Review of "From a Buick 8" by Stephen King

If Stephen King is really going to retire from writing, he will be missed for his unique ability to take something very ordinary and scare us to death with it. This plot is a prime example of his ability to scare and, at the same time, amuse the reader with a perfectly silly plot.

One fine day a man in a Buick 8 drives into a gas station and tells the owner to "fill 'er up!" As the meter reaches about six gallons the man from the Buick 8 just walks off. The gas station is next to the local police headquarters and so the owner calls them and they impound the car.

The car looks a bit odd to the members of the police force, but they shrug it off until one day the car begins to do strange things. They put the car in a shed and close the doors, but as time goes by they begin to lock the doors and take up a watch on the car. If they go into the shed, they go in tied to a rope so that they can be pulled out fast. This protection and 24-7 monitoring goes on for years and years as more and more the Buick emits strange effects. I would not want to spoil your fun, so I will not reveal how this simple old car becomes such a major menace.

This is a big book and because King is such a tremendous storyteller, he leads his readers through the strangeness of the mysterious car and the cops who look after it. Would you like a hint? OK, the car gives birth to bizarre things. It also erupts in lightning blasts every now and then.

This is an deftly-crafted tale of horror that is at the same time a hilarious plot of darkest evil along with virtuous characters who join us for the ride - in a Buick 8, of course!