The man who loved flowers.

The man who loved flowers is a short story, written by the well-known American writer, Stephen King. He published it first in the August 1977 issue of Gallery and then in King's collection of short stories: Night Shift, published in 1978.

The short story begins in New York City, on an early evening in May 1963. The main character is an unnamed man who is walking on Manhattan's 3rd Avenue, he is beautiful ! In an old lady's view, he seems to be in love. The handsome young man stops at a flower shop. The vendor is listening a new report on the radio: a woman's body has been found in the local river. The unnamed man wants to buy flowers for his fiancée, Norma. Later, he leaves the vendor who gives him a piece of advice for his relationship with Norma and continues up the street. Then, he turns into a dark alleyway, and sees a young woman . He calls her "Norma" but she doesn't answer. So, he decides to offer her the flowers. She thanks him for the flowers, but tells him that she isn't Norma and it might be a mistake. The young man, in a moment of madness, kills the young woman with a hammer that he was carrying in his pocket, and resumes his walk, calm and as beautiful as ever. We understand that the real Norma died ten years before. The young man has killed many "fake Normas", including the woman in the local river.

Stephen King is a kind of genius because with this very short story and this surprising ending, he can show us the madness of the main character which the reader didn't really anticipate. The young man is actually a psychopath, a demon within an angel. Personally, my favorite passage begins when the young woman tells the handsome man that it might be a mistake. We understand that something is weird, and unfortunately the story becomes a tragedy. Nevertheless, I recommend this short story, it is very easy to read and surprising!