If It Bleeds: Mr. Harrigan's Phone, The Life of Chuck, Rat by Stephen KingMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
Thank you to my husband, Philip, for buying me If It Bleeds by Stephen King when I was sick with Covid, and thank you to Annie Bloom's Books for making it available and pulling it off the shelf so my love could quickly pick it up.
In times of trouble, some people have comfort food. I have comfort reading. Specifically, Stephen King. Simple, uncomplicated stories and no question who the good guys are. There’s always some excitement and some creepy, extra worldly thing. And it never gets old. And that’s my review for every Stephen King book ever. Just saying.
If It Bleeds consists of four novellas. The first, “Mr. Harrigan’s Phone,” is the story of a boy who calls his boss’s cell phone after he dies and gets an unexpected response. The second, “The Life of Chuck” begins with a mysterious billboard appearing, reading “39 GREAT YEARS! THANKS, CHUCK.” Then things in town start to get weirder. “If It Bleeds,” by far my favorite from this collection, features Holly of Mr. Mercedes and The Outsider. Holly has discovered another potentially dangerous supernatural threat, and she decides not to involve anyone else because she does not want them to get hurt. But what Holly does not count on is that other people are just as worried about her. Finally, “Rat” tells the story of a writer with several failed novels under his belt who decides to go to his father’s isolated cabin in the woods to write a new one. Nothing could go wrong there.
Holly is one of my favorite Stephen King characters. She’s complex, not just somebody’s partner, and she’s just quirky enough to be interesting. For example, she counts and prepares a snack of mini candy bars in preparation for watching her show: a staged court with a charming and snarky judge. I could live in her brain a little longer.
Is this the best Stephen King book ever? No. Did it help me get through a bout of Covid? Yes.
Would I teach this book? It is possible that I would teach one of the novellas, but I doubt I would teach the entire book. As referenced earlier, it is not that strong of a collection. There are some pretty predictable moments. Almost all of “Rat” is “Don’t go in there” choices on repeat. Perhaps, perhaps if I had a class in which we were discussing taking a minor character from an earlier story and turning them into a major character, I would consider teaching “If It Bleeds,” but even then, I doubt it. Do I recommend it for a plane ride or as an escape during extended family holiday togetherness? Yes.
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