Stephen King is arguably the most influential American writer of the late 20th century. No other author has both his readership and the clear impact on writers (both "literary" and "genre") that have come after him. Few readers haven't cracked open at least one of his many, many novels since his debut in the 1970s. But while we praise him for his longer works (especially the first six books or so), he's also a crackerjack teller of short stories.
The Bazaar of Bad Dreams is King's sixth story collection (he's prolific in any medium he chooses), and while none of the tales reach the dramatic heights of The Stand or Salem's Lot, fans of the author's work will find everything they love about the man and more inside.
The first story might be the best. "Mile 81" pits a 13-year-old against a monstrous car that eats unsuspecting adults. King's prose is perfectly poised here, never delving into melodrama but underscoring the terror of children left with little hope. King has always been good at creating monsters, but "Mile 81" is a reminder that usually his supernatural entities are simply vessels to discuss the real pain of loss. The last story, "Summer Thunder," which takes place at the end of the world, tries to deal with that pain on a larger scale, but doesn't quite land it. Still, King knows how to push his reader's buttons, and he does so marvelously throughout The Bazaar of Bad Dreams. --Noah Cruickshank, marketing manager, Open Books, Chicago, Ill.