The audiobook
"Drunken Fireworks" by Stephen King (Audioworks/Simon and Schuster, two CDs, running time approx. 1.5 hours, $14.99)
Stephen King recently published his novel “Finders Keepers.” This immensely productive author puts out a lot of books. It is noteworthy that he also just issued another story called “Drunken Fireworks,” and that it is only available as an audiobook.
Audiobooks generate a billion dollars in annual sales-they remain one of the bright spots in publishing. Once you get into listening to audiobooks you may never go back to manually flipping the pages. Audiobooks are very convenient; you can listen to books being read to you while you cook, clean the house, walk the dog, shower, or during your commute. They can provide high quality multi-tasking ability.
There is one catch however; the person performing the story must be a captivating reader. There are some really gifted ones who can be so entertaining that I might consider listening to recordings of some of them reading the phone book. Alright, that is a mild exaggeration but it can also be carried in the opposite direction; there are some compelling books that suffered as audiobooks because the readers they picked for them were not actually up to the task.
One current trend is the audiobook only release. Some writers are being commissioned to write books that will only be made available as sound recordings. King’s “Drunken Fireworks” is an example of this phenomenon. It is also a perfect story for Independence Day.
As this short story opens Alden McCausland is giving a statement to the police on the morning of July 5, 2015. He is describing some dramatic events which have transpired on Lake Abenaki in Maine. Alden and his mother have been living there in a small cabin. They are what they call “accident rich,” their good fortune derived from a winning lottery ticket and some insurance money.
Alden and his mother are drinking buddies. They spend their summer evenings sitting together on their dock imbibing potent potables. Across the way on the other side of the lake the Massimo family have their summer place, Twelve Pines Camp, a mansion with all the amenities.
This audiobook is performed by Tim Sample-his Maine accent is truly a thing of beauty. Within the first ten minutes of the story you’ll know where this one is going so I don’t think it spoils anything to reveal that “Drunken Fireworks” is in Alden’s words to the police the story of “the great 4th of July arms race.”
Alden explains that a few years ago they began to compete with the Massimos across the lake to see who could put on the most impressive display of fireworks on the 4th. The Massimos always seem to outdo Alden and his mom and each year after they do one of the Massimo boys will blow on a trumpet in triumph. The trumpet is particularly galling to Alden’s mom.
Things escalate. On July 4, 2015, the competition becomes overheated. King relates the story with magnificent humor. There’s a clever twist at the end. Tim Sample’s reading is perfectly delightful. His rendition of Alden’s mom’s voice is priceless.
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