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Chattery Teeth: And Other Stories
Stephen King's unparalleled imagination is in full force in this collection of four unabridged short stories originally found in the classic, Nightmares & Dreamscapes . An all-star cast of readers bring to life these timeless stories from the darkest places. A pair of metal teeth in a convenience store may prove to be more than a novelty in Chattery Teeth . In My Pretty Pony , an elderly man on his deathbed warns his young grandson against the dangers of letting time slip away. A music exec learns that his dream job may lead him to a dark and murderous past in Sneakers. And in Dedication , a maid working in a hotel uses black magic in the hopes of benefitting her unborn son. Kathy Bates, Jerry Garcia, Daniel Cronenberg and Lindsay Crouse lend their voices to this haunting collection of classic stories that no Stephen King fan should be without.
Audio CD
First published January 1, 1992
About the author
Stephen King
2,285 books893k followersStephen Edwin King was born the second son of Donald and Nellie Ruth Pillsbury King. After his father left them when Stephen was two, he and his older brother, David, were raised by his mother. Parts of his childhood were spent in Fort Wayne, Indiana, where his father's family was at the time, and in Stratford, Connecticut. When Stephen was eleven, his mother brought her children back to Durham, Maine, for good. Her parents, Guy and Nellie Pillsbury, had become incapacitated with old age, and Ruth King was persuaded by her sisters to take over the physical care of them. Other family members provided a small house in Durham and financial support. After Stephen's grandparents passed away, Mrs. King found work in the kitchens of Pineland, a nearby residential facility for the mentally challenged.
Stephen attended the grammar school in Durham and Lisbon Falls High School, graduating in 1966. From his sophomore year at the University of Maine at Orono, he wrote a weekly column for the school newspaper, THE MAINE CAMPUS. He was also active in student politics, serving as a member of the Student Senate. He came to support the anti-war movement on the Orono campus, arriving at his stance from a conservative view that the war in Vietnam was unconstitutional. He graduated in 1970, with a B.A. in English and qualified to teach on the high school level. A draft board examination immediately post-graduation found him 4-F on grounds of high blood pressure, limited vision, flat feet, and punctured eardrums.
He met Tabitha Spruce in the stacks of the Fogler Library at the University, where they both worked as students; they married in January of 1971. As Stephen was unable to find placement as a teacher immediately, the Kings lived on his earnings as a laborer at an industrial laundry, and her student loan and savings, with an occasional boost from a short story sale to men's magazines.
Stephen made his first professional short story sale ("The Glass Floor") to Startling Mystery Stories in 1967. Throughout the early years of his marriage, he continued to sell stories to men's magazines. Many were gathered into the Night Shift collection or appeared in other anthologies.
In the fall of 1971, Stephen began teaching English at Hampden Academy, the public high school in Hampden, Maine. Writing in the evenings and on the weekends, he continued to produce short stories and to work on novels.
Stephen attended the grammar school in Durham and Lisbon Falls High School, graduating in 1966. From his sophomore year at the University of Maine at Orono, he wrote a weekly column for the school newspaper, THE MAINE CAMPUS. He was also active in student politics, serving as a member of the Student Senate. He came to support the anti-war movement on the Orono campus, arriving at his stance from a conservative view that the war in Vietnam was unconstitutional. He graduated in 1970, with a B.A. in English and qualified to teach on the high school level. A draft board examination immediately post-graduation found him 4-F on grounds of high blood pressure, limited vision, flat feet, and punctured eardrums.
He met Tabitha Spruce in the stacks of the Fogler Library at the University, where they both worked as students; they married in January of 1971. As Stephen was unable to find placement as a teacher immediately, the Kings lived on his earnings as a laborer at an industrial laundry, and her student loan and savings, with an occasional boost from a short story sale to men's magazines.
Stephen made his first professional short story sale ("The Glass Floor") to Startling Mystery Stories in 1967. Throughout the early years of his marriage, he continued to sell stories to men's magazines. Many were gathered into the Night Shift collection or appeared in other anthologies.
In the fall of 1971, Stephen began teaching English at Hampden Academy, the public high school in Hampden, Maine. Writing in the evenings and on the weekends, he continued to produce short stories and to work on novels.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews
July 18, 2022
Story 3.5 stars**
Audio 4 stars**
Narrator Kathy Bates
Audio 4 stars**
Narrator Kathy Bates
Read
September 18, 2013I chose this off the shelf as they were stories I had not read -- and no wonder, I have Nightmares and Dreamscapes on Mt TBR, and I DID have an audio book - but it has been lost somewhere, so I have tried in vain to find it again, and apparently it has just been released in smaller bits -- I will get all the stories eventually!
Chattery Teeth - about what I expect from King. Just a touch of supernatural in an otherwise ordinary world
My Pretty Pony - eh. I think part of it was I didn't enjoy the reader (Jerry Garcia), but mostly it was just boring
Sneakers - an honest to goodness ghost story. My favorite of the four :-)
Dedication - A bit of an odd story. About some voodoo, and some faith, and a little bit of Rose Madder thrown in for good measure
Chattery Teeth - about what I expect from King. Just a touch of supernatural in an otherwise ordinary world
My Pretty Pony - eh. I think part of it was I didn't enjoy the reader (Jerry Garcia), but mostly it was just boring
Sneakers - an honest to goodness ghost story. My favorite of the four :-)
Dedication - A bit of an odd story. About some voodoo, and some faith, and a little bit of Rose Madder thrown in for good measure
September 25, 2025
To clarify, this is just a review of Stephen King's short story Chattery Teeth. This story was published in Cemetery Dance magazine, was part of an audio CD containing multiple King stories, was an entry in his short story collection Nightmares and Dreamscapes and was even turned into a segment in a television movie called Quicksilver Highway.
I loved this story. It's classic King. Bill Hogan purchases an odd pair of metal "Chattery Teeth" (with legs) from a roadside convenience store located in the Nevada desert. The store owner claims they no longer work, but Bill thinks they still might make a great gift for his son. What he doesn't realize, is that these teeth work just fine. In fact, they have a life of their own.....
I loved this story. It's classic King. Bill Hogan purchases an odd pair of metal "Chattery Teeth" (with legs) from a roadside convenience store located in the Nevada desert. The store owner claims they no longer work, but Bill thinks they still might make a great gift for his son. What he doesn't realize, is that these teeth work just fine. In fact, they have a life of their own.....
March 18, 2015
This is an audiobook collection of short stories from the mammoth collection (yup, another Christmas present from my sons), “Nightmares and Dreamscapes” (1993). This format includes four stories, each narrated by a different celebrity. I must admit that I remembered only two of these stories (been awhile), but I enjoyed this little compilation. So here we go:
The title story, “Chattery Teeth,” narrated by Kathy Bates, tells of a young man purchasing a somewhat larger and more durable version of the gag gift of the same name (wind it up, it chatters and walks at the same time). Of course, the teeth turn out to be more than they appear, and there are scenes of horror and tension and fear and bloodandgoreandguts, but there’s a very satisfying twist, and heroics coming from a surprising source. Ms. Bates’s narration is dandy!
“My Pretty Pony,” narrated by Jerry Garcia(!), is more of a reflection by an old man to his grandson about the passage of time and the importance of not wasting any precious minute. No horror, no tension, no suspense, more of an existential treatise on how time is relative (yeah, Mr. Hawking is mentioned). Of course, this point of view has been included in other of Mr. King’s works (notably the “Dark Tower” stories). Nice little change of pace; Mr. Garcia’s narration, while at times monotonous, seems fitting to this unhurried reflection.
“Sneakers,” narrated by David Cronenberg (Canadian director/actor, with such credits as “A History of Violence” and Mr. King’s “The Dead Zone”), is the most satisfying of the bunch. A record producer spies a set of sneakers underneath a men’s room stall, which nobody else seems to notice, and he eventually comes to realize they belong to a dead person. Thus begins a very interesting horror/mystery story set in the seedy world of rock music. Won’t give away anything further, but I’d recommend it highly; as I said, satisfying. The narration is quite good.
“Dedication,” narrated by Lindsay Crouse (actress, been in a bunch of movies, my favorite of which is the multilayered mystery, “House of Games”; she has also narrated a number of other Stephen King books, as well as Patricia Cornwell books), starts with an African-American housekeeping hotel employee reading her son’s dedication to her upon the publication of his first novel. This sets off a number of discussions, mostly between the woman and a fellow employee, as to how the son came about his creative nature, and “who the real father is,” and how that may have come about. This story has elements of an abusive relationship with the son’s natural (but not “real?”) father, some voodoo, an unappealing-but-obviously-successful guest at the hotel, and, ultimately, a decision by our protagonist that may be seen as disgusting (or at the very least semi-psychotic – or is it?). Interesting if somewhat disconcerting. Ms. Crouse’s narration is, per usual, quite good, though she may need a bit more study to perfect an African-American accent.
All in all, an enjoyable experience. I liked the different narrative styles, and the choice of stories was also interesting.
The title story, “Chattery Teeth,” narrated by Kathy Bates, tells of a young man purchasing a somewhat larger and more durable version of the gag gift of the same name (wind it up, it chatters and walks at the same time). Of course, the teeth turn out to be more than they appear, and there are scenes of horror and tension and fear and bloodandgoreandguts, but there’s a very satisfying twist, and heroics coming from a surprising source. Ms. Bates’s narration is dandy!
“My Pretty Pony,” narrated by Jerry Garcia(!), is more of a reflection by an old man to his grandson about the passage of time and the importance of not wasting any precious minute. No horror, no tension, no suspense, more of an existential treatise on how time is relative (yeah, Mr. Hawking is mentioned). Of course, this point of view has been included in other of Mr. King’s works (notably the “Dark Tower” stories). Nice little change of pace; Mr. Garcia’s narration, while at times monotonous, seems fitting to this unhurried reflection.
“Sneakers,” narrated by David Cronenberg (Canadian director/actor, with such credits as “A History of Violence” and Mr. King’s “The Dead Zone”), is the most satisfying of the bunch. A record producer spies a set of sneakers underneath a men’s room stall, which nobody else seems to notice, and he eventually comes to realize they belong to a dead person. Thus begins a very interesting horror/mystery story set in the seedy world of rock music. Won’t give away anything further, but I’d recommend it highly; as I said, satisfying. The narration is quite good.
“Dedication,” narrated by Lindsay Crouse (actress, been in a bunch of movies, my favorite of which is the multilayered mystery, “House of Games”; she has also narrated a number of other Stephen King books, as well as Patricia Cornwell books), starts with an African-American housekeeping hotel employee reading her son’s dedication to her upon the publication of his first novel. This sets off a number of discussions, mostly between the woman and a fellow employee, as to how the son came about his creative nature, and “who the real father is,” and how that may have come about. This story has elements of an abusive relationship with the son’s natural (but not “real?”) father, some voodoo, an unappealing-but-obviously-successful guest at the hotel, and, ultimately, a decision by our protagonist that may be seen as disgusting (or at the very least semi-psychotic – or is it?). Interesting if somewhat disconcerting. Ms. Crouse’s narration is, per usual, quite good, though she may need a bit more study to perfect an African-American accent.
All in all, an enjoyable experience. I liked the different narrative styles, and the choice of stories was also interesting.
July 19, 2023
4.5* for Chattery Teeth only; read it in Nightmares & Dreamscapes
November 7, 2025
Binge reviewing my best-read Horror-Thriller short stories, anthologies and novellas of all time
There’s a strange electricity that runs through Stephen King’s short fiction—a kind of mischievous voltage that jolts the reader awake and whispers, “Don’t trust anything ordinary.” Chattery Teeth, and Other Stories belongs to that electric zone. It’s the side of King that doesn’t need a thousand pages to summon dread; instead, he conjures unease out of convenience stores, desert highways, lonely motel rooms, and the dull hum of American emptiness.
These stories are not just meant to frighten—they hum with irony, melancholy, and flashes of cosmic humor that make you feel both terrified and alive.
At its center, of course, is “Chattery Teeth” itself—King’s small masterwork of absurd terror. A traveling salesman named Bill Hogan picks up a pair of novelty wind-up teeth from a dusty Nevada shop, unaware that these little plastic jaws will later save his life from a deranged hitchhiker.
The story rides the razor’s edge between pulp and myth, absurdity and apocalypse. King loves doing this: setting up a joke and watching it turn sacred. The toy, ridiculous and grotesque, becomes an unlikely protector—a metallic guardian angel in the guise of kitsch.
But the brilliance of Chattery Teeth, and Other Stories lies in the way King weaves moral anxiety into the surreal. Beneath the gore and madness, there’s an aching human core—a sense that horror is just another way of expressing the yearning for meaning. Each story offers its own meditation on faith, guilt, or cosmic indifference.
There’s Dolan’s Cadillac, a modern revenge tale that’s part Poe, part Stephen Crane, where patience becomes its own terrifying weapon. There’s The Moving Finger, in which the most banal domestic space—a bathroom sink—becomes a portal to the irrational, and the horror lies not in what appears, but in what the mind must do to keep functioning after seeing it.
In addition, The Ten O’Clock People, with its monsters hiding under the skin of the world’s bureaucrats, feels eerily prophetic now: King’s paranoia reads like social realism for the internet age.
Even in his wildest moments, King is a moralist—a craftsman who believes in the moral physics of the universe. Wrongdoing invites punishment; cowardice invites consequence. However, unlike older gothic writers, King’s punishment often comes with compassion. He doesn’t moralize so much as empathize—his monsters don’t just kill, they illuminate.
Chattery Teeth, and Other Stories also stands as a kind of aesthetic manifesto for King’s mid-career period. Here, he leans into the grotesque humor and weird Americana that made him the literary heir of both Shirley Jackson and Charles Addams. The settings are garish and familiar—gas stations, diners, cheap motels—but the atmosphere is mythic. King populates the American landscape with gods of irony and justice who happen to take the form of wind-up toys, giant fingers, or faceless demons hiding in daylight.
And while the horror is constant, the tone is often elegiac. King’s characters are tired people—salesmen, teachers, working stiffs—haunted less by ghosts than by the exhaustion of modern life. They carry their loneliness like luggage, and horror becomes a form of revelation, a violent breaking open of what they have tried to suppress.
Stylistically, these stories show King’s knack for rhythm and voice. He can switch from the chatty realism of roadside America to sentences that hum like psalms of dread. There is poetry in his pulp—lines that read like American haiku, images that burn like flashes from old photographs. And through it all, King never loses that gleeful storyteller’s grin: he knows he’s pulling you close just to scare you senseless, but he also wants you to feel.
It’s easy to overlook these stories because they aren’t sprawling novels or media franchises—but that’s precisely why they matter. In short form, King becomes sharper, meaner, and more distilled. The moral lessons hit harder. The absurdity feels more claustrophobic. And the horror, stripped of ornament, becomes almost spiritual in its economy.
What impact did this have on me?
Reading Chattery Teeth, and Other Stories felt like falling into the shadow-side of America—its backroads, its neon motels, and its quiet despair. But what hit me hardest wasn’t the fear; it was the compassion threaded through it.
King, for all his macabre flair, is endlessly humane. He understands the terror of the lonely and the tired, and he writes them as if he loves them.
When I finished the collection, I found myself thinking about faith—not religious faith, but the kind that hides in everyday absurdities. Maybe the universe does hand us tiny miracles in ridiculous disguises.
Maybe salvation really does show up as a pair of plastic teeth clattering in the dust. It changed the way I looked at coincidence and chance—how I thought about the weird moral currents beneath the world’s chaos.
And, yes, it made me laugh. The kind of laugh that trembles, half awe and half fear.
Why should you read this today?
Because King’s stories still pulse with a relevance that outlives their monsters. Chattery Teeth, and Other Stories isn’t just about supernatural vengeance or bizarre horror—it’s about surviving the absurdity of existence.
In an age where cynicism feels safer than sincerity, King invites you to believe again: in justice, in karma, and in small strange wonders that might still choose to protect us.
Read it for the craft—the way King compresses myth into motel dust. Read it for the pulse—the American heartbeat under the fear.
Moreover, read it because sometimes, when everything feels meaningless, a story about killer wind-up teeth can remind you that maybe nothing is meaningless at all.
Because somewhere, out there on the desert road, the teeth are still chattering—and they remember who was kind.
There’s a strange electricity that runs through Stephen King’s short fiction—a kind of mischievous voltage that jolts the reader awake and whispers, “Don’t trust anything ordinary.” Chattery Teeth, and Other Stories belongs to that electric zone. It’s the side of King that doesn’t need a thousand pages to summon dread; instead, he conjures unease out of convenience stores, desert highways, lonely motel rooms, and the dull hum of American emptiness.
These stories are not just meant to frighten—they hum with irony, melancholy, and flashes of cosmic humor that make you feel both terrified and alive.
At its center, of course, is “Chattery Teeth” itself—King’s small masterwork of absurd terror. A traveling salesman named Bill Hogan picks up a pair of novelty wind-up teeth from a dusty Nevada shop, unaware that these little plastic jaws will later save his life from a deranged hitchhiker.
The story rides the razor’s edge between pulp and myth, absurdity and apocalypse. King loves doing this: setting up a joke and watching it turn sacred. The toy, ridiculous and grotesque, becomes an unlikely protector—a metallic guardian angel in the guise of kitsch.
But the brilliance of Chattery Teeth, and Other Stories lies in the way King weaves moral anxiety into the surreal. Beneath the gore and madness, there’s an aching human core—a sense that horror is just another way of expressing the yearning for meaning. Each story offers its own meditation on faith, guilt, or cosmic indifference.
There’s Dolan’s Cadillac, a modern revenge tale that’s part Poe, part Stephen Crane, where patience becomes its own terrifying weapon. There’s The Moving Finger, in which the most banal domestic space—a bathroom sink—becomes a portal to the irrational, and the horror lies not in what appears, but in what the mind must do to keep functioning after seeing it.
In addition, The Ten O’Clock People, with its monsters hiding under the skin of the world’s bureaucrats, feels eerily prophetic now: King’s paranoia reads like social realism for the internet age.
Even in his wildest moments, King is a moralist—a craftsman who believes in the moral physics of the universe. Wrongdoing invites punishment; cowardice invites consequence. However, unlike older gothic writers, King’s punishment often comes with compassion. He doesn’t moralize so much as empathize—his monsters don’t just kill, they illuminate.
Chattery Teeth, and Other Stories also stands as a kind of aesthetic manifesto for King’s mid-career period. Here, he leans into the grotesque humor and weird Americana that made him the literary heir of both Shirley Jackson and Charles Addams. The settings are garish and familiar—gas stations, diners, cheap motels—but the atmosphere is mythic. King populates the American landscape with gods of irony and justice who happen to take the form of wind-up toys, giant fingers, or faceless demons hiding in daylight.
And while the horror is constant, the tone is often elegiac. King’s characters are tired people—salesmen, teachers, working stiffs—haunted less by ghosts than by the exhaustion of modern life. They carry their loneliness like luggage, and horror becomes a form of revelation, a violent breaking open of what they have tried to suppress.
Stylistically, these stories show King’s knack for rhythm and voice. He can switch from the chatty realism of roadside America to sentences that hum like psalms of dread. There is poetry in his pulp—lines that read like American haiku, images that burn like flashes from old photographs. And through it all, King never loses that gleeful storyteller’s grin: he knows he’s pulling you close just to scare you senseless, but he also wants you to feel.
It’s easy to overlook these stories because they aren’t sprawling novels or media franchises—but that’s precisely why they matter. In short form, King becomes sharper, meaner, and more distilled. The moral lessons hit harder. The absurdity feels more claustrophobic. And the horror, stripped of ornament, becomes almost spiritual in its economy.
What impact did this have on me?
Reading Chattery Teeth, and Other Stories felt like falling into the shadow-side of America—its backroads, its neon motels, and its quiet despair. But what hit me hardest wasn’t the fear; it was the compassion threaded through it.
King, for all his macabre flair, is endlessly humane. He understands the terror of the lonely and the tired, and he writes them as if he loves them.
When I finished the collection, I found myself thinking about faith—not religious faith, but the kind that hides in everyday absurdities. Maybe the universe does hand us tiny miracles in ridiculous disguises.
Maybe salvation really does show up as a pair of plastic teeth clattering in the dust. It changed the way I looked at coincidence and chance—how I thought about the weird moral currents beneath the world’s chaos.
And, yes, it made me laugh. The kind of laugh that trembles, half awe and half fear.
Why should you read this today?
Because King’s stories still pulse with a relevance that outlives their monsters. Chattery Teeth, and Other Stories isn’t just about supernatural vengeance or bizarre horror—it’s about surviving the absurdity of existence.
In an age where cynicism feels safer than sincerity, King invites you to believe again: in justice, in karma, and in small strange wonders that might still choose to protect us.
Read it for the craft—the way King compresses myth into motel dust. Read it for the pulse—the American heartbeat under the fear.
Moreover, read it because sometimes, when everything feels meaningless, a story about killer wind-up teeth can remind you that maybe nothing is meaningless at all.
Because somewhere, out there on the desert road, the teeth are still chattering—and they remember who was kind.
June 7, 2012
Spooky teeth, a chain-smoking grandfather and his young grandson, weird sneakers and a strange maid...these are the main characters in the 4 short stories of this audiobook and I have to admit that they're not King's best. I really liked "My Pretty Pony" and I also liked the writer's familiar style describing everything and constructing a whole world around the stories, but "Sneakers" and "Dedication" aren't going to be my favorites. Plus, I also have to say that it was easiest for me to understand the first narrator, the one of "Chattery Teeth", the other ones were more difficult for me to understand as a non-native speaker. With "My Pretty Pony" I think, I had most problems, still it was a nice audiobook and I enjoyed listening to it.
December 5, 2010
Maybe Im not a short story person? This is the second in a row short story selection I've hated. Maybe Im not a books on tape type person. Either way, this is not some of King's best work. I feel like the stories went from bad to worse. Chattery Teeth was entertaining but nothing spectacular. Sneakers was barely entertaining. Pretty Horses was unbearable, rambling and not worth my time. Dedication was the worst. I guess the draw for this book on cd was that famous people read it. I think that no matter who is reading the story, if its not good, its not good. Skip it.
November 28, 2011
The stories in this collection - from King's Nightmares and Dreamscapes - vary from the hardcover in some not so subtle details. The reading is excellent too, which of course adds considerable drama to the tales.
Included in this four CD set are 'Chattery Teeth', 'My Pretty Pony', 'Sneakers', and 'Dedication'.
Included in this four CD set are 'Chattery Teeth', 'My Pretty Pony', 'Sneakers', and 'Dedication'.
May 8, 2014
While I've developed a liking for King's short stories and novellas over the past few years, I'd have to say that the works here were among those I've cared for least. Now, it's still Stephen King so they are wonderfully written with his great sense of time and place- especially in My Pretty Pony, but overall I found myself less interested than usual in his tales. Worth getting to eventually, but I'd spend time with his other efforts first.
September 26, 2016
I thoroughly enjoyed revisiting these stories again - particularly "Chattery Teeth", "Sneakers" and "Dedication". The other story on this audio CD wasn't my favorite, though it's definitely well-written and performed.
February 13, 2014
Didn't love this one. Four short stories and I only enjoyed one of them
May 9, 2025
Chattery Teeth? Absolutely unhinged in the best way. I was laughing and weirdly cheering the whole time. Like, who knew a pair of giant wind-up teeth could be so loyal and heroic? King’s sense of humor in this one is chef’s kiss.
Also… that kid?? I hated him immediately. The minute he opened his mouth I was like, “Nope. Feed him to the teeth.” So when they finally got him? I was clapping. Loudly. Alone. In the lab. At work
And can we talk about the fact that he called himself Bryan Adams?? I actually lost it. Like, why that name? All I could hear in my head was “Heaven” playing on repeat and suddenly I’m emotionally spiraling back to nights sobbing dramatically to “Everything I Do”. King really pulled that memory out of the vault.
This story was so unexpected in the best way. You’ve got a creepy hitchhiker, a guy just trying to get home, and a pair of novelty teeth that turn into an unlikely superhero squad. It’s part horror, part comedy, and somehow still kind of heartwarming in that weird Stephen King way.
“They weren’t just wind-up chattering teeth… they were alive.”
That line hit me. Like okay, so the teeth are actually homies? They were so ride-or-die for this man. Didn’t even hesitate. Just clamped down and did what needed to be done.
“They had saved him.”
They felt like little cursed besties. And I love how he keeps them afterward, like some people keep old concert tickets or Polaroids. This guy has murder teeth in his garage. Iconic.
It’s totally a revenge story, but the twist is that the avenger isn’t human. It’s not even alive. And yet… you feel safer when they’re around. There’s this vibe of justice, like “Don’t worry, I got you.” from a plastic toy with jagged teeth. I was so here for it.
This weirdly made me think of Night at the Museum. Like imagine if those little exhibits came to life and actually wanted to kill people who deserved it. That’s the energy.
Also… that kid?? I hated him immediately. The minute he opened his mouth I was like, “Nope. Feed him to the teeth.” So when they finally got him? I was clapping. Loudly. Alone. In the lab. At work
And can we talk about the fact that he called himself Bryan Adams?? I actually lost it. Like, why that name? All I could hear in my head was “Heaven” playing on repeat and suddenly I’m emotionally spiraling back to nights sobbing dramatically to “Everything I Do”. King really pulled that memory out of the vault.
This story was so unexpected in the best way. You’ve got a creepy hitchhiker, a guy just trying to get home, and a pair of novelty teeth that turn into an unlikely superhero squad. It’s part horror, part comedy, and somehow still kind of heartwarming in that weird Stephen King way.
“They weren’t just wind-up chattering teeth… they were alive.”
That line hit me. Like okay, so the teeth are actually homies? They were so ride-or-die for this man. Didn’t even hesitate. Just clamped down and did what needed to be done.
“They had saved him.”
They felt like little cursed besties. And I love how he keeps them afterward, like some people keep old concert tickets or Polaroids. This guy has murder teeth in his garage. Iconic.
It’s totally a revenge story, but the twist is that the avenger isn’t human. It’s not even alive. And yet… you feel safer when they’re around. There’s this vibe of justice, like “Don’t worry, I got you.” from a plastic toy with jagged teeth. I was so here for it.
This weirdly made me think of Night at the Museum. Like imagine if those little exhibits came to life and actually wanted to kill people who deserved it. That’s the energy.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 30, 2024
I listened to this audiobook while I painted trim and inadvertently painted a bit of the wall while paying attention to the book. Now I can look at the trim I painted and remember what was happening in the book to make me wander off the straight-n-narrow. There's one section of door trim that I particularly don't want to repaint because it makes me laugh and remember the "Chattery Teeth" story.
The stories are quintessential Stephen King, entertaining and absorbing while working on a tedious project.
The stories are quintessential Stephen King, entertaining and absorbing while working on a tedious project.
November 25, 2023
Very effectively written, but I’ll admit a number of King’s short stories are very well-written and effectively build dread, but have such a ridiculous subject as the source of the story’s terror that I struggle to engage as fully with the suspense as I would like. This is a common reaction I have to King’s short fiction--whether it’s with the toy monkey in Skeleton Crew, the chattery teeth in this story, or the finger in “The Moving Finger,” I have trouble suspending my disbelief.
June 14, 2018
Not my favorite but still fun to listen to
January 4, 2020
Read Chattery Teeth, very well written. Rather odd story about a man who picks up a child hitchhiker and things go very wrong. Includes a possessed pair of novelty teeth
August 3, 2021
Lots of fun! For some reason it reminded me of Christine, which was equally wonderful.
September 30, 2021
Reminded me of Chucky and another story I can't quite put my finger on🤔
August 8, 2022
It's stupid fun 7 out of 10
November 16, 2022
Reads fast and is very tense even though the idea is ridiculous. Well done
January 27, 2024
Four uncollected novellas. Not his best, but a fun listen none the less.
My favorite was Chattery Teeth, which brought to mind Terry Pratchett and Twofeather's Luggage.
My favorite was Chattery Teeth, which brought to mind Terry Pratchett and Twofeather's Luggage.
July 31, 2025
Chattery Teeth- Classic Stephen King! I enjoyed this one.
Read
October 17, 2025adapting this!!!!
January 5, 2026
Sexy premise, tense escalations, no straight answers, nice contained-little story.
February 5, 2026
This one I loved. A vivid horrific story with a sentient object that is maybe good but also maybe evil.
July 21, 2020
This is a surprising horror story about a young man named Hogan who finds a set of chattery teeth in a shop and then leaves. On the road, he picks up a hitchhiker with a switchblade and the ride and adventure they live through is insane. The teeth are an interesting and evil part of the insanity of the adventure.
January 15, 2026
When Teeth Start Living a Life of Their Own
Chattering Teeth (also known as The Nutcracker) is a short story by Stephen King, first published in 1992 and later included in the collection Nightmares & Dreamscapes. The story follows a man who comes into possession of a peculiar little item — a strange mechanical toy shaped like a set of chattering jaws. At first glance, it seems like nothing more than a silly trinket, but it soon becomes clear that this is something far more than just a souvenir from a roadside shop. Especially when the protagonist ends up giving a ride to a very odd hitchhiker. That’s where things really start to get interesting.
The story is a genuinely engaging read. At first, it almost feels like it’s going to be just another simple road tale, but King, as usual, skillfully complicates the situation, leading to a strong and unusual finale. He masterfully turns the ordinary into something frightening, and this time even a ridiculous toy is capable of sending chills down your spine. The narrative unfolds in King’s trademark short-story style — fast, relentless, and unforgiving for the characters involved.
Watching the tension slowly build, as an initially harmless situation spirals out of control, is thoroughly gripping. Once again, King proves that a good horror story doesn’t need ghosts or monsters. Sometimes all it takes is a stretch of highway, a suspicious hitchhiker, and a pair of chattering teeth sitting nearby.
In the end, this is a sharp, vivid, and slightly unhinged story perfect for a single evening. It doesn’t aim for depth or epic scale, but it works brilliantly within its limits: it scares, surprises, and leaves a faint chill running down your spine. Yet another reminder that the master of horror can make absolutely anything terrifying.
9 out of 10
Chattering Teeth (also known as The Nutcracker) is a short story by Stephen King, first published in 1992 and later included in the collection Nightmares & Dreamscapes. The story follows a man who comes into possession of a peculiar little item — a strange mechanical toy shaped like a set of chattering jaws. At first glance, it seems like nothing more than a silly trinket, but it soon becomes clear that this is something far more than just a souvenir from a roadside shop. Especially when the protagonist ends up giving a ride to a very odd hitchhiker. That’s where things really start to get interesting.
The story is a genuinely engaging read. At first, it almost feels like it’s going to be just another simple road tale, but King, as usual, skillfully complicates the situation, leading to a strong and unusual finale. He masterfully turns the ordinary into something frightening, and this time even a ridiculous toy is capable of sending chills down your spine. The narrative unfolds in King’s trademark short-story style — fast, relentless, and unforgiving for the characters involved.
Watching the tension slowly build, as an initially harmless situation spirals out of control, is thoroughly gripping. Once again, King proves that a good horror story doesn’t need ghosts or monsters. Sometimes all it takes is a stretch of highway, a suspicious hitchhiker, and a pair of chattering teeth sitting nearby.
In the end, this is a sharp, vivid, and slightly unhinged story perfect for a single evening. It doesn’t aim for depth or epic scale, but it works brilliantly within its limits: it scares, surprises, and leaves a faint chill running down your spine. Yet another reminder that the master of horror can make absolutely anything terrifying.
9 out of 10
October 6, 2024
FULL REVIEW ON MY WEBSITE
http://thebookcornerchronicles.com/20...
This short story is included in the “Nightmares and Dreamscapes” which I will be reviewing pretty soon.
To be fully honest here, short stories written by Stephen King always miss the mark with me. I always end up not liking his short stories and I don’t know why it is so.
And this short story isn’t any different from Stephen King’s other short stories ive read in the past.
The characters in this short story in my opinion were very boring and uninteresting.
The plot in this one is meh as well because it was very slow, boring and uninteresting. And to be honest writing I’m writing this review the next day after reading this short story and I cant recall what the short story was about because I just didn’t bother remembering this short story because I didn’t like it so much.
The writing style here in my opinion didn’t feel like something written by the one and only master of horror. But rather by someone who have never written any books or short stories before
http://thebookcornerchronicles.com/20...
This short story is included in the “Nightmares and Dreamscapes” which I will be reviewing pretty soon.
To be fully honest here, short stories written by Stephen King always miss the mark with me. I always end up not liking his short stories and I don’t know why it is so.
And this short story isn’t any different from Stephen King’s other short stories ive read in the past.
The characters in this short story in my opinion were very boring and uninteresting.
The plot in this one is meh as well because it was very slow, boring and uninteresting. And to be honest writing I’m writing this review the next day after reading this short story and I cant recall what the short story was about because I just didn’t bother remembering this short story because I didn’t like it so much.
The writing style here in my opinion didn’t feel like something written by the one and only master of horror. But rather by someone who have never written any books or short stories before
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