Journal Entry 1 by sarradee from Dallas, Texas USA on Tuesday, September 23, 2008

Product Description
The last of the Richard Bachman novels, recently recovered and published for the first time. Stephen King's "dark half" may have saved the best for last.

A fellow named Richard Bachman wrote Blaze in 1973 on an Olivetti typewriter, then turned the machine over to Stephen King, who used it to write Carrie. Bachman died in 1985 ("cancer of the pseudonym"), but in late 2006 King found the original typescript of Blaze among his papers at the University of Maine's Fogler Library ("How did this get here?!"), and decided that with a little revision it ought to be published.

Blaze is the story of Clayton Blaisdell, Jr. -- of the crimes committed against him and the crimes he commits, including his last, the kidnapping of a baby heir worth millions. Blaze has been a slow thinker since childhood, when his father threw him down the stairs -- and then threw him down again. After escaping an abusive institution for boys when he was a teenager, Blaze hooks up with George, a seasoned criminal who thinks he has all the answers. But then George is killed, and Blaze, though haunted by his partner, is on his own.

He becomes one of the most sympathetic criminals in all of literature. This is a crime story of surprising strength and sadness, with a suspenseful current sustained by the classic workings of fate and character -- as taut and riveting as Stephen King's The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon. 

Journal Entry 2 by sarradee from Dallas, Texas USA on Tuesday, September 30, 2008

Clayton or Blaze is really a very likeable criminal. Stephen King made him very sympathetic, and I spent much of my reading time hoping things would work our for him, and knowing they most probably wouldn't (given that this is a Stephen King story after all.) Blaze is "slow" due to a severe beating administered to him as a child, and he needs the help of his friend George to plan his crimes. When George dies and leaves Blaze all alone, Blaze decides to go through with the kidnapping that is the last job the two of them had planned. Unfortunately for Blaze, he doesn't always remember all the little details that make for a successful, like not showing his face, or wearing gloves, or .... 

Journal Entry 3 by sarradee at Half Price Books- Parmer & Mopac in Austin, Texas USA on Wednesday, October 29, 2008

Released 3 yrs ago (10/29/2008 UTC) at Half Price Books- Parmer & Mopac in Austin, Texas USA

WILD RELEASE NOTES:

WILD RELEASE NOTES:

House cleaning time. Taking to the Half Price Books on Parmer and Mopac along with a stack of magazines.