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Title details for Mile 81 by Stephen King - Available

Mile 81

Includes bonus story 'The Dune'

by Stephen King
Thomas Sadoski
Audiobook
1 of 2 copies available
Borrow Listen to a sample Listen to a sample
1 of 2 copies available
Mile 81 is Stand by Me meets Christine—the story of an insatiable car and a heroic kid.
At Mile 81 on the Maine Turnpike is a boarded-up rest stop, a place where high school kids drink and get into the kind of trouble high school kids have always gotten into. It's the place where Pete Simmons, armed only with the magnifying glass he got for his tenth birthday, finds a discarded bottle of vodka in the boarded up burger shack and drinks enough to pass out. Not much later, a mud-covered station wagon (which is strange because there hadn't been any rain in New England for over a week) veers into the Mile 81 rest area, ignoring the sign that says "closed, no services." The driver's door opens but nobody gets out.
By the time Pete Simmons wakes up from his vodka nap, there are half a dozen cars at the Mile 81 rest stop. But two kids and a horse are the only living things left...unless you maybe count the wagon. With the heart of Stand By Me and the genius horror of Christine, Mile 81 is Stephen King unleashing his imagination as he drives past one of those road signs.
In the bonus story "The Dune," originally published in Granta's October 2011 horror issue, retired Florida Supreme Court Judge Harvey Beecher tells his lawyer about a mysterious sand dune on an unnamed island a short distance off the Gulf coastline of his family's property. Harvey first visited the island at the age of ten in 1932, after his grandfather, a scoundrel and land speculator who'd created the family fortune, told him Blackbeard's treasure might be buried there. Traveling to the island became a daily addiction for Harvey...and now his lawyer is about to discover the shocking reason why.

  • Creators

  • Publisher

  • Release date

    January 10, 2012

  • Formats

    • OverDrive Listen audiobook

      • ISBN: 9781442349148
      • File size: 72512 KB
      • Duration: 02:31:03

  • Languages

    • English

  • Reviews

    • AudioFile Magazine
      This is a lovely, scary little trifle. Master storyteller King uses language sparingly to create a compelling picture of a sunny Maine afternoon, an abandoned highway rest stop, some innocent children, and a car-shaped monster that eats people, whole and live. Thomas Sadoski's young voice is a perfect fit, deftly capturing the aggravation of being 10 years old and left behind by your older brother, as well as the fear and bravado of being 6 and having to take care of your 3-year-old brother after seeing something horrific happen to your parents. Sadoski's matter-of-fact narration of the monster's deeds makes the tale that much more unnerving to hear. The production is rounded out with Edward Herrmann's delivery of "The Dune." It's a very short story with strong forward drive, and Herrmann works it perfectly. What a terrifically creepy way to spend a couple hours. G.D. (c) AudioFile 2012, Portland, Maine
    • Publisher's Weekly

      March 26, 2012
      In King’s short story, just off the highway in Maine a mud-covered car sits quietly at an abandoned rest stop where a young boy named Pete Simmons is exploring a boarded-up burger joint. But his innocent excursion becomes a nightmare when the car reveals itself to be an unearthly predator, luring unsuspecting passersby to a hideous fate. Thomas Sadoski provides smooth, matter-of-fact narration that acts as a counterpoint to the chilling and unnerving story line. In the bonus story, “The Dune,” former judge Harvey Beecher is addicted to visiting a certain sand dune located on a small island just off the coast of his old family estate on Pelican Point, Fla. Knowing his time is short, the 90-year-old reveals to his lawyer the preternatural messages he finds written in the sand during his visits. Edward Herrmann brings Beecher to life in what is essentially a monologue with a soft, craggy, Southern accent that acknowledges the character’s age, but shows an underlying strength fitting for a former judge. And that voice is a perfect match for the story’s spine-tingling conclusion.

Formats

  • OverDrive Listen audiobook

subjects

Languages

  • English

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