Guns

By: Stephen King

Narrated by: Christian Rummel

Length: 48 mins

Publisher's summary

In a pulls-no-punches essay intended to provoke rational discussion, Stephen King sets down his thoughts about gun violence in America. Anger and grief in the wake of the shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School are palpable in this urgent piece of writing, but no less remarkable are King's keen thoughtfulness and composure as he explores the contours of the gun-control issue and constructs his argument for what can and should be done.

King's earnings from the sale of this essay will go to the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence.

Stephen King is the author of 11/22/63, Under the Dome, Carrie, The Shining, and many other best-selling works.

"The overwhelming response from readers of the Kindle Single edition of Guns underscores the great need for thoughtful discourse on the issue of guns in America…I’m thrilled Audible is bringing Guns to the quickly growing audience of audiobook listeners." (Stephen King)

©2013 Stephen King (P)2013 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

"There are a handful of subjects in America so emotional and polarizing that the national dialogue around them amounts to little more than a shouting match. Chief among these is the subject of guns. In this intimate and moving Kindle Single, Stephen King employs all his gifts as writer and citizen to address gun violence in America. But why should we care what Stephen King has to say? As it turns out, there are a number of reasons. Despite his "liberal creds," King is an unapologetic gun owner himself. He is also the author of a novel--published under the pseudonym Richard Bachman--that has served as a "possible accelerant" for at least four real-life high school shooters. King had his publisher take that book off the market long ago, but the guns and the occasional bursts of unfathomable violence remain. When division is everywhere, is it possible for someone to argue passionately for the middle road? That is what King seeks to do here--this is a frank and thoughtful contribution to a dialogue in dire need of voices from the 'all-but-deserted middle.'" (Chris Schluep, Amazon.com)

Very Well Disguised Liberal Agenda

I really enjoyed the first 3/4 of this essay -- a sober and cogent look
and gun violence and the media's love affair with it.

Mr. King's thoughts are particularly interesting given his own "connection" to gun violence with young people and his book Rage.

Just as I was beginning to think that I was going to continue to receive a thoughtful and balanced conclusion to this essay Mr. King takes a decided left turn and suggests that the answer to this societal ill is to ban the ownership of certain forms of firearms and high capacity magazines.

How disappointing that this entire essay, which offers such a brilliant personal reflection on the subject of gun violence, ends with the parroting of the standard liberal mantra of banning guns. I was hoping for more.

A Balanced and Reasonable Argument

Not what you would expect, given the source. It's actually the most balanced and reasonable argument I've heard amidst the current fervor. Direct, but not preachy. Definitely worth 45 minutes and whatever the token cost.

Enjoyed story, but don't entirely agree with it.

What did you like best about Guns? What did you like least?

The accuracy in the way the media sensationalizes a catastrophic event.

How would you have changed the story to make it more enjoyable?

notthing

What does Christian Rummel bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

I think he accurately read the story as it was suppose to be read and how Stephen King wanted it to be read.

Was Guns worth the listening time?

It's interesting to see what Stephen Kings views are, and his timing is relevant.

Any additional comments?

I may not agree 100% with Stephen Kings views, but I understand where he is coming from.
I think the problem lies within the lack of stringent background checks. I fear the possibility, however small it may be, for a hostile government take over, or the government taking over the people someday (history repeating). The need for powerful guns may be viable, to protect our families or our rights as Americans.

Stephen King For President 2020 Elections. 🎉🌈

Stephen King makes a lot more sense than any other people I've heard on this subject. He's very intelligent and I think he could really does understand the everyday American man. our current president, Donald Trump is living in his millionaire fantasy world. Stephen King understands our political situation and has some pretty damn good Solutions. 🎉🐕🤗🌮🌯🤹‍♂️

A Level-headed, Thought-provoking Essay

King writes a very persuasive argument that doesn't really steer to either the left or the right. A lot of factual information and hard common sense. He doesn't propose a simple solution, but does put forth realistic steps that could be taken. I can't say I disagree with his ideas or conclusion as it's presented, either. I'm not sure all of his figures are accurate (I'm referring to the Australian solution; not saying it's wrong, but I'd like to see more data studies to prove the correlation), but surely something to this effect needs to be done.

I think this is just one issue that needs to be addressed, however. This might very well help limit the lone crazed gunman scenarios we've been having, and we definitely do need to do something there. And I know it's another subject, but we also need to do something about the gun-based gang violence in this country, which accounts for a lot of the homicides going on. And none of these proposed solutions are going to affect that problem, unfortunately. We cannot just accept that those are part of our society any more than the lone gunman scenarios are.

If you are to speak your mind, do it like this!

I really enjoyed this essay. King's writing style -which I love- used to voice his opinion makes for a strong combination. The performance is super !

As I don't live in the US my opinion on the subject is irrelevant, but I think it is less enjoyable if you happen to have and enjoy those high powered weapons.

Will Anger You, Then Make You Think

The writing is superb, as one would expect. No matter your viewpoint, he will anger you, mainly by his insightful description of your self-contradictory opinions. He lambastes each side's wrong headed assertions and assumptions, then encourages individuals to rethink their own views and engage in rational discussion, rather than parroting a party line.
Though I would add, some of this own assertions need a tad rethinking themselves.

Fair and balanced review

What did you like about this audiobook?

The author looked at both sides of issue and gave a fair assessment while putting politics aside.

How has the book increased your interest in the subject matter?

N/A

Does the author present information in a way that is interesting and insightful, and if so, how does he achieve this?

Fair and non-partison language

What did you find wrong about the narrator's performance?

n/a

Do you have any additional comments?

no

A Book EVERY Parent Should Read..!

This story moved me more than any other story I've ever read! From the greatest horror novelist who ever lived call mrs. scariest nonfiction novel yet, at least for a parent it is. Stephen King gets down into the nitty-gritty and refers to horrible tragedies, such as Shady Brook Elementary and we all know how horrifying that was! It's a very short read, under 2 hours, but at the end of the book, you'll want to jump into action as I did, when I read it...

Okay

Don’t agree with the opinion but it was still a good and interesting listen. Absolutely did not like the tone from the narrator. Think he must have really disagreed with what was being read. Overall it was good.