BLOCKADE BILLY is a short tale. Coming in at 144 pages it is a quick read to say the least. It is also beautifully crafted, exceptionally told and some of Kings best work in recent memory.
I have been a fan of King's work well, pretty much forever and I've read stuff I consider to be classic and other tales that just weren't my cup of tea and every once in a while you get one that is just special. Such is BLOCKADE BILLY.
Every true King fan is aware of his love for baseball, particularly Red Sox baseball but this story has nothing to do with the Sox but it has everything to do with baseball.
BLOCKADE BILLY tells the tale of Billy Blakely the only player to ever play the game that got totally wiped off the face of the game.
The story is told to King who in turn relates it to us. King is interviewing George" Granny" Grantham, he was the third base coach of the New Jersey Titans he played with Blockade Billy. Blockade earned his name for the way he, as catcher, guarded home plate. No one got past him, hence the BLOCKADE moniker.
Everyone knew Billy was a little "off". He talks to himself in the third person and repeats everything that is said to him but damn, can the guy play ball. He hits just about everything thrown at him and as mentioned before, no one gets past him when he guards home plate.
As you may have guessed, there is of course a dark twist, only one that KING could muster up. Don't want to spoil it for you but lets just leave it at Billy isn't exactly what he claims to be.
I really enjoyed this short story, one of Kings best in a while actually and I really enjoyed the presentation by Cemetery Dance. The book is wonderfully illustrated and it comes with a baseball card for Billy Blakely.
A great little package for a great little story. King is a master and this release only further solidifies his claim.
BLOCKADE BILLY is available now over at the CEMETERY DANCE website or a mass market version is available over at AMAZON.
