Sleeping Beauties

I assumed this book wasn't my cup of tea. I assumed I would have a hard time getting through it. I assumed it was going to be too out there and unrelatable for me. Well, I'll be the first to admit I was WRONG! This book was so much more than I could have ever imagined and Stephen King challenges, once again, everything I have ever thought I knew about humans and how we do life. It's his extraordinary skill to convey meaningful truths about life and the human psyche through his works which really makes him one of my all time favorite authors, because not many authors can pull it off in such a fantasy-based genre.

I will be honest, when I first picked this book up, I didn't know what to expect. I have chosen it years ago from The Book of the Month club because I liked the cover and the author was so famous and highly regarded. I usually prefer reading more realistic fiction but I decided to give this nightmare-like novel a try because I was curious and wanted to expand my horizons when it came to books. Plus, I was slightly intimidated by the length of this book, unsure if I'd ever be able to get through it.

Well, the fact that I got through it in ten days and had a hard time putting it down should tell you everything you need to know! I was literally reading it late into the night and during the kids' naptime, guess I just really needed to know what was going to happen. And I mean, what a unique and masterfully done plot! Not many people can take something out of their nightmares and construct it into a meaningful story with a beginning, middle and an end but Kind did it perfectly. No detail was overlooked and the plot moved with such effortless speed, not too rushed, not too slow. Things were revealed in their right times and everything was perfectly woven together to deliver a powerful novel about the human race.

I also really liked the different perspectives of all the characters in the story and how we got a little blurb for each of them in all the various situations and their perceptions of the events as they transpired. I found myself being able to relate even to the worst characters, the ones with the seemingly worst souls and least regard for other human beings. It made me realize that all human beings are flawed, each in their own way, it just comes out differently in every individual.

Further, I think Stephen King is the only writer I know that can expand on seemingly pointless details but make them into something that conveys something so significant about the different characters and to the plot as a whole. The writing flowed smoothly and it was easy to get lost in the world that Stephen King had created from his imagination.

I am really not one for fantasy based fiction but for Stephen King I can make an exception. Not only will I continue reading all his other work, but I have no doubt that his books will continue to move me and change me for the better, reminding me of important truths and life lessons I might have forgotten or withdrawn from. The way that he writes, it's easy to imagine his seemingly unbelievable world and even be transported into them. I would, without any hesitation, recommend this book to anyone who wants to be moved beyond anything they could even fathom, from a single book. Even if you think that fantasy is not your cup of tea, give this book a chance, you won't be disappointed!