Stephen King was born in Portland, Maine in 1947, the second son of Donald and Nellie Ruth Pillsbury King. He made his first professional short story sale in 1967 to Startling Mystery Stories. In the fall of 1973, he began teaching high school English classes at Hampden Academy, the public high school in Hampden, Maine. Writing in the evenings and on the weekends, he continued to produce short stories and to work on novels. He had to leave teaching and write full-time. He has since published over 40 books and has become one of the world's most successful writers.

The most important things are the hardest to say. They are the things you

get ashamed of, because the words diminish them-words shrink that seem

limitless when they were in your head to no more than a living size when they are brought out. But its more than that, Isn’t it? The most important things lie close to

wherever your heart is buried, like landmarks to a treasure your enemies

would love to steal away. And you make revelations that cost you dearly only to

have people look at you in a funny way , not understanding what you’ve said at all , or why you thought it was so important

that you almost cried when you were saying it. That’s the worst , I think when

a secret stays locked in within not for want of a teller but for want of a

understanding ear.

Stephen King,The Body(1982)

Gordie is the main character of this story , in the begging it seems as if a older man is telling the story, soon to find out that the man is and older more wiser Gordie. The story goes back and tells of how Gordie is surrounded by his friends and the only thing that Gordie wants is to have the attention and Love from his Father, His older brother Dennis had died in a jeep accident . Dennis was always the favorite , and once he died Gordies parents couldn’t get over it. Gordie is portrayed as the good one in the story . The one whos going off to a real school , other then his friends who are leaving to Vocational school. Gordie’s true passion is writing.

Chris is Gordies best friend and is always the leader..He doesn’t really have that big of a chance in life. His fathers a drunk, his brothers Frank and Freddy are criminals. His brother Eyeball is the towns criminal. Everybody knows Chris is gonna turn out bad. Even Chris

Teddy is a really good friend of Gordie. He is the craziest kid gordie hangs out with. From train dogging to jumping of 30 foot pine trees. Teddy does it all. When Teddy was 8 his father (who had been stricken with mental problems during world war 2) who had fits of rage held Teddy’s ear to a stove and almost burned it off. Teddy Didn’t have a good chance in life , he was lacking good sight and hearing.

Vern is the youngest of the 4 boys. His brother is in a gang with Eyeball Chambers and Ace Merril. Vern is the cautionary one, the scared one. Vern hates the outdoors. Hed rather spend the day inside waching the mickey mouse club. At the beginning of the school year he buried a quart jar of pennies under his porch. Hes been looking for those pennies for 9 months.

-Dennis( Gordies older brother)-Gordies Dad--Gordies Mom--Ray Brower--Larry Hogan--Bob Corneliel--Principle McNealy-

Four friends venture off to find the body of a missing boy named Ray Brower . The obstacles they pass bring them closer together as friends. They first start out looking for the kid for fame and fortune. But, at the end of the book they figure out that taking the body wasn’t right at all. It Kind of shows you the innocence of the fifties.

♣A Older Gordie, cries in car because of something he reads in the newspaper.

♣ The story goes back to 1960 and a younger Gordie and his friends are in the tree house.

♣ Vern runs in a tells them what he heard from his brother when he was talking about the body of Ray Brower being found by himself and Charlie Hogan.

♣Gordie goes home and packs, he daydreams about his brother.

♣The boys run off to find Ray Brower's body.

♣They dodge a train on a bridge.

♣They run through the swamp and get covered in leaches.

♣They find the body, Ace and his gang show up. Gordie shoots a gun into the air to scare Ace.

♣The boys run home through the night, they call an anonymous phone call telling where the body is.

♣At the end, You find out why Gordies older self was crying, Chris had got stabbed breaking up a fight at a Portland fast food restaurant.

♣At the end you find out that only Gordie was alive because, Chris got stabbed, Vern’s Apartment caught on fire when he was sleeping. And Teddy died in the Army.

I would Rate this book, a 10/10 because it about coming of age, I like how it talks about these 4 boys, who are completely different yet are the best of friends, it shows the way young teenage boys act but still captures the innocence of the fifties, I really enjoyed this book. I would recommend this book to boys more than girls. But if your into adventure and coming of age. This book is perfect for you.

In 1979 the body was published , in 1986 it was turned into a movie. The book was much better, it showed a better depiction of Gordie then in the movie , renamed “Stand By Me”. Id recommend the book. But if you’re a movie kind of person, this movie is also very good.

The Ballad of the Flexible Bullet

Battleground

Beachworld

Big Wheels: A Tale of the Laundry Game

The Boogeyman

The Breathing Method

Brooklyn August

Cain Rose Up