The Box Audiobook By Richard Matheson cover art

The Box

Uncanny Stories

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The Box

By: Richard Matheson
Narrated by: Grover Gardner
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What if you were told that you could make a fortune just by pushing a button on a box? But pressing this button will simultaneously cause the death of another human being somewhere in the world . . . someone you don't know. Would you still push the button?

"Button, Button," Richard Matheson's chilling tale of greed and temptation, is now the basis of The Box, the new film from the director of Donnie Darko. In addition, this outstanding collection also contains many other unforgettable stories by Matheson, the award-winning author of I Am Legend and What Dreams May Come.

"The inventive plots and spare but convincing portraits of ordinary men and women caught up in forces beyond their control demonstrate why Stephen King has called Matheson his most significant influence."

 Anthologies & Short Stories Fantasy Genre Fiction Movie, TV & Video Game Tie-Ins Short Stories Horror Anthologies

Critic reviews

“Some of these tales are just plain weird and require an experienced reader who knows when to insert humor and when to ramp up the horror. Grover Gardner does just that, holding listeners in thrall as he brings to life the quirky characters populating the often squirmy plotlines.” —Library Journal, Starred Review

“The twelve stories rapidly fall upon each other and hold the reader in pleasant suspense throughout. Grover Gardner, with an almost incredible range of completely convincing accented and gendered voices, performs the stories to a tee.” —Sound Commentary

“Grover Gardner, an audio-voice stalwart, does a fine job of posing...Mathesonian moral dilemmas.” —Winston-Salem Journal

“His stories not only entertain, but touch the mind and heart.” —Dean Koontz

“Perhaps no other author living is as responsible for chilling a generation with tantalizing nightmare visions.” —The New York Times

“Richard Matheson is one of the great names in American terror fiction.” —The Philadelphia Inquirer

“Matheson is the master of paranoia--pitting a single man against unknown horrors and examining his every slow twist in the wind.” —San Jose Mercury News
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I was in a hurry when I downloaded this, and failed to take note that "The Box" is just one of the short stories. But, it's a little gem. The rest are just OK. It would pass the time in the car or train. Don't let me scare you away from it, just don't expect fine horror literature. Think of it as a lesser version of Twilight Zone.

Is that all there is? Not bad, but not great!

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I was slightly disappointed that this was not the complete book to go with the movie.

This does contain a small exerpt of "The Box" but it also has other stories within as well. The other stories weren't bad, they just left you wanting more.

Slightly disappointed

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The title speaks for itself. Expecting a collection of interestingly fanciful and escapist Richard Matheson stories, I was a little disappointed by the rest of the volume. But if you like Richard Matheson's style, by all means, give it a listen.

Title Story Great, The Rest, Just Okay

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