🎡Spoiler Free Book Review🎡
•
“Some days are treasure. Not many but I think in almost every life there are a few.”
•
I originally read Joyland several years ago and liked it a great deal. I expected to have similar feelings with this reread, but was pleasantly surprised to feel so much more. It was a joy; that’s the best way I can explain it🎠
•
I’d had it rated at 4 stars and can’t fathom why. Maybe I was distracted before, or maybe I’ve become more mellow with age. Either way, I couldn’t find a flaw this time through.  Crime mystery, coming of age, love story; Joyland weaves them all together into a masterpiece full of quotable lines, and without going over 300 pages. It’s the perfect example of why Stephen King isn’t ‘just a horror writer’📝
•
Devin Jones is such a likable protagonist it’s easy to root for him, but the secondary characters are wonderful too; Easterbrook, Pops, Erin, Tom, Annie, and especially Mike🦽🪁
•
As usual, King creates not just a story, but a world. Usually that’s a town, but in this case, it’s Joyland. I could feel the sun reflecting from the blacktop, smell the cotton candy, and hear all the sounds of the Midway. Occasionally, King gives the worlds he creates their own language, and he did that here. Learning the Talk is one of my favorite parts of this book. If you wanna buy some fun, Joyland’s selling it. C’mon in and take a ride, to where the air is fair, if you dare🎢
•
Update for 3rd read: I love it as much as last time and Joyland is firmly in my top ten King books💛