When I was a teenager, I used to read The Princess Diaries series. And I distinctly remember a reference to Carrie that the main character made in the first book. As a result, I was aware of the plot even before I read the book. Now, if you're a horror enthusiast, you'd know that once you're aware of the plot, the intensity and the suspense diminishes by a considerable amount. However, in this case, even though I was aware of the plot, Carrie kept me on the edge of my seat.
The book alternates between two time periods - the past and the present. The format of the book is epistolary - it includes newspaper clippings, excerpts from published autobiographies of people who witnessed the "incident" that occurred, published articles by scholars researching about the "incident" along with regular narration in third person of the events leading up to the "incident", thereby, building up the suspense.
Carrie is a 17 year old girl who is bullied by her classmates in school for being a social outcast. Growing up in an overly-protected environment thanks to her fanatically religious mother, she does not understand social norms and as a result, is an easy target for bullies. After a particularly nasty bullying session, one of the girls involved, Sue Snell, feels guilty and convinces her boyfriend to take Carrie to their senior prom instead of her. The act, though done out of good intention, turns out to be the final straw in the humiliation of Carrie. I will not reveal anything further than that as this is one of those books where it's better to go in without much prior knowledge.
The primary complain that I usually have with horror novels is their one-dimensional characters. However, Carrie deeply explores the backstory of all of the significant characters. This book also touches on some disturbing subjects like marital rape which leaves a lasting impact on the victim in the book.
Apart from an engaging plot, Carrie also manages to keep you emotionally engaged without heavily relying on flowery prose. You can feel Sue Snell's guilt as deeply as you can feel Carrie's alienation and distress. You can also tell that the mixed and contradictory messages from her peers and her mother really confuses her and further alienates her from the society.
"Jesus watches from the wall,
But His face is cold as stone,
And if He loves me,
Why do I feel so all alone?"
- An excerpt from Carrie's journal
Another thing that I really liked was the actual horror element. Carrie offers a mixture of supernatural and psychological horror. Her plight is almost horrifying to contemplate. I'm not saying that this book will give you nightmares but, it will make you question a lot of things that you see happening around you. For example - sometimes, bullies are unaware/wilfully ignorant of the deep psychological impact that they leave on their victims. This book makes you wonder how easily avoidable the entire incident could have been if only people were a little more nice and accepting of others.
Overall, I'd like to say that if you want to sample Stephen King's writing before jumping into some of his larger sized novels, Carrie is a good book to start as it is fairly short and fast-paced. You can also check out View from the Bar on YouTube who is really good at discussing the finer points of Stephen King's novels or the movie adaptation starring John Travolta (if you don't want to read the book).
A random playlist of songs mentioned in the book -
Just Like A Woman - Bob Dylan
Tombstone Blues - Bob Dylan
The book alternates between two time periods - the past and the present. The format of the book is epistolary - it includes newspaper clippings, excerpts from published autobiographies of people who witnessed the "incident" that occurred, published articles by scholars researching about the "incident" along with regular narration in third person of the events leading up to the "incident", thereby, building up the suspense.
Carrie is a 17 year old girl who is bullied by her classmates in school for being a social outcast. Growing up in an overly-protected environment thanks to her fanatically religious mother, she does not understand social norms and as a result, is an easy target for bullies. After a particularly nasty bullying session, one of the girls involved, Sue Snell, feels guilty and convinces her boyfriend to take Carrie to their senior prom instead of her. The act, though done out of good intention, turns out to be the final straw in the humiliation of Carrie. I will not reveal anything further than that as this is one of those books where it's better to go in without much prior knowledge.
The primary complain that I usually have with horror novels is their one-dimensional characters. However, Carrie deeply explores the backstory of all of the significant characters. This book also touches on some disturbing subjects like marital rape which leaves a lasting impact on the victim in the book.
Apart from an engaging plot, Carrie also manages to keep you emotionally engaged without heavily relying on flowery prose. You can feel Sue Snell's guilt as deeply as you can feel Carrie's alienation and distress. You can also tell that the mixed and contradictory messages from her peers and her mother really confuses her and further alienates her from the society.
"Jesus watches from the wall,
But His face is cold as stone,
And if He loves me,
Why do I feel so all alone?"
- An excerpt from Carrie's journal
Another thing that I really liked was the actual horror element. Carrie offers a mixture of supernatural and psychological horror. Her plight is almost horrifying to contemplate. I'm not saying that this book will give you nightmares but, it will make you question a lot of things that you see happening around you. For example - sometimes, bullies are unaware/wilfully ignorant of the deep psychological impact that they leave on their victims. This book makes you wonder how easily avoidable the entire incident could have been if only people were a little more nice and accepting of others.
Overall, I'd like to say that if you want to sample Stephen King's writing before jumping into some of his larger sized novels, Carrie is a good book to start as it is fairly short and fast-paced. You can also check out View from the Bar on YouTube who is really good at discussing the finer points of Stephen King's novels or the movie adaptation starring John Travolta (if you don't want to read the book).
A random playlist of songs mentioned in the book -
Just Like A Woman - Bob Dylan
Tombstone Blues - Bob Dylan
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