Different Seasons (Signet)
Different Seasons include 4 collections of novellas, seasons of the year. These novellas are the most impressive, and 3 of them have become films. Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption is the first novella about hope. This is strange for the author. A critically acclaimed film was made on the basis of this novella starring Morgan Freeman and Tim Robbins.
Andy Dufrense has been sentenced for the murder of the wife and the lover. He is going to Maine´s Shawshank State Prison for imprisonment for life. He is a banker and that is why he starts to make some financial work for the personnel of prison. This work helps to have hope not only for Andy but also for Red who serves 3 life sentences.
Apt Pupil is the second novella which was also filmed by Bryan Singer, starring Ian McKellan. The story is about a boy who is obsessed with the Jewish Holocaust. He finds out a former Nazi Soldier who lives in his town.
The Body is the third novella of Different Seasons. The film Stand by Me, starring the late River Phoenix, was inspired by this novella. The Body contains the concept of companionship between childhood friends and this theme is not new for the author. The similar concept the reader may find in It and Dreamcatcher. The Body tells the story about 4 boys who have found a body of a boy about the same age. The story will make a reader to think over his/her friendship and life.
The last novella in Different Seasons is rather short but it is also very impressive. The title is Breathinf Lessons. It is about some group of men who are gathered together and tell stories in New York. And in this novella a doctor narrates a story about pregnant woman who delivers under strange circumstances.
Different Seasons can be regarded as the most powerful and strong work among the others. Any reader will enjoy these novellas and appreciate more the talented author.
