I've always shied away from King--not because of the horror, but because of how long the books can be. So this one--a novella at best, really hits home for me.

In an odd way, reading it made me think of it as kind of a secular gospel. One man telling of the inspiring and life-changing accounts of a man who has an almost supernatural belief in hope.

Comparisons to the epic film are inevitable. The film does a much better job at showing the passage of time (I'm not sure King should've skipped around in the narrative). Like great adaptations it takes out silly things (the Native American cellmate of Andy), combines some characters (the multiple Wardens), and expands on a theme (the belief in hope in a bleak setting). The Brooks story, a mere page here, is given much better treatment in the film. And I'm not sure if some of the technical descriptions (like construction of the prison) were needed.

Still, it's short, very inspiring, and packs a great emotional punch. Highly recommended.

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I am not a fan of prison stories and this was not what I was expecting after seeing Stephen King on the cover, but this was still a good novella. I will likely read the other three stories from Different Seasons eventually.

The best element in this novella is the character development. Even though the story is told from the perspective of Red, the changes in Andy are still very well written.

I think this is a good story for people wanting to read Stephen King with less gore. ( )

Well for me, this book was a mixed bag. We had to read the second short story in it (The Apt Pupil) for bookclub, but I also chose to read the first (Rita Heyworth & the Shawshank Redemption) for personal interest.

Shawshank I really enjoyed. Written in a unique manner it seemed to place you in the prision where it took place, while still keeping a distance from the nastier aspects without ignoring them. Everything bad you've heard that happens in prisons, basically happens in this book, but it isn't dwelt upon to the exclusion of the plot, which is engaging and teasingly told. The main to be said about this story is that, strangely, it really left me at the end with a great sense of hope.

Pupil, on the other hand, I did not enjoy. It was a struggle to read parts, and I didn't find the storyline at all appealing. The main character is immediately dislikable, and really quite annoying. I imagine this is kind of the point, but it did not make me want to read on. Very psychological, and heavily nazi based; if this isn't your cup of tea, skip this story. ( )

Banker Andy Dufresne is wrongly convicted of murdering his unfaithful wife and her lover and sent to Shawshank State Prison in Maine. While imprisoned he meets Red, a man who can work the system to obtain contraband. Red and Andy become friends. Andy puts into action a long-term plan to shortcut his sentence.

Once Andy is sent to prison, some pretty horrible things happen to him. I did not care much for reading this part, but it was necessary to establish him as a sympathetic character. The story is narrated by Red, and he brings the reader along through the difficulties of prison life.

I picked up this book to remind myself of it since I enjoyed the film so much and had read the book long ago. There are a few segments that have not aged well, but overall, I very much enjoyed it. It is one of those enduring storylines where a wrong is ultimately righted and it feels very satisfying.
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Usually, I'm struggling with trying to review my favorite books, because apart from expressions like 'awesome', 'mind-blowing' or 'must-read', not too much can be said about stories like these. Perhaps this is one of the reasons why I tend to enjoy writing snarky reviews of books I disliked way more than trying to compose a decent review on a story I loved and want everyone else to read as well.

"Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption" is one of them. I have to admit, I am a huge fan of prison stories and the way they are able to explore what imprisonment and isolation from society can do to a human's mind. Stephen King managed to explore this in such a perfect way, allowing hope and despair to flow into his words simultaneously. I've read many other reviews emphasizing it, and I can only sign what they are writing: this is not only a story about life in prison (which, by the way, is depicted in a very realistic way - not that I would be able to judge how life in prison really feels like, but at least King managed to convince me this is how it would feel like to be imprisoned for more than thirty years), but also a story about hope. And it is perfectly done. Not many stories before have been able to nearly reduce me to tears at the ending, but "Shawshank Redemption" is one of them.

It's no long story and, thus, will not take much time to read, so I can highly recommend giving it a try. Now, watching the movie version with Morgan Freeman and Tim Robbins will gain a high place on my to-do-list (right beneath reading more Stephen King novels), as nearly everybody seems to have watched this movie - and loved it - except for me. ( )