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Night Shift is Stephen King’s first collection of short stories, published in 1978, and it firmly established him as a master of horror in all its forms. The anthology gathers twenty gripping tales that blend psychological suspense, supernatural horror, and visceral fear. Many of these stories had previously appeared in magazines, but collected together they reveal the full range of King’s early imagination and storytelling power.

The collection includes now-iconic stories such as “Children of the Corn,” a chilling tale of religious fanaticism and ritual sacrifice in rural Nebraska, and “The Boogeyman,” which explores childhood terror in its rawest form. “Jerusalem’s Lot,” a gothic prequel to King’s novel *’Salem’s Lot,* is written in the form of eerie 19th-century letters, while “The Mangler” turns an industrial laundry machine into a terrifying killer.

What makes *Night Shift* stand out is not just the horror elements, but the deeply human themes that run through the stories: isolation, grief, repression, guilt, and the fragility of sanity. King often sets the uncanny against ordinary American life, making the horrors feel disturbingly close to home. His characters are ordinary people—factory workers, children, office clerks—confronting extraordinary and terrifying circumstances.

Many stories from *Night Shift* have been adapted into films, television episodes, and even comic books, demonstrating the lasting influence of the collection. For readers new to Stephen King or longtime fans, *Night Shift* is a foundational work that captures the essence of what makes his fiction unforgettable: rich atmosphere, vivid characters, and an unrelenting sense of dread.