11-22-63

A Novel

By: Stephen King

Narrated by: Craig Wasson

THE #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER AND MODERN CLASSIC FROM MASTER STORYTELLER STEPHEN KING

A NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW TOP TEN BOOK OF THE YEAR

WINNER OF THE LOS ANGELES TIMES BOOK PRIZE

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 readers on an incredible journey into the past and the possibility of altering it.

It begins with Jake Epping, a thirty-five-year-old English teacher in Lisbon Falls, Maine, whose life is upended when 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 the dying 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 the world of Ike and JFK and Elvis, of big American cars and sock hops and cigarette smoke everywhere and to the small town of Jodie, Texas, where Jake falls dangerously in love. Every turn leads eventually 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.

I Owe Stephen King An Apology

Stephen King On Writing is one of my favorite books, and I read it every couple of years. Half memoir, half writing “how to,” it is absorbing and delightful. I recommend it to my students and suggest that they read it every year.

However, that is the only one of King’s books that I’ve been able to read. I’ve tried many times, but kept getting bogged down after 20 or 30 pages. The stories were okay, but couldn’t hold my interest because the writing seemed too heavy handed, brutish, like he was typing with his fists.

So, after days of consideration, it was with great reluctance that I downloaded 11/22/63. The reviews were good, glowing, in fact, and I’ve learned to trust the opinions of Audible listeners. Plus, the book is more than 30 hours long, which the bargain hunter in me always finds attractive.

I just finished it tonight. It is a wonderful and fascinating story, based loosely on an English teacher’s obsession with Lee Harvey Oswald and the possibility of going back in time to prevent the Kennedy killing. I also enjoyed the love story, which the author handles with charm, humor and honesty.

The writing is wonderful, masterful, vivid, compelling. The characters are rich and deep, genuine, involved, and I find myself thinking about them and their lives often throughout the day. Life in small-town and big-town 1958 up to 1963 is mesmerizing, much as I remember it, with the constant but subtle hint of mysterious dangers to come.

You’ll get no more details from me, only a hearty endorsement. Well worth every minute, made doubly valuable by the excellent and interesting reading by Craig Wasson. Totally believable, wonderfully surprising, and, well, I was going to say something about the ending, but you'll want to find that out for yourself.

Interjections of pesonal politics... blah

I may have underrated this title's "story" rating, as I couldn't delineate King's political sentiments bleeding through the pages and the incredible story.

Normally I don't have a problem with authors' personal beliefs as the stories they write are a reflection of who they are, however this one is different. King asserts that the assassination of JFK, portrayed as just shy of deity, resulted in the escalation of Vietnam, MLK's assassination, and a really big stretch to GW Bush becoming president. If he can stop that assassination the entirety of the current world problems never would have come to fruition and our present world would be a utopia thanks to JFK's completed tenure and the resultant butterfly affect.

To be fair, this is my first King Novel. I absoluteness loved it. The detail, the imagination, the heartbreak with the obdurate past, had me emotionally tied to saving JFK as well, but King's "cri de couer" over JFK's death really tarnishes the novel.

****SPOILER ALERT****

The end of the book is where I really had the biggest problem. The entire story is about the butterfly affect i.e., how an action ripples through time and affects something else but really only observable through comparable time travel. King's afterword concedes that he wants to display the worst possible scenario if JFK survives 11-22-63, in order assuage liberal minded peoples' love affair with Kennedy's death. Within 24 hours a sizable earthquake occurs (directly related to Kennedy surviving the assassination attempt), intense seismic activity continues for decades, yet, somehow Bill Clinton still marries Hillary, he still runs for office but dies before he can take office, so Hillary becomes president. I don't know how King reconciles the intensity of the butterfly affect with major seismic activity but other things remain completely unchanged.

There are a few other examples of either blatant laziness by the author, or intentional political purveyance. Although his examples are bias, his analogy of a "harmonizing effect" of the different time strings is insightful.

Definitely worth your time, but be prepared to roll your eyes if you don't subscribe 100% to a liberal political leaning.

'Who's the Lovin' Daddy'...Cue the Band!

You'd think after 50 novels even a distinguished author would be creatively wrung out, cranking out literary Pablum, possibly living comfortably off the body of works from "Ago", but no no no...King has somehow evolved--(indentured soul to the devil in trade??). Not only is his writing still inventive and original, it is insightful, intelligent, and intimate, and as is true with the best of the best of them, it reflects true dedication and respect to the art of writing, it is masterful.

King's trend away from boogey men (never "boogie" men--SK likes his tunes) toward the monsters within, is obvious with 11-22-63, and should once and for all show how adeptly King can stand proudly among giants, both literary main stream genre giants and the one-eyed-one-horned slimy kind. Surprisingly, the story is not as focused on the alternate history as it is on an alternate universe, and about what King does best, the story of people in extraordinary circumstances--missed opportunities, what-if's, hopes, dreams, good guys and very bad guys. It's familiar in many ways, even comfortable, loaded with heart and soul, maybe a little sap, and just when you reach for the tissue--out pops evil incarnate (ala Hitchcock-- via Derry, Pennywise, Christine, Lee Harvey, etc.) just to remind you...it is, after all, King, Stephen King. And, if familiar with King, you know it's long (let's not hear anymore about editing), you know it's entertaining, but you may be surprised by the polish and maturity. I've read some critiques that say this is "the book King was born to write." Personally, I wouldn't limit such a talented and prolific writer with that kind of statement!

Highly recommend; big claps for the meticulous research; kudos for time traveling with flair-not cheese. The narration is outstanding, absolutely equal to the work it performs and should be considered the high mark in audio performance. Could not get better.

* If you've read the book or the reviews, how's this for an eerie "harmonious" coincidence?: I just happened to also be reading Chris Matthew's Jack Kennedy: Elusive Hero, (which I also highly recommend) *shiver moment* and find the research in both books praiseworthy.

Have not finished yet, but had to comment....

I am only on Chapter 3 and am hooked! So glad for the holiday weekend so I'll have more time to listen.

One of Stephen King's Best

I stopped reading Stephen King a while back because he got just too odd for my taste, but this is right up there with my favorites like The Stand, The Shining, and IT. I love time travel stories and this is really one of the best. Well thought through and just all around an excellent story.

The narration was excellent and the ending was so perfect. I can't recommend this one enough!