Just Finished Reading If It Bleeds by Stephen King

I just finished reading Stephen King's latest book, a four-novella collection called If It Bleeds...which happens to be the title of one of its stories.  I like them all, some more than others...but why not examine each one along with me and see whether you might not want to pick up a copy for yourself...

MR. HARRIGAN'S PHONE
A ruthless elderly tycoon quietly retires to Stephen King's fictional small-town Maine where a local boy earns a little money by reading to him.  During special days like his birthday or Christmas, Mr. Harrigan gives him lottery tickets.  One time he wins thousands of dollars and decides to give the old man, digitally and Internet-ignorant,  a smartphone. After Harrigan's initial skepticism, he becomes fascinated and ultimately inseparable from the phone, claiming all sort of possibilities for it while bemoaning its adverse effects on society.  This story reminded me of a couple of Twilight Zone episodes where a phone provided an eerie sort of nexus...

LIFE OF CHUCKY
The most brilliant and original of this book's stories, Life of Chucky takes place in three acts, going backward in time covering parts of a young accountant's life...and the startling effect he has on others.  It's also a ghost story and delves into the philosophical idea of solipsism...look it up if you don't know what it means.  Also, King gets to weigh in on his love of dancing, reminding me a bit of his masterpiece novel 11/22/63...

IF IT BLEEDS
Shape-shifting and psychic vampire monsters have evidently been on Stephen King's mind, at least a couple of his more recent novels...Doctor Sleep and The Outsider.  Also he seems to enjoy continuing a series he began with Mister Mercedes as private investigator Holly Gibney, after her traumatic experience in The Outsider, suspects the existence of yet another shape-shifter who feeds on despair and suffering.  Since I like Holly and the other "good guys" in this series, I enjoyed it but also felt that it seemed to be little more than a sequel to that book.  Also, once it's established that an author wants to write a string of tales about a group of characters like Holly and Jerome Robinson, I get the feeling while reading them that these characters' lives are all protected no matter what dire peril they may find themselves in...

RAT
A teacher of creative writing himself has a severe writer's block when it comes to composing a novel.  One day he envisions the perfect story, though, and takes off for the family's remote cabin out in the woods to write it...much to his wife's skepticism and concern.  After picking up the flu from a careless, sick clerk at the local store he finds himself alternately fighting off his own illness and the major winter storm sweeping through the area.  Yes, a rat has something to do with this story, especially the writer's ability to complete his book...and the unacceptable price tag that goes with it.  My least favorite of the four stories...

So I enjoyed reading all four stories in If It Bleeds, but two were pretty derivative and one was simply a continuance in a previous series...leaving Life of Chucky as the standout.  You might have different impressions, though, should you find yourself checking it out...