11-22-63

A Novel

By: Stephen King

Narrated by: Craig Wasson

Length: 30 hrs and 40 mins

Publisher's summary

On November 22, 1963, three shots rang out in Dallas, President Kennedy died, and the world changed. What if you could change it back?

In this brilliantly conceived tour de force, Stephen King - who has absorbed the social, political, and popular culture of his generation more imaginatively and thoroughly than any other writer - takes listeners on an incredible journey into the past and the possibility of altering it.

It begins with Jake Epping, a 35-year-old English teacher in Lisbon Falls, Maine, who makes extra money teaching GED classes. He asks his students to write about an event that changed their lives, and one essay blows him away: a gruesome, harrowing story about the night more than 50 years ago when Harry Dunning’s father came home and killed his mother, his sister, and his brother with a sledgehammer. Reading the essay is a watershed moment for Jake, his life - like Harry’s, like America’s in 1963 - turning on a dime.

Not much later his friend Al, who owns the local diner, divulges a secret: his storeroom is a portal to the past, a particular day in 1958. And Al enlists Jake to take over the mission that has become his obsession - to prevent the Kennedy assassination.

So begins Jake’s new life as George Amberson, in a different world - of Ike and JFK and Elvis, of big American cars and sock hops and cigarette smoke everywhere. From the dank little city of Derry, Maine (where there’s Dunning business to conduct), to the warmhearted small town of Jodie, Texas, where Jake falls dangerously in love, every turn is leading, eventually of course, to a troubled loner named Lee Harvey Oswald and to Dallas, where the past becomes heart-stoppingly suspenseful - and where history might not be history anymore. Time-travel has never been so believable. Or so terrifying.

©2011 Stephen King. All Rights Reserved. (P)2011 Simon & Schuster, Inc

How does he do it?

Would you listen to 11-22-63 again? Why?

Being a big Stephen King fan, I was intrigued to see how he would handle this extreme moment in American History. What never seems to disappear from his story telling is his acute ability to 'take us there.' Weather it's current time in Maine or Dallas in 1958, the attention to detail and nuances of life is vivid. Perhaps what I loved most about this particular story was King's ability to tell a love story second to none. King loves to be nostalgic. No doubt about that. But, the ability to feel both like a man and a woman falling in love is the thing I will love most about this book. The time travel, and the many threads that must be considered by the 'threads' created is made simple...you could actually see something like this happening! Great reading by the narrator who had to handle Maine, GA, and Texas accents, both men and woman. Absolutly great buy and I highly recommend it. One bit of a downer. King is an unabashed liberal. That twist becomes very prevalent in the end, which I find a little disappointing.

Thought provoking

Craig Wassen brought this book to life and Stephen King once again pulled me in within the first 5 min of this book. I am on part 3 and look forward to listening to it again after I somewhat reluctantly look forward to hearing the end. This book could go on for ever and I would not complain. One of Kings BEST!

I want to go there.

If you could sum up 11-22-63 in three words, what would they be?

"Everything tastes better"

What did you like best about this story?

The way he laid out the setting of the 60's. I loved the way he put u there in that time. I loved knowing those characters. It carries you somewhere you don't want to leave.

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

He's a good narrator. Nothing to complain about.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

Feel for the step.

Any additional comments?

The only bad thing i found with this story was the futures were a let down. They were kind of weak. I understand where he was going and why it happened this way...i just wasn't feeling it. I loved living in that world of the past though. He really brought that to life! Beautiful. Something about it whispered of Lisey's story. Maybe the boys stories. The bad gunky.

Awesome!

Would you consider the audio edition of 11-22-63 to be better than the print version?

The narrator is excellent! A great storyteller. I'm on part four of the book now and don't want it to end. I am not normally a King fan, so this book was a pleasant surprise.

What a gem!

This book was fantastic - a little on the "other" side of Stephen King. The narrator was so good - the story was great - even though it was very long - I never wanted it to end.

Best Stephen King yet!

Any additional comments?

I am a long time fan of King, and enjoy almost all of his books, but I think this is my favorite of all time. Great characters, mind-boggling concepts - the whole nine yards. Also, the narrator did a really great job with different character voices and accents.

Great Book

tough to get through some spots because of the extreme levels of detail in certain scenes it becomes almost like you're drowning in words and is hard to pay full attention to everything.

overall a good book and an interesting take on the time period.

I wish there would've been more detail on the actual time travel and the consequences and what not, but in comparison to everything else the time travel was about 5%

Great story but extremely long!

I saw the mini series on Hulu and loved it so I decided to listen to the book. The book is great but so long (over 30 hours long) that I my interest level decreased as I went along. Usually, when I'm into a book, I listen to it every chance I get. That was not the case with this book because it was so long. I would recommend it because the story is excellent.

Fantastic from start to finish!

One of my favorite books of all time! Stephen King is such a masterful story teller, and I felt that Craig Wasson did an incredible job of narrating this entertaining and thought provoking book. The characters were so easy to get attached to, that I almost felt as if I had climbed into the story. I will definitely be looking for other Stephen King books narrated by Craig Wasson in which to lose myself whenever I get a chance! It made training for a 39 mile walk very enjoyable! I highly recommend this book.

Incredible Story - Maybe I'm becoming a King fan.

Read Green Mile and loved it. This had such great reviews I decided to give it a try. The story is entertaining right from the start and the narrator does a good job with all the characters without getting too carried away in an individual persona. It does get a tad long in the middle but mostly because I wanted to know how King would bring the story together and not because it was boring. This is my second King audio book and I highly recommend it. I'm learning that he is an imaginative story teller beyond the stereotype with which I had labeled him.