I'll preface by saying I'm a guy nearing 40, but I just finished listening to Under the Dome. I enjoyed it for the most part, but throughout I became more and more convinced King just can't write relatable kid/teen characters anymore. Some might argue that he's always had trouble (infamous IT scene as a glaring example), but after so many 1930-50s-type references coming from kids' mouths I just started rolling my eyes.

One kid makes a "this is another nice mess you got me in," jab at another like it's something people do every day, which is from 1930s Laurel and Hardy. Another instance has a teen casually saying something like, "like Lon Chaney dancing with the Queen," either from the 1941 The Wolf Man movie or more likely the 1970s Werewolves of London song.

Maybe I'm wrong, but do kids and teens know Laurel and Hardy references? Was The Wolf Man or Waren Zevon still on some people's radar like it's second nature when Obama was president (which is when the book takes place)?

Just wanted to rant, because it's the biggest thing that kept taking me out of the story to Google references to understand where these kids got their lingo.