This quite beautiful closing note from King's collection, Skeleton Crew, first appeared in New England travel magazine, Yankee, back in the eighties under the title of Do The Dead Sing? Like all the very best works of fiction, the inspiration for this story derived from a throwaway encounter, which in this instance was a conversation King had with his brother in law, a Maine coast guard. From this natter, King crafted a story about a Maine resident who had never left her island home. An affecting tale of life and death, the delicate plot sees Stella Flanders, a ninety-five-year-old resident of Goat Island, take her first trip across the titular waterway to a fate quite sombre. Everything about The Reach hits the mark, from King's quiet analogies ("The wind blew long, cold notes that fall, and Stella felt each note resonate in her heart.") all the way to a finale that leaves a lasting imprint on the memory. This is a King story like no other.
Shaun is a former contributor for a number of Future Publishing titles and more recently worked as a staffer at Imagine Publishing.
He can now be found banking in the daytime and writing a variety of articles for What Culture, namely around his favourite topics of film, retro gaming, music, TV and, when he's feeling clever, literature.
This quite beautiful closing note from King's collection, Skeleton Crew, first appeared in New England travel magazine, Yankee, back in the eighties under the title of Do The Dead Sing? Like all the very best works of fiction, the inspiration for this story derived from a throwaway encounter, which in this instance was a conversation King had with his brother in law, a Maine coast guard. From this natter, King crafted a story about a Maine resident who had never left her island home. An affecting tale of life and death, the delicate plot sees Stella Flanders, a ninety-five-year-old resident of Goat Island, take her first trip across the titular waterway to a fate quite sombre. Everything about The Reach hits the mark, from King's quiet analogies ("The wind blew long, cold notes that fall, and Stella felt each note resonate in her heart.") all the way to a finale that leaves a lasting imprint on the memory. This is a King story like no other.