Paperback, 465 pages
English language
Published Nov. 8, 1998 by Orion.
At Cold Mountain Penitentiary, along the lonely stretch of cells known as the Green Mile, killers such as 'Billy the Kid' Wharton and the possessed Eduard Delacroix await death strapped in 'Old Sparky'. Guards as decent as Paul Edgecombe and as sadistic as Percy Wetmore watch over them.
But good or evil, innocent or guilty, none has ever seen the brutal likes of the new prisoner, John Coffey, sentenced to death for raping and murdering two young girls. Is Coffey a devil in human form? Or is he a far, far different kind of being?
There are more wonders in heaven and hell than anyone at Cold Mountain can imagine. In The Green Mile, Stephen King builds the tension page by page and then delivers a revelation that will truly blow your mind.
An emotional and startling journey down the green mile, complete with fascinating characters, that'll stay with after the end.
In which the stereotypical magical black man stuns all by being spiritually gifted but is characterized as being hulking and stupid. Real classy
Un roman de Stephen King que j'avais bien aimé à l'époque où je l'avais lu. Marquant, par son cadre, ses personnages et son récit.
Oof. What a read! I really loved this book. Stephen Kind is such an amazing story teller. And so visual. He makes you hear and see things, and (unfortunately) to smell them too. I did not see any of the twists coming, and when last did that happen? Usually you can plot twists come trudging up over the horizon and by the time you reach them you can greet them by the hand like old friends.
This story is told from the point of view of Paul Edgecomb, a guard at the Death Row at Cold Mountain Penitentiary. His life seems to be ticking over in a fairly orderly way until the arrival of John Coffey. Very large, very black, covered with scars and accused of a horrific crime. And yet even before he knows anything about him, Paul finds himself shaking hands with John Coffey. A thing he has …
Oof. What a read! I really loved this book. Stephen Kind is such an amazing story teller. And so visual. He makes you hear and see things, and (unfortunately) to smell them too. I did not see any of the twists coming, and when last did that happen? Usually you can plot twists come trudging up over the horizon and by the time you reach them you can greet them by the hand like old friends.
This story is told from the point of view of Paul Edgecomb, a guard at the Death Row at Cold Mountain Penitentiary. His life seems to be ticking over in a fairly orderly way until the arrival of John Coffey. Very large, very black, covered with scars and accused of a horrific crime. And yet even before he knows anything about him, Paul finds himself shaking hands with John Coffey. A thing he has never done with a death row prisoner before.
Since this is Stephen King, you probably already know that things get pretty grim. You learn a lot more about the electric chair than you really need to know. But wow! What a book. A great story that tears you right along with it.
I did find the Christ symbolism a little over the top at times, but you know what? It made sense as well. Fantastic book.
''This happened in 1932, when the state penitentiary was still at Cold Mountain. And the electric chair was there, too, of course.''
One of my favorite King stories
