The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon - Softcover

King, Stephen

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0671042858 ISBN 13: 9780671042851

Publisher: Pocket Books, 2000

Synopsis

The acclaimed #1 New York Times and undisputed King of Horror Stephen King offers a frightening suspense novel about a young girl who becomes lost in the woods as night falls.

On a six-mile hike on the Maine-New Hampshire branch of the Appalachian Trail, nine-year-old Trisha McFarland quickly tires of the constant bickering between her older brother, Pete, and her recently divorced mother. But when she wanders off by herself, and then tries to catch up by attempting a shortcut, she becomes lost in a wilderness maze full of peril and terror.

As night falls, Trisha has only her ingenuity as a defense against the elements, and only her courage and faith to withstand her mounting fears. For solace she tunes her Walkman to broadcasts of Boston Red Sox baseball games and follows the gritty performances of her hero, relief pitcher Tom Gordon. And when her radio's reception begins to fade, Trisha imagines that Tom Gordon is with her--protecting her from an all-too-real enemy who has left a trail of slaughtered animals and mangled trees in the dense, dark woods...

About this title

Review:

Stephen King has been for so long the master of the thick blockbuster horror paperback that it is salutary to be reminded of the quieter writer of shorter, tighter stories that he also is. His new novella could hardly be simpler--a nine-year-old girl, smart and resourceful, gets herself lost in the deep woods when she strays off the path for a moment and struggles to survive with a little food, not especially sensible clothing and a Walkman. One of the threats dogging Trisha is her imagination--she is an smart enough child to know how much trouble she is in and gradually to personify the wasps, and midges and dangerous animals, as a God of the Lost. And that imagination is also her strongest resource--she has a baseball cap signed by the Red Sox pitcher Tom Gordon, which becomes her talisman. This is a story of almost pure sentiment and suspense; King has always had fascinating insight into the minds of children and a command of detail that makes him the ideal writer of certain sorts of shipwreck. The almost minimal material here--a single character, what she has on her, and deep woods--make this one of his most gripping and compulsive tales. --Roz Kaveney

Review:

"The Wall Street Journal"

Impressive...A wonderful story of courage, faith, and hope. It is eminently engaging and difficult to put down.

"San Francisco Examiner"

A gem....Superb.

"The New York Times"

Frightening....Feverish terror.

"People"

An absorbing tale..."Tom Gordon" scores big.

"USA Today"

A delightful read, a literary walk in the woods, and not just for baseball fans.

"Entertainment Weekly"

Plenty of thrills...[King's] an elegant writer and a master of pacing.

"St. Louis Post-Dispatch"

King paints a masterful, terrifying picture of every child's (and maybe adult's) worst fear...King uses that creepy-crawly paranoia to perfection.

"New York Daily News"

A fast, scary read...King blasts a homer...[He] expertly stirs the major ingredients of the American psyche -- our spirituality, fierce love of children, passion for baseball, and collective fear of the bad thing we know lurks on the periphery of life.

"San Francisco Examiner"A gem....Superb.

"The New York Times"Frightening....Feverish terror.

About this edition

• Publisher: Pocket Books
• Publication date: 2000
• ISBN 10: 0671042858
• ISBN 13: 9780671042851
• Binding: Mass Market Paperback