Sean writes: My partner and I have an argument about the novel “Cujo.” She thinks the idea of being trapped in a car by a dog is terrifying. I haven’t read the book, but I’m familiar with the overall scenario, and I don’t think it would be a big deal. Has Stephen King ever met a dog before? At some point it will fall asleep!
The tragedy of “Cujo” is that Cujo is a good dog who makes one bad decision (chasing a rabbit into a cave of rabid bats), loses his mind and ends up hurting the people he loves — just like you! In your blind desire to win a dumb fight, you ran to a national newspaper to madly proclaim: “I am great at literally judging a book by its cover!” When all you had to do was read “Cujo.” It’s very quick and, I think, King’s most affecting novel. You may disagree. But until then I envy your first experience of it, and I hope the ending destroys you as much as it did me, as that is what you deserve.
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