#21 – Gwendy’s Button Box

Plot

There are three ways up to Castle View from the town of Castle Rock: Route 117, Pleasant Road, and the Suicide Stairs. Every day in the summer of 1974, twelve-year-old Gwendy Peterson took the stairs, which are held by strong—if time-rusted—iron bolts and zigzag up the precarious cliffside. Then one day when Gwendy gets to the top of Castle View, after catching her breath and hearing the shouts of kids on the playground below, a stranger calls to her. There on a bench in the shade sits a man in black jeans, a black coat, and a white shirt unbuttoned at the top. On his head is a small, neat black hat. The time will come when Gwendy has nightmares about that hat.

Review

Previously I’ve talked about the importance of developing a strong protagonist and an equally strong antagonist to tell a compelling story.  But what if the protagonist and the antagonist were the same person, and the narrative was structured around this dichotomy.  King and Richard Chizmar tackle that conundrum in Gwendy’s Button Box.  

The premise is relatively straight-forward on the surface.  Gwendy Peterson has been given a magic box that has levers and buttons.  The levers release special chocolates or gold coins, and the buttons create mass destruction.  Essentially, Gwendy has unlimited power at her disposal.  How would you act if the box was in your hands?

That question is central to the plot of Gwendy’s Button Box.  Gwendy tackles addiction, guilt and paranoia throughout the 171-page novella, which makes for a fascinating read and look into our own humanity.

While King and Chizmar co-wrote this book, it’s completely seamless and impossible to tell where one author stopped writing, and another began.  I had never heard of Richard Chizmar prior to this book and was so enthralled with Gwendy’s Button Box that I decided to read his sequel, Gwendy’s Magic Feather (unfortunately that was a swing-and-a-miss).  Apparently having Stephen King involved with your book makes a little bit of a difference.  

Details

Pages: 171

Dates Read: November – December 2018

Quote: “Wanting to know things and do things is what the human race is all about. Exploration, Gwendy! Both the disease and the cure!”

Best Part: The secret box is no longer secret.

Hint for #20: A hypersomnia sleep specialist may also be more commonly referred to as this.

 

Until next time, peace be the journey.