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Laurie

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Quando sua sorella Beth si presenta con una cagnolina, la prima reazione di Lloyd - vedovo da sei mesi, solo e senza figli - è di rifiuto. Il lutto gli ha tolto forze e desideri: già gli pesa occuparsi di se stesso, gestire un cane sarebbe impensabile. Ma la paziente fiducia della cucciola e i modi perentori della sorella - Una persona in lutto ha bisogno di qualcosa per tenere la mente occupata - hanno ben presto la meglio sulla fragile determinazione di Lloyd. Rimasti soli, l'uomo e la cagnetta - che Lloyd ha chiamato Laurie - imparano a conoscersi, scoprendo insieme il piacere di semplici riti condivisi. Fra questi, la passeggiata lungo il canale. Un sentiero tranquillo, che però un giorno diventa teatro di un evento atroce, a cui né Lloyd né Laurie erano preparati...

42 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 17, 2018

1713 people are currently reading
4367 people want to read

About the author

Stephen King

2,499 books886k followers
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.

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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,645 reviews
Profile Image for Zoeytron.
1,036 reviews898 followers
May 23, 2018
A grieving widower, a mixed breed puppy, and life.  It is meant to be lived.  Sawgrass.  Stay away from it.  It has teeth.

A delightful short story by Stephen King.
Profile Image for Lori.
308 reviews96 followers
April 21, 2019
It's a healing gift for grief from Stephen King with some real-life fright.
She pause to look back at him. The harsh September light of Florida’s west coast fell on her face, showing the way her lipstick had bled into the little wrinkles around her mouth, and the way her lower lids had begun to sag away from her eyes, and the fragile clockspring of veins beating in the hollow of her temple. She would be seventy soon. His bouncing, opinionate, athletic, take-no-prisoners sister was old. So was he.

They were proof that life was nothing but a short dream on a summer afternoon. Only Bethie still had her husband, two grown children, and four grandchildren—nature’s nice multiplication. He’d had Marian, but Marian was gone and there were no children. Was he supposed to replace his wife with a mongrel puppy? The idea was as corny and idiotic as a Hallmark card, and just as unrealistic.

“I’m not keeping her.”

She gave him the same look she’d given him as a girl of thirteen, the one that said the badminton racket would soon make an appearance if he didn’t shape up. “You are at least until I get back from Publix. I have some other errands to run, too, and dogs die in hat cars. Especially little ones.”

description
A Border Collie-Mudi mix. I couldn’t find a dark grey one that I liked.
Profile Image for Nataliya.
985 reviews16.1k followers
July 4, 2022
“It was life, you were stuck with it, and all you could do was live it.”
It’s a story about a widower who gets a dog, the titular Laurie. Because sometimes you have to have someone to take care of if you want to go on after a crushing loss. Because sometimes you need hope and love and connection to another being if you want to survive.

It’s not supernatural. It’s not horror. And yet it’s very much Stephen King — older, wiser, and still excellent.

And I’m not even a dog lover — and yet my heartstrings were mercilessly tugged on.

Read it - it’s five minutes well spent.

Free from King’s website: https://stephenking.com/other/stephen...

——————
Recommended by: carol.
Profile Image for Ron.
485 reviews149 followers
May 28, 2018
This reminded me of the gift that is a dog; that other things have big teeth; and life's boardwalk will have its share of broken planks. Liked this one a lot.
Profile Image for carol. .
1,760 reviews9,991 followers
May 23, 2020
Added this edition strictly because I know some wanker is going to delete the one that goes to a pdf on the internet.

I like elderly King.

Stephen King's take on dogs and isolated widowers in a free short story.

Actually, don't read it. It'll probably have to be nominated "Short Story of the Year" on Goodreads in Fiction, Mystery, Horror, Non-Fiction, Young-Adult, Romance, and Fantasy categories. Maybe even Humor. Also should be filed under 'I'm-Not-Crying,-You're-Crying.'

https://stephenking.com/other/stephen...
Profile Image for Carol.
1,370 reviews2,352 followers
May 21, 2018
BEWARE what lurks in the reeds.......

Free short story from Stephen King about life, loss and hope for a 65 year old man....and little Laurie-dog....with an eerie touch of real life horror!

Thank you Mr. King!

Profile Image for Matt.
4,824 reviews13.1k followers
November 9, 2018
An unexpected added short story to a recently released novella by Stephen King. Quite an interesting tale that mixes some unique character development with King’s trademark gory depictions at some points. A recent widower, Lloyd welcomes his sister’s visit to Florida. However, it would seem that this is more than a simple visit, but a family attempt to help a depressed older man. Lloyd is introduced to a puppy that is being left for him, something that might help distract from his recently departed wife. Lloyd hesitates and struggles to housetrain the little ball of fur, but Laurie soon creates a canine bond with her master. They find their niche and undertake a basic routine, including walks around the neighbourhood. When their walk takes them by a body of water, things go sour, forcing Lloyd and Laurie to take matters into their own hands. What might have started out as an awkward relationship soon develops into something that warms the heart. A nice filler that fans of Stephen King will likely find just up their alley.

While not everyone can admit to liking Stephen King or his work, I have come to find much of his work quite entertaining for its unique approach to the every day. In this short piece, King has little time to develop his characters, though does well with painting Lloyd as a man who pines for his departed wife but who does not want help with his sorrow. He has been losing weight and surely could use some companionship, but refuses to admit it to a doting sister. When introduced to Laurie, Lloyd pushes back, but soon has little choice but to act as master, sucking up all his resentments. From there, it’s all about the slow and ongoing connection between man and his dog. They come together with ease, even if it is somewhat jagged at the start. Lloyd comes to accept his fate and seems to embrace it, given time and his set of rules. The story was well written and kept my interest for the brief time it took to complete. King never ceases to amaze me, as he can grip my attention with long, drawn-out novels just as much as short stories that take only a cup of coffee to complete.

Kudos, Mr. King, for another great story that held my attention throughout. Even with a little gore, I can see many readers finding it to their liking.

Like/hate the review? An ever-growing collection of others appears at:
http://pecheyponderings.wordpress.com/

A Book for All Seasons, a different sort of Book Challenge: https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/...
Profile Image for Wayne Barrett.
Author 3 books117 followers
May 20, 2018

Okay... I live in Florida, right. The place where this story takes place. And so, I've experienced...

:SPOILER ALERT:

I've experienced the feeling of unexpectedly coming upon a gator and looking into those dead, black eyes. Eyes like a sharks, unfeeling, emotionless, cold. The first time it happened I walked within a few feet of one that was about 8 feet long without even seeing it. It saw me and quickly spun on the bank of a pond and splashed into the water. I, on the other hand, was running for my life, (and I think I peed a little). What surprised me more than the fact that I had walked up on it without noticing it was how, as it went out into the water, it slowly made a u-turn and swam back to the waters edge where it stopped and stared at me with those predatory eyes. I had startled it, but it was not afraid of me. It was now sizing me up, calculating whether it could get to me and drag me back into the water without being in danger.

Being a Floridian, I have become accustomed to hearing once or twice a year, the news of a gator attack. It's always either a pet, a small child that was left unattended, or an elderly person out for a sunset walk. I never hear of attacks on full grown, healthy adults, but I'll tell you what, I've seen them as large as 11 or 12 feet long in waterways within a few miles from my house, and I guarantee you, if you decide to take a dip with one of them, especially if they have a nest nearby, you are going to experience the underwater spin of your life.

This was a great short story that started out as a touching story about a widower and his encounter with a new puppy. But in the end, this ended as a true horror, albeit, a horror that was in a way, very un-King like. No supernatural stuff here. Just pure, real life tragedy. Tragedy in the form of a monster that I think would be worse than a vampire or werewolf. Maybe a weregator would be worse. maybe.
Profile Image for Kevin Kuhn.
Author 2 books690 followers
June 19, 2019
“They were proof that life was nothing but a short dream on a summer afternoon.”

This is a free short story from Stephen King that you can download on his website. I am a fan of Mr. King and have been since I was 13 years old. So, not surprisingly, I found this to be an enjoyable tale, and hopefully, will hold me over, until I get around to picking up and reading King's new novel, "The Outsider". I believe this free short is a teaser for that book.

The story follows Lloyd Sunderland who recently lost his wife, and is currently losing his way a bit, in this journey we call life. His sister, a 70 year old spitfire, brings him a puppy to help him find his way again. Lloyd resists at first, but the puppy wins him over, as puppies most often do. Of course it wouldn't be King, if there wasn't a bit of horror included, and once again, King delivers. It's not supernatural, or even one of his better moments of horror, but that's okay. It's okay, because the best part of this story is the introduction of Lloyd, his backstory, and his current lot in life.

IMHO, this is not one of King's best shorts, but it's good and it does exactly what it's intended to do. It reminds you King creates fantastic characters and shows you a great story. And, it made me want to go pick up his latest novel, as soon as possible. In thirty-two double-spaced pages he eloquently reminds you; "It was life, you were stuck with it, and all you could do is live it."

One last note, he ends it with, "Thinking of Vixon", which was his wife's Corgi (aka, "The Thing of Good"), that passed away early this spring. Mr. King has his own Corgi, Molly (aka, "The Thing of Evil") who is still living.
Profile Image for Sophia Triad.
2,241 reviews3,766 followers
May 20, 2018
It was life, you were stuck with it, and all you could do was live it.

I could read anything by Stephen King. ANYTHING!
The story has a bitter-sweet start and then there is a twist towards the end.
Well, apparently no matter how much you miss your other half, you always want to stay alive for as long as possible.
The protagonist is the loveliest, most innocent dog, Laurie.
Highly recommended and completely free new short story.
Profile Image for Carol Rodríguez.
Author 4 books34 followers
December 30, 2018
Hace poco vi en Amazon que este relato estaba gratuito y aproveché la ocasión para hacerme con él, guiada simplemente por mi afición a Stephen King (al que, por cierto, tengo abandonado desde hace un tiempo). No sabía muy bien de qué trataba el relato, lo adquirí a ciegas y a ciegas lo he leído; Stephen King es un autor del que te puedes esperar casi cualquier cosa y que, lejos de lo que mucha gente se obceca en creer, ha escrito novelas, relatos y guiones de diversos géneros más allá del terror (fantasía, policíaca, histórica, drama, paranormal sin terror, ciencia ficción, no ficción...), por lo que la suerte estaba echada. A mí este relato no me ha parecido de terror en absoluto, aunque hay varias personas que lo han etiquetado así aquí en Goodreads. Tampoco puedo decir mucho sin desvelar el final, solo decir que, en fin, es Stephen King y por lo tanto hay una vuelta de tuerca.

Me ha gustado mucho, me he visto atrapada sin remedio hasta el final y en pocas páginas me he encariñado con los personajes, y esto sabiendo lo justito de ellos. Está tan bien escrito, es tan real en cuanto a sentimientos de pérdida, soledad y reinventarse... Lo recomiendo sinceramente, porque además, repito, está gratuito para Kindle.
Profile Image for Kon R..
315 reviews169 followers
November 22, 2022
This one was enjoyable enough. After completion, it had me thinking what the point of it was. It's obviously a love letter to dogs. Those that feel lost and hopeless due to the grieving process will easily attach to a little bundle of fluff to fill their days. Maybe King was warning old folks that if they don't stay active they're in for an early demise and a pet is the perfect way to get back into a healthy lifestyle.

The ending was unexpected. Not sure if King needed a big bang to wrap up the story or it held a deeper meaning. I think if the dog played a bigger part it would feel more complete. Maybe I missed the point entirely. It's also not clear how or why his neighbor wasn't home where he was supposed to be.

Meh/10.
Profile Image for Bradley.
Author 9 books4,864 followers
May 19, 2018
Just because I heard about it and could get it for free, I jumped on this new SK story like some rabid fiend. :)

Suffice to say, there's nothing much to say except that it's a good character study about a bereaving old man getting a dog and having the scare of his life bring him all the closer to the little mutt. :)

Simple? Yes. Good. Yes.

Come on. It's Stephen King!
Profile Image for Gianfranco Mancini.
2,338 reviews1,071 followers
October 23, 2025
"Il 6 dicembre di quell'anno cominciò come tutti gli altri giorni, con una passeggiata sulla spiaggia, seguita dalla colazione: croccantini per Laurie e un uovo strapazzato e un toast per Lloyd. Non c'era modo di prevedere che Dio stesse caricando la sua calibro 45."

Storiella breve, scaricabile gratuitamente da Amazon per kindle in occasione dello scorso compleanno di Stephen King, con protagonisti un vecchio sofferente per la morte dell'amata compagna e la cagnolina Laurie, dono di sua sorella, che lo aiuterà a ritrovare la gioia di vivere,,, dopo uno spiacevole incontro.
Lettura gradevole di mezzora che diventa angoscia pura nel finale, ma così come Fine turno mi era sembrato quasi scritto da Dean Koontz, questo racconto breve mi ha ricordato fin troppo quelli di Joe Lansdale.
Non la storia migliore di King, ma si legge che è un piacere.
Profile Image for jade.
489 reviews388 followers
May 25, 2020
lloyd considered her bright-eyed stare, weighed the pros and cons, then picked her up and set her in his lap. “wet on me and die,” he said.

she didn’t wet on him.

things i didn’t know i needed: stephen king writing a short story about a curmudgeonly widower bonding with a brave, peculiar little puppy his opinionated sister dumps on him to help him with his grief.

things i think stephen king is good at: characterization, the down-to-earth experience of the mundane, and the power and nostalgia of friendships. the latter, of course, includes pets.

something stephen king delivers despite his bad track record: a satisfying ending.

laurie is no cujo (luckily!) and this story of barely thirty-two pages brings all of the above in spades. the emotion simmering below the surface is palpable and relatable, and the main character is quietly humorous in a perfectly fitting way.

also, this is still mr. king we’re talking about, so you’re in for some edge-of-your-seat moments. a very pleasant read in all aspects.

anyway, read it here.

4.0 stars.
Profile Image for Trish.
2,390 reviews3,748 followers
December 31, 2018
This was such a cute story!

A man has recently lost is wife and his sister is gifting him a puppy since he isn't coping very well. He doesn't want the responsibility but agrees to take the dog "on probation".
What follows is an account of their day-to-day life as they get to know and fall in love with each other so to speak.

It wouldn't be Stephen King if there wasn't also some part that made your heart race (). There was no supernatural element here, that wasn't necessary. Just a cute story of a man and his dog (or the other way around) that tucked at my heartstrings.

For anyone interested, the story is available for free on Stephen King's website. Alternatively, here is the direct link to the story: https://stephenking.com/other/stephen...

P.S.: For some reason I pictures "Daisy", John Wick's dog from the first movie.
Profile Image for crίѕтίŋα•●Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ●•.
897 reviews230 followers
June 8, 2018
🐾Laurie 🐾 a “must-read” for #DogLovers! ♥️👅

“It’s not a case of who wants a dog, it’s a case of who needs a dog. That’s you.”
- Beth

* * *
“Puppy’s are God’s ideia of a perfect workout program.”
- Dr Albright

* * *
“It was life, you were stuck with it, and all you could do was live it.”
- Lloyd Sunderland
Profile Image for Karla.
1,452 reviews367 followers
September 22, 2020
Story 3.75 stars**
Audio 3 stars**
Profile Image for Gareth Is Haunted.
418 reviews123 followers
February 2, 2023
This is how to write a cute yet ultimately dark short story about a dog.

'He wondered, as he almost always did, just what it was she saw in the face looking down into hers. Like the stars he saw when he took her out at night, it was a mystery.'

This was a 32-page long story about a puppy(dog) named Laurie and how you can become attracted to something you are initially totally against. King is truly a master of the short story.
Note, I'm not even fond of dogs so my enjoying this says a lot about the writing.
Profile Image for Jennifer.
1,871 reviews6,704 followers
November 14, 2018


“It's not a case of who wants a dog, it's a case of who needs a dog.”
Laurie is a short and sweet little story of an ornery widower who finds his lonely days being filled with a border collie-mudi mix puppy. Life gets better each day until the day it doesn't and Stephen King decides to bash your brains in (or out). Don't worry, no puppies are harmed within these pages. This short-story is available for free on his website HERE. It is also available at the end of his book: Elevation. FYI: King self-narrates the audiobook which I found enjoyable.

My favorite quote:
“It was life, you were stuck with it, and all you could do was live it.”
Profile Image for Janete on hiatus due health issues.
832 reviews437 followers
December 22, 2019
3,5 stars. Blurb: "Lloyd, a man who has just lost his wife, receives an unexpected "gift" from his sister. Laurie, an adorable puppy mixed with Border Collie and Mudi, will gradually change her life forever.

But what promised to be a peaceful life of beach walks and relaxing meals is truncated by an unexpected event."
Profile Image for Daniel.
812 reviews74 followers
May 19, 2018
A charming and relaxing little story. No supernatural stuff :P It's free so greatly recommended.
Profile Image for Bill.
1,164 reviews192 followers
May 24, 2018
A short story about a man and his dog, which you can download free from the official Stephen King website. Simply and beautifully told.
Profile Image for Come Musica.
2,062 reviews627 followers
May 2, 2020
Questo racconto breve è stato rilasciato gratuitamente in prossimità dell'uscita di The Outider e a parte la cover che richiama quella del libro, da cui è stata tratta anche la serie di recente, e il fatto che a scriverlo sia Stephen King, non ha proprio niente a che fare.

Per chi non ha mai letto il Re è un buon modo per avvicinarsi ai suoi libri.

Il racconto è ambientato a Boca Raton, a pochi km da Miami, in Florida (che voglia che ho di ritornare a visitare quei posti!!!). Lloyd Sunderland è stato sposato con Marian per quarant’anni e da un momento all'altro la sua vita si spoglia, con la morte della moglie. La sorella pensa così di regalargli un cucciolo a cui dà il nome di Laurie. Nel momento in cui la cagnolina gli lecca la mano, lui sente che era sua "Proprio come Marian era stata sua sin dal primo bacio. Un altro paragone stupido, ma era davvero possibile controllare le proprie associazioni mentali? Non più di quanto si potessero controllare i sogni, secondo Lloyd."

E quando tutto sembra tranquillo, ecco che Lloyd e Laurie sono protagonisti di un imprevisto e di una prova di coraggio: "Poi rimise giù la cagnetta, lasciandola libera di occuparsi delle sue cose mentre lui faceva altrettanto. Questa era la vita, e finché riuscivi a restarci attaccato, c’era una sola cosa da fare: viverla."


Tra 3 e 4 stelle

Su Amazon
https://www.amazon.it/Laurie-versione...
Profile Image for Wissal H.
1,090 reviews463 followers
June 14, 2024
Je suis un peu déçue, j ai cru que c est une histoire d horreur mais Laurie était une belle chienne fidèle accompagnante d un veuf qui a perdu sa femme défunte, une histoire pleine de tendresse et de leçons humaines entre l homme et l animal et l accompagnant le plus fidèle le chien, un mélange des sentiments ressentis et des gestes vécus.

Pour un moment donné j ai oublié que c était la plume de King .

Une belle histoire et un bon moment passé avec Laurie et son accompagnant.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,645 reviews

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