Carrie

I often think of this as his best despite being his first. The story is brilliant, The style of writing is brilliant with a good flow and a way of getting into people's heads. He creates images and brings people to life. The horror is given reality by the story and the humanness of it.

I'm probably one of the few people in the world who has never seen the 1976 film version of 'Carrie'. But I'm not naive enough that I'm not aware of the story. Everyone knows that the menstrual euphemism "taking Carrie to the Prom" is a reference to a blood-soaked Sissy Spacek. And yeah, I had a pretty good idea of how the plot ends. 'Carrie' is such a huge piece of pop-culture that it's hard to avoid it. So basically, I came to this novel with some prior knowledge and yet I was still floored by the book.I think that's probably Stephen King's major talent. His novels are never simple, they always have some substance to them. I think what really surprised me when reading 'Carrie' is how much of Stephen King's voice and story-telling technique is present in his first published novel. I was expecting it to stand out a bit, to be a little less polished, a little less, well Stephen King-ish. The narrative was suitably dis-jointed, jumping from one Point of View to another, interspersed with articles from magazines and extracts from scholarly books. The way that King presents Carrie White's story, it's easy to believe that this girl really did exist, that the terrible events at the Prom and afterwards really did happen. And that's what I love about Stephen King and this novel especially, you never have cause to question the reality of his supernatural elements. They simply are.Carrie White dreams of going to the Prom. She just wants to be your average teenager. But with a religion-obsessed mother and no friends, she is lonely, vulnerable and the perfect target for the school bullies. Her classmates, her teachers, even her Mother, all beat Carrie down. And those that don't are blind to the events, to the hatred and the acts of violence going on around them.But quiet, mousy Carrie can't be your average teenager because she's no average girl. She hides a terrible secret. She has the power of telekinesis. She can make things happen with the power of her mind. And the more the bullies try to weaken Carrie's reserves, the more her power builds inside her. Until, as the bullying reaches a horrifying climax so does her inner strength and she unleashes her telekinetic power on those who caused her pain.This is a liberating novel. For anybody who has been bullied, Carrie's explosion on Prom night is kind of like the daydreams you'd hold close to your heart as the taunts rained down on you. Who hasn't wanted to destroy those who try to destroy them? And that's one of the most endearing things about this novel. We've all been in Carrie White's shoes. We've all experienced the horror of repression, of people trying to hold us back. Deep down we all just want to be accepted, to fit in, to be loved. We all have our own version of Prom Night, that thing we're yearning for and feel we'll never get to experience. Carrie gives substance to our own teenage experiences. She embodies our own morbid fears.And that is probably what I love most about Stephen King - his ability to write characters that get under your skin and stay there. I wish I'd been exposed to this novel as a meek, vulnerable teenager who needed validation, who needed somebody to identify. I think I would have seen something of poor Carrie in myself. And it would have let me dream.

This is such a lovely edition of Carrie to mark its 50th anniversary. I originally read it back in the 1980s and have longed to reread it at some point. I had hoped to pick up an old copy of it at some point, but some of the first editions command very high prices. This edition, however, is the perfect gateway to buying a special version of a significant book. The cover is just beautiful and catches the light from different angles. It doesn't have a dustjacket, which may not be to all tastes. I love it though and have placed it with price on my bookshelf.

It was like love at first sight when I first picked up this novel at the age of thirteen, loving the front cover of a girl with blood dripping down her face. I was attracted to it immediately and it would be a love affair that has lasted fifteen years.I had just lost my dad and was completely depressed. Within the first few lines of this debut novel by my all-time favourite write Stephen King, I immediately forgot all my troubles and concerns and was engrossed within the story of the "ugly duckling girl" that was tormented by her peers, tortured emotionally and physically by her religiously demented mother and had a rare gift - the gift of telekinesis - that allowed her to move objects with her mind. I felt sorry for Carrie and suddenly started wishing that I had a gift like this, but the genius of King is the way he is able to twist this wonderful rare talent into the ultimate nightmare.Carrie is a simple story of how a girl who has no friends, suddenly discovers the idea of women growing up and discovering her first period, a trauma for her brought on by the fact that she believes she is dying, as well as the fact that her peers believe this is just a funny joke that they can use to abuse Carrie with. This is the catalyst that starts the whole horror of what the novel Carrie really is. Through the use of false interviews and made-up articles written by King himself, the reader learns the true horror of what this girl possesses and what she has to go through to get to the point of prom night where she will use her power to enact vengeance on those that have tortured her.The real horror is more so for the reader who is drawn into the entire drama, waiting to see what happens, wondering just where the horror will end - the way in which Carrie is treated both by her peers and her mother, and what she is forced to endure is probably more horrific than the way in which she enforces her power on the towns-people.Carrie, the book, has often been criticised by a lot of readers as being very raw and only showing the tip of the ice berg towards King's talent. Yes, this is a debut novel and King is still finding his way through his talent, but the rawness and naivetés is what makes this one of King's most popular and enduring novels that bounds the reader under some sort of spell in which they cannot put the book down. I have read this numerous times and I never get tired of it. It shows King as a great story teller who really knows how to engage his audience and make them want to come back for more.I first read Carrie fifteen years ago and I have never looked back since. Over the years I've discovered new books by King and discovered his talent doesn't dim but grows and he is one of those rare writers where if you were to read the same book again, it will become better for you rather than tedious. I do not consider Carrie to be the best of his novels - how could it be with all those other works of genius he has written, but it is one of my favourite and most treasured as it was the first of his novels that I read; I read it when I was going through the worst period of my life and it got me through some really bad times. It is a fantastic story with a great heart, a well written tale of sweet revenge and consequence. It is one of those books that a lot of people can identify with as it gives a clear understanding of what school is really like, both for the victim and the bully. I cannot rave about this novel enough. It is a truly wonderful book and if you haven't read Stephen King before, this is a good place to start. If you have read him before, you are in for a treat and will not be disappointed - if you have read this novel before, read it again. It's just as good, if not better, the second time. It's the debut of one of the most talented writers who has ever put pen to paper. It made me become a fan!

Of course I have read this several times as a fan and have a 1980’s copy. This item however is so stunning and definitely a must for all Constant Readers of King.

‘They laughed at me. Threw things. They’ve always laughed.’My TBR pile is currently grumbling fairly loudly at me but I couldn’t let the 50th anniversary of Carrie’s introduction to the world pass without a reread. I was twelve years old when I was introduced to Carrie White. A major departure from The Baby-Sitters Club, which I’d been reading prior, this was my gateway book to the Kingdom, and horror in general.Carrie wasn’t the first telekinetic person I’d met. That honour goes to Matilda Wormwood, who found her way into my heart a couple of years earlier. It was Carrie, though, who taught me righteous anger.Our high school experiences were nothing alike, yet I related to Carrie, this hurt, wronged girl railing against injustice. The angry part of preteen me found her scorched-earth approach appealing. There are a few people who knew me when I was a teenager that should be very grateful my telekinesis never kicked in.‘Flex.’This book had both short and long term impacts on me. Throughout high school, I thought of Carrie every time I changed back into my school uniform after PE. She also changed my reading landscape, opening up a world of books that weren’t written with kids in mind, ones that would challenge, scare and ultimately enbiggen my world.She appealed to the outsider in me, who spent high school and a significant amount of time afterwards trying to find someone who could understand me. Carrie was the first hero/villain I cheered on as they unleashed hell on those who had hurt them and the randoms whose only crime was being in the wrong place at the wrong time.I don’t know anyone who doesn’t know this story so the only thing I’ll say about this specific reread is that it’s the first time I’ve thought about how appropriate Ewen High School’s colours are: white and red.Over thirty years after my first read and several rereads later, my love for Carrie - the book and the person - remains as strong as ever. If anything, I appreciate her even more now.‘I don’t like to be tricked.’

Fantastic story

Me encanta este libro.

The media could not be loaded.  Es una edición absolutamente maravillosa y cuidada.Es tapa dura con relieves y unos colores con reflejos.Me hubiera gustado que la sacaran en España, pero rara vez las editoriales aquí se atreven a sacar ediciones así, es una pena porque a partir de este año muchos libros de Stephen King cumplirán 50 años.

Eine tolle und sehenswerte Ausgabe von Carrie, zum 50 jährigen des ersten Romanes vom Meister