The Next Stephen King Book

Publishers Weekly reported yesterday that the next Stephen King book will be titled 11/22/63.  Those who recognize the date will remember that this is when John F. Kennedy found himself on the business end of a bullet, and that is what the novel (at around 1,000 pages) is about.  A man goes back in time to prevent the assassination of one of America's most beloved presidents.

Being a King fan, though one who admits his latest works are not always the best, and a fan of political assassinations, one would think I've got mixed feelings on this one.  The way I see it, though, a good story is a good story and with King behind the wheel this will be pretty interesting at the very least.  People can say what they want about King, but he sells books and knows how to tell a story.  Only one of those is really important for the art of writing, however.

King is no stranger to epics.  It and The Stand are both literary workouts, as is Insomnia.  While It started to lose my interest toward the end, the other books worked and I think part of that had to do with their length.  King writes characters you care about, and if you only get 400 pages, it's fine, but you usually end up wanting much, much more.  11/22/63 seems like it could deliver.

The book is set to be released 11/8/11.  I think the obvious date should've been used, but the beginning of November works out just as well.  Will it be any good?  I have no clue.  I most likely won't be getting a review copy.  I will be buying it at some point, however, and not on an eReader.  I want to hold that one.  And I'm sure I won't be the only one.