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Blockade Billy
As was announced last month, Stephen King released a short novella called Blockade Billy. The story is about one of the greatest players who ever played the game, but was not recognized for it.
The story has an odd meta quality that made it a bit more interesting to read. The narrator is basically talking to Stephen King, telling him the story so that King could, in turn, tell us. It worked really well and it was an interesting way of presenting the tale.
It's a smooth read and I enjoyed it. I'm not a big baseball fan, so I'm sure people who are into the sport will enjoy it on a much higher level than I did. Even putting that aside it was a good story.
The only thing that was really eye roll worthy was when one of the characters posits that Billy somehow sliced through an opposing player's Achilles' tendon with his fingernail. Luckily, one of the other characters points out how stupid that sounds.
Billy himself was an interesting fellow. Everyone liked him well enough, but there was definitely something off about him. Even the other characters notice it. He refers to himself in the third person, which David finds most amusing. He doesn't really talk to people, but he just sort of repeats what's said to him. One character freaks out because before big plays he'll utter things like "You can do this, Billy" or he'll apologize to himself when he makes a mistake.
That doesn't seem all that weird to me. I mean, self assurance can be a powerful tool and is apologizing to yourself really any different than cursing under your breath? It's unorthodox, maybe, but nothing really to sound the alarm over. Granted, there was ultimately reason to sound the alarm, but the aforementioned aspects are pretty tame in the grand scheme of things.
If you read the reviews on Amazon, one of the biggest complaints is regarding the price. Even the discounted Kindle edition is 8 bucks. On top of that, the story is rather short. I can't really argue against that. It's about the price of a movie ticket and you could write it off as a minor inconvenience, but it is something to consider.
I think it would've been better if this had been part of a collection like Four Past Midnight. Heck, it could've been a nice addition to the upcoming "Full Dark No Stars". Releasing it as a stand alone was an odd choice.
The hardcover alleviates this somewhat, featuring another short story, but that was not included in the e-book.
It was a good read though. If you're the type to hang out in a Borders or Barnes & Noble and read, this one won't take you that long, an hour, two tops. It's a nice way to pass an afternoon.
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New Stephen King Novella Announced
*Originally published on 3/30/10
It was announced that Stephen King will be releasing a new novella called Blockade Billy. It is being published through Cemetary Dance and is set to be released on April 20th.
The plot of the novella concerns a once in a lifetime baseball player whose name has been removed from the record books and his impact is erased to the point where even his team is forgotten. What was it that drove them to take such a drastic action? According the the announcement, it is because of a secret much worse than mere pills or injections.
The book can be ordered directly through Cemetary Dance's website. According to the FAQ, if there are copies available after filling all of the direct orders, copies will be sent to chain bookstores and will be made available through other online stores.
King himself commented on the story saying,
"I love old-school baseball, and I also love the way people who've spent a lifetime in the game talk about the game. I tried to combine those things in a story of suspense. People have asked me for years when I was going to write a baseball story. Ask no more; this is it"
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