s.penkevich's Reviews > Pet Sematary
Pet Sematary
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![6431467](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1713573726p2/6431467.jpg)
‘Sometimes dead is better.’
One of King’s greatest strengths is that his best scares are less the monsters and more the way he subtly seeds horror in the mundanities of everyday life. Pet Sematary, a novel dripping with dread, spooks the reader by making death an antagonist we think we could overcome but unleash hell in the process. Yet it is through transforming grief and parental anxieties into tales of terror that truly frightens. I remember reading this for the first time at 14, bundled in bed against the autumn chills tapping at my window when the final scene rises up to deliver a scare that occurs on a sunny midday while outdoors and suddenly even terror could loom even in idyllic landscapes. That haunted me for years, and is a large reason why King is such a gem that frightens through he ages: he hits you where you feel safe and he hits you riding emotions that we all inevitably feel. Pet Sematary is a now-classic horror novel that examines grief and male fragility and will have you shrieking in both fright and fun.
‘I don’t think children ever forget the lies their parents tell them.’
Everyone has likely said anything there is to be said about this book, but here I go anyway. This is a book that really sticks with you and I suspect it is because it dives into the depths of emotions we all have but don’t display openly, especially men in American culture that are couched into seeing overt displays of emotion as a flaw, especially one’s like fear, grief and sadness that King probes here. ‘The soil of a man’s heart is stonier,’ Jud tells our protagonist, Louis Creed, and this sort of myth making about masculinity has caused many to suffer in silence. The men, sure, but more so those closest to them that are harmed and haunted by their inability to productively process emotion which often turns rather toxic. Much of the trauma in this novel comes from Louis attempting to cover up and push death aside, first with the cat and later with the child, as an attempt to avoid dealing with death. When Winston Churchill, or Church as he is called, is killed, Louis and Jud go beyond the local cemetery to a place rumored to bring back the dead…but ‘the barrier was not meant to be crossed,’ and dark things are ahead.
But let's pause on the death of Church for a moment (names like Church and the last name Creed definitely imply some religious aspects) because as children our first brush with death usually comes from our pets. I mean, basically the whole reason you get a fish so your parents can explain death to you. The intentional misspelling of the title ‘Sematary,’ comes from the misspelling of the little animal cemetery in the woods near the Creed house, which is riddled with adorable misspellings in children’s handwriting on the numerous tombstones. It is a great example of combining death with the coziness of childhood, reminding us all that it is a fact of life—a sad one—and something we inevitably have to confront. Instead of dealing with his daughter’s grief and stepping up as a parent, Louis opts to push death and grief aside for a quick fix, but as we soon learn, trauma forestalled ferments into something far more sinister…
When Louis asks his neighbor if anyone has ever attempted this with a human, Jud retorts ‘NO! Whoever would!? King being King, we know we will soon learn the truth and that it is more terrifying than we can imagine. Which is another aspect I love about him, he will drop into backstory that paints horror with a palette of nostalgia and small town dynamics, making even the quaintest little village a breeding ground of fear. King is, of course, playing on parent’s greatest fears with this novel, one he nearly confronted himself when a semi almost ran over his own child and inspired this novel. Louis’ inability to properly grieve, and thinking he can have a magical fix becomes his own undoing.
‘Rachel, is that you? I’ve been waiting for you, Rachel. And now I’m going to twist your back like mine, so you’ll never get out of bed again…’
The side-story of Zelda, Rachel Creed’s sister whom she had to care for as a child despite being horrified by her condition suffering from spinal meningitis, is another example of the paternal figure pushing aside problems. Here the trauma is dumped into the lap of his youngest daughter (as Nocturnalux pointed out, this is one of King's many nods to The Haunting of Hill House), an issue that doesn’t do anything to help the bad relationship between Louis and his father-in-law. It wound’s his masculinity all the more when a man he doesn’t respect calls his own abilities as a “man” into question at the funeral.
Without a strong male figure in his life that he respects—or respects him—Louis finds Jud to be a surrogate father, ‘the man who should have been his father.’ I can’t think of Jud without picturing Fred Gwynne in the role of the 1989 film and hearing his voice saying “it’s that damn road there.” I just want that guy’s voice to be my voicemail message, it’s so good. In Jud he sees the representation of the American Dream, older married couple still in love, retired and passing down his kindness and knowledge. Except Jud knows dark things. And Jud will later be haunted by his dead wife and her claiming to have slept with many man in their marital bed is a well-executed horror moment for the novel’s themes because it is something that threatens his sense of masculinity the most. I mean, I don’t really know if King was going out to critique toxic masculinity (doubtful actually, as the wife isn't a very well-done character and mostly serves the characters ego and...services him in a scene that certainly opened my eyes at 14 and includes a line about things she learned as a girl scout...uhhhh) but it is so much a part of American culture that this critique becomes natural when looking for a way to discomfort men.
This is a wildly uncomfortable novel in many ways, and that is what makes it truly stick. King strikes hard and turning the grief of a lost child into a horror story of demonic resurrection is pretty damn effective. Pet Sematary lives on as a classic—it has even had multiple film adaptations—and is a delightfully good frightfest.
3.5/5
‘The most terrifying question of all may be just how much horror the human mind can stand and still maintain a wakeful, staring, unrelenting sanity.’
One of King’s greatest strengths is that his best scares are less the monsters and more the way he subtly seeds horror in the mundanities of everyday life. Pet Sematary, a novel dripping with dread, spooks the reader by making death an antagonist we think we could overcome but unleash hell in the process. Yet it is through transforming grief and parental anxieties into tales of terror that truly frightens. I remember reading this for the first time at 14, bundled in bed against the autumn chills tapping at my window when the final scene rises up to deliver a scare that occurs on a sunny midday while outdoors and suddenly even terror could loom even in idyllic landscapes. That haunted me for years, and is a large reason why King is such a gem that frightens through he ages: he hits you where you feel safe and he hits you riding emotions that we all inevitably feel. Pet Sematary is a now-classic horror novel that examines grief and male fragility and will have you shrieking in both fright and fun.
‘I don’t think children ever forget the lies their parents tell them.’
Everyone has likely said anything there is to be said about this book, but here I go anyway. This is a book that really sticks with you and I suspect it is because it dives into the depths of emotions we all have but don’t display openly, especially men in American culture that are couched into seeing overt displays of emotion as a flaw, especially one’s like fear, grief and sadness that King probes here. ‘The soil of a man’s heart is stonier,’ Jud tells our protagonist, Louis Creed, and this sort of myth making about masculinity has caused many to suffer in silence. The men, sure, but more so those closest to them that are harmed and haunted by their inability to productively process emotion which often turns rather toxic. Much of the trauma in this novel comes from Louis attempting to cover up and push death aside, first with the cat and later with the child, as an attempt to avoid dealing with death. When Winston Churchill, or Church as he is called, is killed, Louis and Jud go beyond the local cemetery to a place rumored to bring back the dead…but ‘the barrier was not meant to be crossed,’ and dark things are ahead.
But let's pause on the death of Church for a moment (names like Church and the last name Creed definitely imply some religious aspects) because as children our first brush with death usually comes from our pets. I mean, basically the whole reason you get a fish so your parents can explain death to you. The intentional misspelling of the title ‘Sematary,’ comes from the misspelling of the little animal cemetery in the woods near the Creed house, which is riddled with adorable misspellings in children’s handwriting on the numerous tombstones. It is a great example of combining death with the coziness of childhood, reminding us all that it is a fact of life—a sad one—and something we inevitably have to confront. Instead of dealing with his daughter’s grief and stepping up as a parent, Louis opts to push death and grief aside for a quick fix, but as we soon learn, trauma forestalled ferments into something far more sinister…
When Louis asks his neighbor if anyone has ever attempted this with a human, Jud retorts ‘NO! Whoever would!? King being King, we know we will soon learn the truth and that it is more terrifying than we can imagine. Which is another aspect I love about him, he will drop into backstory that paints horror with a palette of nostalgia and small town dynamics, making even the quaintest little village a breeding ground of fear. King is, of course, playing on parent’s greatest fears with this novel, one he nearly confronted himself when a semi almost ran over his own child and inspired this novel. Louis’ inability to properly grieve, and thinking he can have a magical fix becomes his own undoing.
‘Rachel, is that you? I’ve been waiting for you, Rachel. And now I’m going to twist your back like mine, so you’ll never get out of bed again…’
The side-story of Zelda, Rachel Creed’s sister whom she had to care for as a child despite being horrified by her condition suffering from spinal meningitis, is another example of the paternal figure pushing aside problems. Here the trauma is dumped into the lap of his youngest daughter (as Nocturnalux pointed out, this is one of King's many nods to The Haunting of Hill House), an issue that doesn’t do anything to help the bad relationship between Louis and his father-in-law. It wound’s his masculinity all the more when a man he doesn’t respect calls his own abilities as a “man” into question at the funeral.
Without a strong male figure in his life that he respects—or respects him—Louis finds Jud to be a surrogate father, ‘the man who should have been his father.’ I can’t think of Jud without picturing Fred Gwynne in the role of the 1989 film and hearing his voice saying “it’s that damn road there.” I just want that guy’s voice to be my voicemail message, it’s so good. In Jud he sees the representation of the American Dream, older married couple still in love, retired and passing down his kindness and knowledge. Except Jud knows dark things. And Jud will later be haunted by his dead wife and her claiming to have slept with many man in their marital bed is a well-executed horror moment for the novel’s themes because it is something that threatens his sense of masculinity the most. I mean, I don’t really know if King was going out to critique toxic masculinity (doubtful actually, as the wife isn't a very well-done character and mostly serves the characters ego and...services him in a scene that certainly opened my eyes at 14 and includes a line about things she learned as a girl scout...uhhhh) but it is so much a part of American culture that this critique becomes natural when looking for a way to discomfort men.
This is a wildly uncomfortable novel in many ways, and that is what makes it truly stick. King strikes hard and turning the grief of a lost child into a horror story of demonic resurrection is pretty damn effective. Pet Sematary lives on as a classic—it has even had multiple film adaptations—and is a delightfully good frightfest.
3.5/5
‘The most terrifying question of all may be just how much horror the human mind can stand and still maintain a wakeful, staring, unrelenting sanity.’
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Reading Progress
Finished Reading
Finished Reading
(Paperback Edition)
September 24, 2011
– Shelved
(Paperback Edition)
December 5, 2013
– Shelved
October 24, 2022
– Shelved as:
horror
October 24, 2022
– Shelved as:
spooky
October 24, 2022
– Shelved as:
cats
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Allison
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![s.penkevich](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1713573726p1/6431467.jpg)
Thank you so much! Yea, he really knows how to deliver. I suspect decades from now people will look to him as defining a lot of ideas about horror.
![Theo Logos](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1642070763p1/9793933.jpg)
![Dona](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1717123760p1/101859510.jpg)
![s.penkevich](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1713573726p1/6431467.jpg)
It’s definitely worth the read! I hope you enjoy!
![s.penkevich](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1713573726p1/6431467.jpg)
Yeaaa that is fair, it is pretty rough going. I first read it when like…all of it was emotionally pretty foreign to me so the second time it was like damn I don’t want to think about all that this much but it’s super effective. But yea, I suppose in terms of horror it really hits its target
![s.penkevich](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1713573726p1/6431467.jpg)
Thank you so much! Yea that seems to be a key to his stuff, sort of like how in Salems Lot the general vibe of the town is the scariest part haha. It’s totally worth it, but it is very heavy. May i ask what the other one is?
![Dona](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1717123760p1/101859510.jpg)
![s.penkevich](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1713573726p1/6431467.jpg)
Oh I still need to read that one so good to know! Thank you! Ah yes, that makes sense. Part of the reason Cujo has never had much appeal to me either.
![Yasi Moghaddam](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1710634487p1/148268044.jpg)
![s.penkevich](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1713573726p1/6431467.jpg)
Thank you so much! This book is so good. Oh good to know, I keep meaning to watch that so now I definitely will try to do so this week! Thanks again.
![Nocturnalux](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1708076932p1/18314688.jpg)
I wonder, in hindsight, if Zelda's subplot- which I think is the most terrifying thing in the whole book- was not inspired by The Haunting of Hill House? There too, a female lead suffered intensely over a relative who was disabled- the mother, in this case- and an emotionally disturbing relationship was forged, made out of dependence, loathing and love.
![s.penkevich](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1713573726p1/6431467.jpg)
I wonder, in hindsight, if Zelda's subplot- which I think is the most terrifying thing in t..."
I am GLAD you mention that! We just read Haunting of Hill House for my bookclub and at the meeting last night were pointing out how frequently King nods to it in all his books and none of us made that connection to this but I can totally see it now (I think he cites Hill House as a favorite). But yea, I would guess you are spot on there.
![Nocturnalux](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1708076932p1/18314688.jpg)
How cool!
The most obvious connection is probably The Shining, it has been a while since I've read it, though.
I learned how to read English with Stephen King so I have a soft spot for him, even now.
![s.penkevich](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1713573726p1/6431467.jpg)
Yea, that's the one we kept coming back to the most. He did a tv miniseries called Rose Red back in the early 2000s that was basically a retelling of Hill House but with more people and was more ghosts and deaths. It was pretty cool if I remember?
And that is great. Yea, he's not like a favorite but I definitely have a big soft spot for him. He can certainly tell a story, and his book on writing is honestly one of my favorites of that sort.
![Nocturnalux](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1708076932p1/18314688.jpg)
I remember that TV series, didn't care for it myself. But then again I always hate it when King gets involved in anything related to movies or television. It's well known that he hated Kubrik's take on The Shining but not everyone is aware that King was heavily involved in a television series that adapts the book...and it is absolutely awful.
King is another author who really struggles to write convincing women.
I've read almost of all of his older books but was deeply disappointed with the conclusion of The Dark Tower series. Haven't read any of his new stuff, for all I know he has improved- then again, it's doubtful- and doubt I ever will bother.
![s.penkevich](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1713573726p1/6431467.jpg)
Oh I did not realize he did a tv series of that. Thanks for the heads up that it is not good haha. But yea, he struggles with endings and the whole “it’s the journey not the destination” ending of Dark Tower was not satisfying after allllll of that. Still just kind of charmed by him anyways though I’m never compelled to pick up anything he’s been putting out.
![s.penkevich](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1713573726p1/6431467.jpg)
Thanks! I decided to really lean into it this year haha, its been fun!
![s.penkevich](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1713573726p1/6431467.jpg)
Inspired by you indeed! I should probably revisit him more, I burned through a bunch in high school and haven't since then. Still have yet to read Salems Lot and I feel that is a must.
![Kenny](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1472073986p1/1642452.jpg)
![s.penkevich](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1713573726p1/6431467.jpg)
Oh sweet, I should check that out. I need to find my old copies of his short stories, always really loved those too.
![Kenny](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1472073986p1/1642452.jpg)
![s.penkevich](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1713573726p1/6431467.jpg)
Yea, that is really impressive. He wrote in the intro to some short story collection that he always likes putting out short stories because it means there will be a short story collection appearing on the bestseller list and help to normalize people reading short stories. I notice people still tend to shy away from them but I always really loved that because I LOVE collections. So thats cool.
Oh sweet, yeah I sort of want to check that out. I had a bookclub buddy tell me his last one about the retired hitman was surprisingly amazing too. Maybe I should give him another go.
![Kenny](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1472073986p1/1642452.jpg)
Oh sweet, yeah I sort of want to check that out. I had a bookclub buddy tell me his last one about the retired hitman was surprisingly amazing too. Maybe I should give him another go."
I highly recommend Joyland King's favorite book is a collection of short stories, The Golden Argosy: A Collection of the Most Celebrated Short Stories in the English Language. King says it was by reading this book he learned how to write. I tracked it down several years ago, and it is an amazing collection.
![s.penkevich](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1713573726p1/6431467.jpg)
OH YEA I forgot about Joyland with the awesome classic looking cover. I'll pick that up for sure. Oh sweet, good find. He's so good at the short game. And the doorstopper.
![s.penkevich](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1713573726p1/6431467.jpg)
Oooo great choice for a favorite! And thank you! I really need to go back and read more of him, especially Salems Lot.
![Nataliya](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1619377733p1/3672777.jpg)
![s.penkevich](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1713573726p1/6431467.jpg)
It was like reading a totally different book as an adult (and parent) I felt, like certain things registered that hadn’t before and other things were way more unsettling. But yea, it scared me a LOT as a kid too haha. Thanks, and I should thank you because your review of Fairy Tale was part of the reason I figured I should revisit King. Thinking about finally reading Salem’s Lot soon.
![Nataliya](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1619377733p1/3672777.jpg)
Buddy read if you do? I love that book!
![s.penkevich](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1713573726p1/6431467.jpg)
Buddy read if you do? I love that book!"
Oooo YES please! I just need to finish this McCarthy book I’m having a hard time motivating myself through and I could start whenever
![Nataliya](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1619377733p1/3672777.jpg)
Sounds good! I’m excited!"
Unless of course you want to start it in the last 2 days of Spooktober 🤔
![s.penkevich](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1713573726p1/6431467.jpg)
Sounds good! I’m excited!"
Unless of course you want to start it in the last 2 days of Spooktober 🤔"
Shoot if the bookstore was still open I’d say yes and run and get it because I have no self control haha
![Mike](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1548615999p1/7272380.jpg)
![s.penkevich](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1713573726p1/6431467.jpg)
Oh excellent, I actually plan on picking up a copy of Salem’s Lot today so I’m now more excited to read it with that in mind! It seems to be highlighting a lot of the minor themes his predecessors and influences touched upon, Hawthorne definitely had hints of that. I like the idea of trying to escape “horrors” of grief and death becoming an even larger horror. Sort of like a cautionary tale to be brave (which was the message of Coraline which I read just after this haha, I love when I start to analyze books in juxtaposition with each other).
![Mike](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1548615999p1/7272380.jpg)
It'd be interesting to read about how King is maybe thematically in conversation with other New England writers like Hawthorne, Lovecraft, Jackson.
![s.penkevich](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1713573726p1/6431467.jpg)
Excellllllllent, I was really hoping for something truly frightening haha. I always intended to read it, I think I read a bunch in a row ending with the Stand and that burnt me out on him for awhile and just somehow never went back until recently. So thank you! I’m excited to start it!
![Nocturnalux](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1708076932p1/18314688.jpg)
King has overt references to Lovecraft in his books. Off the top of my end, there's one in one of the short stories of in Nightmares and Dreamscapes, "Crouch End". And probably many others I am unaware of or have since forgotten.
![s.penkevich](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1713573726p1/6431467.jpg)
That’s cool about the Lovecraft as well, I will hunt that story down! I’ve been wanting to read his short stories again
![Nocturnalux](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1708076932p1/18314688.jpg)
![Nataliya](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1619377733p1/3672777.jpg)
Awesome!!!
![s.penkevich](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1713573726p1/6431467.jpg)
Oh yea that is a really good point. I do notice there is a lot of criticism on organized religions yet then he also has a lot of ideas on grace in his books and contrast of good and evil like in the Stand. I read a great quote from him the other day (I believe it came from an interview?) where he referred to the Bible as the ultimate horror novel haha
![s.penkevich](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1713573726p1/6431467.jpg)
Awesome!!!"
I have acquired Salems Lot! Got a cheap 90s mass market copy for added nostalgia vibes