Doctor Sleep (Audiobook)

Doctor Sleep
by Stephen King [Compact Disc King]

I'll have to admit -- I stopped reading Stephen King back in the early 1990s. For me, all his novels started to feel the same and it was a bit tiresome. But, back in the day, The Shining (1977) was one of my favorite of his early novels, and I've enjoyed touring the Stanley Hotel in Estes Park, which was the inspiration for The Overlook Hotel that was the centerpiece of King's 1977 novel. So...when I saw that King had written a sequel to that earlier novel, 36 years later, and that the audiobook version was narrated by actor Will Patton (one of the stars of TNT's series Falling Skies), I couldn't pass it up. Doctor Sleep was worth the wait -- it looks at the life of Dan Torrance, the pre-teen protaganist of The Shining, now that he's in his forties. Dan is now a recovering alcoholic, trying to rebuild his life and use his paranormal ability -- his "shining" -- to help other people. Dan becomes the mentor to a 12-year-old girl with the strongest "ability" he's ever sensed. And they're both about to face some of their darkest nightmares, when they go up against a clan of paranormal parasites, who feed off of the life energy of children with the shining. King's characters are richly detailed, his dialog, as always, is very natural, and he loads up the scares to keep the adrenalin pumping. But Doctor Sleep is far more than merely a well-told horror story -- it is also a insightful character study and look at the demons of addiction. Will Patton does a terrific job with this audiobook, instilling every character with their own vocal personality. I found myself caring about these characters as real people, trapped in a nightmare situation. I highly recommend this book, particularly as a book-on-cd. If you've ever enjoyed reading The Shining, then Doctor Sleep is a must-read now. -- recommended by Scott C. - Bennett Martin Public Library

[If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try The Shining by King.]

[Also available in traditional print and Large Print formats.]

[ official Doctor Sleep page on the official Stephen King web site ]

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