REVIEW:

How many authors does it take to write a 171-page novella? Two apparently, if it’s Gwendy’s Button Box.

In a conversation between co-writers Stephen King and Richard Chizmar at the end of the audiobook, King explains that he wrote the beginning of the story but couldn’t end it. WHY he couldn’t end it he never shares, but he says he dusted off the languishing manuscript and turned it over to his buddy Chizmar to wrap it up. The resulting story feels seamless, which isn’t a surprise since Chizmar’s writing style is clearly heavily influenced by his (and Constant Readers’) Uncle Stevie.

The book delivers an enjoyable return to Castle Rock, beginning in 1974 when tween Gwendy is approached by a mysterious gentleman who gives her a button box to look over. Prior to reading the book I thought the title alluded to a box full of buttons, but nope! It’s a box with buttons on the outside. The buttons have power, and pushing them makes things - minor or major - happen.

In the aforementioned audiobook conversation, King winks at the comparison between Gwendy’s button box and his typewriter/computer. What is his keyboard if not a magical box with buttons that can make anything happen? How cool is that idea?!

Because of its authorship, Gwendy’s Button Box is most often shelved as horror. I didn’t find it to be scary in the least though, and I’d classify it more as coming-of-age magical realism. An enjoyable, quick read that’s probably best appreciated by readers already familiar with the King universe. (Raise your hand if you’ve read it and noted that the box-giving, bowler hat-wearing stranger’s initials are R.F., an implication that he’s Randall Flagg?)

PUBLISHER SYNOPSIS:

The little town of Castle Rock, Maine has witnessed some strange events and unusual visitors over the years, but there is one story that has never been told... until now.

There are three ways up to Castle View from the town of Castle Rock: Route 117, Pleasant Road, and the Suicide Stairs. Every day in the summer of 1974 twelve-year-old Gwendy Peterson has taken the stairs, which are held by strong (if time-rusted) iron bolts and zig-zag up the cliffside.

At the top of the stairs, Gwendy catches her breath and listens to the shouts of the kids on the playground. From a bit farther away comes the chink of an aluminum bat hitting a baseball as the Senior League kids practice for the Labor Day charity game.

One day, a stranger calls to Gwendy: "Hey, girl. Come on over here for a bit. We ought to palaver, you and me."

On a bench in the shade sits a man in black jeans, a black coat like for a suit, and a white shirt unbuttoned at the top. On his head is a small neat black hat. The time will come when Gwendy has nightmares about that hat...

Journey back to Castle Rock again in this chilling new novella by Stephen King, bestselling author of The Bazaar of Bad Dreams, and Richard Chizmar, award-winning author of A Long December.