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Join us on Thursday at 3PM to chat about the book!

Summer Thunder

by Stephen King

This week on the book club we will be reading 'Summer Thunder' by Stephen King. The story is set in an apocalyptic world. The world is in a nuclear war, and most of the population has been wiped out. The main character in the story is Peter Robinson, a man in his late forties, whose wife and daughter were in Boston when everyone was suddenly killed. Robinson also finds a stray dog, whom he names Gandalf, and his bonding with the dog helps him cope with the death of his family.

Bit by bit, it is revealed that Robinson has but one neighbour left, an old man called Timlin, who lives in a luxurious cottage called Veronica and who Robinson befriends over the course of time. The story narrates Robinson's emotions and musings, and the advice given to him by Timlin. Timlin has much more knowledge about the radiation crisis than Robinson, and tells him how those who did survive will slowly die of radiation poisoning.

King deals with some large themes in this short story, not only human existence at large, but the nature of loss, loneliness, hope and the afterlife. An interesting and touching - albeit sad - tale which I’m sure we will have plenty to talk about on Thursday afternoon!

Buy the book: Bizarre of Bad Dreams

About the Author

Stephen Edwin King born on September the 21st in 1947. He is an American author of horror, supernatural fiction, suspense, crime, science-fiction, and fantasy novels. His books have sold more than 350 million copies, and many have been adapted into films, television series, miniseries, and comic books. King has published 62 novels, including seven under the pen name Richard Bachman, and five non-fiction books. He has also written approximately 200 short stories, most of which have been published in book collections.

When asked why he writes, King responds: "The answer to that is fairly simple—there was nothing else I was made to do. I was made to write stories and I love to write stories. That's why I do it. I really can't imagine doing anything else and I can't imagine not doing what I do."

What is the book club?

Join us every week for a book club, each week we will read a new short story of part of a larger book, the books will be made available as an audio book and we will meet as a group via zoom to chat about the story. All are welcome, hope to see you there. 

How to join the club to chat

The zoom link to join will apear above on this page at 3PM on Thursday. To join you will need a phone/tablet or laptop with a built in camera and microphone (most modern devices come with this) you may need to download the zoom app onto your phone if you are using a phone to join.

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