capn-trips:

The Best Books I Read In 2011 - 11/22/63 by Stephen King

This is only the first of a few King books that will end up on this list, but I wanted to talk about this one first. It’s still a very new book, having only been released in November of this year. I got it the day it came out, which is no small feat in a town that really doesn’t understand why anyone would feel enough passion for a book or author to want to have a new book the day it comes out. They make it hard to be a bookworm here. At any rate, I did manage to get my hands on it that very day, and in about a week I had it finished. Mainly because the story demands you keep going and follow Jake/George into wherever and whenever and whatever this crazed crusade delivers.

For longtime King fans, there is a lot of what we’ve come to expect, meaning the little hints of other stories referenced here. Always with the Dark Tower references and 19s everywhere. But more than that, a huge throwback to a beloved novel that I won’t spoil anyone for if you haven’t read either one. Rest assured if you’re a fan, you’ll be very pleased.

For those that are fairly new to King and his work, there is still a lot here to hold anyone’s interest. One might assume there would be a lot of politics and spying, and the book has its share, but more than that there are wonderful character stories to be had. That is, for me, what King excels at, showing us characters who feel like real people and putting them in impossible situations. While the concept of 11/22/63 is fantastic and he writes it well, it’s that basic skill he has with his characters that makes this one shine.