Pet Sematary: A Novel

Stephen King said that this work was by far his darkest. He admitted that the book was sort of based on his own experiences living with his family near a busy highway. His daughter's cat was struck and killed by a car on that highway and King begin to ponder what if the cat could come back to life. What would the cat be like? How would he react if he buried the cat only to see the cat back in his yard the next day? This led to his writing of this book.

As others have written before me, this book is dark. King leads you into the mind of Dr. Louis Creed who is the main character in the book. Dr. Creed moves his family from Chicago to Ludlow, Maine where he will work at the University. Dr. Creed is a young doctor with a young family. His daughter Ellie has a cat named Churchill (Church for short) and there is his young son Gage. His wife Rachel is the love of his life. The family adjusts to life in Ludlow but sadly Church is killed on the busy highway that the Creed's life next to. Louis' older neighbor, Jud, wants to help Louis after Louis saved his wife's Norma from dying. He takes Dr. Creed and his dead cat to the "Pet Sematary" (well actually past it) to an old Native American burial ground. They bury the cat and the next day, the cat comes back to the Creed home but remains a bit odd the rest of the book.

In the end, the tragic results of Jud taking Louis beyond the pet cemetery works havoc on their lives. Many have written the end but I will not. I will leave that for you.

Overall, this book makes you think about death and life. It makes you wrestle with resurrection. For the disciple of Christ, we know that Christ has won the victory over death (1 Corinthians 15:54-57). Our hope is in Him (1 Thessalonians 4:13). In the end, Christ Himself will cast death into eternal destruction (Revelation 20:14). However, the child of God through faith in Christ (Ephesians 2:8-9) will receive eternal life with their Lord (Romans 6:23; Revelation 21:7). While King shows Dr. Creed struggling with death and coming to terms with death (which he never does), the disciple of Christ can rest knowing that death has lost its power (John 5:24-25).

Trade paperback 2018 UPDATE June 2020 (a little overdue) I had re-bought this item a few months later, and got the correct cover art, the one Amazon depicts in their stock photo. However, it's got glue and bits of paper hanging off of it, just a real mess. I saw a copy of the movie tie in addition from the following year available at the big'ol' W A L M..... and it looked to be more robustly printed, but I have mixed feelings about the 2019 movie, although I haven't seen it because it just looks like it unnecessarily adds a bunch of layers that really add nothing to the story, but like I said -- I haven't seen it (yet...(?))....

The "Gallery book 2002" info that the product URL cites is in reference to a popart "comic book style" cover-art that didn't do any favors regarding capturing the appeal of the book visually. The movie this book's author wrote was a by the numbers dry as paint stupid MOFO adaptation. So what's left? That stupid hardcover dust jacket that Doubleday haphazardly slapped onto the initial pressings of the book and the subsequent mass market paperback edition? A respectful hardcover re-issue, put together as part of a set of some of his books sometime in the early 1990s, is almost impossible to find. There was a so-so trade paperback released in England a few years ago with a really stupid tagline.

This book deserves a good cover. It's one of those books that's really really really really really GOOD. It's not something God himself would want to read. It's probably not something you yourself would want to make a religion based upon or apply to your life philosophy. Stephen King wrote this book and disowns it because it isn't "truthful" enough. Who cares? Stephen King ain't anyone to talk authoratiatively about the truth. His lesbian daughter preaches the gospel for a living. Apparently having one's head up their butt runs in the family. This book strikes at the heart of man. The heart of man is deceitful above all things --- and exceedingly wicked. We don't need Stephen King to deliver us from that. Some people don't even want to be delivered from that. Sometimes you can't escape it. This book isn't THE TRUTH. But it does speak to the true hearts of real people for better or worse. And it does so in a manner far more effective than most of his horror novels ever did. CARRIE was not the POS that he initially thought it to be when he set out to write it before giving up on it, but it wasn't half as nerverattling as this. 'SALEM'S LOT, THE SHINING and CUJO et al were well and good, but this is the granddaddy of them all. I'm not buying it until I can get it with a decent cover. I tried ordering it after Amazon.com updated the stock photo and they sent me the old one with the popart cover. I guess they still had some of them leftover. This cover-art is the same as the mass market paperback edition issued in February 2017, but I'm not going to pay $9+ so I can "proudly own" this book in some pulp novel format. It'd be one thing if I just didn't have room for it, but unlike my CD collection that is easier to use because its' not vinyl, a trade paperback is every bit as useful as a mass market paperback. The pages are no more flimsy or cumbersome than a mass market and it just freakin' looks better. And a hardcover reissue that doesn't cost $50++ doesn't seem to be happening anytime soon. IT (1986) -- also one of S.K.'s superior works -- did finally get a hardcover reissue, but not only was the cover rather pathetic, but it had that stupid promo quip "NOW A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE" Since the makers of this past summer's re-make of the movie IT are apparently planning to also remake PET SEMATARY (about dang time!), we might get an equally lame hardcover edition of this book finally -- or maybe it'll be a quality hardcover pressing, i.e.: the mistakes of the past are not repeated (it could happen). Perhaps someone who doesn't feel the need to 'I would tell you, but you're not worthy...." will point me to a place on the www where I can find a copy that I can afford(?)

I first read this book when I was 13 and I remember it being one of the few books I've ever found truly unsettling. There's not much truly "scary" in this book in the traditional horror sense, but the sense that something awful can happen, out of nowhere, to upend a family so quickly frightened me far more than the ghosts of The Shining ever did. Upon reread mumble years later, I find that the creeping dread that leads to the central tragedy is still there but I was more struck by the numbness inherent in Louis' grief as an adult. Ultimately, this one not only holds up but is richer with more experience, something I can't say for many books I loved as a teen. If you think you know Stephen King's writing and haven't read this one, I would say you don't know how good his work can be...yet.

"Don't go beyond, no matter how much you feel you need to, Doctor. The barrier was not made to be broken." 

Life is good for Louis Creed if a bit hectic. He just took a job as the medical director at  the university of Maine, moving  him his wife Rachel their two kids Ellie and Gage and Ellie's cat Church to the small town of Ludlow Maine. He takes to his new neighbor Jud Crandall right away. Having lost his own father at the age of three, the older Jud sort of becomes the father that Louis never had. Right away Jud warns Louis about the road that runs between their houses and it doesn't take long to see why. Tractor trailers speed up and down the road at all hours coming and going to The Orinoco Fertilizer company. A couple of weeks later after the Creeds had settled in their new house Jud shows them where the small path behind their house leads to. An old pet cemetery which has been used by neighborhood children for almost a hundred years. This trip stirs in Ellie later that night a realization that her beloved cat Church is not immortal and will some day die. It also brings back memories for Rachel about her sister Zelda who died at an early age. 

Cut to the first day of classes at university at Louis has almost forgotten the episode about the pet cemetery until a student who was fatally struck by a car is bought into the university infirmary. Louis tries all he can to save his life but it is in Vain, but before he dies the student gives him a dire warning "Don't go beyond, no matter how much you feel you need to, Doctor. The barrier was not made to be broken."  Louis just takes it as the rambling of a man on deaths door. That is until the night Ellie's cat is run down in the road. Thankfully his wife and children are out of town. Jud takes Louis to bury the cat at an ancient Indian burial ground beyond the pet cemetery. Louis doesn't understand why Church needs to be buried here so far from the pet cemetery until the next night when Church returns, but Church is not the same he seems clumsier and uncat like and smells like the grave. But Louis learns to live with the new Church and keeps the deed that he has done to himself and tries to forget The cemetery beyond the pet cemetery. That is until the day that his  youngest child Gage is killed by one of the trucks speeding up the road. Now all that Louis can think about is taking one more trip up to the ancient burial ground.

My Thoughts:

I love this book, it's so spooky and scary its the stuff that keeps you up at night. It's a King classic right up there with The Stand and It. I first read this book in the late 80's as a teenager and I haven't read it again till now almost 30 years later as a father of three and its takes on a whole new meaning and I thought it was scary back then. This time around I was able to sympathize with Louis. Who wouldn't do what he does to bring your child back? I was able to get through this since my kids are older but I couldn't imagine reading this one when they were younger. This is one of those books were the story and events in the book stay fresh in your mind for years to come. The original 1989 movie is also pretty good I haven't seen the 2019 film yet so I cant speak of it but the late great Fred Gwynne (also famous for playing Herman Munster on the tv show The Munsters" is the perfect Jud Crandall and its his voice that I heard while reading Jud Crandall parts. Also Rachel's sister Zelda is so scary in the movie. I remember having nightmares about this. Now I haven't seen that movie since it was released in 89 so I'm not sure how well it holds up. But the book is King at his best and should be read and reread. Excellent book.

I can’t say I enjoyed this. It’s the second time I’ve read it in the last 40 years. I don’t know what I expected, but I would’ve liked to have seen something other than darkness. I know, with Stephen King you can expect horror, but he’s such a damn good writer whose talent goes beyond just that . It is something that you can see in his more recent books as well as and stories like The Body (Stand by Me), the Shawshank redemption and the Green mile .

Stephen King once said that Pet Sematary is the scariest book he’s ever written. Here’s why I agree. Beware of spoilers for the following review. As a horror fan, I can tell you that horror isn’t typically scary. Grotesque, sure- but scary? Besides jump scares, horror has very little horror in it, because most horror fans have the recognition of the horror not being real. Vampires, aliens, monsters? Not real, so in the back of your head you know it’s not scary. Instead, you enjoy it because of how unbelievable it is. But then there’s real horror- the kind that reflects very real situations, that makes your stomach churn and your heart race because as you read it, you can imagine it happening to yourself. Stephen King is a master of this. The scariest part of IT wasn’t the clown alien- it was the domestic abuse, the horrors of an ugly, violent reality. Pet Sematary, on the other hand, tackles the very raw and real fear of death. Stephen King himself had a close call with his son and a truck- and he also went through having to explain death, especially pet death, to his children. It’s a relatable situation, and one that I believe you can feel the turmoil of in King’s writing. The horror, the struggle, the fear was real. Louis Creed’s thoughts, his imagining of everything being okay, was well written and crucial to the story. King’s personal stake made these moments all the more thought provoking. Though the writing is slow, the darkest parts of the novel are written beautifully, with a masterful use of emotion. It’s real, honest, and raw- making it a brilliant read. Pet Sematary is a very human novel, at its core. One of the most well written parts of the novel was the descriptions of Gage’s death and the scenes that follow; the heartbroken reactions of the characters reacting to a tragic event. The grief in this novel is a very real depiction of how it is in real life. I also loved the truth of Rachel’s family- what they had been through, how they reacted, the strained relationships of her parents and her husband and the way her father tried to make things right in the end. There’s an honest discussion about death being natural versus death being unnatural, and I respected King showing both sides, showcasing Louis’ view of death and tragedy versus Rachel’s extremely opposite view. Another thing to mention is the depiction of love in this book. King is known for his sex scenes often being written with an inappropriate or crude edge, but the romance between Louis and his wife Rachel was one of my favorite parts of the book. It feels very believable that they have the relationship of a husband and a wife, and the scenes between them were not as cheesy as I expected them to be. Moreso, the love that Louis had for his children was extremely apparent in this book. The other works I’ve read from Mr. King have not had healthy love in it, and Louis is a different kind of character- one who cares deeply for his family. Emotionally, this was a very strong read. Now, all this sounds good, so you might wonder why I chose to give it a four and not a five star review. There is one main reason for this. I believe that King gave away too much of the plot. It’s a great writing device, but I am not sure it worked well here. I knew the plot of the novel already, because I’ve seen the movies many times. But I found it jarring when King alluded to Norma Crandall’s death before it happened, and then again with his own son. It was clever, in many ways, but I just struggled with it having been revealed in that way. There was very little surprise in the novel- it all was rather linear, and while the writing was great, that lack of intrigue took it down a notch for me. I still believe this to be one of King’s better novels, though.