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In the St. James Guide
to Horror, Ghost & Gothic Writers, Gary Westfahl predicts
that "King has already earned himself a place in the history
of literature... At the very least, he will enjoy the status
of a latter-day Anthony Trollope, an author respected for
his popularity and social commentary... More likely, he will
be enshrined as the Charles Dickens of the late 20th
century, the writer who perfectly reflected, encapsulated,
and expressed the characteristic concerns of his era."
If any of King's novels exemplifies his skill at portraying
the concerns of his generation, it's The Dead Zone (1979).
Although it contains a horrific subplot about a serial
killer, it isn't strictly a horror novel. It's the story of
an unassuming high school teacher, an Everyman, who suffers
a gap in time -- like a Rip Van Winkle who blacks out during
the years 1970-75 -- and thus becomes acutely conscious of
the way that American society is rapidly changing. He wakes
up as well with a gap in his brain, the "dead zone" of the
title. The zone gives him crippling headaches, but also
grants him second sight, a talent he doesn't want and is
reluctant to use. The crux of the novel concerns whether he
will use that talent to alter the course of history. The
Dead Zone is a tight, well-crafted book. When asked in 1983
which of his novels so far was "the best," Stephen King
answered, "The one that I think works the best is Dead Zone.
It's the one that [has] the most story."
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