Book Review: “Elevation”

Elevation

Stephen King

Hardcover, 146 pages

Publication Date: October 30, 2018

Publisher: Scribner

Genre: Fiction, Fantasy

No, you are not seeing a typo on the number of pages. This really is a Stephen King book with less than 150 pages. Best known for epics like “11/22/63” (849 pages), “It” (1116 pages) and the complete and uncut version of “The Stand,” which clocks in at 1153 pages, King’s release of this short tome certainly sparked my interest. I have read several of his short stories before, so I hoped “Elevation” would follow in the footsteps of his other, smaller works.

I am a fan of short fiction. I think it is a testament to an author’s skill to be able to pack a solid plot and emotional development into a short number of pages. I was confident an author like King, known the world over for his gripping plots, would provide a fast-paced plot for “Elevation” from page one.

This was sadly not the case. I am not here to say the book was not good, because it was, but it was certainly not what I was expecting. “Elevation” takes place in the town of Castle Rock, a setting for many of King’s books and the subject of the Hulu original show, “Castle Rock.” King really capitalizes on the small-town feeling in “Elevation” as he tells the story of a man named Scott who begins suddenly and uncontrollably losing weight.

If you are well-versed in King’s works, you may pick up on what I did: this plot sounds similar to “Thinner,” which King published in 1984 under the pseudonym Richard Bachman. In “Thinner,” a lawyer is cursed after accidentally running a woman over with his car. As a result of the curse, he begins losing weight and sets out to find the man who cursed him before he becomes too thin to stay alive.

In “Elevation,” Scott is also unexplainably losing weight but not as the result of a curse. In fact, he is not technically losing weight. He looks the same physically, but every day when he steps on the scale, the number gets smaller. His body can feel itself getting lighter, even though he continues to look like an overweight, middle-aged website designer.

Scott enlists the help of his friend, Dr. Bob Ellis, to try to make sense of his inexplicable condition. Meanwhile, Scott is also trying to build a relationship with his standoffish neighbors and make peace with the possibility of fatal weight loss.

I will not reveal the end of the book and disclose what happens to Scott, but all I can say is it was the kind of weird ending I have come to expect from King.

“Elevation” ranks nowhere near the top of my favorites list, especially when compared to many of King’s better works. As a heartwarming novella, it is not bad. As a book by King, however, I cannot help but think it could have been much better.

If you want something not in the usual gory, horror-centric style of King, go right ahead. It still has the realistic, approachable dialogue which characterizes King’s work, but overall, “Elevation” is just average.

Paige Holmes is a junior journalism major from Topeka, KS. Reading is her favorite thing to do because it teaches one how to think, imagine and live. Paige believes there is no better way to learn something or be entertained than by reading a book. Her favorite genre of books is fantasy/thriller and her favorite book is ‘Opening Moves’ by Steven James.

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