Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption

By Stephen King,

Book cover of Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption

Book description

The No. 1 bestselling author Stephen King's beloved novella, Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption - the basis for the Best Picture Academy Award-nominee The Shawshank Redemption - about an unjustly imprisoned convict who seeks a strangely satisfying revenge, is now available as a standalone book.

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Why read it?

3 authors picked Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

Much as I enjoyed the film based on this novella by Stephen King (which I now understand is a standalone book—I read it as part of a story collection long ago), I enjoyed the novella more.

Why? Because of its extraordinarily likeable narrative voice, which has caused people worldwide to find themselves rooting for its narrator. How can you not want to know what’ll happen next to someone so candid and down-to-earth—who has experienced homicide and love so intensely? Especially when he wants intimacy yet also feels threatened by it.

In fact, just after I finished reading the Shawshank novella,…

From Mark's list on gruesome murders and genuine love.

One of Stephen King’s most famous stories, I am always inspired and moved by Andy Dufresne’s refusal to accept the terms and the condition of his imprisonment.

The subtlety and sophistication of his protest and his ultimate defeat of his captors and tormentors is an important reminder of the power of persistence. But there is another message in this story that is just as powerful and that is the beauty of the friendship.

Screen goddess Rita Hayworth, who bewitched ‘40s and ‘50s moviegoers, isn't an actual character in Stephen King’s 1982 novella or in its acclaimed 1994 movie version. But Hayworth’s fatal allure becomes palpable in King’s depiction of the erotic desires she incites in prison inmates while watching her classic thriller Gilda, leading condemned man Andy Dufresne to hang a poster pinup of Hayworth in a strategic spot in his cell. These events offer beacons of hope and possible freedom to Dufresne, who insists he’s innocent of murdering his wife and her lover. Fans of the movie know that, to mark…

Beneath the Veil

By Martin Kearns,

Book cover of Beneath the Veil

Martin Kearns Author Of The Tides of Nirvana

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Why am I passionate about this?

Author Writer Theologian Reader Teacher

Martin's 3 favorite reads in 2024

What is my book about?

The Valor of Valhalla series by Martin Kearns is a pulse-pounding dark urban fantasy trilogy that fuses the raw power of Norse mythology with the grit of modern warfare. Set in a world where ancient gods and mythical creatures clash with secret military organizations and rogue heroes, the series follows a band of unseeming heroes who are bound to an ancient prophecy. As they navigate a dangerous web of deceit, sacrifice, and violent combat, they must confront not only their own demons but also the growing threat of Ragnarök—the Norse apocalypse.

At its heart, The Valor of Valhalla blends high-stakes…

Beneath the Veil

By Martin Kearns,

What is this book about?

In a battle between two ancient evils, can one naïve young man become the last hope against powerful creatures of legend?

David Dolan thinks he's already got the world figured out. But when a collapsed bridge plunges him into the icy Hudson, he's pulled deep into the deadly realm that exists between life and death. And with his earthly form trapped in a coma, he's vulnerable to the horde of demons hell-bent on his utter destruction.

Traversing the road to the afterlife, David seeks the wisdom and skills he needs to fight the demonic forces reigning havoc on his allies…


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