Every day in the summer of 1974, 12 year-old Gwendy Peterson takes the Suicide Stairs up to Castle View (in the town of Castle Rock). At the top of the stairs, she always takes a few minutes to catch her breath, listening to the sounds from below of playgrounds and baseball games. One day, a stranger calls out to her, "Hey, girl. Come on over here for a bit. We ought to palaver, you and me." And there a man sits, on a bench in the shade, wearing black jeans, a black coat and on his head, a small, neat black hat. When he gives her a box, it all seems surreal . . . and a time will come when Gwendy will have nightmares about that hat.
If you like a dark, delicious story that's a quick read (but will linger in your mind), pick up this little gem. King and Chizmar make a great team, putting their character-building and storytelling skills together in this short book. I liked how the book takes you through time with Gwendy, so you start in 1974, but you're with her as years pass and the effect of the "button box" become apparent. There's a nice, steady pace to the book with a palpable underscore of dread that runs through the story (because you just know in a story like this that something awful is going to happen at some point). I'm adding this one to my wish list for my own library -- lots of fun!
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