speaks to SK's skill that he can take a character like Wilfred and use his every aspect of his humanity to keep us from fully turning on him. The man doesn't have a lot of decency to speak of, but his love for his son, his love of the land, and the fact that those set against him seem somehow more malicious keep us in his corner. Oh, and his affection for a couple of his cows. OH! And I've rarely had a more cringe-worthy experience during an audiobook than when
the leader of the rats was hanging off that poor cow's teat. And then ****ing ripping it off! Oh, God!