Stephen King’s Insomnia

Stephen King’s Insomnia was first published in 1994 and, like King’s other novels, is set in the state of Maine and the fictional city of Derry. The genre of this book is not traditional horror but more of a supernatural or science fiction thriller. Other aspects of the book are also somewhat unknown to normal King offerings, first of all the book is very long with over 800 pages and also the main characters are 60 and over.

Although Insomnia belongs to the supernatural or science fiction genre, King manages to address a number of important issues while continuing seamlessly with the main story of the book. Topics like abortion, domestic violence, and women’s rights are addressed in a way that doesn’t detract from the entertaining story.

The plot of Stephen King’s Insomnia is pretty slow and things don’t really pick up until at least 100 pages, but this allows King to create a cast of believable characters that the reader can empathize with throughout the novel. Ralph Roberts, who is a retiree, begins to have problems with insomnia and the condition deteriorates as he gets less and less sleep until he cannot sleep at all. Ralph begins to see things that other people cannot see, such as people’s energy fields or “auras” and alien beings he calls “little bald doctors” as a result of his appearance. Ralph also discovers that Lois Chasse, a woman he has feelings for, can also see these alternate planes of reality and alien creatures.

As in many of King’s books, one of the main themes of Insomnia is the struggle of good against evil, and in this particular case, the hero is Ralph Roberts, a retired widower and a very common and believable character facing to the Crimson King. and his followers. There are a number of very entertaining twists as King develops the plot, one in particular where Ralph is shown a part of the future and has to make a life-changing decision based on the vision, leading the reader to question individual morality versus self-preservation. . As with many of King’s novels, the ending is not all happy, however, the main protagonist dies and is accompanied by the comforting comment that Ralph can finally rest.

Stephen King’s Insomnia played a huge role in the progression of the King book series because when Ralph defeats the Crimson King and ultimately saves the life of young Patrick Danville, it sets the direction for the King’s Dark Tower series. Although the first novel in the Dark Tower series was published in 1982 and there were 3 books before Insomnia was written, Insomnia introduces the reader to the pivotal character Danville in future Dark Tower books.

Insomnia may not be a traditional Stephen King novel, its length, character composition, and story pacing are somewhat different to many of his other books, it’s certainly an enjoyable and thoroughly entertaining read.