Elevation

By: Stephen King

Narrated by: Stephen King

Length: 3 hrs and 46 mins

Publisher's Summary

Stephen King reads his latest novel - plus a bonus story, “Laurie,” unavailable in book form!  

“As the narrator, King enhances the story’s good-hearted appeal with this twangy, aw-shucks delivery. He gives a strong portrayal of everyman Scott Carey, whose strange affliction sends him on a quest of self-discovery and neighborly kindness. And King’s isn’t just a pleasant voice. He crafts a polished aural experience with a keen sense of pacing and fun accents for his motley Maine characters.” (AudioFile)

Number-one New York Times best seller

The latest from legendary master storyteller Stephen King, a riveting, extraordinarily eerie, and moving story about a man whose mysterious affliction brings a small town together - a timely, upbeat tale about finding common ground despite deep-rooted differences.  

Although Scott Carey doesn’t look any different, he’s been steadily losing weight. There are a couple of other odd things, too. He weighs the same in his clothes and out of them, no matter how heavy they are. Scott doesn’t want to be poked and prodded. He mostly just wants someone else to know, and he trusts Doctor Bob Ellis. 

In the small town of Castle Rock, the setting of many of King’s most iconic stories, Scott is engaged in a low grade - but escalating - battle with the lesbians next door whose dog regularly drops his business on Scott’s lawn. One of the women is friendly; the other, cold as ice. Both are trying to launch a new restaurant, but the people of Castle Rock want no part of a gay married couple, and the place is in trouble. When Scott finally understands the prejudices they face - including his own - he tries to help. Unlikely alliances, the annual foot race, and the mystery of Scott’s affliction bring out the best in people who have indulged the worst in themselves and others. 

From Stephen King, our “most precious renewable resource, like Shakespeare in the malleability of his work” (The Guardian), Elevation is an antidote to our divisive culture, as gloriously joyful (with a twinge of deep sadness) as It’s a Wonderful Life.

©2018 Stephen King (P)2018 Simon & Schuster

Meh...

First, let me say that I am a big King fan. I even liked The Outsider, which many people have scoffed at. This, however, was too political. I am not taking a political stance. I do not care if you voted for Hillary or Trump, but when a whole huge part of the story has to do with the political views of the area....well...then I just tune out. I read fiction to escape the hateful world. I don't want to hear it reiterated in my reading. This is just my opinion, but if I had realized how much of this was in there I might not have purchased this book

one of the biggest waste of my time ever listening

the book is narrated by the author. About 30 minutes in I realized why. This is probably one of Stephen King's worst works.

Mailed it in

As a life long King fan I know that you never really know what you are going to get. A far cry from his masterful short stories from the past, this effort was more on par with Cell than it was The Shining. The sad truth is that if "by Stephen King" had not appeared, this work would have never been published. Luckily for King and his fans, another masterpiece is likely right around the corner.

Terrible

The ending is terrible. Actually the whole book is. Don’t waste your money. I’m a huge Stephen King fan and was totally disappointing

Definitely a Catch & Release

A book that had no plot and Stephen King should apologize to the people that lay down cash for a decent book and receive maybe the worst book in 66 years for me personally. It was that bad folks.

Those pesky Republicans!

This is two short stories, Elevation - 75% and Lori - 25%. Trump is mentioned multiple times, there is a dig at climate change deniers, and kids aren't allowed to trick or treat at the gay couple's house. Castle Rock's district went 3:1 for Trump. Not sure how that happens in Maine, but whatever. The first story somewhat borrows from Thinner, where the man is constantly jumping on the scale thinking he might die. The similarities end there. The couple has been kicked around by the town Republicans, but the main character reaches out in support. How nice. The second story is about a dog and an alligator or something. Groundbreaking stuff.

I don't know why these couldn't have waited until the next collection. Overall, this feels incomplete and kind of like a money grab. However, they move at a fast pace for King, and they aren't really boring. They're just not that good. I like King's narrations, but I know this is personal preference. Not everyone does. Time to jump back into my re-read of Needful Things. There are evil Republicans galore there too I believe, but at least I get classic King.

Boring

This book was so boring that i couldn’t finish it. I read to be entertained, I think this book was written to push a political point.

Mr. King please...,

Was this really a Stephen King Book?
Really...???

Was thirty minutes even put into it?
What happened?

Worst ever by King

Don’t waste your time on this one,
Mr King has drank the kool-aid if I could return it I would have

ran out of ideas and now just pandering.

really sad to see this author run out of ideas. He can't even artistically bring in politics. authors used to be able to weave politics into a story. but this is a book about a person who floats and how much stephen king can't hide his sad hatred of his president. His writing has been going down hill for a while. this is the last book of his i will read. keep politics out of your books. I might even ask for my credit back (first time in well over 300 books).

king of thrill

loved the narration of the author
Stephen king is the king of thrill and creative stories ideas