Memory

by Stephen King

Genres: Short Stories, Horror, Fiction

28 pages, Unknown Binding

First published July 1, 2006

About the author

Stephen 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.

Reviews

[Jesica Sabrina Canto · Rating 3 out of 5]

Este es un relato previo a la novela Duma Key, la cual he leído previamente, por tanto mi opinión se apoya en ese hecho. No puedo decir cuál sería mi impresión de leer este texto sin conocer la historia previamente.
Habiendo leído la novela previamente, la sensación que me generó este relato es de condensación, acontece demasiado en muy pocas páginas. Eso por un lado me parece que genera confusión, y, por otro lado, mantiene de manera continua la tensión.

Les dejo un video sobre el decálogo de King (por si les interesa): https://bit.ly/48YnNaa

[Adrián · Rating 4 out of 5]

No me suelo enganchar fácil a los relatos cortos, y sin embargo, con este ya lo estaba a partir del tercer párrafo. Será la magia de Stephen King.

Memoria me ha dejado muy buen sabor de boca, y ganas de una historia más larga que amplíe los sentimientos y reflexiones del protagonista. Supongo que es lo que se espera de Duma Key, la novela que salió de este relato. Apuntada queda.

[Harle Cook · Rating 2 out of 5]

Basically the first chapter of Duma Key

[Joseph Barber · Rating 3 out of 5]

Stephen King’s short story, “Memory” that inspired the novel Duma Key.

[Moo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not pleased about the fate of the dog

[Donna · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Memory" is a short story first published in Tin House 7.4 (2006). It is also included at the end of the book Blaze. "Memory" eventually grew into the novel Duma Key. Powerful on its own, "Memory" is the story of how Edgar Freemantle struggles with his memory and rehabilitation after a construction-site accident nearly costs him his life.

[Chiththarthan Nagarajan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Memory is just a weird thing. We can be sure one time and another time it would just change.

This made me wonder about old age than the memory. Most of Stephen works' made me reflect a lot about humanity. 'Memory' made me think about how uncertain life can be.

One of the short uneasy read.

"Maybe si, he says. Maybe no."

[Victoria · Rating 3 out of 5]

Short story at the end of Blaze that will eventually be reworked into Duma Key. Not super uplifting and didn't love it but perhaps I will enjoy Duma Key more. I am excited to read a new King work that I love!

[Medhat The Fanatic Reader · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't know about the existence of this short-story that King wrote and which was developed into the big novel Duma Key until recently.

Not a bad story, but I would have enjoyed it more if it had some horror elements.

3.5 stars

[Rambling Irishman · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed this short story.

[Ole Andreasen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Basically, except for a few changes, chapter one of "Duma Key", written as a Short story some time before it swelled up to the fantastic amazing Duma Key.

[Nadia Lopez · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was RED!

Maybe sí, maybe no.

You need hedges, hedges against the night.

[Jörg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Eine richtig gute spannende Kurzgeschichte, Hut ab, hat mir gut gefallen

[Dave MacIntyre · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not a lot here except for a small bit of the first chapter of what would become Duma Key

[Zoey De Leon · Rating 1 out of 5]

I don't know wtf is the point of this story.

[Sadia Saleem · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a quick read and a good reminder of duma key. I read Duma key 2 years ago and I had a full recollection of what happens in that book. Such a good refresher and a bonus read.

[Raymond Lambert · Rating 5 out of 5]

Accidents like this do happen on construction sites. It only takes a split second for shit to go south. It's a shot story and it's to the point.

[Peter Thompson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Short story that was at the end of Blaze and is the basis for Duma Key which I've not read.

It was interesting but just okay. Will probably read Duma Key at some point

[Bambi Kline · Rating 4 out of 5]

Now I have to read Duma Key

[Josh · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read through the story collection: DETOURS by Brian James Freeman found in paperback trade on Amazon.

[Emily Gardner · Rating 3 out of 5]

Odd little short book

[Anne Lydolf · Rating 3 out of 5]

Having read Duma Key, it's interesting to see the short story that came before it. Interesting concept that turned into a good book