adrianmarley
March 12th, 2009, 07:26 AM
I recently started reading The Dark Descent edited by David G. Hartwell. It's a massive 1,000 page anthology of horror stories that has been critically acclaimed. It features stories from Ray Bradbuy, MR James, Ramsey Campbell, Clive Barker, Shirley Jackson and many many others. It also features 3 stories from Stephen King: The Reach, The Monkey and Crouch End. Indeed, King is very well represented and The Reach opens the anthology.
Any anthology worth its salt should open with a very strong story. It sets the tone for what is the follow and builds up the expectations of the reader. The Reach is no exception to this rule. It's a beautifully written meditation on island-life, death and ghosts. For my money, it is one of King's most atmospheric stories and one of his very best. Reading it made me wonder what SK stories have been anthologized the most? Which stories do editors pick as being most representative of his work?
Anyway, sorry for rambling, but any horror fans out there could do a hell of lot worse than pick up this massive anthology. Essential reading.
Any anthology worth its salt should open with a very strong story. It sets the tone for what is the follow and builds up the expectations of the reader. The Reach is no exception to this rule. It's a beautifully written meditation on island-life, death and ghosts. For my money, it is one of King's most atmospheric stories and one of his very best. Reading it made me wonder what SK stories have been anthologized the most? Which stories do editors pick as being most representative of his work?
Anyway, sorry for rambling, but any horror fans out there could do a hell of lot worse than pick up this massive anthology. Essential reading.