Carrie (1974) By Stephen King

"At sixteen, the elusive stamp of hurt was already marked in her eyes."

Having certainly enjoyed the previous works of Stephen King that I had read, I felt more than inspired to venture into the world of one of his most famous stories, which had spawned one of said-author's most famous cinematic adaptations; 'Carrie'. I had already seen the film, although, thus was some time before reading the book.

"People don't get better, they just get smarter. When you get smarter you don't stop pulling the wings off flies, you just think of better reasons for doing it."

Just as I had done with his other books, I found King's writing to be engaging, accessible, and, to be frank, fast work. This being less than 250 pages, it never felt all that daunting - however, King's concise, simple language and sentence structure allowed me to get through it in no time at all.

"But sorry is the Kool-Aid of human emotions...True sorrow is as rare as true love."

I enjoyed the way King jumped between characters, as well as other storytelling mediums - news clippings, etc. It gave the story a very intriguing structure, which helped to build suspense, as well as characterisation. These alternative narrative devices also helped split character perspectives and served as useful scene breaks.

"She did not know if her gift came from the lord of light or of darkness, and now, finally finding that she didn't care which, she wad overcome with almost indescribable relief, as if a huge weight, long carried, had slipped from her shoulders."

The book's narrative was very well-formed, and, while relatively short, surprisingly expansive. King conveyed a large amount of story in a small number of pages. I was captivated by his storytelling from the start, and became even more engrossed in the story as it progressed. The final, inevitable climax was thrilling and devastating, even though I knew and expected the outcome.

"They were still all beautiful and there was still enchantment and wonder, but she had crossed a line and now the fairy tale was green with corruption and evil."

It's safe to say that this is another classic horror story from the so-called 'Master Of Horror'. When he gets it right, he really gets it right, and that is certainly the case with 'Carrie'. I found this a lot easier to get through than, say, Pet Sematary, and certainly more enjoyable.

"This is the girl they keep calling a monster. I want you to keep that firmly in mind. The girl who could be satisfied with a hamburger and a dime root beer after her only school dance so her momma wouldn't be worried."