The Stephen King Megathread

[Starbreaker]

This thread will be devoted to everything Stephen King. Books, movies, graphic novels, etc. Some good links to go to:

Some good links to check out:

Stephen King Official Site
The Dark Tower Official Website
Complete Bibliography
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I started reading King's work when I was in high school, and I honestly haven't read that much, but I've really liked everything I've read of his to one degree or another.
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I've read:

The Shining
The Dead Zone
The Eyes of the Dragon
Misery (my first King book)
Insomnia
The Green Mile
Bag of Bones
The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon
Lisey's Story
Cell
The Dark Tower I: The Gunslinger
The Dark Tower II: The Drawing of the Three
Rage (as Richard Bachman)
The Long Walk (as Richard Bachman)

The novellas:

UR
Blockade Billy
Low Men in Yellow Coats (from Hearts in Atlantis)

From Full Dark, No Stars:

• 1922
• Big Driver
• Fair Extension
• A Good Marriage

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"The Crate" which was the basis for my favorite entry in Creepshow is going to be released in Shivers VI. I'm really excited about this because I didn't realize that it was actually short fiction first.

[Admiral2]

I just finished reading "Big Driver" and "A Good Marriage." I think Big Driver's the better story. I like his short stories when the evil's not so big and obvious.

Of course, with the novels I like the big ancient powerful evil, like in Duma Key. Duma Key ruled!

Still, my favorites are always the three C's: Christine, Carrie and Cujo.

[Ubik]

Starbreaker wrote:

---

This thread will be devoted to everything Stephen King. Books, movies, graphic novels, etc. Some good links to go to:

Some good links to check out:

Stephen King Official Site
The Dark Tower Official Website
Complete Bibliography
__________________________________________________ __

I started reading King's work when I was in high school, and I honestly haven't read that much, but I've really liked everything I've read of his to one degree or another.
__________________________________________________ __

I've read:

The Shining
The Dead Zone
The Eyes of the Dragon
Misery (my first King book)
Insomnia
The Green Mile
Bag of Bones
The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon
Lisey's Story
Cell
The Dark Tower I: The Gunslinger
The Dark Tower II: The Drawing of the Three
Rage (as Richard Bachman)
The Long Walk (as Richard Bachman)

The novellas:

UR
Blockade Billy
Low Men in Yellow Coats (from Hearts in Atlantis)

From Full Dark, No Stars:

• 1922
• Big Driver
• Fair Extension
• A Good Marriage

__________________________________________________ __

"The Crate" which was the basis for my favorite entry in Creepshow is going to be released in Shivers VI. I'm really excited about this because I didn't realize that it was actually short fiction first.

Well, as someone who has read basically everything he's written, and as well as someone who taught a Stephen King course last year, let me tell you what are his best books that you haven't read:

It
The Stand
Pet Sematary (scariest book he's ever written)
Hearts in Atlantis in its entirety (it IS a novel, in fact)
Carrie
Different Seasons (both Stand By Me and Shawshank Redemption are from this collection - not horror, but some of the best stuff he's written)
Cujo (maybe not as good as these others, literarily-speaking, but fairly typical scary-messed-up 80's Stephen King)

Now get to it!

[Lapis Exilis]

No 'Salem's Lot? You are all mad, MAD I say! His early short stories collections are great as well - Night Shift and Monkey Shines. And personally I adored Firestarter, but no one else ever seemed to like it much.

I lost my taste for King in the Christine, Cujo, Pet Sematary years, but heard he got his chops back for various periods after that. I recently read Misery and it was a hoot and half - very over the top, but wildly enjoyable. I've been trying to get my hands on The Shining for a re-read, but haven't come across it on the local library's shelves.

[Trek4Ever]

Read quite a few King works over the years. The following are my favorites in no particular order:

The Dark Tower series (with the least favorite being Wizard and Glass and the best a tossup between The Drawing of the Three and Wastelands)
Misery
The Shining
Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption
The Body
The Stand (peters out towards the end but an epic read)
Salem's Lot
Pet Sematary
The Mist
The Dead Zone
The Long Walk (as Richard Bachman)
Cell

Just finished Four Past Midnight which was OK and the novella that was adapted into the mini series the Langoliers was one of his lesser works in the collection (the best one surprisingly given its title was the Library Policeman) and I was given Under the Dome for Christmas. Can't wait to get started on it!

[Ubik]

Lapis Exilis wrote:

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No 'Salem's Lot? You are all mad, MAD I say! His early short stories collections are great as well - Night Shift and Monkey Shines. And personally I adored Firestarter, but no one else ever seemed to like it much.

I lost my taste for King in the Christine, Cujo, Pet Sematary years, but heard he got his chops back for various periods after that. I recently read Misery and it was a hoot and half - very over the top, but wildly enjoyable. I've been trying to get my hands on The Shining for a re-read, but haven't come across it on the local library's shelves.

I gotta be honest, I found Salem's Lot kind of meh. Maybe I just don't find vampires terribly interesting. In the weird-guy-comes-to-town-and-wreaks-havoc subgenre, I much preferred Needful Things, ridiculous as that is.

[Ubik]

Trek4Ever wrote:

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Read quite a few King works over the years. The following are my favorites in no particular order:

The Dark Tower series (with the least favorite being Wizard and Glass and the best a tossup between The Drawing of the Three and Wastelands)
Misery
The Shining
Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption
The Body
The Stand (peters out towards the end but an epic read)
Salem's Lot
Pet Sematary
The Mist
The Dead Zone
The Long Walk (as Richard Bachman)
Cell

Just finished Four Past Midnight which was OK and the novella that was adapted into the mini series the Langoliers was one of his lesser works in the collection (the best one surprisingly given its title was the Library Policeman) and I was given Under the Dome for Christmas. Can't wait to get started on it!

Under the Dome is a great read, and surprisingly different for Stephen King. It's less horror and more political commentary. It's clear that, when he wrote it, he was disgustingly sick of right-wing American politics. If you're more left-ish, you'll find the book amazingly apt.

[Lapis Exilis]

Ubik wrote:

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I gotta be honest, I found Salem's Lot kind of meh. Maybe I just don't find vampires terribly interesting. In the weird-guy-comes-to-town-and-wreaks-havoc subgenre, I much preferred Needful Things, ridiculous as that is.

Honestly I can take or leave vamps - what I loved about 'Salem's Lot was the sense of pervading everyday evil about the town and the stories of Ben and Mark.

[Starbreaker]

I've been wanting to get my hands on the Salem's Lot Illustrated Edition from 2005. It has two related short stories and some deleted and alternate passages.

[byron lomax]

Most recently I read Under the Dome and really, really enjoyed it - it felt like his best novel in years.

I agree his short story collections Night Shift and Skeleton Crew are superb. I still shiver when I think of the endings of "Gramma" and "The Jaunt".

Carrie, Salem's Lot, Pet Sematary - all great reads. Insomnia and Desperation not so much.

The Stand was excellent for the first two thirds, but disappointing in the last. Which is a shame, as it fell just short of being a true epic.

One that never got good reviews was From a Buick 8 but personally I thought it was pretty good - the descriptions of the alien creatures coming through the portal were disturbing as hell.

Best of all was Different Seasons - four fantastic novellas and a pretty flawless book.

[LitmusDragon]

I've been a Stephen King fan since high school. I view him as a kind of folk hero, and one of the people I would most like to be. I have a Stephen King-esque novel that I wrote and that really needs a re-write and another round of rejection letters someday.

I've read about 2/3rds of his stuff probably. The most famous novel of his that I've never read would be "It". The most recent of his that I've read was "Duma Key", I really liked it. I've been meaning to read "Under the Dome" but I'd need a substantial chunk of time set aside to do it since it's so big. I bought and read each of the Dark Tower books as they were released with the exception of the first two. My favorite obscure book of his is probably "The Regulators".

[label]

Ubik wrote:

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Under the Dome is a great read, and surprisingly different for Stephen King. It's less horror and more political commentary. It's clear that, when he wrote it, he was disgustingly sick of right-wing American politics. If you're more left-ish, you'll find the book amazingly apt.

I don't know about that. I'm certainly not left-wing (nor am I right-wing.....I find both sides very flawed) and I loved the book and didn't see an indictment against either side.

I'd say Stephen King is one of my all time favorite authors....

As for the books of his I've read.........

Bag of Bones
Cell
Desperation
Dreamcatcher
Everything's Eventual
Four Past Midnight
Hearts In Atlantis
It
Needful Things
Salem's Lot
The Dark Half
The Eyes of the Dragon
The Gunslinger [The Dark Tower I]
The Drawing of the Three (The Dark Tower 2)
The Waste Lands (The Dark Tower, Book 3)
The Wizard and Glass (The Dark Tower, Book 4)
Wolves of the Calla (The Dark Tower, Book 5)
Song of Susannah (The Dark Tower, Book 6)
The Dark Tower (The Dark Tower, Book 7)
Skeleton Crew
The Regulators
The Green Mile
The Shining
The Stand
The Talisman
The Black House
The Tommyknockers
Under the Dome
UR

Book's I've purchased but haven't read yet:
Lisey's Story
Duma Key
Pet Cemetery
From A Buick 8
Dolores Clairborne

Books I plan to buy
Full Dark, No Stars

I'd say the Dark Tower Series, The Stand, It and Salem's Lot are my favorite books of Kings out of that list.

[Alex1939]

label wrote:

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I don't know about that. I'm certainly not left-wing (nor am I right-wing.....I find both sides very flawed) and I loved the book and didn't see an indictment against either side.

I'm very glad to read this. This is part of birthday gift for me soon, and I would've been very disappointed if it was a huge "slam right wing" book.

[Alex1939]

The Eyes of the Dragon and Desperation are two of my favorite Stephen Kings. I never seen those get much praise.

I also read the Dark Tower series over 2010. I really enjoyed Wizard and Glass and have been amazed at the hate against that story.

[Ubik]

Alex1939 wrote:

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I'm very glad to read this. This is part of birthday gift for me soon, and I would've been very disappointed if it was a huge "slam right wing" book.

Oh, I dunno...it felt pretty "slam right-wing" to me. Or, at least, Bush and Cheney-era right wing. If you're a huge fan, let's say, of Bush and Cheney politics, you may find the main bad guy in the book too cartoonish. If, however, you think Cheney WAS a cartoon, then you'll enjoy the villain immensely.