Four Past Midnight

This is a cautionary tale about that people often lose time in vain. Stephen King as always brilliantly managed to show the essence of the human soul. Each character portrayed individually, but a special place in this story takes Mr. Toomey. We can say that he did not have a childhood. He was raised by a tyrannical father, he later achieved considerable success in their careers, but always felt unhappy man. But he was afraid to go against the wishes of his father, even when his father died, Mr. Toomey continued to live according to the commandments of his father. He was afraid of losing time, because as a child learned about the mysterious creatures that come for those people who spend time in vacuous case. But it all went wrong, after he boarded the plane, which took a course in the past. That is, where there is nothing but emptiness.

Four Past Midnight includes...not surprisingly...four well written Stephen King stories of the macbre featuring gripping characters and very well developed plotlines.

Those stories are: The Langoliers (which was made into a television series), Secret Garden, Secret Window (a movie featuring Johnnie Depp), The Library Policeman and the Sun Dog.

Each of these stories makes for spine tingling reading:

In Langoliers we meet American Pride pilot Brian Angle just as he learns the news of his ex wife's death. Because he was on the west coast when he learned of her death he takes a Boston bound red eye to be there (for reasons we're never told). Unfortunately Angle's flight seems destined for the Twilight Zone instead of Boston because -- along the way -- he awakes to discover that most of the passengers have simply disappeared. The remainder of the story focuses on the exploits of the ten that remain.

Langoliers is an interesting story for how King manages to give dimension to so many characters as they encounter the same weird phenomenon. While this story will no doubt leave the discerning reader asking many questions about the particulars of the phenomenon encountered by Angle's flightmates, wiser readers will simply choose that wiser route of simply relaxing and just enjoying the ride.

In Secret Garden, Secret Window, we meet King's alter ego, a writer fresh from a divorce who encounters AN ODD STRANGER, Mr. Shooter. Shooter insists that King's writer has stolen a story from him and for a good part of the story we're drawn into the men's dispute, left with just enough evidence to wonder just who's telling us the truth. At this point the story takes a turn whose disclosure would require the words SPOILER ALERT.

Suffice it to say that discerning readers might find themselves scratching their heads a little over this one too! However, as before, I think the wiser advice would remain to just relax and enjoy the ride.

In Library Policeman we join a guy after he's just been recruited to give a speech. He's produced a rough draft but...because it's dry...he decides to visit his local public library to get a book or two to help liven it up. In King like fashion his library of course is A LITTLE DIFFERENT and its librarian is VERY DIFFERENT. The differences of course help move the story along its arc.

Experienced King readers probably won't be too surprised that no one ever tried to make this particular King work into a movie or television series like either Langoliers or Secret Garden, Secret Window. It's not because the piece is bad but rather just because...let's say...the piece isn't as competitive with other King works.

King's final story in this series is Sun Dog. Sun Dog starts with a little boy's birthday party. At that party, the kid gets a polaroid instamatic camera. King even names the specific model. Unlike other polaroids though this particular camera seems to take pictures of what's going on in another dimension. Like with the other stories in this book, King is at his best briefly bringing characters to life that seem to jump off the page and having them run their paces in stories that test them to the limits.

In this case, Sun Dog does double duty being the second to last story featuring King's mythical city of Castle Rock Maine (the last is Needfull Things wherein King just outright destroys the whole town). This story is kind of neat because King gives you many early glimpses of where he will all too gleefully later go.

I'm not going to lie. In terms of King short story collections I much preferred Different Seasons (which I would highly recommend if you haven't for some reason already read it) BUT it's still Stephen King. This book still does feature well written...gripping characters...with well developed plotlines. And most importantly...because it's penned by Stephen King...it's still WELL WORTH THE READ.

One of the best King collections, and certainly the most unnerving. Excepting, perhaps, the original Bachman Books. Here, the tale called The Langoliers gets all the fame (probably because it is Twilight Zone-ish, and features bizarre little balls of fur that apparently eat minutes, which is an interesting idea). And although that story is fun, it's not the best. It's a page-turner, but not the best. Nor is Secret Window, Secret Garden (later to be made into a movie starring Johnny Depp). That one is a little creepy, but ultimately disappointing. Poor ending. And the Library Cop story? Completely disappointing, should not even have been included here. Just your average tale about a child molester, blah, blah, blah. Kind of perverse, actually. Poor kid getting raped at the library? Not something I want to read about. No, the real gem here is called The Sun Dog. It could actually have been a stand-alone book, with a little work. It seems that a conniving old coot from Castle Rock (of all places) gets his filthy hands on a genuinely "haunted" Polaroid camera: whenever you try to take a picture, no matter the subject, you get a photo of a grizzled dog instead-- and with each shot this mangy mongrel gets a little closer to the lens. I'm sure your imagination can take it from there. Can't think of an idea that's quite like thit one. And it actually scared me; which is no mean feat. King has frightened me only a couple times, and this was one of them, so take that for what you will. Also, the old guy? He's Ace's father (from The Body, and many years later, from Needful Things).

In this collection, Stepehen King (thanks to the introduction) wrote these four stories that deal with time: one literally is about time, and the three have time in the background. Along with the time theme, each story is...supernatural. Some more haunting than one and another, but this isn't a collection where one story is about a straight up human killer. NO!!! Even "Secret Window, Secret Garden" deals with some kind of supernatural, thanks to the twist at the end.

The first story is "The Langoliers," which is the only story in this book that deals with the theme about time literally. It's more science fiction, however I still consider it as supernatural, thanks to "time-rips" and the monsters that eat the past. It's about a people awaken on an airplane where the rest of the passengers and flight crew seemed to disappear, not knowing they went though a "time-rip" to the past where everythin is deserted.

The second story is "Secret Window, Secret Garden." Mort is a very sucessful author, and just one day he meets a man named John Shooter, who is accusing Mort that he, Mort, stold Shooter's short story, "Secret Window, Secret Garden." As time goes along, we see Mort is losing it, and we keep guessing what's real and what's not.

The third, and I think it's the weakest of all, is "The Library Policeman." Sam must give an unexpacted speech, so one of his co-workers suggested to go the library and pick up books that will help his "dry" speech. There he meets a crazy old woman who haunts him the idea of "library policeman" is actualyl a supernatural creature that seems to feed off fear, like the clown in It.

The last, and my personal favorite, "The Sun Dog." Kevin, a fifteen year old, recieves a camera for his birthday, and everythime he takes a picture, there's a strange dog that seems to come a little closer in the pictures. He gets "help" from an old man who likes the fix stuff. It turns out the old man has other plans with this supernatural camera, and it may cost his life!

Stephen King packages four novellas into a gynormous horror anthology and dabbles in various genres, and it's another worth-it get. King also provides a foreword for each novella, unveiling insights and inspirations for his stories here. For my money, THE LANGOLIERS and THE LIBRARY POLICEMAN are the two standouts. They really profit from King's knack for writing fully-realized characters and articulating our fear of the dark. The other two entries are SECRET WINDOW, SECRET GARDEN and THE SUN DOG, and they're decent reads. I didn't like them as much as the first two mentioned.

THE LANGOLIERS is definitely better experienced as a novella rather than as a telecast. Whereas the movie - featuring a predominantly uninvolving cast - seems to just slog thru in many spots, Stephen King, in his literary purview, gleefully gives you access to the key characters' thought processes. There's nothing like the book format for revealing that kinetic internal conflict. And, plus, King is pretty good at setting up the premise and layering in the horror aspects, only this time he's cavorting in the sci-fi backyard. Like most of his works, this novella induces a creeping sense of unease, and I am amazed, as always, with this writer's creativity and imagination. Asserting that THE LANGOLIERS is something that could've come out from the Twilight Zone is perfectly apt. It's even a sort of distant cousin to that one episode "The Odyssey of Flight 33."

The passenger list includes a detective novelist, a pilot, a mysterious British gent, a blind girl, and a dangerous madman. On a commercial red-eye from Los Angeles to Boston, in mid-flight, ten people wake up and discover that the crew and the rest of the passengers have vanished. And then things get strange. Just in case you're in the dark about this story, I'll only mention that THE LANGOLIERS brings a new twist to the time travel concept and introduces a new kind of post-apocalyptic environment. King's mastery over plot and character development is in full display, as is his ability to merge the mundane with the paranormal, the horror with the science-fiction. My only gripe - and I frankly had the same issue with IT - is that when the story's Big Bad, the Langoliers, do finally appear, they don't quite live up to expectations. Other than that... an absolutely gripping read.

If you've seen Johnny Depp's movie, then you've caught the gist of SECRET WINDOW, SECRET GARDEN (although the film ends very differently from this story). Divorced, depressed, and reclusive author Mort Rainey is visited by a menacing stranger who claims that Mort years ago had stolen his story. This novella holds echoes of THE DARK HALF and as in that book and in THE SHINING and THE LANGOLIERS, we get one of Stephen King's specialties which is depicting a character's slow descent into paranoia and madness and making it seem believable. This story is basically a two-man show, featuring Mort (who knows he hasn't committed plagiarism but can't prove it) and the homicidally distraught John Shooter. This is actually more a psychological thriller than a horror story.

"Everything was the fault of the goddamn acrobat." That's the pretty intriguing opening line to THE LIBRARY POLICEMAN. When the librarian lady at the sleepy public library in Junction City, Iowa encourages Sam Peebles to return his borrowed books on time or else beware the Library Policeman, Sam maybe should've listened. This is a wonderfully creepy story about a terrifying supernatural boogeyman that had long preyed on Junction City. It also demonstrates why licorice is good for the soul. If you've ever harbored childhood fears of the Library Policeman, yeah, by all means, read this story.

THE SUN DOG concerns a haunted camera. On his 15th birthday, Kevin is presented with a Polaroid Sun 660 camera, something he'd wanted for a while now. But to say that the camera isn't working up to specs is understating things, kinda like saying Stephen King doesn't mind making his readers soil their pants. Kevin's camera is most definitely functioning beyond its parameters. Not only is it not working the way it should but no matter where Kevin points the thing, it always takes the same picture: that of a large snarling black dog that seems to be getting closer and closer with each developed image. This is an interesting read, but THE SUN DOG suffers from a weak ending and an overall narrative that never did coalesce for me. I did like the bit with "The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy sleeping dog." Note that THE SUN DOG serves as a prologue to NEEDFUL THINGS.

While this book is of Stephen King's short stories is not really that good, I would say it is definitively the best of his short story compilations. In this book you have 4 short stories all completely different from each other.

The Langoliers 5/5- is the best story of the lot. It has everything in it, time travel, inter dimensional breaches, sci fi, murder, insanity. Definately read this story, it is absolutely phenominal. From beginning to end this story drags you in, keeps you attached and keeps you begging for more. The end is great too.

Secret Window, Secret Garden (3/5)- Egh this story is ok, not overly exciting though the end is quite good. The story is a clear combination of The Tell tale Heart mixed with The Dark Half. Its worth a read to pass the time.

Library Policeman (3/5)- This one is ok also, i give it another egh. Typical crime drama sith a slight supernatural spin. Seems to be a half hearted rip off of Something Wicked This Way Comes mixed with Law & Order, mixed in a damaged child, and some deep seated hidden psych problems in the main character. Its ok to pass the time.

The Sun Dog (1/5)- Ugh this one is very poorly done, and is a really last minute botch job that you or I could have written. See the movie Shutter instead. Same concept except with a dog rather than a vengeful ex girlfriend.

While I do not typically enjoy Stephen King's short stories, I think that this compilation of stories was one of his best. Try out the book, it is not bad, the last story is pretty crummy though. Starts great ends in a ditch.

Stephen King (or his publishers) have combined four short novels into the one package under the title Four Past Midnight. With the exception of the final story The Sun Dog all these stories are actually longer in length than some of King's other released novels such as Thinner, The Long Walk, The Colorado Kid, The Running Man and others. So this collection is excellent value for money and will take you quite some time to get through.

The first story The Langoliers has ten passengers waking up on a flight (well one stays asleep for a while) to discover the crew and all the other passengers have completely disappeared. Amongst them is a blind girl, self centred businessman and luckily a pilot. No one on the ground answers their distress calls and there doesn't seem to be any other air traffic. These passengers terror has only just begun. This is one of King's best stories of any length.

Secret Window, Secret Garden is the second sensational story. A Mississippi man named John Shooter arrives at recently divorced writer Morton Rainey's doorstep and accuses him of stealing and publishing his short story. Morton knows Shooter is crazy, but realises how much danger his friends, ex wife Amy and himself are in when he finds his cat hanging by a screwdriver holding it to the door. He must convince Shooter that he wrote the story long before Shooter did.

The third story The Library Policeman is another typical King tale of terror. Sam needs to improve a speech he has to make for Rotary which is suddenly thrust upon him. He is convinced to go to the town's library and borrow some books to help him out. He is shocked by the graphic nature of the posters in the children's section and tells the librarian this. This angers her as he knows will the fact that he has lost the books. He was warned about the library policeman, in fact he's been suppressing childhood memories of his last encounter with him for a long time.

The final story not in the same league as the previous three is The Sun Dog. Kevin Delevan gets a Polaroid camera for his 15th birthday. Only thin is every photograph he takes doesn't develop as the subject he took the photo of. Instead a black dog in front of a badly in need of paint picket fence is in every photograph.

"Four Past Midnight" would fall under the "slightly better than mediocre" category of King works, were it not for the first of the four novellas featured here, a rocketing time-travel gem called "The Langoliers". It has a gang of air-travellers waking up during a cross-country jet flight to find that most of their fellow passengers and the entire flight crew have inexplicably disappeared. Fortunately, one of their number is a pilot himself, and together they must unravel what has happened to the rest of the world.

King himself, through his interesting preludes that lead into each story, compares the tale to another novella-length classic of his, "The Mist", which can be found in the short-story collection "Skeleton Crew". The comparison is certainly apt, as both have the pacing of a toboggan ride down a mountain along with bullet point preview headings for each chapter. Both stories deal with an isolated group of survivors faced with the unknown, but while the Lovecraftian Mist was enveloped by gothic themes of nature gone wild, Langoliers remains anchored in technology and time at odds, lending it more weight as a modernistic horror story

Perhaps the problem with the other three are their similarities to some of King's greater works. "Secret Window, Secret Garden" is a retelling of "The Dark Half", a novel that produces a particular resonance of depression in me as it marked the start of the author's decline heading into the 90's, one that wouldn't rectify itself until the end of that decade. "The Library Policeman" is, of course, "IT" redeux, with its evil ghost/morphing fear-creature and the hero who must wield talismans from his youth to defeat it. And then, there's "The Sun Dog". Consider this the apex of King's evil-inanimate-object stories, a well-worked theme in his cannon of short stories. The saving grace here is the dynamic between the curious young hero given the full-bore wise-beyond-his-years-yet-still-naive Kingian treatment, and the old shopkeeper who embodies all that is nefarious and cruel in the guise of a harmless Maine rookster.

Of course, when you're going back to the same well that has spawned some classic reads, things aren't going to be all that bad. And that's what we have here. Ghosts of a glorious past, that still manage to rattle those chains with gusto.

It still seems incredible to me that Stephen King's fans don't complain more frequently about his annoying wordiness. Where most writers would be content to say, "'Excuse me,' he said sarcastically," Stephen King always seems inclined to say something like, "Wayne stood like a character in an old TV show that he could no longer quite identify -- and that bugged him no end -- he stood there and uttered a long 'Excu-u-use ME!' But nobody, least of all the people sharing the same supermarket checkout line, paid him the slightest attention. 'I will kill them all,' he thought darkly. But even then he knew he really wouldn't." You get the idea. Stephen King needs an editor, and needs one bad. The four novellas in this collection are, for the most part, skillfully conceived, they flow nicely, and they are capable (in their better moments) of taking you where souls normally fear to tread. "The Langoliers" is especially delightful because it is also a bit of an intellectual exercise. I'd give it an 8 -- King at his best. It is followed by "Secret Window, Secret Garden," the worst of the four, a tired old saga about a writer pestered by a guy who claims he stole his story. It gets a 3. "The Library Policeman" is initially spellbinding, but King keeps writing nonsense long after he could have stopped. It's a 6. "The Sun Dog," which closes the collection, is impossibly wordy, but is saved somewhat by an ending that is guaranteed to give you goose bumps. It's also a 6. In short, it's a fun read, but it could have been better. All it needed was tightening up.

This book contains four short stories however the one I am going to review is the thiller of air travel, The Langoliers.
This is a real Stephen King dusey involving an airliner's accidental flight through a rip in the space and time continuem and arriving at it's destination with half it's passengers missing including the crew save for an off duty pilot, who like the other survivors -and lucky for them - had the common sense to be asleep at the time.
At the airport there is no one to meet them and they soon discover the horror of the situatuion they are in. All the while a crunching sound is resonating through the stale air they are breathing...The Langoliers, the evil cousins of Pac Man are eating the used up time and space and are closing in on them. All the while psycotic passenger is casing them grief. There is always one.
The Aeroplane and it's passengers make a hair raising escape and attempt to return to normal time, but there is a catch, they must find the rip in space and to pass through they must all be asleep...How will they do it? Someone will have to make the ultimate sacrifice. The ending has a little humor in it, a passenger who had to much to drink at the airport lounge before boarding finally wakes up none the wiser as the intrepid voyagers arrive at their intended destination, albeit a little early for time, safe and well.
This story was made into a B Grade TV movie in 1995 with surprisingly good results although given the budget of a blockbuster, would've been a real thriller.

This collection already contains some of my favorite stories by King, so it gets a little extra love from me for that fact alone. Craig Toomy from "Langoliers" is a wonderfully disturbed character in such a surreal setting, reminding me much of an old TV series episode. And "Secret Window" is another fantastic tale. I had read both of those the last time I tackled this book, but had to set it aside for work, so it was very good to revisit them like old friends.

This was my first time reading the other two stories, and while "The Sun Dog" was not my favorite, it was intriguing. "The Library Policeman" made up for everything "The Sun Dog" didn't do for me. It was absolutely creepy and disturbing, as one would expect of King. Overall a very good collection that I would recommend to any fan of King's work.

These four tales took seven years to get my attention, but once I started, I did not want to stop. All four stories are written well, with developed characters and gripping plot lines. Secret Window, Secret Garden was exceptional! There is no other word to describe the tension King manages to build in this novella-it is nothing short of spectacular. I had difficulty concentrating on my job during the two days it took me to finish this story. The extent of the mental anguish suffered by the main character created a genuine feeling of stress for me. The Library Police was not far behind. The story contains an awesome power to suspend the reader's belief. The creature/Librarian was vaguely reminiscent of the creature from "It" in the sense that it played on the worst fears of the Sam. The similarities were easy to ignore as the reader gets lost in the plight of the characters. At this stage of Stephen King's career, one cannot help noticing the shift in Mr. King's attentions. He seems to have gotten away from the blood-and-guts style of horror and has opted to get inside the reader's head. I find the change refreshing and challenging at the same time. I began reading Stephen King when I was in seventh grade, and I have not looked back. I have argued with many a friend over the difference of today's writing versus yesterday's writing. Whereas his older work was accessible to anyone with a middle school education, his newer work requires the reader to pay attention and even use a little brainpower. I guess that doesn't set well with everyone. Many have remarked that King has stepped over some imaginary line into perversion. Perhaps Mr. King is merely treading a little to closely to reality. Children are raped every day, and Mr. King has taken that horror and made it more tangible. Personally, I have enjoyed being witness to the evolution of King. The Sun Dog was above average, and very entertaining. I had read "Needful Things" before "Four Past Midnight," and getting to know Pop Merrill was fun. The nature of Pop was exquisitely sinister. I was not especially fond of The Langoliers. While it moved along at a good clip and was certainly suspenseful, I didn't find it nearly as riveting as the other stories. I suppose others like it so much because it is closer to King of the past. All in all these are four beautifully crafted stories, told brilliantly and thoroughly enjoyable to read.

Like "Different seasons", "Four past midnight" is a book featuring four stories that were too long to be considered short stories and too short to be considered full books. Bur while "Different seasons" can be considered a "lighter" book by Stephen King standards, "Four past midnight" is a comeback to King's earlier darker, fantastic stories. The main problem with this book is that Stephen King is, in my opinion, a great author concering character development. But these developments usually take time, chapter, and pages. King's short stories are almost always a step down from his lenghtier works. "Four past midnight" is no exception. The four premises are good, but every time I finished a story I felt there was something lacking in it.
"The langoliers" - the most fantastic story in the "Four past midnight", about a plane that goes through a rip in time. This is the story with the best premise, and with the most developed characters, so it is the best story in the book. Graphic descriptions, deaths, thrilling, a good work. 8.0
"Secret window" - this is the basic plot of the recent movie with Johnny Depp. I had high expectations, bu I was let down. It's a simple story, and a little bit obvious. This is an example that, if King should have chosen to develop the plot further, we could end up with a terrific book. The way it is, I didn't like very much. 6.5
"The library policeman" - Once again, a plot dealing with fantasy and terror. This story has all the elements to be great, bu t it isn't. When I read it, it became very clear to me that Stephen King started to write one story and ended up with another. The beginning has an almost comic style (as opposed to the somber ending), and there are many characters that were intended to be bigger parts in the plot, but were left aside after the initial chapters. It's cool to see that a story may have a life on its own, but I think in this case there could have been more editing to it. Also, the final is too rushed. This story has too many elements is too few pages. 7.0
"The sun dog" - this could be the best story in the book, because the initial plot was really great. It's about a malfunctioning Polaroid camera, and a ferocious dog that appears in every photograph taken with it. This is the kind of idea that makes SK one of my favorite authors, but, as happens with the previous two stories, "The sun dog" lacks strenght in the end. 7.5
So, "Four past midnight" is a good collection of short stories, but Stephen King has written many better books than this one.
Grade 7.5

This novella collection (these are no short stories, people)is what you would expect from Stephen King. If you're a fan of the majority of his work, then you would probably be interested in these tales. I say interested, because at times theres good parts and bad parts in each story, and you have to trudge through some long winded stuff to get to the juicy parts. The lead story "The Langoliers" shouldn't be considered horror-the monsters sound like Critters ripoffs and the portal this, portal that, is confusing at times. But I must say, King has once again created characters that are so life like and intriguing, you just have to read it to see if they come out alright. "Secret Window, Secret Garden" was very well written, but it seems as though King came dangerously close to not being able to pull it off. You'll see what I mean. "The Library Policeman" is my favorite. Its as horrifically psychological as such King gems as Gerald's Game and Dolores Claiborne. Its scary as well as thoughtful and shocking. The last story "The Sun Dog" was something of a let down because it felt like Cujo 2, but it did have truly creepy parts and I did have a nightmare, if that helps in your purchasing decision. Pop Merril is such a character, he saves the story from total disaster. I think King should have edited some of Pop and Kevin's dad's history; I just found my mind wandering during "The Sun Dog". All in all, Four Past Midnight is worth giving a try but if youre a first time reader, its definitely not something that would define Stephen King as the great writer that he is. Stick with the novels like It, The Stand, Carrie, The Shining, etc.

I am not typically of fan of novellas, especially a group of them in one LONG book. But, I wanted to try this one because I am trying to read through all of Stephen King's books. This starts with The Langoliers. This story is well written and beautifully played out. At first you might cross reference it to another level of the Dark Tower, but through events in the story I don't believe that is the case. The characters easy to relate to. I really liked this story.

Secret Window, Secret Garden was an amazing story about a writer who is visited by a man that claims that his story was stolen by the writer. The writer has proof and that is when the real horror begins. A terrifying tale.

The Library Policeman plays on a child's fear of what would happen if you do not return a library book. For anyone who had a fear of authority as a child would easily relate to this.

The Sun Dog is about a camera. This camera doesn't seem to work correctly. It is also about greed and corruption. The setting is the well known town of Castle Rock and has many references to other books.

All four of these novellas are horror to the core. This is classic Stephen King at his best. I highly recommend picking this one up. You will not be disappointed.

This review refers mostly to the unabridged cassette version.
Typical Stephen King story. Starts out great and is fun getting there but far to often the ending (just like this story) is unsatisfying. The story involves a young teen who get a polaroid camera that does far more than take regular snap shots. Not really unique story telling but there are a number of interesting characters in the story. In particular Pop Merrill. A character so intricately drawn, that it is hard to tell if he is a good guy or a bad guy.
Overall I liked this story but I don't feel Mr. King put his all in this story. First off there is darn near a metaphor on every single page. I can't begin to count the number of times a sentence went something like " . . . it was like . . ." Another problem with the story is that it contained a number of flash forwards that went nowhere. One character has a flash forward but dies before the previously mentioned flash forward can come to pass. And the ending . . . Well, I won't ruin anything, but if you are familiar with these type of stories, you will not be surprised.
A hesitant recommendation, perhaps a library book more than a book store purchase. The audio cassette version read by Tim Sample is superbly done. He is able to carry off all the voices and his Pop Merrill is so nicely done, at times it seems it was a different reader.

The book The Langolier was a trilling mystery and adventure. I highly enjoyed reading though this story. The settings for this story was very memorable. I have not read another story with a setting like this. The setting for this story was very unique, and the characters play off each other very well. The plot kept me very entertained all the way through. The characters are the main way the story progresses, so having some of the best character that I have seen is great.
The theme of the book is stress. Stress consumes all of the characters in this book, and when the characters are at peace they are put right back into a stressful situation. My favorite character of the lot would have to be the pilot Brian Eagle. Brian is the most realistic character in this book. He has to deal with real problems and deals with them in a realistic manor. Brian is not a hero he is just a guy trying to get home safely. I would recommend this book for anyone who has an interest in King's literature or anyone looking to dig into a good mystery.

I LOVED "Secret Window, Secret Garden", it was reminiscent of "Bag of Bones". The story is extremely suspenseful, poetic, and intelligent. "Library Policeman" is similiar to "It" and a short story in "nightmares and dreamscapes" about a teacher and "changed" children. "The Sun Dog" is great because of its connection to the Castle Rock tales and a must if you liked "The Dark Half", "Needful Things", and "Cujo", many characters from these stories turn up. I was surprised to find that I HATED "the langoliers", like a Rod McKuen poem, this story reeked of false sentiment. It was corny and unbelievable. King isn't always really original, I can say that and still be a huge King fan, but in this story he doesn't even put his usual great twist and special magic to a tired premise. After I finished the story, I felt let down and wanted to know who exactly the Langoliers were! The only likeable character was the bad guy, Mr. Craig Toomy. The others were just caricatures. I especially disliked the use of Dinah the "little blind girl" blechhhhh. But the other 3 stories make up for this stumble.

Forging new ground isn't exactly what Stephen King specializes in, so I suppose that it should come as no surprise that most of these stories are going to feel familiar when you slip into them. Though I'll deal with them individually, the overall impression that I got from this collection was one of familiarity--these are stories that I've heard before, in one case in a setting that I'd seen before, told by a voice I know, and that's perfect for a nice, comfortable read that's probably not going to challenge you.
The first story is probably the most daring of the four, and arguably the only one where you won't see the ending telegraphed to you in plain English about ten or twenty pages in. Overall, The Langoliers not a story that you should be too unfamiliar with. It's been done before by King in works like The Mist, but he's happily at his best here. While I had seen the miniseries before I picked up the story, it still managed to keep me entertained with its interesting characters and engaging style of presentation. While I'm not the sort of person who finds suspense in the written word, there's certainly enough there for those who are inclined, and I suppose you could say that the first story really marks the high point for the collection overall.
Secret Window, Secret Garden follows, and when I say that the pieces in the novel follow a wrote path, I'm really talking about this piece right here. I'm not complaining--I've been known to read the same book two or three times, so I'm obviously not averse to a familiar plot. All the same, this is about as formulaic as you'll find Stephen King. His strengths, however, are still there--the characters are interesting and engaging, and the plot manages to be just novel enough to keep the interest of most readers.
The trend continues in The Library Policeman in almost precisely the same fashion. Though this one follows a different formula, it's still a formula, and again the strengths of the story are in its characters, and particularly in the short excursions that King takes from the plot to develop backstory on his characters. The old drunk's story in particular should elicit tears from some readers.
The final story in the collection is The Sun Dog, and King all but admits that this one won't stand on its own. The strangest element, however, is that it does stand on its own fairly well. For that matter, aside from a fairly oblivious plot tie in, I'm not sure how this fits into the "trilogy" that ends Castle Rock (I'm currently slogging my way through Needful Things). The story itself is probably the most original and innovative in terms of plot, and Pop Merill is arguably the most interesting character in the entire book. I've certainly got a soft spot for Castle Rock, so I may be a little prejudiced towards this story, but it was my personal favorite.
On the whole, this collection isn't going to stimulate you to think much or reconsider your worldview--that's not what Stephen King was about at this point in his career. It will, however, enjoyably pass a few hours for you, and maybe give you a few characters to remember fondly (or not so fondly in some cases), which ultimately ought to be the purpose of most good books. Those readers who might typically be encouraged to avoid King should probably be so warned here as well (there is a particularly objectionable scene in The Library Policeman), but all others will find in Four Past Midnight an enjoyable, if not particularly stimulating, collection of stories that should keep the eyes and the imagination busy for a couple of plane rides or long stretches in the office.

the style in all these stories are very melancholical to be SK. sun dog has a ok idea. the suspenceful part is carried out nicely, but there isn't enough "glow". a boy gets a camera. something is wrong with the photos. they show an angry dog. that can't be harmless. the story is simply never more than good. in Secret window, secret garden a writer is suddenly harrassed by a man claiming that he's taken his story. the man turnes out to be a little more dangerous than first figured, and the writer is forced to take precautions. but the man won't go away... the dulles story, sometimes not even interesting. is only written on the plain suspence- level, and it's not great there either.
the langoliers has agood story. passengers on a plane wakes up finding most of the eithers gone. what's happened. they seem to be stuck somewhere they've never been before. i won't give away more. it's interesting read, has a lot of atmosphere. perhaps the best idea in this collection. has some lovely ideas and details.
in Library policeman, a man borrows a book that disappears. but the librarian won't accept that. the man has to face something not quite human. something that lives of fears. the man has to find out what's going on, digging in the town's past. a dark history concerning the library. good idea. great descriptions. some of the details were a little bit far out for me. i also think the story should have been built differently. but it's a good story.

I liked all the stories, some more than others.
The Langoliers - This was definitely my favorite story out of them all. It was interesting and different from the other things that I've read. Sometimes the characters got a little boring though. I think the ending seemed a bit rushed so it was a let down from the rest of the story. You should read this if you're on the plane or if you're planning to fly soon... it'd make you think again.
Secret Window, Secret Garden - At first I found this story quite boring and simple, but then it turned out to be much more. My favorite part of this story was the ending because it was just completely unexpected. It was a nice twist.
The Library Policeman - I think that this story just progressed too slowly. Many parts seemed to drag on forever.
The Sun Dog - Like "The Library Policeman", this story progressed too slowly. Some parts of it were interesting, but there were a lot of parts that I just wanted to skip! The ending was a disappointment as well
What I like about all the stories is the detail that Stephen King often includes. While reading certain parts, you can see the whole scene happening in front of you in slow motion because of the detail.

Hello Dear Readers,
I'm just finishing a King novel. I devote myself to just reading one a year. That all my constitution can take. It's not that the writings is bad, but my sanity limits me from reading more.
King again frightens me with "Four Past Midnight."
Beginning with "The Langoliers," which I had the misfortune to read while travelling cross-country by air, the terror fest mounts. "The Langoliers," which had been made into a fair TV mini-series starring Michael Morse, delves into suppositions concerning rips in time and how it affects unprepared travelers. King's characters rely on their wits and luck to set things right. "The Library Policeman" shows King's power to seek out fright with any subject at any place. How could anywhere as innoculous as the library elict fear? Read and find out. Something truly sinister is involved here. Saturated with horror, "The Library Policeman" also dives deeply in some human foibles too! "Secret Window, Secret Garden," delves into the darker interior of man. King displays his understanding the human psyche into this story. Finally, "The Sun Dog" hit us head on in this tale from King's fictional town Castle Rock. The supernatural is studied as a boy's birthday camera take very unnatural pictures indeed. "The Sun Dog" prefaces King's novel "Needful Things."
I enjoy all four short stories and found each were separately scary each in their own way. It would depend on your own threshold and tolerances to determine which frighten you the most. I guarantee each will hold you from the first to last page though. My favorite was "The Library Policeman." I didn't expect that to be so. I almost expected it to be funny! However, it was anything but as the story progressed. I liked "The Langoliers" also because I'm a fan of Science Fiction and King infused some sifi whimsy into it. I think King probably was a fan when he was younger. There aren't any monsters present except that which you invent in your own imagination. The other two stories were in fine style, but didn't bring out as much interest to me.
I hope my review helped a little with your purchase. solo.

This collection of four novellas (hence the title), all Horror, are quite good overall. My favorites were The Langoliers (of which I am glad the source material for the mini-series was much more entertaining and enjoyable) and The Library Policeman. The other two novellas, Secret Window, Secret Garden and The Sun Dog were both capable of producing genuine thrills and chills, just not as many as I would have liked.
The Langoliers, a what if story that boldly asked and answered the question "What happens to today when tommorrow takes its place?" was engrossing and frightening.
The Library Policeman was just plain vicious, Stephen King at his shocking best. Making a library a threatening place takes true talent.
Secret Window, Secret Garden was too much like the Dark Half for me to really enjoy.
The Sun Dog was interesting to a point, but the entire story relied on the stupidity of one man (and the damn solution to the problem was so friggin' simple!) Nevertheless, the story did take us to Castle Rock and that's one locale to which I will always gladly return.
Bottom line, if you're a Stephen King fan you should check this out. Two of the stories are awesome, the other two pretty darn good.

The first two stories in this collection were excellent, but the final two were just plain awful. "The Langoliers" was the most viscerally exciting story I've read in years, and "Secret Window, Secret Garden" featured some astonishing characterizations I didn't believe Stephen King could muster, but, after these two bonafide gems, it all goes downhill. "The Library Policeman" started off intriguingly enough, and "The Sun Dog" featured the fascinating Pop Merrill, but in my humble opinion, the disgusting rape scene in "The Library Policeman" would have been deemed child pornography if it'd been published elsewhere (like in, say, a men's magazine), and "The Sun Dog" displays King at his most narratively inept and incompetent. Both of these pathetic stories climax with eye-rollingly laughable showdowns, one involving licorice and the other a pair of Polaroid cameras duking it out, so to speak. For crying out loud, when is Stephen King going to realize that Coke machines and Polaroid cameras are NOT terrifying?

In "The Langoliers," a handful of people fall alseep on an airplane...they then wake up in a world without life, still in the plane. It is full of great characterization and suspense, along with a few twists! A personal favorite.

In "Secret Window, Secret Garden," a writer, Mort, is accused of plagerism...this story turns into much more than that, however. It's really shocking, and hard to call if you haven't see the movie (Secret Window).

In "The Library Policeman," the main character (can't recall the man) is haunted by his childhood fear of "the library policeman". However, that fear is rational...for the Library Policeman...is real!

In "The Sun Dog," Keven gets a camera with a haunting effect..it has the picture of a a dog slowly moving. Very haunting and creeping, with a masterful ending!!!!

"Four Past Midnight" is a collection of novellas that are all amazing. HOWEVER, please note that the reader must be able to stretch his mind in all cases, as many of the stories are unrealistic.

However, all of them are really horror and truly amazing. GO STEPHEN KING!

Another first-rate collection from the King. "The Langoliers" is the best of the four; I'd say the weakest of them is "The Sun Dog," mainly because it's a bit long (this is the only one in the collection that drags a bit). But WHY does EVERYBODY seem to HATE "Secret Window, Secret Garden! " While not as exciting and action-oriented as "The Langoliers," this story rates high on my list because the horror is internal; the emphasis here is on relationships (read DOLORES CLAIBORNE). I thoroughly enjoyed this one. "The Library Policeman" is wonderfully creepy. And even "The Sun Dog" is a good story. There really isn't a loser in the bunch.
Vintage King!

That about sums up the novel Four Past Midnight by Stephen King. The book contains four novellas, The Langoliers, Secret Window, Secret Garden, The Library Policemen, and The Sun Dog. The first two stores in the novel are the good. The Langoliers is a scary imaginative story that could only come from the mind of Stephen King. The plot is unique as is the theme of the story. Very well written. Secret Window, Secret Garden is a familar story from King. Boy he just loves to reak havoc on those author characters of his doesn't he? I have not read The Dark Half, so I can not comment on how similar the two stories are, but Mort Rainey is a great character and King tells this story well. The final two stories in the novel really ruin the book. The Library Policemen is dumb and really luaghable when you get right down to it. The Sun Dog is done so much better in Cujo that we don't much care for it here, and are bored becuase of how long the story needs to take off. So an overall mix of good and bad here, with a final rating falling somewhere in between there.

William Dafoe and James Woods are exceptional actors, not narrators. Dafoe read as if he wanted to impress the audience with how many words he speak in absence of breathing whereas Woods possessed a lisp I've previously never detected in 30+ years of films.

I had already seen the movie adaptations of a couple of these stories but reading them was better than watching. Library Police and Sun Dog we're nice and creepy. That reminds me. I have overdue items to return...

In "The Langoliers," Captain Brian Engle awakes on an passenger airliner to discover that only a handful of the passengers are still onboard. They made no stops, there was no hijacking...and they are being pursued by something nameless, something evil...

In "Secret Window, Secret Garden," author Mort Rainey is having a crisis. You see, a man has showed up at Mort's doorstep, saying Mort stole his story. But Mort didn't. Or did he? And just how far is this man willing to go to get what he wants?

In "The Library Policeman," Sam Peebles goes to his local library to collect some books on delivery a good speech. Only he finds something straight out of hell: an evil librarian who's name is never spoken in the town, and who died years ago...and a mysterious man who calls himself the Library Policeman, and shame on you if you don't return your books on time...and Sam's due-date has just passed...

In "The Sun Dog," 15-year-old Keven Delevan receives a camera for his birthday. But the camera takes pictures of only one thing: a black dog, a horrible beast, who grows ever closer, and is only getting more hungry...

"Four Past Midnight." Each novella comes complete with a brief introduction. Stephen King. The master of the horror genre. Stephen King's "Four Past Midnight"--a stellar read, captivating and unforgettably chilling...

"The Langoliers" is one in four novellas from Stephen King in his "Four Past Midnight" book. The other novellas don't stack up to this one and should be considered a stand alone piece of work against Stephen King's other masterpieces.
King's ability to climb inside of the minds of so many personalities and describe them to you, the reader, is second to none. Combine that with his wild imagination and you have the formula for all of King's work.
As an avid fan of King's storytelling and mesmerizing tales I was absorbed, once again, into his world. This time he took thirteen passengers aboard a 767 jetliner all heading to a faraway destination, and sent them further than ever before. Through time and space itself. King lends his talent to the time aged speculative which is time travel. But instead of sending these unwilling participants into the future or the past he has them trekking around in between times as they witness how the past catches up with the present. He reveals the main characters as they experience their journey instead of setting them up in the beginning of the story. This form of writing makes the story hard to put down.
As in most of his works he tantalizes us with things yet to come and dangles key turning points in front of us like shiny keys to an infant. His foreshadowing is well known and often imitated but never mastered. This excerpt is a prime example:

"He watched Melanie Trevor patiently as she pointed out the exit doors, demonstrated how to use the little gold cup if there was a pressure loss (a procedure Brian had been reviewing in his own mind, and with some urgency , not long ago), and how to inflate the life vest under the seat. When the plane was airborne, she came by his seat and asked him again if she could get him something to drink. Brian shook his head, thanked her, then pushed the button which caused his seat to recline. He closed his eyes and promptly fell asleep.
He never saw Melanie Trevor again."

Here he gives us a taste of what is to come, but only a taste. The chapter ends after that loaded sentence and you can't help but wonder what happens to her, or better yet what happens to him? King writes this story with a ferocity that hurls you through the story at a break-neck speed and when you're done you'll want more and you won't realize that it was 234 pages long.

!!SPOILER ALERT!!

Stephen Kings finishes the book off in grand style with a journey to the future and has the remaining characters rematerializing in the main terminal of LAX as the present catches up with them, like members of the enterprise on an "away mission".

!!END SPOILER!!

If you enjoyed King's other books like "It", "The Stand", and "Pet Sematary", then you'll definitely want to pick this up and you won't be able to put it down till the end.

This is a great collection of novellas. Though the highlight was The Library Police. Reading it in my bed, I couldn't help but look into the darkness and wonder if I too was alone. Sure that I was, I couldn't help but slip my foot back under the covers and hide in my cotton cocoon. I know that many people have a lot of Steven King favorites but for me, this was his best story. Just like Toe Tags and Tequila by William Bryan Layton, it made the hair on my neck stand on end.

I received Four Past Midnight as a Birthday gift when it was first released in 1991. I just recently saw the trailer for the up coming Johnny Depp film about story number 2 (SECRET WINDOW.) I thought it looked really interesting, so I gave it a try.
This was a very good story. King really turns up the tensions and makes you feel that the main charactor is either lossing his mind or is just a victim of a sick individual. King never clearly explains and we are never quite sure until the end, when it is revealed. It had me on my toes and I was dying to see how it ended. Granted it is short, only 150 pages, but reads like a novel. Recommended.

Before we begin, I'll throw a practical disclaimer up here, just in case: any critique I write of Stephen King's work is going to fall suicidally close to fangirlish "Omigod he's the MAN I love him he rules there's nothing he can't do!" squealing and posturing. But while I might be obsessive enough to worship the mud he tracks across his foyer, I'm hardly delusional to the point of proclaiming his grocery list a masterpiece (thanks in advance for aiming that tranquilizer dart someplace else). Fanaticism on a mature and honest level doesn't involve plunking your idol onto some hopeless mythical pedistal and trying to claw out their humanity the way you'd gut a fish. To truly appreciate a person's artistic or entertainment prowess is to admire it from a respectful distance, and having the dignity to realize anyone's efforts are equally weak and strong, flawed and seamless, profound and banal. Celebrate the illusion, but don't lose sight of the reality in the process.In the author's note preceeding "L.T.'s Theory of Pets", from his recent <i>Everything's Eventual</i> anthology, King writes, "For me, that emotional payoff is what it's all about. I want to make you laugh or cry when you read a story...or do both at the same time. I want your heart, in other words. If you want to learn something, go to school." I find that to be a daring and noble statement, especially in this technologically enhanced culture determined to quantify both intelligence and self-worth through numbers...it seems like the only heights and depths we're encouraged to explore nowadays involve BMIs or GPAs. Stephen King is by no means a co-proprietor of the literary brain candy store...he's a challenge for your feelings, a threat to your comfort zone, an alchemist of characterization and human nature. More than any of his popular-fiction contemporaries, King is aware that the heart is perhaps the most powerful, fearsome--and yet underrated--of all internal spheres. He also displays a fiercely self-assured understanding that psychology has as much to do with feelings as it does with ideas and responses.Adroitly mixing this philosophy with a recurring theme of time (history, present, and future), <i>Four Past Midnight</i> becomes an enigmatic collection of short novels, meshing straightforward horror with abstract themes like isolation and desire. There is the occasional anticlimactic scene and awkward passage common to Stephen King's prose, but he rarely relies on cheap scares or takes the easy way out...and I for one appreciate his so-called "literary elephantitis." Maybe his frequent tangents have little to do with the plot, but as reflections of himself and his characters, there's truly nothing finer. In presented order:<b>The Langoliers</b> is more than a promising first step...it's a harbinger. Obstensibly a science fiction-inflected tale disguised as a typical air-travel disaster, this is a fascinating concept piece with a stark feel and one of the most interesting characters ever to grace the King roll call. I'm not referring to the blind, psychically gifted Dinah Bellman or to Nick Hopewell, the British assassin with the heart of gold...but to Craig Toomy, the "murderous deep-sea fish who only wants to be hauled to the surface so he can explode." I was unimpressed with the television miniseries' version of Mr. Toomy, dismissing him as the standard mentally unbalanced yuppie scum (!) you'd expect to throw a subplot into the proceedings. On paper, Craig Toomy is a complex character worthy of anyone's sympathy, despite the horrific acts his growing madness drives him to commit. King created a monster...with love.<b>Secret Window, Secret Garden</b> is arguably the weakest link in this chain, but is strong enough to keep everything intact, thank you. Its inspiration (told in the author's note) is compellingly common. This is a study in perspective, in looking at something in our everyday lives from a different angle...and wondering if measuring the depth of its dissimilarities might take us to a place we have no desire to go. When we stare at our surroundings, they stare back at us...and they, too have a story to tell.<b>The Library Policeman</b> is the spiciest and scariest of this collection. Building on an old childhood scare tactic, this one features the best kind of monster: a parasitic demon of uexplained origin and astronomical power. Dirty Dave Duncan emerges as the strongest character, telling one of the most harrowing and heartbreaking stories you could ever hope to hear. His past is wrapped in a blanket of spiritual vampirism, and while he lost his future, his dignity, and his mind...his heart remained intact. An event in the protagonist's past is similarly cruel and shocking, but like Dave, it can't destroy him inside and out. This is an important and deeply psychological tale wearing a dark suit of ghouls and goblins. You'll have to strip it nude and let it in to get the full point.<b>The Sun Dog</b> takes us back to Castle Rock--unless you're a King neophyte, you know this is the most famous of his fictional Maine towns--in the time between <b>The Dark Half<b> and <b>Needful Things</b>. Billed as a prequel to the latter, this is the story of a Polaroid Sun Camera and its supernatural manifestation alternately considered unusual, disturbing--and, strangely, boring. "Pop" Merrill, uncle to Ace Merrill of "The Body" (aka <i>Stand by Me</i>) infamy, steals the show in this one, evolving from cantankerous eccentricity to full-tilt insanity from his introduction to his exit. For extra nuance, the similar progression of the protagonist's father from paranormal skeptic to someone on a first-name basis with it is good for a knowing smirk. Watching him forcefully severed from his dependence on cold logic and having to give himself a sudden crash course in less concrete powers pretty much mirrors the reader's journey through any of Stephen King's best work.

I loved every story in this book. Although I skipped the Langoliers, having read it before, the other stories are more than worth the price of the book. Secret Window, Secret Garden entranced me from page 1 to end. The Library Policeman and Sundog are both truly scary. With each new book of his that I read, I keep thinking that this one has to be a blooper, he can't possibly write that many great stories. I'm surprised that once again, I am impressed with Stephen King. I don't like everything he writes, but these stories in Four Past Midnight are WONDERFUL.

This book is worth reading/buying for the langoliers and the sundog on it's own. The two other storys (library policeman and secret window, secret garden) i didn't care for much. I was blown away by the langoliers and one of king's best written and craziest characters craig toomy and his hatred and dismay for his late, strict moraled and equally as crazy overbearing father richard who no doubt turned him into the monster he had become in this story. The sun dog is ALMOST equally as good. A master is at work here.

I read this book quite some time ago, however The Langoliers really does stick in my mind as one of my favourite stories it is totally unique. I didn't quite like any of the other stories but the langoliers was a Sci Fi/Thriller that made up for them easily.
Unfortunately I have seen the movie and it does the book no justice and a movie never could because the tale is just too strange and the imagination is a definite requirement. The terror these people felt on the inside was just too hard to put on to video tape.

If nothing else, buy this for "The Langoliers", one of, if not the best short stories Stephen King has written. Most people believe Stephen King is a horror writer, and does not fail to meet expectations with Four Past Midnight, but he strays a little off the path with "The Langoliers", which is more of a suspense/thriller rather than horror. Any dedicated King fan absolutely must read "The Sun Dog" which sets the role of a character whose name is sure to repeat through other stories (i.e.: Needful Things). The other 2 stories, "The Library Policeman" and "Secret Window, Secret Garden", are not for the weak-minded. There is a quick mention of a location in "The Library Policeman" in Needful Things as well. And if you have seen and enjoyed the movie Fight Club, you'll love "Secret Window, Secret Garden".

The shorter Stephen King keeps his stories, the better they often are. "Four Past Midnight" is very effective because he doesn't have room for unnecessary flourishes and simply sticks to the story. The first of the four stories, "The Langoliers," is one of his most imaginative and all time best. The other three stories are also quite good. Frankly, King would be an even better writer if he told all of his stories with the economy of words that he gives the tales in "Four Past Midnight."

The first story in "Four Past Midnight" was without a shadow of a doubt the best story in the book. The Langoliers in a way reminded me of a twilight zone episode I once saw. Anyway, the story was creative, and extremely imaginative. I'm personally glad to read a Stepghen King story that doesn't include gore and brutal violence that is usually accostomed with his books. As for the other three stories......well, they werent that scary and dragged in parts. Buy the book anyway, just for the Langoliers, its worth it.
P.S.: The movies not that bad either, its just very long and kinda cheesy.

These Stephen King stories keep you guessing and entertained. If it's raining or your bored, this is the best time to sit down and read these books. If you ever read or seen the movies by Stephen King, you know what to expect from his work. You do have to be in the right mood to read these books.

Returned it. This was recorded in 1991 and has not been remastered. It has all the background hissing of the original cassette tape. Wanted to listen to Secret Window but the performance was mediocre and the lisping was unbearable.

All four stories are disturbing and scary, but in a way that leaves you slightly unsettled.

I find stories are scarier when it is possible they could happen. My mind can't conceive of a way any of these tales could come true, which takes away a lot of the fear.

https://www.youtube.com/edit?o=U&video_id=ZikvWB48LCQ
Please people with the money, if you buy a new book, include a used one in your shopping cart. That will help the store enormously in their storage, and it can help you too. At some places the price can’t lower to lesser a penny. Take a used book for a 0.01$ anywhere.
It has many usage including, “Cash4Books.net”
Recycle or Burn it for survival heat. Use two books as spacers to raise your monitor because it’s always better to view at eye leveled to the center of your screen. Even better, send it to donation, any library would take it, or the third world too.
Do not fear a book because it has no teeth!!
When you open your used book, wear gloves if you have to, then you’ll realize, “This book ain’t that back after all.”
Good read and peace!!
- Ricky

"Four Past Midnight" by Stephen King is a story of passengers on a red-eye flight that get stuck in a previous day. The story is well written with much attention to detail on the settings and the characters. The book does have flaws in the way the characters are developed and in my opinion it was a little over written when describing certain aspects of the characters. I also thought the book was too slow and showed very little progression from page to page. Although the book had problems in some areas it truly shined in others. The way King describes the characters and the settings was fantastic. The book also showed great progression in the later part of the first story as they were trying to get back to their own time. Overall the book was extremely well written but lacked in progression in the early parts of the stories.

Stephen King's Four Past Midnight is a wonderful book. If you like horror the Stephen King way you will love this book. In this book King wrote four stories. The first story is one past midnight The Langoliers. The second story is two past midnight the Secret Window, Secret Garden. The third story is three past midnight The Library Policeman. The fourth story is four past midnight the Sun Dog. I have had the chance to read The Langoliers and I thought that it was an excellent story. The Langoliers is one of Kings stories that you can't put down until you finish that last word. I hope that you will enjoy it as much as I did.

I was impressed with Secret Window. I have seen the movie so was expecting it to follow it exactly which it did for the most part. There are things missing from the book and I like that. But I think I enjoy the book better.

Alright I know the person who wrote about it being too descriptive with violence won't read this but still...

This is a Stephen King book not mother goose. Stephen King doesn't write books for little Seveys like that person. I am a Sophmore and I have read the book and I enjoyed it. I knew what to expect, i saw the movie before i read the book and knew what it would be like. Yes some books he writes are good books with limited amount of description. I do not recomend this book to be read by anyone under 15. but that is your choice. you should read the synopsoios and judge it yourself. so there i made my point and let everyone know what is going on in that kids mind.

King was definitely not in top form when he
wrote this. Yes, he's written worse books, but
this one leaves no real impression on the memory.

I must admit the "Langoliers" was excellent but

the remaining three stories are forgettable; but,

it's much better than "nightmares and dreamscapes."

Another Stephen King masterpiece. All 4 stories were very well written. King gives you all the details you need to imagine these characters as if they are real and to see everything happening. Even if you've seen the movie "Secret Window" staring Johnny Depp I strongly urge you to read this. His books are 100% better than any of the movies of his work (even though Johnny Depp did an outstanding job in his role of Mort Rainey).

Stevie knows how to write, and this book proves it. RULE #1: Hook the reader and keep them engaged wanting to know what happens next.

Pages should fly, NOT become a weary adventure of waiting in line for something to happen.

i recently saw the movie secret window, and loved it. then i saw the book in borders and decided to read it. i have to say i like the story almost more than the movie! ive read all the stories except the sun dog, which i am almost done with. this is definitely a book worth reading.

Stephen King is a great storyteller. He comes up with a simple conflict between a group of characters and something powerfully evil, the he gives you just enough information to keep you turning the pages. As soon as he explains the last hint, he's given you a new one. The story unfolds at the perfect pace and you don't want to stop reading.
But when he begins the story with a bad premise --- a conflict between ordinary people and something that ISN'T SCARY --- his storytelling ability just isn't enough. This book has four examples of Stephen King at his worst, trying to scare you with bad ideas like
hungry red beachballs that eat reality
a stalker who wants to kill the writer who plagiarized him
a librarian from Hell
a haunted Polaroid camera
Then add a string of characterizations that would get a creative writing student kicked out of class. A British character, for example, talks about 'bobbies,' tea time, and the IRA. Can you say 'stereotype'? Then there's the guy in The Library Policeman who tells his tale of being seduced by a demon librarian and paying for it by drinking a lot of beer for the next twenty years. It has to be the worst excuse for alcoholism I've ever heard.
Add the strange reference to red licorice (which somehow hurts demon librarians), the Library Policeman who talks with a terrifying lisp (I'm not kidding), and a camera that summons a demon dog if you take too many pictures. Wow, this is a BAD book. Worst of all is Stephen King's obsession with broken marriages. If a character gets divorced, his life goes into a tailspin. King describes his grief in great detail, as if ending a marriage is the most devastating blow a person can experience.
If you want to chart the decline of Stephen King, this book marks the beginning of his worst period. His first five or six books were written in a unique all-American style, and the stories were so well-told that he turned the horror genre into a minor book industry. Then he decided that every idea he came up with --- no matter how boring or mundane --- could be turned into a terrifying threat. This guy looks at his toaster and thinks "I've got a GREAT idea for a new book. The Toaster from Hell!"
Avoid this book. If you have to read Stephen King, go back to the novels that were based on scary ideas: vampires, a haunted hotel, the end of the world. If you read this, you'll just read the work of a man who has run out of ideas, but still has enthusiasm for telling stories. You'll laugh long before anything scares you.

Great collection! I enjoyed them very much. I would have given a fifth star except that I found something that happens in the library story unnecessary and very disturbing in a not-Stephen-King kind of way.... the violence towards a child was described in too much detail for my taste. Other stories are fantastic.

He is a very discriptive writer with many talents. "The Langoliers" and "The Library Policeman" were excellent. I had no problems getting involved in the story, or envisioning the characters. I have read most of his stories (excluding the fantasies) and thoroughly enjoy them.Thank God he's a devilish, twisted man. It keeps me going in this insane world :) ps: I agree.."Sun Dog" has a cool ending.

I really injoyed this book... I loved the suspence and the developement of the characters. I wouldnt reccommend this book to someone without a high level of reading becuase hey we're talking about steven king here not rohald dahl!! Steven king actually can right a book and I greatly enjoyed this book. If you like steven king this is the book for you...