Carrie - The Library of the Uncommons

French language

Published Nov. 21, 2000

ISBN:: 978-2-290-30251-4

Carrie is a horror novel by American author Stephen King. It was his first published novel, released on April 5, 1974, with a first print-run of 30,000 copies. Set primarily in the then-future year of 1979, it revolves around the eponymous Carrie White, a friendless, bullied high-school girl from an abusive religious household who uses her newly discovered telekinetic powers to exact revenge on those who torment her. In the process, she causes one of the worst local disasters the town has ever had. King has commented that he finds the work to be "raw" and "with a surprising power to hurt and horrify". Much of the book uses newspaper clippings, magazine articles, letters, and excerpts from books to tell how Carrie destroyed the fictional town of Chamberlain, Maine while exacting revenge on her sadistic classmates and her own mother, Margaret. Carrie was one of the most frequently banned books …

Carrie is a horror novel by American author Stephen King. It was his first published novel, released on April 5, 1974, with a first print-run of 30,000 copies. Set primarily in the then-future year of 1979, it revolves around the eponymous Carrie White, a friendless, bullied high-school girl from an abusive religious household who uses her newly discovered telekinetic powers to exact revenge on those who torment her. In the process, she causes one of the worst local disasters the town has ever had. King has commented that he finds the work to be "raw" and "with a surprising power to hurt and horrify". Much of the book uses newspaper clippings, magazine articles, letters, and excerpts from books to tell how Carrie destroyed the fictional town of Chamberlain, Maine while exacting revenge on her sadistic classmates and her own mother, Margaret. Carrie was one of the most frequently banned books in United States schools in the 1990s because of its violence, cursing, underage sex and negative view of religion.Several adaptations of Carrie have been released, including a 1976 feature film, a 1988 Broadway musical as well as a 2012 off-Broadway revival, a 1999 feature film sequel, a 2002 television film, and a 2013 feature film, which serves as a remake of the 1976 film. The book is dedicated to King's wife Tabitha King.

11 editions

TomeAlone reviewed Carrie by Stephen King (Stephen King, #1)

None

3 stars

Actually a bit more ambitious that I’d anticipated, especially for a debut novel. I thought it was going to be a simple, straightforward story, but Uncle Steve gave me a partially epistolary novel.

As for the writing itself, you can tell that it’s an earlier effort. The characters aren’t as alive as his later works, nor is the town as fleshed out, but that’s not to say it’s bad. It’s certainly very good and still has his trademark flair for unrepentantly evil characters. Mrs. White and Billy are bad bad bad and Chris is wickedly cruel.

All in all, though, it’s a really sad book. Carrie is a tragic character and the world so cruel. I wish things had been better for her.

Actually a bit more ambitious that I’d anticipated, especially for a debut novel. I thought it was going to be a simple, straightforward story, but Uncle Steve gave me a partially epistolary novel.

As for the writing itself, you can tell that it’s an earlier effort. The characters aren’t as alive as his later works, nor is the town as fleshed out, but that’s not to say it’s bad. It’s certainly very good and still has his trademark flair for unrepentantly evil characters. Mrs. White and Billy are bad bad bad and Chris is wickedly cruel.

All in all, though, it’s a really sad book. Carrie is a tragic character and the world so cruel. I wish things had been better for her.