From a Buick 8

By: Stephen King

Narrated by: James Rebhorn, Bruce Davison, Becky Ann Baker

Length: 13 hrs and 23 mins

Publisher's summary

The state police of Troop D in rural Pennsylvania have kept a secret in Shed B out back of the barracks ever since 1979, when Troopers Ennis Rafferty and Curtis Wilcox answered a call from a gas station just down the road and came back with an abandoned Buick Roadmaster. Curt Wilcox knew old cars, and he knew immediately that this one was...wrong, just wrong. A few hours later, when Rafferty vanished, Wilcox and his fellow troopers knew the car was worse than dangerous.

Curt's avid curiosity took the lead, and they investigated as best they could, as much as they dared. Over the years, the troop absorbed the mystery as part of the background to their work, the Buick 8 sitting out there like a still-life painting that breathes - inhaling a little bit of this world, exhaling a little bit of whatever world it came from.

In the fall of 2001, a few months after Curt Wilcox is killed in a gruesome auto accident, his 18-year-old boy, Ned, starts coming by the barracks. Sandy Dearborn, Sergeant Commanding, knows it's the boy's way of holding onto his father, and Ned is allowed to become part of the Troop D family. One day he looks in the window of Shed B and discovers the family secret. Like his father, Ned wants answers...

From a Buick 8 is an audiobook about our fascination with deadly things, about our insistence on answers when there are none, about terror and courage in the face of the unknowable.

©2002 Stephen King, All Rights Reserved (P)2002 Simon & Schuster Inc., All Rights Reserved

Critic reviews

"Nearly flawless and one terrific entertainment." (Publishers Weekly)
"A wonderful example of how much King's plotting skills and literary finesse have matured over his long career. And, most of all, it's a darn creepy book." (Amazon.com)

Better than the reviews may lead you to believe

This was a good SK novel. Much better than the reviews may lead you to believe. It was well performed and the story kept me engaged. I listened to it for a good portion of two days and am very happy I opted to give it a go. It’s not gory or scary but intriguing in the way Hearts in Atlantis was. Don’t skip this one.

Great People Story

If you're looking for a story that's big on non-stop action, or in which someone dies a gruesome death in the first 10 pages - this AIN'T it. If you're looking for something with great character development - people that you can empathize with: a story basically about how life goes on, regardless of how strange things get some times - this is definitely it. Not typical King, but a great read nonetheless.

Worth a listen

Though not among King's best work its worth a listen thanks to great narration. The concept behind the story is intriguing, and will keep you wondering where its going

Entertaining with great performances

I've been a Stephen King reader since 1979 (I was about 9 years old then) and I've enjoyed his books for years. This audiobook was such a pleasure to listen to. I loved hearing the different characters by such talented actors and the story really came alive for me. The overall tone of this story, since it's a "memory" has a nice quality to it, and I loved how Sandy really came to learn something from the experience and the memory of Ned's father - the father and son relationship being a good thing is not something you read about very often. I was not happy when the story ended but I liked everything about the story - the characters, narrative, the relationships and how everyone had come full circle at the end. Worth every penny!

Good story and Great Presentation

This was among my first audiobooks ever and is by far my favorite. While the story by itself is good, the presentation of this book is what makes it great. Having multiple narrators is what gives this story life. For me there was a real sense of several people, PA State Troopers in this case, relating their own accounts of events and not somebody reading a book. Perhaps the narrators were able to focus on their respective character(s) better than if there was a single person behind the voices, but they related the emotions and events in a manner unlike any other book I have heard so far.

I think Stephen King has a way of creating fictional locations within real places that is different than many authors, to me it always seems like you could go find them if you could only find the right exit off the highway. Troop D's barracks and shed B in rural Pennsylvania are no exceptions; it has to be there, doesn't it?! The standard SK surreal events, mangled eye, and horrifying ways to die are all present and accounted for. Which isn't to say that this is a below average book. This author's one of a kind ideas about monsters and aliens is what makes this one so fun.

Absolutely top notch.

This is one of the most satisfying audio books from S. King I have listened to to date. The voice acting was absolutely spot on.

I loved the story from when I read it, so I'm biased there. If you're a fan of stories that are inexplicable, strange, and not always resolved completely, this is a great one.

Descriptively GRIPPING!

Loved it! First chapter a little difficult to decipher, but over all another great read from King. More suspense and mystery than his usual delivery of horror and supernatural. Multiple narratives from each character, as they recalled the event from their memory and interpretation.

Too many climaxes damn it

This is both my favorite and least favorite Stephen King book.

The first three quarters of this book are brilliant, and the slow build up in tension regarding the mystery of the Buick and what it is able to produce is outstanding. Then the climax hits about three quarters in and its absolutely amazing and terrifying, and makes a statement about the nature of mankind and subtley hints at answers to questions from earlier, and then King feels the need to keep writing...

He then attempts to one up the perfect climax with a second, mind-numbingly stupid one that feels hokey, forced and completely unnecessary that spoon feeds you answers to questions you kind of already figured out, including is the car actually alive and malicious or is it just a dangerous but inadimate object? He makes sure to bludgeon us caveman style with that answer by the very end.

I suppose he felt since the majority of the story takes place within flashbacks he felt another climax should happen in the present day timeline of the book. It really wasn't needed. The shock of the 1988 climax combined with the potential of what could happen next should have closed the story out, but instead he had to turn it into a traditional good vs evil scenario and make the ending all "feel-good" and happy. The threat is gone. No need to fret.

The audio version is even more enjoyable because as the story is told from the collective memories of a group of people they use various actors to share the respective accounts. All of them are brilliant but the late James Rehborn steals the show with his soft spoken, calm but wise demeanor casually narrating such crazy incidents, adding to the whole "we're used to it, it's normal" theme of the novel.

My advice is to stop listening after the 1988 climax. You'll most definately know ot when it happens.

good but not great

not his best, but worth a credit. multi voice narration is different. had to listen to this twice to get to know the characters

Did these "reviewers" not read the summary?

Clearly stated plot&theme.
Perfect narrators per chapter.
Creepygreat depiction of the indifferent randomness of life.