The Bazaar of Bad Dreams: Stories

The only thing I may look forward to more than a new Stephen King novel is a new collection of his short stories. Yes, I love Stephen King, but even being a Constant Reader doesn't prevent me from being willing to admit that the man can - and often does - go long on his word count. There's something rewarding, then, to see King rein himself in, forcing himself to do as much as he can in a far lower number of words. Of course, this being King, that doesn't rule out some longer pieces here - Ur was originally a novella released as a sort of trial balloon for the Kindle Singles program, and Blockade Billy as well was a small standalone novella previously released by King. Others are far shorter, including two brief poems both originally published in Playboy. But whatever the length, The Bazaar of Bad Dreams serves as a reminder of both King's talent and prodigious gift, to say nothing of his stellar range. There's the unsettling alien horror of "Mile 81," the Raymond Chandler homage of "Premium Harmony," the black comedy of "Drunken Fireworks," the grim look at human nature of "Morality," the haunting case of ruined dreams of "Herman Wouk Is Still Alive," and so much more. Want deranged, insane narrators? Enjoy "Under the Weather." Want a bizarre tale of a young child who seems to be evil incarnate? "Bad Little Kid" is for you. Want to read what feels like a mix between the climax of Revival and King's stint in physical therapy? Oh, man, will "The Little Green God of Agony" scratch that itch and give you some nightmares to boot. But whatever the story, they're all filled with King's rich voice, his ability to evoke humanity in every character, and a keen eye about the world that always rings true. And just when you think you've seen it all, he tosses out the concluding story, "Summer Thunder," which is a very different sort of story about the end of the world - one that's far more beautiful and heartfelt than you might expect. All in all, it's a fantastic collection, and if, like me, you're initially disappointed that you've read a few already, well, trust me: they're all worth reading again, and between King's rich introductions and the revisions he's made (mainly to Ur, but apparently to many), you'll enjoy them all over again. It's a great collection, and a reminder of what King can do, even without a broad canvas of pages to work on.

"The Bazaar of Bad Dreams: Stories" is a collection of short stories by Stephen King, published in 2015. The book features 20 stories, each with its own unique style, tone, and genre. From horror to science fiction to suspense, this collection showcases King's versatility as a writer and his ability to explore different themes and styles within the realm of speculative fiction.

One of the strengths of "The Bazaar of Bad Dreams" is King's ability to create a sense of dread and unease in his readers. Many of the stories are horror-based, and King uses his signature style of psychological terror to great effect. From a haunted house to a sentient car, the stories in this collection will keep readers on edge and provide plenty of jump scares.

Another strength of the book is King's ability to tell a story in a short amount of space. Each story is brief but complete, and King is able to pack a lot of narrative and emotional impact into just a few pages. This is a testament to his writing skill and his ability to craft a compelling story in a limited format.

In terms of the individual stories, some of the highlights include "Mile 81," which is a tense and thrilling story about a haunted rest stop; "Bad Little Kid," which is a suspenseful and creepy story about a child with a sinister secret; and "The Dune," which is a heart-wrenching story about a man's loss and regret.

Overall, "The Bazaar of Bad Dreams" is a strong collection of short stories by one of the greatest horror writers of all time. Whether you're a long-time Stephen King fan or just looking for a good collection of horror stories, this book is well worth your time. If you're looking for an engaging and thought-provoking collection of stories that will keep you up at night, "The Bazaar of Bad Dreams" is an excellent choice.

Before composing a review of the literary merits of these tales, let me begin with the Number One question everyone finds themselves asking about Stephen King: How in hell does he produce so darned much? Doesn't he have the same number of hours available in a week -- I mean, the same number that you or I have been given? Oh sure, we have Mr. King's own words in his "On Writing" volume, the one in which he describes how composition must be "hot" or it becomes work or drudgery, which is the "smooch of death for most writers," and we have a quote that appears everywhere in every book in which Mr. King tries to tell the "how" of writing: (I will attempt to come close from memory) "If you want to be a writer, you must do two things consistently -- read a lot and write a lot." But let's not waste any more time on the above. Let's talk about the 22 tales in "The Bazaar of Bad Dreams." Or better, since we don't want this review to become too burdensome, let's choose just one of the tales here and use it as a template for the others. BATMAN AND ROBIN HAVE AN ALTERCATION. When you view the fictional world in the manner apparently employed by Stephen King, each story has to be constructed flawlessly. Examine the first sentence: "Sanderson sees his father twice a week." The seven words tell us that something will be unusual. We already know that dad might be of advanced age; the regularity of the visit might mean that it is more drudgery for Sanderson than it is a thorough excursion of gratification. Now step further in: "In the young years, Sanderson's pop-to-be was a roughneck in the Texas oilfields". Oh yeah, now we surmise that pop might still have some of that toughness inside, even if the dad walks around most days not knowing where he is or what the year is. We pay attention, because something must be going to happen near the story's climax so that pop will need to call upon that long-gone toughness. The father and his son used to trick-or-treat, long ago, dressed as Batman and Robin. They talk constantly of the old days. Dad rarely gets any of the historical facts correct. At the end of the story, as the two have departed Applebee's restaurant, a road-rage event occurs at a traffic signal. Dad, who is as confused as ever, saves Dougie Sanderson from coming out on the losing end of a go-round with a man who is obviously tougher and a more experienced fighter than the son. We are left knowing that the instigator will die from a knife wound to the throat, and the son will think long and hard about the experience. End of story. And as for us readers, we have been overcome by surprise of a different kind. Somehow, Stephen King has given us a tale with an unsatisfactory ending -- although we know that two months from this day we will still be pondering the story's events, and still wondering if Stephen King is an absolute master of the genre, or if he has left us holding the bag. Come to think of it, he has pulled off the same emotion with every single one of these narrations. I guess he is still Stephen King, right?

I’ve been a Stephen King fan since before I was allowed to read his novels. When I was in first grade, Mom would make me get in bed with her when Dad was away on business and she was reading The Stand because she couldn’t bear to read it alone. I remember being entranced by the cover illustration of an evil-looking crow-headed beast locked in battle with his fair-haired opponent. As far as I know, I’ve read every book and story King has ever written, some of them more than once, and he’s long been one of my favorite authors. But The Bazaar of Bad Dreams is the first King book I’ve reviewed. Not because I doubt my ability to offer an objective review but because it’s only the third King book I’ve read since I started posting reviews publicly, and after finishing Revival and Finders Keepers, both of which I liked a lot, a few months ago, I didn’t have enough free time and wasn’t inclined to write a review of either. Also, I so strongly disagree with some of the more critical reviews posted here and on Goodreads that I couldn’t help but offer my own opinion.

The Bazaar of Bad Dreams is a great book. It’s not a thrilling, chilling horror anthology, although there are plenty of frightening moments in several of the stories. It’s not a terrific short story collection, although there are several in it worthy of prize consideration (if you’re interested, I’ve given a superbrief synopsis and rating of each story and poem below). As some reviewers have complained, it’s not even a collection of new work. In fact, of the 18 stories and 2 poems in the book, I believe only three (“Bad Kid”, “Mister Yummy”, and “Obits”) are previously unpublished, although it’s unlikely that anyone but King’s most diehard fans has read all of the previously published items. But in the Author’s Note at the very front of the book, King warns prospective readers that some of the stories were published previously then goes on to explain why they’re included here. Other reviewers have also lamented that some of the stories seem highly derivative of King’s prior works, and that’s not an unfair statement. But with an oeuvre the size of King’s, dedicated readers are bound to find similarities, overlaps, and repeated themes or events here and there, so I don't consider it a valid criticism.

What makes this a great book is that, more than he ever has in any previous book except On Writing, King has let the doors of some of the darker, dustier closets of his imagination creak open, allowing his insatiable Constant Readers to rummage around and see how things work in there. Each story and poem (there are only two poems) is preceded by a brief introduction explaining a bit about how King first came to conceive of it, or what events in his life preceded it, or what situation or other author’s work inspired it. He references authors, books, movies, and stories that have impressed or influenced him throughout his life and career, and he shares anecdotes about interactions with and his feelings for friends and family members. With this book, King has opened up a dialogue with his readers and seems to be offering answers to some of the questions he fields at book signings, public readings, and in letters from fans. In the introduction to “The Little Green God of Agony”, King states that he’s “not in the business of confessional fiction”, but The Bazaar of Bad Dreams is a good blend of fiction and autobiography, which of course is always a form of confessional fiction. I am grateful for the opportunity to peek behind the curtain, and I imagine most King fans will be grateful too. If you’re a longtime King fan, even if you have read some of these stories before, the book is worth owning or at least reading. If you’ve never read anything by King but enjoy good short stories, some of which are a little scary, if you’re a casual King fan, or if you’re an aspiring author who wants a rare glimpse into an established writer’s mind & creative process, I heartily recommend The Bazaar of Bad Dreams.

SYNOPSES & RATINGS: “Mile 81”: People-eating alien disguised as car, child heroes; 3.5 stars. “Premium Harmony”: A souring marriage, a killer argument; 3 stars. “Batman and Robin Have an Altercation”: Elderly father with dementia, a dutiful son, a surprising stand; 4 stars. “The Dune”: An aging adjudicator, a dubious younger attorney, a shocking revelation; 3 stars. “Bad Little Kid”: Nasty demon in disguise, a would-be hero, a lamentable end; 4 stars. “A Death”: Desolate western story, a naive sheriff, fitting justice; 2.5 stars. “The Bone Church”: Narrative poem of supernatural adventure & madness; 3 stars. “Morality”: Struggling couple, ailing & twisted benefactor, lucrative but suspect decision; 4 stars. “Afterlife”: Two poor schlubs have deja vu all over again; 3 stars. “Ur”: Pitiful professor, out-of-this-world tech, and a great save; 5 stars. “Herman Wouk Is Still Alive”: Two aging poets musing on tragic deaths; 3 stars. “Under the Weather”: Self-deluded lovesick adman surrenders to the inevitable; 3.5 stars. “Blockade Billy”: Colorful narrator, a baseball tale, a killer catcher; 4 stars. “Mister Yummy”: Two aging friends discover the Grim Reaper isn’t always a cloaked figure with a scythe; 3 stars. “Tommy”: Narrative poem of a death in the psychedelic, queer 1960s; 3.5 stars “The Little Green God of Agony”: Wealthy insufferable boor gets undeserved exorcism; 4 stars. “That Bus Is Another World”: Chilling tale of apathy-inducing ambition; 4 stars. “Obits”: Struggling boomerang child discovers a powerful talent and its unforeseen consequences; 5 stars. “Drunken Fireworks”: Hilarious escalating war between two wealthy families across a lake; 4 stars. “Summer Thunder”: Two men go out on their own terms after the end of the world; 4 stars.

This is a very strong collection by Mr. King. I have always appreciated his shorter works because it forces him to be efficient in presenting the plot elements and coming to a resolution in a relatively short number of pages. The writing style is reader friendly as usual and the stories (and one narrative poem) are all entertaining. I especially liked the short introduction essays for each story that gives the inspiration or tells what he was trying to communicated in the piece. Most of the stories are not horror with a supernatural element, but more horror as terrible events that can happen in daily life. With what is going on in the world and, as I have gotten older, what can happen to a person and people around them that they love the term horror has change over time. A good collection that I strongly recommend.

If you are a Stephen King Constant Reader, sit back and enjoy or, if you are new to the King phenomenon, this is a great volume with which to get acquainted. "The Bazaar Of Bad Dreams" is a compelling compendium of 18 short stories and two poems , some old and revised, some new, ranging from 10 pages to 50 pages each.

Some have a supernatural influence while most portray horrors associated with real life rather than ghosts, aliens, and monsters. This seems to bother some of the reviewers but in reality, King has broadened his genre considerably over the past two decades. The offerings are somewhat connected by King's comments on when or why he wrote each story and by related themes of death, afterlife, guilt, and remorse.

King never shrinks from utilizing the English language as attested by some of his monumental tomes and continuing series. Yet he is equally renowned for his ability to write shorter concise and gripping stories as seen in his various collections of short stories and novellas over the years, many of which became screenplays.

Caveat: if you read and absorb everything King as I do, you will encounter tales in this collection that you have encountered before in one form or another--such is the nature of collected short story volumes. But each has been revised and updated where appropriate. Having enjoyed King's tales of haunted cars, such as "Christine" and "From A Buick 8", I especially enjoyed "Mile 81" which should make any driver rethink stopping at a rest stop along any public roadway. "Afterlife" presents a thought provoking choice that newly departed spirits must make. And "Obits" is a fascinating tale of horror that while not new, is imminently re-readable.

If you have read King's works over the past decades and matured in life as his legacy continued to grow, you should enjoy and appreciate this new collection; indeed, the new material makes the volume worthwhile to me regardless of whether I have previously read some of the stories. I am only rating it with four stars as I selfishly would have liked to see a few more original offerings.

It is much easier to write a review of THE BAZAAR OF BAD DREAMS than it is to assign it a numerical ranking. This is because several of the short stories in this anthology have already been released, not only in whatever periodicals they originally appeared, but also as Kindle singles, and three of them (MILE 81, UR, and DRUNKEN FIREWORKS) are (arguably, I suppose) among the best of the lot. Another couple of the stories (BLOCKADE BILLY [truly forgettable] and MORALITY,were previously released (2010) in an inexpensive hardcover print and/or other editions, and one, DRUNKEN FIREWORKS, a typically wonderful, straight-up no horror or supernatural rural SK tale was released last year as in audible only format) and another, THE LITTLE GREEN GOD OF AGONY, a great King horror short, was published in a 2011 anthology by several horror writers (A BOOK OF HORRORS). That leaves 13 other entries, two of which were poems. Of the remaining 11 (and I am pretty sure that most of them were also previously published in periodicals and possibly other multi-author anthologies that I have not seen), my favorite was OBITS (that reminded me a lot of, and used the same Maguffin as in KIng's THE WORD PROCESSOR).

If you have never read any of these stories before, then MILE 81, UR, LITTLE GREEN GOD OF AGONY and DRUNKEN FIREWORKS alone are, I am confident to say, worth the price of admission, and this anthology deserves an Amazon rating of 4 or 5. But if you have already read only 2 or 3 of them, as most die hard SK fans like myself have, then the rating drops markedly, based only on what's left after all the winners have been discounted. I have rated this a 3, which, except for BLOCKADE BILLY that I rated as a 2 (my lowest rating for any SK novel, short story, anthology or non-fiction and I have read most of them), which ties for the lowest rating I have given to any review of anything King has published.

I am NOT one of those who say stuff like "Back when he could write..." or "His best days are far behind him." or any horse feces like that. All one has to do is read 11/22/63, JOYLAND, DOCTOR SLEEP, REVIVAL or either of the two BILL HODGES TRILOGY, all published in 2011 or subsequently, to know that King is still one the best writers of fiction around. And, it could even be argued, that he is a better writer now, more polished at his craft and more mature, than he he was as an (alcoholic, coked-up but who cares, it was the 70s and 80s and he already had money and accolades enough for a lifetime) astoundingly successful young writer in his prime, from the mid 1980s through his near-fatal accident in 1999.

And for God's sake, those who rate this anthology poorly (as I guess I sort of do) , but say it's because he is writing for money - that really makes me lol. The guy is worth something like $400 million. If YOU had $400 million, would you want to risk your reputation simply to make another lousy $20 million? Neither would I, and neither, I am sure, would Stephen King.

I think what happened with BAZAAR OF BAD DREAMS was, in large part, due to the relatively recent (about 8 years since first introduction) advent of electronic publishing in the form of Kindle singles. Prior to that, if one did not see one of SK's shorts in the original periodical that published it, one had almost no chance to read it (or even know about it) until it was collected into an anthology. But by the late 2000's, the Kindle and kindle reader app for all platforms allowed SK to publish gems like MILE 81, UR (a really great SF novella centered on the early Kindle that only SK could write), and DRUNKEN FIREWORKS as e-book singles, rather than holding them back for 10 years or so until he had accumulated enough for another anthology that might have been comparable to NIGHTMARES AND DREAMSCAPES, EVERYTHING'S EVENTUAL, JUST AFTER SUNSET or some of his others.

So, in summary, if you've not read any of the stories in this anthology before, I would give it a solid 4 stars. Not 5, because some of the stories are weaker than average. But given what is left over after removing from consideration those stories that most of his "Constant Readers" like me have already bought and read, and going solely on the remaining short stories (and two very weak poems), I am sad to say that I think a 3 star rating is actually pretty generous.

JM Tepper