‘Whatever you do, don’t go up that road to Jerusalem’s Lot…’
As one of the most prolific writers of all time, Stephen King has penned over 200 short stories and plenty more novellas. Some of his most celebrated work (Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption, The Body (later adapted as Stand By Me), 1408) first appeared in this format, and so it’s no surprise that Night Shift, King’s first collection of short stories and sixth published book, is mostly excellent…
Some of the titles here will be recognisable to casual fans for their film adaptations. Children of the Corn, The Boogeyman and Trucks (adapted by King himself as Maximum Overdrive) are all well known to horror fans. Elsewhere, Quitters, Inc and The Ledge were included in the Lewis Teague anthology film Cat’s Eye. There are also three stories here with direct links to other King properties. Jerusalem’s Lot and One for the Road serve as bookends to King’s 1975 classic ‘Salem’s Lot and Night Surf takes place in the world of The Stand (a book that was yet to be published when this collection was initially released).
It is from the above list that most of the best work in this collection comes from. The Boogeyman is about as frightening as a ten-page story can be; Quitters, Inc and The Ledge are both nasty little stories that nevertheless conclude with a pair of twisted happy endings and One for the Road, my favourite story in this collection, wraps up the events of ‘Salem’s Lot perfectly.
Of the others, King perfectly portrays the horrors of teaching high school students in Sometimes They Come Back; Strawberry Spring and I Know What You Need both examine the much-travelled road of violence against women whilst still finding a new way to approach the topic and The Woman in the Room, the final story in the collection and the only one penned especially for Night Shift demonstrates a different side to Stephen King with its tale of a man burdened with remorse.
Night Shift sees a writer taking his first tentative steps into the world of storytelling and realising that he has a whole world of characters and plots ready to come roaring out of him – an exhilarating and captivating collection.