Stephen King

[AuntiePam]

He's off my reading list too, after too many disappointments, including 11/22/63 .  I remember in the late 70's (?), seeing The Gunslinger as a King title on the flyleaf of Pet Sematary.  What is this?  Nobody had ever heard of it. I called every bookstore in Seattle until I found one who had the book.  It was $50.  I had to ask for an advance on my paycheck to buy it.  Same with the hardcover of Creepshow -- $35, when $35 would buy a week's groceries.

 

When The Stand came out, I was late for my first day on a new job because I was reading the book on the bus, was almost at the end, could not think of anything else until I knew what happened.  Went right past my stop.

 

And It -- I called my favorite bookstore every few days:  "Is It in yet?"  "Is what in yet?"  "It -- the new Stephen King book."  :) 

 

And then the Bachmans!  After it was revealed that Bachman was King (after Thinner), everyone was looking for the four paperbacks.  I ended up getting them in a mystery grab bag for $2 from a mail order bookstore (Weinberg books, pre-internet, that was where horror fans got their fix). 

 

Giving up on him kinda hurt, after so many years.  He was like a member of the family.  Now he's the drunk uncle. 

[Whimsy]

Same, AuntiePam- I also spent $50 on one of the Dark Tower books special edition. To say I was a super fan is putting it mildly and it also hurt to give upon him. I keep trying, thinking I'll find that glory again but have not yet. :(

[AuntiePam]

King's son Joe Hill is doing excellent work, short stories, a graphic series (Locke & Key), and novels that are just as long as they need to be. 

 

We still have King's early work and his short stories.  The Reach is my favorite. 

[Mini-Mart]

Gerald's Game for the win.  An entire novel with one character in one setting and little to no movement and it's captivating.  I love this as a concept and this is why similar books/movies that fail at this (Buried, I'm looking at you) bum me out so much.

[Demented Daisy]

SK's Greatest Human Villains

 

SK's Greatest Supernatural Villains

 

Do you agree?  Did they miss anyone/thing?

[Etta Place]

It's been a long time since I read "The Body," but I don't remember Ace being so evil.

 

Blaine the Mono, yesyesyes.

[topanga]

 

Both it and "Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption" appear in a 4-novella collection called Different Seasons, as does "Apt Pupil," which was also made into a movie.

Apt Pupil was made into a movie? It was such a disturbing and fascinating novella that I think the movie version would disappoint me.

 

My favorites: Lisey's Story, Different Seasons, and The Shining--I have never been more afraid while reading a novel. I remember reading The Shining while standing on a Chicago train platform, waiting for the El. It was noon on a summer day, and I was physically trembling, I was so freaked out. I felt like such a wuss.

[daughtersofanarchy]

Hi, everyone.

 

I've been a King fan for a very long time, but I haven't read the latest stuff.

 

In my opinion, The Green Mile is his all-time masterpiece.

 

However, my all-time favorite book hasn't been mentioned yet, I believe. Christine is my favorite.  It has resonated over decades for me.  Love the use of the songs, love the basic simplicity of the setting and the plot.  There is an inevitability to the plot that is closely intertwined with the character of the individuals involved.  In other words, it makes sense.  Oh, and I have always been crazy about cars, too.

[spaceytraci1208]

My favorite book is The Talisman, a King collaboration with Peter Straub...I've read it 3 or 4 times. I'd love to see it done as a miniseries

[AuntiePam]

Another new King out -- Revival -- anyone see any reviews yet?  The two at Amazon are positive, but one is full of spoilers -- it basically gives the entire plot, so be careful.

[kassa]

I feel awful saying it, but his car accident brought back his skill from wherever it had disappeared to.  Along with his renewed storytelling ability was a somewhat richer, mature quality.  I like it.   The Kennedy book was a delight -- perfect pacing.  I read and read and read and looked forward to picking it up again every day... and still had hundreds of pages left!  Reader's bliss!

 

I had given up years ago after being a big fan, but I think his last 4-5 are as good as the majority of his early work. (Have not read Mr. Mercedes yet)

 

 

 

The Stand may not be my favorite book of all time, but it IS probably the book I read most breathlessly, late into the night, in my life.  Many nights!  Eagerly bought the unedited version and found it really added up to less.  King at his best is page turning -- adding more bulk to the book just made it ... longer.  

[BatmanBeatles]

I read the short story The Children Of The Corn after watching the movie. It shocked me how much the traveling couple hated each other in the original story.

[Helena Dax]

I  My favorite of all his stories, though, is the Long Walk.  Admittedly, I'm not 100% sure that's the name, but it was one of the short stories in a Richard Bachman book, I think.  The entire story was pretty much internal thoughts of the main character.  I just really remember liking it.  However, that was read when I was in high school (20 years ago), so it quite honestly not be as good as I am remembering it.  ;)

I love this story too. First time I read it, it haunted me for days.

 

I started reading his books when I was 14 and my first one was It. I loved it. Then I read The eyes of the dragon, Pet Sematary, The Dead Zone, Christine... and some shorts stories. But after Misery, something changed. Tommyknockers disappointed me. In fact, since Misery, the only books I really liked were Dolores Claiborne and The Green Mile. 

 

11/22/63 was a surprise, I liked it more than I expected. And one of his short stories, a man who makes a deal with a demon, creeped me out. 

 

My  top 3 are:

-It.

-The Stand.

-Misery.

[Demented Daisy]

Has anyone started on Revival yet?  It's sitting on my nightstand, but the new Lego Batman game is taking up all my free time.  (I'm a weirdo, I know.)

[rubaco]

I'm nearly halfway through Revival. I'm totally riveted… loving every page. 

[psychoticstate]

I started listening to Full Dark, No Stars and could not get through it.  HATED.  IT.  The narration was okay, although the female narrator was a little too chipper for my tastes but the stories were just bad IMO.  Did not like.

[ElderPrice]

I'm halfway through Revival and I still feel like I'm waiting for the story to get started. I'm a King fan and a patient reader but it still hasn't gotten off the ground.

[Qoass]

I found Revival to be very by-the-numbers and was really irritated that two characters were named 

Mary and Victor. Like Mary Shelley and Victor Frankenstein.

.

 

But I like more Stephen King than I dislike so I look forward to the next one.

[rubaco]

I found Revival to be enthralling throughout (I loved Jamie and wasn't bored by his life story like apparently many other readers), but the ending was awfully bleak. Overall I loved it, but (full disclosure) I'm a die-hard fan and it's rare for me to criticize his stuff. 

[NewDigs]

Had the crap scared out of me in the late '70s when I read The Shining and did not read any more King until Dr. Sleep which I really enjoyed. I enjoyed it so much that I decided to read Mr. Mercedes and was underwhelmed. I had understood it to be a crime-type mystery and that part of the story was okay but there was just enough of a creep-factor to make me reconsider whether I really want to read Revival. Appreciate the comments here.

[Sharpie66]

I don't know if anyone is into podcasts, but the site Books and Nachos has been doing a Stephen King retrospective, covering all of his published work in order, starting with Carrie. They're up to The Stand, which will be posted this week sometime (I keep checking the site every day to see if it's been posted yet). They've been doing each of the stories from Night Shift, as well as King's poem "The Dark Man," the first appearance of Randall Flagg.

 

It's related to the movie podcast site Now Playing, which is doing the same with the film adaptations (in publication order, not filming order).

Edited December 4, 2014 by Sharpie66

[topanga]

 

I'm halfway through Revival and I still feel like I'm waiting for the story to get started. I'm a King fan and a patient reader but it still hasn't gotten off the ground.

 

I only got through the first 50 pages. I'm usually patient with Stephen King novels since they often start slowly, but this one has done nothing so far to draw me into the characters or the plot.

[Demented Daisy]

I still haven't gotten around to it yet.  Maybe I'll have some time during the TV Winter hiatus.

[canter]

I had read a bunch of King stuff years ago, as a teen, but I got back into it this year and have really been enjoying it. Now I'm able to appreciate the writing as well as the story. Speaking of, didn't be write a book about writing? I read that years ago and really liked it.

The first King book I read this year was The Stand (unabridged), and while I was completely absorbed and couldn't do anything but read until I was finished, I really hated that he updated the setting to the 90s during the reworking of it. He changed some references, but not others. IV fluids and vending machine sodas were still in glass bottles, and a 14-year-old girl got a "portable phonograph" for her birthday. In the 90s, really? It was distracting. I wish he would have just left it set in the 70s, especially since the 90s is now long past too, so it's not like the "updated" references were current.

Anyway, I still loved the book. Since then, I've read 11/22/63 and Doctor Sleep, both of which I absolutely loved. Right now I'm reading Under the Dome, and while I'm not as enthralled as I was with the others, I'm enjoying it. I never watched the reportedly terrible TV show, so maybe that saves me from having a worse impression.

[Ceindreadh]

Anyway, I still loved the book. Since then, I've read 11/22/63 and Doctor Sleep, both of which I absolutely loved. Right now I'm reading Under the Dome, and while I'm not as enthralled as I was with the others, I'm enjoying it. I never watched the reportedly terrible TV show, so maybe that saves me from having a worse impression.

 

I think I might have appreciated Under the Dome (book) more if I hadn't already seen the Simpsons Movie!

[Soobs]

What a fun thread I enjoyed reading everyone's likes and dislikes. My favorite novels are: The Stand, Salem's Lot and weirdly, Cell. For short stories/ novellas I liked Apt Pupil, Jerusalem's Lot and most of Night Shift and Skeleton Crew. I haven't read a Stephen King book since the 90's. I listen to them on long drives or while I work. I'm listening to Mr. Mercedes right now and it's okay. What Iike about his books is that even when they are just okay, they are still really listenable. I really didn't care for Dr. Sleep but somehow I managed to hear all 18 hours of it!

Edited December 31, 2014 by Soobs

[Sharpie66]

The Books and Nachos podcast is finally posting their review of The Stand, after promising it since Thanksgiving!! It is epic in length, though, so he has broken it into six parts, posting every day this week through Saturday. I am having fun listening so far--he spent Ep 1 just setting up the background of the book, and Ep 2 on the good guy characters. It sounds like Ep 3 is going to be the baddies--I hope he likes Lloyd as much as I did (but that liking is admittedly partly based on Miguel Ferrer's performance in the miniseries).

[BatmanBeatles]

I almost stopped reading Pet Sematary when Louis digs up Gage's coffin, but out of morbid curiosity I kept on reading.

[Cobalt Stargazer]

I almost stopped reading Pet Sematary when Louis digs up Gage's coffin, but out of morbid curiosity I kept on reading.

 

If you saw the movie version of Pet Sematary, they cut out the part where

Louis gets in a fight with his father-in-law at Gage's funeral, and the coffin gets knocked off of the bier when the old man knocks Louis down

. I found that an odd bit to remove considering what Gage gets up to once he's 'alive' again.

[AuntiePam]

milennium, that's a wonderful memory, and yes, definitely a good story.  I didn't know he operated out of his home.  The Grant editions are beautiful.

[millennium]

Salem's Lot is my favorite book, always will be.  I have read that novel maybe twenty times since the 1970s and I pick up something new with each read.  But I think Pet Sematary is the better book.

 

I remember the first whiff of Pet Sematary came in 1980, in a Rolling Stone interview with King.   The interviewer asked him if he ever wrote something too scary to publish.   King responded that he had a novel about "burial customs" that he thought was too awful and he had put it away in his trunk.   Then a few years later, out comes Pet Sematary.   Now that I think about it, the book was probably already in the works at the time of the interview.

 

The book has so many great elements.   The tension between Louis and his wife on the topic of death, the acrimony between Louis and his father-in-law ... then his wife reveals the horror she experienced caring for her sister Zelda.    Then there's Jud next door, with his tales of Timmy Baterman and his own guilt at having given into the temptation of the Pet Sematary ... Micmac Indians and even the freaking Wendigo!  

 

While in Maine in 1988, I drove past the home where King lived when he wrote Pet Sematary.   It's on the highway heading north out of Bucksport.   The area is more populated than the novel lets on, the road smaller and less intimidating (the big bad highway is the only part of the novel that the movie gets right, in my opinion).    The real Pet Sematary is said to be up in the woods behind the house.   I wasn't intrepid enough to trespass so I never got to see it.

 

One thing that will always stay with me from the novel is the heart-rending grief King captured so artfully in his description of the Pet Sematary and its small, makeshift memorials: "Here lies Smucky.  He was obediant."   It made me remember losing my dog when I was 8 years old, a hurt that has never gone away.    That's when King was king.   When he still knew what real life felt like -- all the frustrations, wounds and disappointments that would undo us if they could, and the hope, love and hard work it takes to overcome them.    All of that is gone from his novels now.     

Edited May 28, 2015 by millennium

[millennium]

I just finished Mr. Mercedes and give it a B-minus.

 

Just as in Lisey's Story, where a story within the story was better than the main narrative, Mr. Mercedes contained a chilling and convincing passage detailing the fate of Mr. Mercedes' deceased brother, Frankie.   If written as a standalone story, it would have been better than Mr. Mercedes as a whole.

 

Otherwise, the book was a flabby potboiler, complete with unoriginal characters and an unlikely romance.   

 

I also found the climax hurried and strangely out of focus.    Oddly absent was Mr. Mercedes' voice/point of view.    It was present throughout the whole story, then, at the most important part of the story, King imposes radio silence, instead handing the mic over to a secondary character. 

[NewDigs]

I just finished Mr. Mercedes and give it a B-minus.

 

Just as in Lisey's Story, where a story within the story was better than the main narrative, Mr. Mercedes contained a chilling and convincing passage detailing the fate of Mr. Mercedes' deceased brother, Frankie.   If written as a standalone story, it would have been better than Mr. Mercedes as a whole.

 

Otherwise, the book was a flabby potboiler, complete with unoriginal characters and an unlikely romance.   

 

I also found the climax hurried and strangely out of focus.    Oddly absent was Mr. Mercedes' voice/point of view.    It was present throughout the whole story, then, at the most important part of the story, King imposes radio silence, instead handing the mic over to a secondary character.

And then he won the 2014 Edgar Award for it! I was stunned. And disappointed. My personal review of the book pretty much mirrors yours.

I also tried to read Revelation but made it through only a couple of bloated chapters before deciding I really didn't care about any of the characters, that I didn't want to read about King's musician-wannabe dreams and that there are too many really good books out there waiting to be read.

[Demented Daisy]

I also tried to read Revelation but made it through only a couple of bloated chapters before deciding I really didn't care about any of the characters, that I didn't want to read about King's musician-wannabe dreams and that there are too many really good books out there waiting to be read.

 

Are you talking about Revival?  A shame you didn't stick with it because it isn't about "King's musician-wannabe dreams" at all, IMO.

 

I haven't gotten around to Finders Keepers yet.  

Edited July 25, 2015 by Demented Daisy

[NewDigs]

Are you talking about Revival?  A shame you didn't stick with it because it isn't about "King's musician-wannabe dreams" at all, IMO.

 

I haven't gotten around to Finders Keepers yet.

Yes, I did mean Revival! Thank you.

I guess I felt like, even if it wasn't about those wannabe-dreams, those many many words and paragraphs and pages devoted to that musician storyline made me kinda' not care where that storyline was even going. If I remember correctly I was rather enjoying the story but when he hit the musician storyline the only thing I could think of was the band The Rock Bottom Remainders and could not remove the "vanity piece" thought from my brain. I had read enough.

[millennium]

And then he won the 2014 Edgar Award for it! I was stunned. And disappointed. My personal review of the book pretty much mirrors yours.

I also tried to read Revelation but made it through only a couple of bloated chapters before deciding I really didn't care about any of the characters, that I didn't want to read about King's musician-wannabe dreams and that there are too many really good books out there waiting to be read.

 

I held a trade paperback edition of Revival in my hand yesterday and debated paying $12.99 for it.   It was a used copy.   Ultimately, I decided no, I will never again pay for anything King writes.   I got Mr. Mercedes at the library; undoubtedly Revival will show up there before long.

[nodorothyparker]

I think like nearly every one else, I really loved King when I was in high school.  This was the late '80s, so I was reading Misery, Pet Sematary, Carrie, Christine, Four Seasons, and It.  Somewhere in college or afterward, I kind of fell away from him as I believed my tastes were getting more "sophisticated" and grown-up, although I'll still argue that the kids in It remain some of the best written kids in modern fiction.  I flitted back from time to time over the years to read things like The Stand, but I never really stayed because I just got tired of good stories where the endings seemed to come out of nowhere and depended on "aliens did it" or whatever one too many times.  

 

Under the Dome was my latest foray.  It was mostly well done and like someone else said upthread, I think I might have really enjoyed it had the Simpsons movie not done it first and better.  But it's another one with an "aliens did it" sort of ending. 

[littlewonder]

I loved his 70s and 80s stuff and then was kinda meh about everything else.  Just picked up Joyland last week and it was fine.  Had a couple of clever unexpected moments.  I think I'm all Kinged out because I can't even get myself to pick up Dr. Sleep.

[Demented Daisy]

End of Watch releases today -- waiting for my copy to come in the mail.  It's the third in the Bill Hodges trilogy; I should probably (finally) read the second, Finders Keepers.  And maybe go back and read the first, just for good measure....

[SmithW6079]

On 7/25/2015 at 1:43 PM, nodorothyparker said:

I think like nearly every one else, I really loved King when I was in high school.  This was the late '80s, so I was reading Misery, Pet Sematary, Carrie, Christine, Four Seasons, and It.  Somewhere in college or afterward, I kind of fell away from him as I believed my tastes were getting more "sophisticated" and grown-up, although I'll still argue that the kids in It remain some of the best written kids in modern fiction.  I flitted back from time to time over the years to read things like The Stand, but I never really stayed because I just got tired of good stories where the endings seemed to come out of nowhere and depended on "aliens did it" or whatever one too many times.  

 

Under the Dome was my latest foray.  It was mostly well done and like someone else said upthread, I think I might have really enjoyed it had the Simpsons movie not done it first and better.  But it's another one with an "aliens did it" sort of ending. 

I never thought my tastes were getting too sophisticated for King, it was that his books became so bloated and obviously in need of an editor to say, "Woah, Stephen, you need to excise this 100-page detour because it has nothing to do with the main story." I read, and liked, "Tommyknockers," but it definitely needed editing.

I read the synposis of "Under the Dome" on Wikipedia when the TV show came out. It sounded like such a load of crap, I was glad I stopped reading him.

"'Salem's Lot" is one of his best. It made me keep my windows closed  (in the summer!) and sleep with the lights on for a night or two. 

[MelinaBallerina]

On 8/10/2014 at 11:41 PM, simplyperson said:

I have tried to read some of the Dark Tower books, but just can't get into them. I re-read The Stand, just about yearly, usually during the summer. The only book that I really really didn't like that I read all the way through was The Tommyknockers, but it might be because I saw the adaptation first, and that thing sucked.

Ha!  Are you me?  I feel exactly the same and The Stand is my absolute favorite, and the only one I re-read regularly; although IT is a close follow up.  I liked Derry & Castle Rock stories.  I can't get into his overly realistic ones, ie. Misery, Cujo.  Also, Salem's Lot is horrible.  I kinda liked Insomnia and Needful things really creepmed me out.  I've read all of the early books, all through Gerald's Game, but then it became sporadic.  I don't know if it was the tone of those last few books of that time or what.  I've just recently been catching up.  Loved the Cell and Duma Key.  Joyride was pretty good too.  I've just started with Doctor Sleep and although it's probably been 30 years since I read The Shining, these characters were completely familiar to me just 2 chapters in.

I've considered audio books, since my work commute can sometimes be an hour or more, but they're so expensive!  How can you justify spending $20 for one book?

[NewDigs]

@MelinaBallerina Libraries can be a great source for audiobooks. Ours allows a 30 day checkout. They are great for commutes! I've found that who does the reading can be a big part of the enjoyment-factor.

And there's even an audiobooks thread.

[topanga]

On 6/22/2016 at 11:09 PM, SmithW6079 said:

"'Salem's Lot" is one of his best. It made me keep my windows closed  (in the summer!) and sleep with the lights on for a night or two. 

For me, "The Shining" was that book. I was shivering with fear while standing on a crowded Chicago El platform in in broad daylight. In the middle of summer. 

[Lovecat]

On October 5, 2016 at 1:54 PM, topanga said:

For me, "The Shining" was that book. I was shivering with fear while standing on a crowded Chicago El platform in in broad daylight. In the middle of summer. 

Cujo. I read that one during a hot summer stretch, in my 2nd floor bedroom, and sweated along with the kid and mom trapped in the car.

[Qoass]

I'm ready for a new novel anytime, but meanwhile his tweets about the wiretapping rumors are hilarious.

[rubaco]

Quote

I'm ready for a new novel anytime, but meanwhile his tweets about the wiretapping rumors are hilarious.

Sleeping Beauties (written with his son Owen) has just been given a publication date of Sept. 26. 

[starri]

I guess I'm the odd man out here.  I have really enjoyed a lot of his post-accident work, even about the first 2/3rd of Under the Dome.  For whatever reason, the accident seemed to give him a new focus and a desire to experiment, and while not everything has been a hit, a lot of it has been better than it has in years, particularly when he seemed to go completely off the rails in the late 90s.  Doctor Sleep, which seemed so completely unnecessary, turned out to be great, and the chapter where the baby shined 9/11 to her parents was honestly one of the most terrifying things I've ever read.

I re-read The Stand once every few years.  It, despite being being written during his peak Cocaine Addict phase, contains some of his best writing, at least for the half in the 50s and also the interludes with the stories of Derry's past.  Unfortunately, it's paired with the 80s stuff, which has its moments, but is clearly more about him working through his feelings about being a yuppie with some over-the-top supernatural stuff thrown in.  And of course, the climax of the 50s segment is just awful, which really dilutes how good the lead-up was.  And it bugs me that Eddie is so clearly gay, but King can't bring himself to say it.

As much as I think the 90s was his weakest period, I confess to a lot of fondness for Bag of Bones, which is just a great haunted house story.  Insomnia, too.  I devoured the entire thing on a flight to Europe when I was in high school, and I can still reread it and be thoroughly entertained.  And as someone who's had trouble sleeping for most of my adult life, he nails the feeling of being a zombie when you're dragging yourself around when most of the world is still in slumberland.

[SherriAnt]

6 hours ago, starri said:

 Insomnia, too.  I devoured the entire thing on a flight to Europe when I was in high school, and I can still reread it and be thoroughly entertained.  And as someone who's had trouble sleeping for most of my adult life, he nails the feeling of being a zombie when you're dragging yourself around when most of the world is still in slumberland.

Insomnia is one of my favourites, I reread it every couple years. The Stand is the best, and I totally agree about It, I found it very hard to believe the whole ending, weren't they like 12 or something? I'm pretty sure kids in the '50's and '60's didn't grow up quite that fast.

[Jalyn]

You're describing IT, not The Stand. The Stand is the super flu wiping out the world and what happens after. Both are particular favorites. 

I do agree that I enjoy bits from each of his writing eras. There's very little early King that isn't at least fun to read and The Shining, The Stand, It and Salem's Lot are all wonderful. I always liked Insomnia and found the Desperation/The Regulators experiment to be a success. In his later days, I think 11/22/63 is one of the best things that he's written. And, of course, I adore the Dark Tower, which spans most of his career.

[starri]

2 hours ago, Jalyn said:

I always liked Insomnia and found the Desperation/The Regulators experiment to be a success

I'd put maybe the first 2/3rds of the Green Mile on that list too.  I mean, as far as "experiments" go.

Gerald's Game and Dolores Claiborne, which started out as two halves of a book called Path of the Eclipse, less so.  Dolores Claiborne is great, but Gerald's Game isn't.  Even the scene where Dolores sees Jessie during the eclipse is better than its counterpart.

Six pins, Dolores!