I read this collection for the first time when I was probably far too young to actually be reading it (Stephen King Before the Age of 10 Xennial Gang rise up?) and spent the last...long while reading it aloud to my 14y/o before bed. The kid thinks maybe Night Shift was a stronger collection overall, but this one had their favourite stories.

Which were:

"The Jaunt' - did something I've never done before and gave myself goosebumps while reading aloud. 

"Paranoid: a Chant" - the kid got v excited at Stephen King writing poetry, but then was super disappointed by "For Owen" later in the book. 

"Word Processor of the Gods" - they hated the selfishness of the narrator and the way he talked about his family, and hope that maybe he didn't get his HEA after all. 

"Nona" - we finished this one with them pacing back and forth in the living room, wringing their hands and saying "what. was. that." over and over. 

"Survivor Type" - had to pause while reading this one bc the description of a healing itch was so visceral it made them light-headed; offered to skip, they said no. 10000% my child. 

"Gramma" - read this one over a few nights, and they almost had me skip it bc they weren't super into it at the beginning, but sat there shaking their head saying "WOW" repeatedly at the end.