Blaze

I like reading anything by King. Whenever he writes under the name Richard Bachman you know its going to be a classic.

Blaze is an homage to Of Mice and Men, says Stephen King in a forward. He would know because, of course, he IS Richard Bachman. Blaze is a gentle giant with a mental disability, brain-damaged as a child at the hands of an abusive father, and now in the thrall of a small-time con artist named Georgewho in Ron McLartys narration sounds like a credibly raspy George Burns. George came away from a stint in prison believing that the secret to criminal success is one big score, then retire. They plan to kidnap a baby for ransom. But now George is dead, while his voice lives on in Blazes head, providing guidance and encouragement to carry out the crime of a lifetime. There are strong parallels to Steinbeck, including the powerful motivation of a dream that always seems just out of reach. Skillful manipulation mixing past and present maintains the pace but never confuses. Near the end of the book, were still learning new and interesting things about the characters pasts, while the future looks ever grimmer. This would be the last of the Richard Bachman books. He was later reported to have died suddenly in 1985 of \”cancer of the pseudonym.\”

I I don\’t know what those other reviewers are talking about. people saying that some stories don\’t need to be shared or every story doesn\’t need to have a listener… Just cuz this story isn\’t a horror story or not paranormal doesn\’t mean that it can\’t be a good story. I liked it. Sure.. like Stephen King himself said, it took a big idea from Of Mice and Men, but it still is a great story. It made you feel for a guy that didn\’t actually exist so it did its job.

Clayton Blaisdell Jr. is an endearing man, whom we should feel guilty for loving, but don\’t. Damaged, homicidal, and definitely with at least one loose screw (from being tossed down the stairs as a baby), \”Blaze,\” as he\’s known, is a two-strikes guy barreling through life looking for his third. This marvelous mixture of drama and semi-madness will make you laugh, cry, gasp, and hunger for more. With definite influences from Steinbeck to James M. Cain, it\’s a delicious crime novel treat. The narration by Ron McLarty is excellent and captures the heart of each character. I highly recommend this Stephen King \”Bachman\” book.

really great story….even though blaze was a criminal you did feel awfully bad for him…

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