The bazaar of bad dreams - Stephen King

The short story OBITS won the 2016 Edgar for best short story.

A generous collection of thrilling stories - some brand new, some published in magazines, all entirely brilliant and assembled in one book for the first time - with a wonderful bonus: in addition to his introduction to the whole collection, King gives readers a fascinating introduction to each story with autobiographical comments on their origins and motivation...

The No. 1 bestselling writer has dazzled readers with his genius as a writer of novellas and short story fiction since his first collection NIGHT SHIFT was published. He describes the nature of the form in his introduction to the book: 'There's something to be said for a shorter, more intense experience. It can be invigorating, sometimes even shocking, like...a beautiful curio for sale laid out on a cheap blanket at a street bazaar.'

In THE BAZAAR OF BAD DREAMS there is a curio for every reader - a man who keeps reliving the same life, repeating the same mistakes over and over again, a columnist who kills people by writing their obituaries, a poignant tale about the end of the human race and a firework competition between neighbours which reaches an explosive climax. There are also intriguing connections between the stories;
themes of morality, guilt, the afterlife and what we would do differently if we could see into the future or correct the mistakes of the past.

Effervescent yet poignant, juxtaposing the everyday against the unexpected, these stories comprise one of King's finest gifts to his constant reader as well as to those fascinated by the autobiographical insights in his celebrated non-fiction title ON WRITING.

'I made them especially for you', says King. 'Feel free to examine them, but please be careful. The best of them have teeth.'

TABLE OF CONTENTS FOR THE BAZAAR OF BAD DREAMS

Introduction

Mile 81
Premium Harmony
Batman and Robin Have an Altercation
The Dune

Bad Little Kid
A Death
The Bone Church
Morality

Afterlife
Ur

Herman Wouk Is Still Alive

Under the Weather

Blockade Billy

Mister Yummy

Tommy
The Little Green God of Agony
That Bus Is Another World

Obits

Drunken Fireworks
Summer Thunder

Stephen King is the author of more than sixty books, all of them worldwide bestsellers. His recent work includes Sleeping Beauties (co-written with his son Owen King), the short story collection The Bazaar of Bad Dreams, the Bill Hodges trilogy End of Watch, Finders Keepers, and Mr. Mercedes (an Edgar Award winner for Best Novel, and shortlisted for the CWA Gold Dagger Award).

Many of King's books have been turned into celebrated films, television series and streamed events including The Shawshank Redemption, Gerald's Game and It.

King is the recipient of the 2014 National Medal of Arts and the 2003 National Book Foundation Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters. He lives in Bangor, Maine, with his wife, novelist Tabitha King.

He seduces you with an intimate author's note introducing each tale, then proceeds to chill you to the bone. Do not read before bed
Daily Mail

The Bazaar of Bad Dreams is the title it more than lives up to, but just as interesting as the stories themselves are their prefaces, in which he reveals what inspired each one.
Who besides King would conjure a flesh-eating station wagon from a drive to see his college sweetheart?
Observer

This collection of short works... reveals King's mastery of the novella
Guardian

A tense inventory of stories... King manages to portray a remarkable depth of character within the swiftness of a short story and manoeuvres a vast range of plots...There are treasures to be found in The Bazaar of Bad Dreams and those who love King... will find much to savour
Independent

King is a laureate of small towns; his ear for dialogue is unerring ... He is also one of those rare authors who can write well about childhood. Most potently, King can sketch a full-blooded character in just a few pen strokes. This gift comes to the fore in his short stories, where every syllable counts
Sunday Telegraph

A more versatile writer than you might imagine
Sunday Times

Some of King's strongest work in recent years brought together to form an excellent collection
Sci-Fi Bulletin

Short stories have a famous place in the King oeuvre, with the likes of The Body and Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption finding second lives on the big screen as Stand By Me and Shawshank Redemption... Like all the greats, though, his ability to grip the reader's mind, body and soul with his prose makes it all look easy
USA Today

A meaty collection with interesting insights into the creative process of a writer who caused many sleepless nights
Washington Post

One of the best aspects of his new collection of short stories, The Bazaar of Bad Dreams, is the commentary that prefaces each one, describing the creative process through which it travelled from brain to page
GQ