Insomnia by Stephen King (1994, Hardcover)

This is the first King novel I've ever started and lost interest in the beginning. It was months before I started on it again. The beginning is a bit slow, which is unusual for King, and it took a determined effort to get me going again. However, the story certainly was worth the effort. This is another of King's novels which involves the Crimson King, for all you constant readers, and is worth slogging past the beginning to settle in for a lively story.

Here King touches on the unique problems of the elderly, and how they try to cope with all the unpleasant and unpleasant aspects of this time of life. As an insomnia myself, I was entertained by the many remedies to combat insomnia offered to the main character by well-meaning but mostly clueless friends and acquaintences. The insomnia leads to some strange happenings that coincide with other unusual events in the spooky town of Derry (home of Pennywise the Clown from It), and the hero of the day is the elderly gent unable to sleep. Without his intervention, the final Dark Tower book would have been a lot different!

In sum, a great read with a slow beginning, but well worth the effort.

Insomnia is one of my favorite books by Stephen King. The title Insomnia is very appropriate! The first time I read it I could not put it down and would read until 2:00 a.m. I finished it in 3 days. The plot is unique and has lots of action. Finally, an original story line and characters that have not been used over and over. I don't want to give anything away but it really makes you think about what life would really be like if you no longer slept for more than 3 hours a day. Ralph and Lois are very likeable and the doctors really make you think. The Crimson King is a truely evil character. Great ending! I would highly recommend to the first time S.K. reader and to those of us who love the classic Stephen King stories. Great book.

I purchased this because it's really hard to find and the price was great even with shipping.

Enjoy!