Stephen King 2025 read-along discussion

It's (almost) time for the April pick and I wanted to get a jump on it so we all have a little bit longer to read. And also so I wouldn't forget to update (sorry guys lol). BooksandLala's theme for this April is "nature" and we decided to go with two of King's short stories that you may be familiar with already. "Beachworld" from Skeleton Crew and/or "The House on Maple Street" from Nightmares and Dreamscapes.

"Beachworld" is a short science fiction story by Stephen King, first published in Weird Tales in 1984, and collected in King's 1985 collection Skeleton Crew. The story is set 8,000 years in the future where two crewmembers, Rand and Shapiro, survive the crash-landing of their spacecraft on an uncharted planet made up entirely of sand. They soon find themselves struggling to maintain control of their own sanity. Two adaptations have been made so far. A live action version of "Beachworld" was released in 2015, starring Erin McDonald and Travis Heaps and directed by Chad Bolling. The second adaptation was a Dollar Baby version of "Beachworld" from OneNinth & Pointed Pictures and it premiered online in 2021 as part of the Stephen King Rules Dollar Baby Film Festival. I couldn't find anywhere to stream either of these online, however.

"The House on Maple Street" is a science fiction short story by Stephen King, published in his collection Nightmares & Dreamscapes. The first volume of the anthology's audiobook includes the story, read by his wife, Tabitha King. The story was inspired by one of the drawings included in the children's book The Mysteries of Harris Burdick, by Chris Van Allsburg. It was later included in the 2011 book The Chronicles of Harris Burdick: Fourteen Amazing Authors Tell the Tales, along with stories by other high-profile writers, including Tabitha King, inspired by the other illustrations. The story also draws inspiration from Richard Matheson’s 1952 short story "Shipshape Home". The story follows the four Bradbury children returning to their home on Maple Street after a summer abroad. They discover that something is growing upwards through the house's walls from below, replacing wood and plaster with metal and machinery, counting down to some cataclysmic event. It becomes a great discussion about family dynamic and the power that adults can have over children. As of writing this there have been no adaptations that I could find.

King's science heavy stories were never my absolute favorites but they are always a fun time. Who is excited for another month of short stories and another month of this King journey? Let us know down below!

April is going by fast! I’m going to start reading this tonight. I’ve been reading the book club pick for work. I work at the library in my town and we are reading The Radium Girls. How is everyone?

Oooh I've been really wanting to pick up Radium Girls! You have to let us know how you like it. I've been good, same old same old with just work, home, work, home lol. How have you been?

It’s good so far! I’m pretty much doing the same thing you are lol work work work :)