The Shining

mass market paperback, 447 pages

English language

Published July 15, 1980 by Signet.

ISBN:
978-0-451-09216-8
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4 stars (28 reviews)

The Shining is a 1977 horror novel by American author Stephen King. It is King's third published novel and first hardback bestseller; its success firmly established King as a preeminent author in the horror genre. The setting and characters are influenced by King's personal experiences, including both his visit to The Stanley Hotel in 1974 and his struggle with alcoholism. The novel was adapted into a 1980 film of the same name. The book was followed by a sequel, Doctor Sleep, published in 2013, which was adapted into a film of the same name. The Shining centers on the life of Jack Torrance, a struggling writer and recovering alcoholic who accepts a position as the off-season caretaker of the historic Overlook Hotel in the Colorado Rockies. His family accompanies him on this job, including his young son Danny Torrance, who possesses "the shining", an array of psychic abilities that allow …

12 editions

Review of 'The Shining' on 'Goodreads'

5 stars

Like many, I came to this book already very familiar with Kubrick's film adaptation, which I regard as a masterpiece. It always troubled me that [a:Stephen King|3389|Stephen King|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1362814142p2/3389.jpg] was not a fan of the film himself, so I finally decided to read the book in hopes of understanding why this was the case. Admittedly, while I have enjoyed much of King's work in the past, I expected to conclude that the Kubrick film is superior to the source material.

Having finished the book, however, I am unable to say that I prefer one version over the other. Both are excellent works, perfectly rendered for their respective media.

The book is nearly flawless--what I mistook for a dragging pace in the beginning was merely my own impatience, driven by expectations set by the film's slightly different story arc. The film is more loyal to the book than I expected, but it's …

Review of 'The Shining' on 'Storygraph'

3 stars

I thought I read this book in my teens but the farther I got into it, the more certain I became that I hadn't. I would have remembered how well done Jack's descent into madness was. For me, that was the best part of the book. I did enjoy Danny's parts of the book, and Wendy's to a lesser extent, but the star of the show was Jack's changes and his growing connection to the hotel.

I think my biggest shock was just how different Kubrick's film is to the novel. I need to watch the movie again since I don't remember a lot of the details. That and the insane number of times the N-word was used. I wasn't expecting it and it really put me off.

I listened to the audio book and initially Campbell Scott's calm tone made me wonder if I wouldn't fall asleep while reading. …

Review of 'The Shining (The Shining, #1)' on 'Goodreads'

5 stars

Having seen the movie (my favorite thriller of all time), I decided to read this before starting Doctor Sleep. Am I ever glad I did! The movie tells a completely different story! I would have been so confused with all of the references that Doctor Sleep makes to the first book. I haven't read Stephen King since high school, so I now respect him as the talented author he is. Absolutely amazing book.

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