02 January 2013

Review: UR by Stephen King

UR by Stephen King book cover
UR is a novella by Stephen King and was released strictly as an e-book in 2009.  It has never been published as a paperback, although it was released as an audiobook a year after publication.

As you might be able to tell by the front cover, UR is about e-readers, or a pink Kindle in particular. With the stinging words of his ex-girlfriend in his ears: "why can't you just read off the computer like the rest of us?" Wesley decides to leave the comfort zone of paper and books and enter the world of e-readers.

He orders a Kindle through Amazon and is surprised when he receives a pink one through the mail, when Kindles are usually white. However when he discovers additional works by notable authors that can't possibly exist - other than in an alternate universe - he is shocked.  He also finds that he can access newspapers from the future and the past at a cost.  Wesley peeks into the past but also learns there will be an accident in a few days and sets out to try and stop it.

UR is an interesting concept, and I loved the idea of discovering additional works from countless well-known authors, written in multiple universes where they had lived longer or been more prolific.  It also makes me smile in appreciation of King's mastery to write a novella about an e-reader and never have it published in paperback.  What a legend!

However the second half of the novella was a little reminiscent of the TV show Early Edition. All in all, an entertaining and easy read.

My rating = ***

Carpe Librum!

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