Written by: Stephen King
Submitted By: Robert Eyre
When you think about the Shining you automatically think about the movie. You think about the blood gushing down the corridor, the boy with a "talking" finger, the father wielding the axe and the infamous "Here's Johnny!" None of this is in the book. It is so that when the film came out Stephen King was so unhappy with it he created his own TV version. The story is about a family living through a nightmare in an evil hotel. Some people think (due to the film) that the father is the bad guy. This is not so for the Overlook hotel is the evil doer. The boy is called Danny. He is intelligent with a invisible friend called Tony but keeps having visions. These are the results of "the Shining" which is the ability to understand. The mother is called Wendy who, like most women, trying desperately not to turn into her mother. The father is Jack Torrance who is taken by the hotel and wields a roque mallet, not an axe. This book grips you from start to finish, revealing more and more about those three characters and the hotel itself. Hallorann (who dies in the film) plays no small part either. This is a true masterpiece. The best supernatural horror novel I have ever read. The only thing that people might not like is the swearing but I don't see why people can't get over their fear of the F word to read this astounding book of literary genius. This was my favourite book until "Heretic" came along. This will provide hours of thrills that keep you at the edge of your seat and is a brilliant novel. Read it as soon as you've finished that Cornwell book you've just picked up.
