The City

Would you listen to The City again? Why?

I hesitated to buy this book because Koontz has shall we say, "lost his touch" in some of his latest books. But hey, it's Koontz and I have to try because maybe I'll find the magic of Watcher's, or Strangers, and not the boredom of Darkest Night of the Year. In the city, I found it. This wasn't really a horror story as much as it is a story of surviving adversity. The supernatural is subtle but still drives the story. I really loved all of the characters and found myself whispering, "Don't let anything happen to this one." frequently throughout; I just had to know what happened next. The narrator portrayed each person clearly so that you always new who was speaking. The ending was perfect for the story. I loved this book.

It's very difficult for me to pin point why I enjoy Koontz's writing so much, but I thoroughly enjoy every book of his that I have read. It's the way he turns a phrase, and seven words are actually better than one word in his writing. He takes simple thoughts and makes them sound profound. He makes me think with just the simplest statements. For example, in THE CITY, he says numerous times, "no matter what happens, everything will be all right in the end.". For most people's belief systems, this is very true, but I never thought of it in such a straight forward way.

THE CITY is basically the coming of age story of a young African American boy, Jonah Kirk, born in the late 40's. He tells his life story around the events of the day. He's a musical prodigy from a musical family. Though his father had left the family when Jonah was very young, circumstances happen where his father's actions actually have a profound affect on Jonah's life.

It's difficult to say any more about this story without giving spoilers, so I'll just say that Koontz still remains one of my favorite authors and I think that it's definitely worth any serious reader's time to enjoy the style and stories of Koontz. I listened to this on Audible which I believe enhanced this story because it seemed as though Jonah was actually talking about his own life.