Cujo

Cujo, a horror-thriller novel first published in 1981, is the 10th novel by the American “King of Horror,” Stephen King. It was inspired by a trip the author took to a mechanic in rural Maine whose St. Bernard nearly attacked King. Cujo received several accolades upon its release and won the British Fantasy Award for Best Novel in 1982. It was adapted into a film of the same name in 1983.

The citations in this study guide correspond to the 1982 Signet edition.

Content Warning: Note that this novel depicts explicit acts of violence and refers to death by suicide.

Plot Summary

Cujo takes place in Castle Rock, Maine during the summer of 1980. It’s an especially hot summer, one that the town’s oldest resident, Aunt Evvie, prophesizes will be evil and deadly. Aunt Evvie’s concerns scare young Tad Trenton, who continually wakes up in fright to a growling monster hiding in his closet. Though his parents, Donna and Vic, assure him that the monster isn’t real, Tad is unconvinced.

One day in June, a giant, kindly St. Bernard named Cujo chases a rabbit into a hole and gets stuck. He awakens a swarm of bats, which attack him and scratch his snout.