Insomnia and Pancakes

Insomnia came out in 1994 and I was a sophomore in high school. This book was my first hardback, just released purchase, kind of a milestone for me. I would pack this 700+ page hardback into my school bag and lug it around all day in the hopes that there would be a break and I could read for a bit. Insomnia is a huge and heavy book.

It must have been spring, or maybe fall, all I remember is that it was a chilly and I had long sleeves on. I decided that I was going to ditch school that day, probably because I just needed/wanted a break. School was just tedious. I got up in the morning like I was going to school, got off the bus at the appropriate stop, but instead of walking to school I went to the Whataburger just down the road. I ordered pancakes and sat there reading for an hour or more. After I was assured that my parents were entrenched in work, I left and got up to whatever mischief I was into at the time. Or, maybe I just went home and read some more. That is just the kind of teen I was.

As for the story, I LOVED it. King does not often write from the perspective of the aging and Insomnia deals with being old and dying. As you might have guess, I am a bit obsessed with death and dying. It is a subject that we don't talk about in our society very much, but we do deal with it (sort of) through the horror genre. All I remember from this story, is that the main character could see cords or columns of light coming from the tops of peoples' heads and things that could sever them, thus killing the individual. Plus, he had insomnia.

Happy reading!