12-22-63

I was in Study Hall my sophomore year of high school when the High School principal came in and announced, "They shot Kennedy". It was such a shock and before long they were broadcasting the radio account over the intercom. That weekend many events including football games were cancelled and some movie theaters closed.

This event started my journey into how the country worked. This event brought out every one's true colors. The bigots spoke up. Confusion ruled. My folks were Republicans and that was a stretch. There were probably only 5 Republicans in our town and this event would lay the ground work for many more. In 1963 ALL office holders were Democrats. Soon Belmon would become the first Republican Governor but LBJ created the Republicans. It has been said that if JFK had lived, LBJ (a master of Congress) would have been hampered by being VP in his promotion of Civil Rights. The Civil Rights movement converted the South and Southwest from Democrat to Republican. I watched George Wallace and Barry Goldwater start changing opinions.

Stephen King's new novel captures the time as well as any. His small details of local color. It is fiction for sure, but as someone that was there, it was challenging story. I liked every inch of this- even the dark parts. He nailed the temperament of the public schools and the things that could not be discussed or acknowledged.

I also liked the dilemma of time travel. WHAT IF? King first did that to me when I read "Pet Cemetery" when he asked a similar question: "If you could bring a loved one back to life even though there is a chance they would be different, WOULD YOU? You see a had just gone through the loss of our daughter. Why I read that book, i don't know. It scared me to death.

This story though was very therapeutic.

This is book #3 for 2012. (I've read as many books as movies watched!)