A great collection of stories. Mr. King has many classics, and this is no exception. He doesn't get much better with his short stories. ( )

Containing the novella "The Mist" and stories like "The Jaunt," "The Raft," "Survivor Type," and "The Reach," this is my favorite collection of King short stories. ( )

Probably (along with Night Shift) King's best short story collection; contains the extremely creepy "Gramma" and the recently resurrected "The Mist". ( )

A good collection King stories - mostly from the '80's. About 1/2 are very memorable. The rest are merely good. ( )

Twenty two short stories by Stephen King. All good, all worth reading. I think that my personal favorite is Mrs. Todd's Shortcut. The idea of being so obsessed with shortcuts that you end up driving through other "worlds" or "dimensions" is just neat. The places you could find... Other stories are very good also. ( )

Stephen King has an out -of -this -world imagination. It was difficult for me to read this book because of the twists and turns and the uncertainty in the endings. However, it's a good book for those who love to feel scared and paranoid as they read. ( )

Skeleton Crew is a collection of short stories by Stephen King. It is a challenge to review the book as an atomic entity so my review will consist of my thoughts on each story. The overall rating will be the average:

The Mist - More of a novella than a short story and I believe this is the longest tale in the Skeleton Crew combo pack. A mysterious mist engulfs a small Maine town. An interesting play on characters, as all types are trapped in a market together. (3.5 stars).

Here There Be Tygers - Terrible. A young boy needs to use the bathroom and there is a tiger in waiting. (1 star).

The Monkey - Who among us is not terrified of those crazy-eyed, demonic-grinning, cymbal-toting monkeys? When you hear the cymbals crash together death is inevitable. (3 stars).

Cain Rose Up - A disturbing tale. A young college boy unleashes his wrath on campus. Short but powerful. (3.5 stars).

Mrs. Todd's Shortcut - An old man shares the tale of a young woman on a constant quest for the shortest route from point A to point B. You may think the shortest distance between two points is a straight line, but what happens if you fold the map? (3 stars).

The Jaunt - More sci-fi than horror. It is the future and teleportation is the way to travel. A bit of a stretch from Mr. King's usual work, but I found it quite enjoyable (3.5 stars).

The Wedding Gig - A Dixieland group is hired to play at a mobster wedding. Gunfire ensues. Average story. (2.5 stars).

Paranoid: A chant - Read the first stanza and stopped. Not my cup of tea (1.5 stars).

The Raft - This short story is also represented in one of the Creepshow movies. It could be the memories of watching the movie as a kid, but I really like this story. Two college couples head out to the lake for one last hurrah and meet with something unexpected. (3.5 stars).

Word Processor of the Gods - A fun story. Imagine if you had a computer that let you delete or insert something in your real life with just a keystroke. Would you change your life with riches or with something a little more personal? (3.5 stars).

The Man Who Would Not Shake Hands - If you are curious about this one, there is a not so subtle hint in the title of the story. That's right, he would not shake hands. (2.5 stars).

Beachworld - I could not get into this one. I read the first few pages and skipped ahead to the next story. (1.5 stars).

The Reaper's Image - A mirror, a mystery and a man. A very short story about an old mirror that shows some people an unexplainable view of 'The Reaper'. Another average story in this tome. (2.5 stars).

Nona - A prisoner recalls his crimes. He would like you to believe that a ghost led him on his murder spree. Was it a ghost or insanity? (3 stars).

For Owen - A poem that I lost interest in before I started. (1 star).

Survivor Type - Now, this is Stephen King! A man is stranded on a deserted Island with a ton of heroin and no food or drink. Eventually, our 'protagonist' has to choose between starvation and self-cannibalization. (4 stars).

Uncle Otto's Truck - Uncle Otto thought the truck was trying to kill him. Was it the truck or a guilty conscience that finally gets him in the end? (2.5 stars).

Morning Deliveries (Milkman #1) - Weird stuff. A milkman is doing his rounds and while delivering dairy products he also delivers murder. The main character is very candid, almost likeable... until you figure out he is a psychopath. (3 stars).

Big Wheels: A Tale of the Laundry Game (Milkman #2) - Two drunks set off on a mission for vehicle registration. They drink, drink again and then drive home. However, on the way home they run into the Milkman (see above). Tragedy is soon to follow. (2 stars).

Gramma - There is more to "Gramma" than meets the eye. Is she dead? Is she alive? I thoroughly enjoyed the intensity and fear that King captured of a boy alone in a house with his dying grandmother. This story felt very real to me. (3 stars).

The Ballad of the Flexible Bullet - Another fun story describing an editor’s trip to crazytown. Magical elves are living in your typewriter and they are very sensitive to electricity. (3.5 stars).

The Reach - Another tale I could not get into. I read the first five pages and the only thing I was looking forward to was the end of the book. (1.5 stars). ( )

IMHO, The Fog is the best story in this collection. Some are hits, some are misses.

A collection of short stories, some of which are outstanding and some of which are less so. ( )

The best collection from King as far as short stories go. Love it. Haven't read it in ages, but I don't recall a single clunker. The most memorable for me is Survivor Type. ( )

A good collection from Stephen King, Skeleton Crew is a mixed bag of horror. While not everything was to my liking, several gave me chills. The novella "The Mist" is not normally my type of horror, but I enjoyed it for how it was told. I found "The Monkey," "The Reaper's Image," "Uncle Otto's Truck" and "Gramma" pretty creepy, while "Survivor Type" was totally gruesome. "Word Processor of the Gods" was one of my favorites, loved the idea of a word processor that can change things in the real world. "The Ballad of the Flexible Bullet" was another standout for me (another story involving a writer), and "The Reach" was a lovely and poignant finish to the collection. ( )

Some scary stuff within these pages... ( )

I enjoy King's short stories because they give you a break from his sometimes 'heavy' content. This has a well rounded genre of stories as far as horror goes. If nothing else I would reccomend reading a couple of the stories between bigger novels. ( )

Skeleton Crew is a collection of some of King's short stories, a couple poems, and a novella. While "The Mist" is well worth getting this book, it is now a stand alone novel. I recommend the The Mist book as opposed to the whole Skeleton Crew unless you are a big Stephen King fan.

To read my full review click: http://thekoolaidmom.wordpress.com/20... ( )

A quite strong collection, especially for 20 stories, averaging 3.58. The long novella to begin with is the standout, and a great story, indeed. Just about worth the price for that alone.

There are a couple of dodgy stories, but closer to half of this is 4 star work, with three of these to finish.

The majority is horror, of course, even when it is science fiction like the excellent 'The Jaunt' and maybe even Beachworld.

The odd crime story and fantasy to be found, too, for variety, although what different people see as horror stories will vary, I suppose.

Skeleton Crew : The Mist - Stephen King
Skeleton Crew : Here There be Tygers - Stephen King
Skeleton Crew : The Monkey - Stephen King
Skeleton Crew : Cain Rose Up - Stephen King
Skeleton Crew : Mrs. Todd's Shortcut - Stephen King
Skeleton Crew : The Jaunt - Stephen King
Skeleton Crew : The Wedding Gig - Stephen King
Skeleton Crew : The Raft - Stephen King
Skeleton Crew : Word Processor of the Gods - Stephen King
Skeleton Crew : The Man Who Would Not Shake Hands - Stephen King
Skeleton Crew : Beachworld - Stephen King
Skeleton Crew : The Reaper's Image - Stephen King
Skeleton Crew : Nona - Stephen King
Skeleton Crew : Survivor Type - Stephen King
Skeleton Crew : Uncle Otto's Truck - Stephen King
Skeleton Crew : Morning Deliveries - Stephen King
Skeleton Crew : Big Wheels: A Tale of the Laundry Game - Stephen King
Skeleton Crew : Gramma - Stephen King
Skeleton Crew : The Ballad of the Flexible Bullet - Stephen King
Skeleton Crew : The Reach - Stephen King

Extradimensional army experiment mistake monster siege mayhem breakout.

5 out of 5

Big Cat Piss boy loss.

2.5 out of 5

Getting rid of an evil toy at the bottom of Crystal Lake? Wouldn't be the first location i would chose. Actually, it'd be really close to the bottom. Arkham, Dunwich, 'Salem's Lot, down around there somewhere.

3 out of 5

Flunked Going Postal.

3.5 out of 5

Holey bits.

2.5 out of 5

Long Time My Destination.

4.5 out of 5

The Big Fat Kill.

4 out of 5

Screwed, then eaten, alien symbiote style.

4 out of 5

Family addition by deletion.

4 out of 5

Death touch self.

3.5 out of 5

Exit Sandman.

3 out of 5

Mirror, Mirror, you dead next.

3.5 out of 5

Crazy for rat girl.

4 out of 5

Autocannibal.

3.5 out of 5

Is gonna get me.

3 out of 5

Milk, cream, bugs, poison...

3.5 out of 5

Pulled over better than evil milkmanned.

2.5 out of 5

Ding dong, the Elder Gods spellcasting old bag is dead. Or supposed to be, so that walking around and grabbing me stuff is a worry. Learned some cool tricks though.

4 out of 5

Typewriter elf massacre.

4 out of 5

Mainland ghost, gran.

4 out of 5

http://notfreesf.blogspot.com/2008/06... ( )

An older version of King's now famous "The Mist" can be found here. It is the shining jewel of this collection. There are 21 other Shorts by King in this collection. Another story here that really stood-out in my mind, and that is King's little Sci Fi short, "The Jaunt". I laughed out loud hard and long at Carune's bag. It's a really great little story. Longer than you think.... heh heh. Now, the real "getter" here, the one that sticks with you, coils itself into your mind, is "The Ballad of the Flexible Bullet". Insanity and Alcohol go hand in hand. Who knows? Together they may bear a Fornit. ^_^ Writers will fall in love with this story. ( )

The best stories of this almost great collection (IMHO) are "the Mist," "Grandma," "The Flexible Bullet," and "The Reach."
"The Mist" has since permeated the popular mind through two versions of it as a movie.
A good book for a cold, winter's (or late October) night. ( )

It doesn't get much better than Stephen King short stories. I read these the first time in high school and was completely freaked out. Who else can make us afraid of such normal, everyday objects? Steven King is truly the master of written horror. ( )

An INCREDIBLE collection of short stories. I read this book over fifteen years ago and only read it once. I have read many novels since then (including most of what Mr. King has put out), but without even checking the table of contents I can vividly remember The Mist, Survivor Type, The Raft, The Jaunt, Wordprocessor of the Gods, Uncle Otto's Truck, Mrs. Todd's Shortcut and The Monkey. These stories have really stayed with me.

The novella The Mist alone is worth buying the book. I've always been a fan of horror stories involving a group of people in a confined space. Here you'll hole up with people who were just grocery shopping before the mist rolled in... ( )

A hefty tome of short stories, not all of them of the horror genre. I was surprised at the science fiction aspects of many of the stories. The first story, The Mist, was quite good and will be adapted as a movie in late 2007.

Great early King. I think "Night Shift" is a better collection (I can never remember which one I like better) but this one has "Survivor Type" in it which is one of my all-time favorite shocker about the lengths people will go to to stay alive. ( )

A collection of short stories from relatively early in King's career. I still remember some of them, even though it's been something like 20 years since I read them. Chilling and delicious. ( )

a great and varied compendium of kingisms. a fun read. ( )

A wonderful selection of King's writing, often overlooked these days I believe.

http://www.withywindlebooks.com/si/00... ( )