Rereading Tommyknockers

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Blake

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Feb 18, 2013
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I was reading it two days ago where Gardener is at the party and gets in the argument about nuclear stuff and he gives the example of what would happen and he quotes a figure of $19 million as financial damage and I'm thinking 'that's too low' even if the novel is written in the late 80's, that figure should be at least 10 times the amount. I don't blame King, I blame Gardener.
 

S.R. Wittmann

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Feb 22, 2017
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Tommyknockers is one of my favorite SK novels. I am currently re-reading it and just passed the part where Gard broke the pneumatic drill bit on the hatch somewhere around page 700 or so. One of the things I always pay close attention to is how an author opens a story. Some are long winded and risk losing me while others jump-start the story in only a few paragraphs. I think King's opening line to Tommyknockers may well be the best I have ever read. Let me quote it, "For want of a nail the kingdom was lost..." Those nine words perfectly summarize all 975 pages of the narrative. All you need to do is substitute the word battery for nail and it all falls into perspective.
 

RichardX

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Sep 26, 2006
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One upside to this seemingly endless winter is that I have started re-reading many King books. Started Tommyknockers this week. The story always struck me as having great potential but never quite living up to it. It just didn't work for some reason. Right from the start the writing is awkward. And the main character is a female who writes best selling western books while living in Maine. That is the biggest stretch since the Swedish gypsies of Thinner. It doesn't feel right. I'm not sure exactly what happened, but it's not a typical King story that draws you in from the beginning. Reminds me a bit of Dreamcatcher in that respect. It should have been "Who Goes There" but falls well short.
 

Christiane17

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Jan 19, 2010
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One upside to this seemingly endless winter is that I have started re-reading many King books. Started Tommyknockers this week. The story always struck me as having great potential but never quite living up to it. It just didn't work for some reason. Right from the start the writing is awkward. And the main character is a female who writes best selling western books while living in Maine. That is the biggest stretch since the Swedish gypsies of Thinner. It doesn't feel right. I'm not sure exactly what happened, but it's not a typical King story that draws you in from the beginning. Reminds me a bit of Dreamcatcher in that respect. It should have been "Who Goes There" but falls well short.
I would tend to agree with you. Can’t really get into the story, and I have tried 2 times so far.
 

Neesy

#1 fan (Annie Wilkes cousin) 1st cousin Mom's side
May 24, 2012
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One upside to this seemingly endless winter is that I have started re-reading many King books. Started Tommyknockers this week. The story always struck me as having great potential but never quite living up to it. It just didn't work for some reason. Right from the start the writing is awkward. And the main character is a female who writes best selling western books while living in Maine. That is the biggest stretch since the Swedish gypsies of Thinner. It doesn't feel right. I'm not sure exactly what happened, but it's not a typical King story that draws you in from the beginning. Reminds me a bit of Dreamcatcher in that respect. It should have been "Who Goes There" but falls well short.

Can you believe there really ARE Swedish gypsies?

maxresdefault.jpg
 

RichardX

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Sep 26, 2006
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One minor thing is that I noticed King refers to the main character as Bonnie in some instances and then Anderson in others. In some cases he uses her first name in one paragraph and then in the very next he uses her last name. It's just one of those oddities in this odd book. There is a lot of discussion of the male character's name Jim, Jimmy, Gard etc. The whole anti-nuke debate also has a very dated feel now. For whatever reason, that's one issue you really don't hear much about these days. I was reading recently that they may close three-mile island. Not because of any risk but apparently because it is not profitable enough.
 

GNTLGNT

The idiot is IN
Jun 15, 2007
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One minor thing is that I noticed King refers to the main character as Bonnie in some instances and then Anderson in others. In some cases he uses her first name in one paragraph and then in the very next he uses her last name. It's just one of those oddities in this odd book. There is a lot of discussion of the male character's name Jim, Jimmy, Gard etc. The whole anti-nuke debate also has a very dated feel now. For whatever reason, that's one issue you really don't hear much about these days. I was reading recently that they may close three-mile island. Not because of any risk but apparently because it is not profitable enough.
...odd the way the mind ping-pongs when under the influence of illicit chemicals and ethyl alcohol...
 

Brittney

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Apr 9, 2018
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...for King it was so-so, and even he admits it has some major suckage....
im over half way in this book, but its been a hard read. im really interested to see how it ends, and once i start something i always try and finish it! but i also have taken a break and started went into re reading nightmares and dreamscapes. but i need to go back and finish it. just a little sluggish
 

Doc Creed

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Nov 18, 2015
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It took me a loooooooooooooooooooooong time to finish this one. While the town and its denizens were interesting, Bobbi and Gard just weren't there for me. Overall, I didn't enjoy it.
That's interesting. I thought the opposite, regarding the protagonists. Bobbi and Gard's relationship was so complex and different than the male and female bonds he'd portrayed in the past.
They'd been lovers, worked together as activists, critiqued each other's writing, fought, and I think they truly listened to one another. By the time Gard shows up at Bobbi's farm alot of time has passed and much of their bonding (besides the sex) is hanging on old memories. This rings true for me. Every time I read this novel I think about their unique relationship.
But, yeah, it can be a laborious climb for the reader. :)
 

osnafrank

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Jan 24, 2017
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That's interesting. I thought the opposite, regarding the protagonists. Bobbi and Gard's relationship was so complex and different than the male and female bonds he'd portrayed in the past.
They'd been lovers, worked together as activists, critiqued each other's writing, fought, and I think they truly listened to one another. By the time Gard shows up at Bobbi's farm alot of time has passed and much of their bonding (besides the sex) is hanging on old memories. This rings true for me. Every time I read this novel I think about their unique relationship.
But, yeah, it can be a laborious climb for the reader. :)

And they (Bobbi and Gard) had a common Enemy
Bobbies Sister
 

Tery

Say hello to my fishy buddy
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Apr 12, 2006
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That's interesting. I thought the opposite, regarding the protagonists. Bobbi and Gard's relationship was so complex and different than the male and female bonds he'd portrayed in the past.
They'd been lovers, worked together as activists, critiqued each other's writing, fought, and I think they truly listened to one another. By the time Gard shows up at Bobbi's farm alot of time has passed and much of their bonding (besides the sex) is hanging on old memories. This rings true for me. Every time I read this novel I think about their unique relationship.
But, yeah, it can be a laborious climb for the reader. :)

It wasn't so much their relationship. That rang true. I just didn't find either one of them intriguing.