Reading Stephen King's collaborations with other authors always makes for an interesting review. Mostly because I am familiar enough with King's style at this point - 40+ books into his bibliography - that I can generally figure out which parts have his fingerprints all over them. It's not so much that I attribute everything good to him and all of the weaker aspects to whomever joined him: King has his own criticisms and even a few novels that I'd consider outright bad. It's just that his writing is so identifiable that when it obvious that it is the contributing author that is writing, it is easier to assign them blame. In the case of Gwendy's Button Box, Richard Chizmar managed to mimic enough of King's style that the novella flows almost seamlessly.
No, if I have any criticisms of this story, it is that it very much feels like Part One in a series (which it is) and that it neither author ever really lets the narrative breathe. From the moment that Gwendy gets the titular box until the ending, the story moves at a breakneck pace. King's strength has always been how he can make his locations and characters feel lived-in and lively, but this novella has none of that.
It is still a good yarn, make no mistake. It's just one that is maybe a little shorter than one would want from it. There is something to be said for a tight, simple story, but there's too much unanswered in this one - though maybe that will be fixed in Part Two (written only by Chizmar).
To get to the actual story: Gwendy meets the mysterious Richard Farris as a young girl, who gives her a button box - one button gives her some candy with magical properties, one button gives her a rare silver coin, and eight other buttons how an unnamed power to them. After Farris gives her the box, Gwendy learns the burden of having such an item in her care, but also goes through the crucible of earning the gift given to her. Without going into further detail: the box has a weighty responsibility to it, and Gwendy was chosen by higher powers to shoulder said responsibility.
Far too interesting a premise for a measly 166 page book that covers 16ish years of Gwendy's life. But again, there is a Part Two already out and a Part Three about to be - maybe they will answer my questions and fill out the story in such a way that the overall tale will be satisfying.
3 out of 5, with the option to raise it after reading the other books.
Stats:
Pages: 166
Movie?: None currently planned
Dark Tower?: Roland Farris links it to the Dark Tower pretty unambiguously
Child Deaths?: A friend of Gwendy's dies during her high school years, plus references are made to the Jonestown massacre and the many children that died there.
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