Carrie

Carrie
Stephen King
Book on Tape, read by Sissy Spacek.

Being King’s first published novel, I was surprised at how familiar the narrative style is. His basic forms and habits have not change, I think, as they continue to be filled with seemingly superfluous details that somehow make each word vitally important to the story.

The conceit of parts of the story being from a book written by a survivor, from the report of the White Commission, investigating the TK phenomenon, and from AP and local news outlets is an interesting way to present the information. I think it would be more effective in the written format, rather than being read aloud, because the reader can SEE the difference in the text and differentiate the source easier. I did not have a copy of the novel while listening, so that is an educated guess.
The graphic imagery –not just the horror bits, but the sex and the thoughts of teenagers – is both distracting and appealing. I continue to wonder if teens, then or now, really thought like that – with the smoking and the sex, and the mean thoughts. This concern is, of course, merely a reflection of my own unusual adolescence and my own children’s current pre-teen status.

Sissy Spacek’s reading is uneven, though she captures Carrie’s voice quite naturally, the slight southern drawl giving the sense of perpetual innocence. When she attempts to make her voice big, it only comes across as loud. Still, the continuity with the movie helps the mind’s eye see the blood-soaked white dress form-fitting over the thin, shuddering body.

I’m about to watch the movie now.