Christine

Christine war der erste Stephen King-Roman, der mir wirklich gehörte. Ich bekam ihn zur Jugendweihe 1993 von unseren damaligen Nachbarn geschenkt. Da war ich schon mitten im Stephen King-Fieber. Jetzt, 26 Jahre erfolgte der erste Re-Read und ich muss sagen, dass mich das Buch genauso begeistert und fasziniert hat, wie damals.

Ich gehöre auch zu den Menschen, die Dingen einen Namen geben. Mein aktuelles Auto heißt Lola und ich liebe sie abgöttisch. Meine Schwester behauptet, Lola sei eine Zicke, weil sie bei ihr nicht anspringen wollte, als sie damit mal fahren wollte. Und sie weigert sich seitdem, den Wagen zu nehmen. Verrückt eigentlich, aber nach diesem Re-Read von Christine muss ich gestehen, dass ich insgeheim hoffe, mit Lola show more nicht einen weiteren Geisterwagen erschaffen habe.

In Christine folgen wir der Geschichte von Arnie Cunningham, dem geborenen Verlierer. Eigentlich ein intelligenter Junge, der leider mit einer schrecklichen Akne geplagt ist. Sein bester Freund, Dennis Guilder, erzählt die Geschichte, wie es zur ersten Begegnung von Arnie und Christine kam. Dennis ist dabei der typische, allseits beliebte All-American Highschool-Junge, der Football spielt. Trotzdem ist er vernünftig und nett und für Arnie ein wirklich guter Freund.

King fängt diese Freundschaft, die seit frühester Kindheit besteht, hervorragend ein. Es ist erneut eine Freude, ihm dabei zuzusehen, wie er die Figuren vor dem geistigen Auge zum Leben erweckt. Es bricht einem fast das Herz, zu erleben, wie Arnie dem Wagen immer mehr verfällt und die Freundschaft zu Dennis in die Brüche geht. Als Leigh Cabot Arnies neue Freundin wird, hofft man kurz, dass Arnie es schafft, sich von Christine zu lösen, aber ihre Macht über ihn ist bereits zu stark.

Dennis und Leigh beschließen, den Wagen zu töten, weil ihnen früh klar wird, dass Christine mehr ist als nur ein Auto, und sie noch dazu ein gefährliches Eigenleben entwickelt, wann immer Arnie nicht in der Stadt ist.

Leider geht der Feldzug gegen Christine nicht ohne Opfer von statten und wie so oft gibt es für Kings Figuren kein wirkliches Happy End. Das hat mich am Ende genauso hart getroffen, wie damals, als ich das Buch das erste Mal gelesen habe. Dabei ist Christine nicht nur ein Buch über ein verfluchtes Auto, sondern erneut ein Buch über Freundschaft, Menschlichkeit und das Erwachsenwerden. Über die Jugend und den Zeitpunkt, wo man als Teenager merkt, dass Erwachsensein doch schneller auf einen zukommt, als man meinen möchte. Über die damit verbundenen Schrecken und Ängste. Die unüberwindbar scheinenden Hürden des Erwachsenenlebens und die Erkenntnis, dass die eigenen Eltern mehr sind als nur Mutter und Vater.

Jedes Kapitel wird im übrigen von Songtexten eingeleitet, die alle einen Bezug zum Thema Autofahren haben. Unfassbar, wieviele Lieder es darüber gibt. Und auch Arnies Verwandlung vom Verlierer zu Roland LeBay wird in kleinen Dingen immer wieder nur angedeutet, bevor es irgendwann klar ist, was da vor sich geht.

Fazit:
Christine hat mir genauso gut gefallen, wie bei meinem ersten Lesen, wobei ich auch hier wieder gemerkt habe, welchen Unterschied 26 Jahre machen und wie sehr sich das Verständnis für das Leben und für die Menschen wandelt im Laufe des Lebens. Für mich ist dieses Buch mit einer der stärksten Stephen King-Romane. show less

Arnie Cunningham is your classic loser: slightly built, grotesquely acned, chess player and, obedient son. What he has going for him is mechanical skills and a best friend, Dennis. Told from Dennis's point of view, this is the faux bildungsroman of Arnie when, one day, he spies a 20-year old beat-down Plymouth Fury for sale and manages to scrape together the money to buy it. But the car's previous owner might not be as willing to part with it after all-- even though the old man has passed away... The car seems to have a mind of its own and Arnie isn't quite himself. Set in 1979 in upstate Pennsylvania, King captures the zeitgeist and details of the time and place with deft touches. Arnie's anger, resentment and jealously bubble & show more simmer; Dennis's angst and sex drive propel him into acts of moral equivocation; And Christine (eponymous car) and Leigh Cabot (a girlfriend) compete in ying-yang fashion for attention and love. Dismiss King as a pulp writer if you will; but the simple prose is an exposition of psychological terror and freudian manifestations. show less

Another of King's books I haven't read in 35 years. I remember this one distinctly. I remember buying it, coming home, parking myself in my bedroom and reading the entire thing in one sitting, pausing only when I needed to eat or bio break. And I remember being completely enchanted with it.

I was Arnie. I was the smart nerd. And I was the same age as him. So, at the time, I completely bought into him and loved Dennis for his love and loyalty. And then there was Leigh...damn.

Anyway, 35 years later, I see this as the first crack in King's near-perfect run up to now. As others have noted, I can only blame the mystifying switch of narrative voice in the second section on King's addictions and the fact that, I'm guessing by now, the editors show more began to take a hands off approach to his work, as this is also the point where the bloat sets in and his books get a little longer than they should be.

And then there's the addiction. Let's talk about that, because it became very very obvious to me that, whether intentional or not, this is the book where King truly begins to wrestle with his addictions.

Arnie is a smart kid, a good kid, constantly living up to his parents' --and society's--expectations. Things aren't perfect, but things aren't bad. Then he finds Christine, the embodiment of King's drugs of choice, and he slowly succumbs.

At first, things aren't bad. Arnie/King begin to look better, they begin to stand up for themselves, they get noticed by the girl, and they also stand up to the rules of society, bending them a bit in their favour.

But then, people begin noticing the cracks. Some spin control, some lying and some self-delusion needs to be applied. Then things become even more desperate as situations begin to veer into the unethical and slightly shady.

But along the way, some of those assholes that made their life hell get pushed aside. That's good, right? But they begin to realize they're losing control. Losing their family.

And then, in the end, the addiction seems to be all they have. And even more interesting, when the bad shit goes down, the Arnie/King persona is actually shunted to the sidelines. They aren't even there.

And when they do try and fight it, the engine just won't die.

This book is ALL about the addiction. And for that, it gains points, just for the heartbreaking sincerity. Where it loses points is through the middle, when the bad shit begins to go down. King drew heavily--too heavily--on the 1950s EC comics that tended to focus heavily on gruesome revenge. That, to me, was where the story lost some of its steam and lustre.

But the end. The end was a glorious. Loved it.

Of course, this is also a terrifyingly prescient look at the accident that would sideline King and almost kill him in 1999. I believe that one was also all on account of a dog... hmmm.... show less

Even those who are not Stephen King fans most likely know the story of Christine. The name is synonymous with a possessed evil car. Yet, like all of Stephen King’s books made into movies, the movie leaves out SO much. In this case, I believe the movie does the original story a disservice because it is so much more than a possessed car running rampant. There are nuances to it that help flesh out the story so that it makes sense. These details also add a layer of tragedy to everything, which also enhances the story.

Audio is most definitely the way to go if you want to read the book. Holter Graham is absolutely fabulous as narrator. The way he adapts his voice as Arnie changes is thoroughly chilling. While the story itself may not be all show more that scary, Mr. Graham’s narration ups the creep factor by ten. show less

‘Christine’ by Stephen King is the November selection for my in-person Constant Reader book club. I’ve seen the movie countless times and first read the book in 2018. During the recent Halloween season, I occasionally caught parts of the movie on TV. It certainly holds up—it’s a fantastic movie. I remember enjoying the book the first time I read it, and I thoroughly enjoyed this reread.

‘Christine’ is a chilling horror novel that seamlessly blends supernatural terror with coming-of-age drama. Set in 1978, it follows nerdy high school senior Arnie Cunningham, whose life takes a dramatic turn when he purchases a dilapidated 1958 Plymouth Fury named Christine. As Arnie embarks on the journey of restoring the car, he undergoes show more a transformation from an outcast to a confident yet increasingly obsessive individual, oblivious to the fact that Christine is no ordinary vehicle—she’s a malevolent, sentient force with a deadly jealous streak. Narrated by Arnie’s friend Dennis, the story delves into themes of possession, toxic love, and the dark side of adolescence, all woven together with King’s captivating prose and a rock ’n’ roll-infused atmosphere.

While I thoroughly enjoy watching the movie, I find that the book offers a more profound exploration of Christine’s former owner, Roland D. LeBay’s, life and family. The horror scenes in the book are far more intense, and the ending is much more suspenseful. Additionally, I appreciate how the book gives more significance to the roles of Arnie, Dennis, and Leigh’s parents. It’s intriguing to observe how each set of parents responds to the young adults and the unsettling nature of Christine differently. Rereading ‘Christine’ has been a refreshing experience, and I’ve gained a deeper appreciation for the story.

I have photos, videos, and additional information that I'm unable to include here. It can all be found on my blog, in the link below.
A Book And A Dog show less

This book is such an old and familiar favorite that it's hard to put a review together for some reason. This latest reading is either number 3 or 4 (probably) and while I remembered most of it, there was enough missing to give me some nice little jolts along the way (especially in the final garage scene).

When it first came out I was 15 and it was the 3rd or 4th King book I read. I remember a lot of disdain over it not just because he was a "cheesy horror writer", but because the damn thing was about a haunted car. How hokey, right? Well in lesser hands it might have been. Putting it another way, Christine herself was just a vehicle for a larger, more poignant story (groan at the pun if you must).

Like everything else he writes, Christine show more is about friendship and the many ways it can be threatened. The friendship at the nucleus of the novel is Dennis and Arnies's. In just about the best prologue I've ever read, Dennis explains a few things about the story he's going to relate, and also tells us about being friends with Arnie. At the opposite end of the book, in the epilogue, he says that while he thought about ditching his loser buddy, he never did because he needed Arnie to make him, Dennis, better. Between the ant farms, schlock horror movies, tree-forts, acne and mustard on Wonderbread sandwiches, there was real affection there. Later Dennis admits it was love. In my review for Duma Key I remarked that the narrative pulled me along, but I also dreaded it. Christine is the same way.

At 350 pages, here's what I noted - Christine's killing spree is the least interesting part of the book for me. It's the indirect destruction that makes the story. Thinking about Dennis and Arnie and their friendship, now in its death throes. Arnie and his parents' somewhat unhealthy, but functioning, family unit is also in shambles. Then there's Arnie and Leigh; what could have been is more painful that what truly was. Lastly, Arnie and Christine, under a few layers of delusion Arnie knows what she's doing to him. He's not surprised when LeBay shows up to cruise. He wants out, but she won't let him.

Dennis does what he can, but in the end Christine has her way. We aren't given explanations; her malevolence just is like the moon. Dennis himself is an unlikely teenager; thoughtful, modest, supportive, but makes for a good hero. He's likable, decisive and has a good heart. People naturally turn to him to help protect Arnie and he almost takes up his Knight persona without complaint. Was his football injury Christine's doing? The way things spiraled out of control while he was sidelined sure makes it seem like it. It was funny that he ended up a teacher, it's like a tic with King, making everyone a teacher.

The supporting cast is perfectly pitched. We have Arnie & Dennis's families; Dennis's definitely the more average clan complete with a mildly antagonistic sibling relationship (I think King was fantasizing his perfect relationship there), while Arnie's hyper-competitive mother Regina rules hers in a take-no-prisoners kind of way which does not bode well. Dennis is a BMOC and always coming to Arnie's side to fight his tormentors. The name Buddy Repperton is a hard one to forget. He encapsulates the perfect teenage, American thug. Hard drinking, hard driving, domineering and dull-witted. Arnie stood no chance, but managed to stay alive with Dennis to help. Once Christine decided to pitch in though, the tables were most thoroughly turned. In one of the best set up scenes in the book, she stalks Buddy like a tiger, moves in for the kill and then like many a cat, plays with him a while before finishing him off. The emotional tension of those lights in his rear-view mirror is almost unbearable, but in a delicious way. Buddy is such a villain that we want him gone, even if it's Christine doing the getting. Even crusty old Will Darnell grows on you despite your better judgment.

On the surface it might seem a silly tale, a haunted car, whoopee; but this is one of King's most emotional and sympathetic novels and well worth reading even if you don't believe in DIY car restoration. show less

Christine é ótimo e tal, mas me lembro de ter simpatizado mais com o filme do Carpenter do que simpatizei lendo o livro, vou rever o filme em alguns dias e tiro isso a limpo. Também talvez seja o fato de ter acabado de ler A Zona Morta o qual considerei uma obra prima e não acho que Christine chegue a tanto.
Como alegoria da transição da adolescência pra fase adulta e suas oscilações comportamentais, especialmente no período inicial em que os homens transformam seus carros em extensões de si mesmos (o falo para fazer uma psicanálise selvagem), o livro é excelente, mas talvez pese a mão nessa estória de possessão, mesmo a possessão podendo ter lida como um traço patriarcal que se passa de geração em geração.
Também show more notei que o King tem sérios mommy issues, já tinha notado em A Zona Morta que o autor tem sérios problemas com mães (sérios mesmo) e aqui só reiteirou-se isso. Também notei que ele tem sérios problemas com pessoas gordas, há muita malícia na descrição de pessoas obesas. E também não engoli a Leigh ter largado a faculdade pra casar, really? Enfim, me incomodei mais do que gostaria com esse livro, mas a ideia geral é muito boa. show less