[The Shining] has flaws, some minor and some serious….

But when all's said, the novel works! It makes one tremble in anticipation of the day when King gets it all together and writes a 'perfect' book…. King's style … is his most obvious fault. It's all good writing, it's all pertinent, but it goes on and on…. Setting a realistic scene and creating believably complex characters are laudable traits, but King seriously overdoes it.

King builds his mood slowly, at first establishing the idyllic setting of the peaceful old Overlook…. Minor ominous incidents occur at intervals between lengthy flashbacks to Jack's and Wendy's youth, showing the childhoods that molded their personalities. Gradually the story stabilizes in the present as the hallucinations become more vicious, and the Torrances are increasingly hard-pressed to rationalize them as imaginary….

King continues to add … detail, building upon minor incidents, filling in a mosaic of...