"I was listening to myself. But, inside, people speak a different language."

The end is approaching for Barton Dawes. The extension of Highway 748 will level his very existence. Not only will it pass over the laundry where he earns his bread, but it will also demolish the house he lives in.

Suddenly, something happens in Bart's mind that the heartless bureaucrats could not - by any stretch of the imagination - have been prepared for: a complete short-circuit of the brain synapses that prevent an ordinary, peace-loving person from turning to violence.

Thus, while the relentless "wheels of progress" - and a demolition crew - continue their work in his neighborhood, he is determined not to surrender anything without a fight. In fact, he is fully prepared to ignite an explosive confrontation with the forces of Law that have mobilized against him.

"Stephen King knows very well how to hypnotize the reader - whatever name he uses." -Chicago Sun-Times