JUST AFTER SUNSET by Stephen King, ©2008, Scribner, $28.00 Hardcover, 367 pgs.
     
        Stephen King's newest collection spans his career from his men's magazine days with "The Cat From Hell" to a story "N." that is published here for the first time.
        The collection which starts with an introduction in which King explains how he was asked to edit Best American Stories 2007.  At the time, he hadn't written any stories in three or four years and was hoping that reading hundreds of short stories would get him back into writing them.  This book is the result.
        My favorite story of those collected here is "The Things They Left Behind," about a man who once worked for an insurance company whose offices were located in the World Trade Center.  The protagonist didn't go to work on 9/11, and now the personal items of his dead coworkers have started showing up in his apartment.
        My next favorite would be "A Very Tight Place" about a man who gets locked and trapped inside a portapottie.  In "Sunset Notes" at the end of the collection, King states "I even grossed out myself.  Well.  A little."  

        My third favorite is the ghost story  that is the lead story in the collection.  Here's what King   himself says about what I thought was one of the best stories he's written, "This probably isn't the best story in the book, but I love it very much."
        There is a lot variety here in the types of stories. There's psychological horror with tales like "The Gingerbread Girl," "Mute," and "A Very Tight Place."  Ghost stories like "Willa" and "The New York Times At Special Bargain Rates," which has my vote for best title in the book.  The newest story "N." with its monsters from outside our reality reminds me of Lovecraft's work.         All of the stories here are very well-written and worth reading, though "Stationary Bike" starts out a  bit slow for my tastes.  Highly recommended.   
  
  
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