My Stephen King Books

The Dark Tower and other works of Stephen King.

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My Stephen King Books

Post by SPKx »

Because I couldn't find a topic for such (at least not one on the first page), I decided to create an introductory topic to list the Stephen King books I own/have read.

The first books of his that I bought/read was The Green Mile. That was followed by Dreamcatcher (which I rushed through within a month -- So, I would have had it read when the movie came out). I then bought/read The Shining and for the last 2 years or so, I have been working on the Dark Tower series. I read the first one within 8 months (I'm a slow reader), I finished the second one last May, I'm about 2/3s through the third one, I have the 4th one waiting on my bookshelf, and I have yet to get 5, 6, or 7.

Books that I plan on reading include many of his classic stories (The Stand, IT, Salem's Lot, Carrie) and maybe some recent ones (like From a Buick 8).
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Post by sgt.null »

get Skeleton Crew and read the Mist. many find this among his best work. it is a novella.
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Post by Roland of Gilead »

The Mist is an excellent recommendation. It's short enough that even as a slow reader, you can finish in a week. It's showcases all of King's skills, and has a haunting ending.

It and The Stand are absolute masterpieces, but they are massive books - prepare to take at least a month with each.

The Dark Tower is still your best bet. Stick with it. Fortunately, they will always be in print, so you won't have to worry about locating a copy when you're ready for the next one. :P
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Post by sgt.null »

any used book place will have plenty of King paperbacks at really cheap prices. if not, your library should have an excellent selection.

the Long Walk is also excellent. from the Bachman books. much of it takes place in my New Hampshire. :)
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Post by Cail »

I heartilly recommend all of King's short stories. In fact, I think if I were advising someone about what to read, I'd tell 'em to read all those collections first. It takes a certain skill to sucessfully tell a complete story in 30-40 pages, and King's a master at that.
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Post by sgt.null »

Night Shift.
Different Seasons.
Skeleton Crew.
Four Past Midnight.
Nightmares & Dreamscapes.
Hearts in Atlantis.
Everything's Eventual: 14 Dark Tales.
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Post by Cornaquious »

Start with Night Shift. It's full of all sorts of gruesome (short) stories. He's still developing his technique and rhythm, but some of the stories just blow you away!
Battleground? BOOM! Trucks? You'll think twice next time your on the road and a Semi roars up behind you. (the is definitive of what King calls "Skull Cinema" IMO. The movies Maximum Overdrive and the one with Timothy Busfield are flat on the screen).
Then he'll hit you with a change of pace with something like Last Rung on the Ladder
My personal favorite: Strawberry Spring
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Post by Cail »

Put it this way, I've re-read all of King's stuff several times. I've read The Boogeyman exactly once. I have never had the written word scare me that badly.
"There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." - PJ O'Rourke
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"Men and women range themselves into three classes or orders of intelligence; you can tell the lowest class by their habit of always talking about persons; the next by the fact that their habit is always to converse about things; the highest by their preference for the discussion of ideas." - Charles Stewart
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"I believe there are more instances of the abridgment of the freedom of the people by gradual and silent encroachments of those in power than by violent and sudden usurpations." - James Madison
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Post by Cornaquious »

I don't know if it was the written word or the circumstance..
Way back in high school, I was reading Carrie. I remeber it being late. After midnight for sure. I was reading about the sequence at the end where Carrie lets it all loose on the town. There is a sentence that mentions the sirens going off. Almost immediately upon reading that sentence the fire siren in our town (and about 50 yards from my house) went off. I nearly jumped out of my skin. After gaining my wits, I realized that there was a roar of some sort outside. It turns out that the automotive shop's (about a half a block away from my house) roof was ablaze.
Needless to say, I could not finish the book at that time.
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Post by sgt.null »

Big Wheels: A Tale of the Laundry Game (Milkman #2)

Morning Deliveries (Milkman #1)

some very strange stuff, i had always hoped he would expand upon these two stories, but doesn't look to be happening.
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Post by Roland of Gilead »

Cornaquious, Strawberry Spring - one of the great final lines in all of fiction. 8)
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Post by Cail »

Ahhh, time to start re-reading King again....There goes all my winter projects.....
"There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." - PJ O'Rourke
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"Men and women range themselves into three classes or orders of intelligence; you can tell the lowest class by their habit of always talking about persons; the next by the fact that their habit is always to converse about things; the highest by their preference for the discussion of ideas." - Charles Stewart
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Post by sgt.null »

King has a new one out...
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Post by Avatar »

Take too long to list the ones I own, a good spread of old and new(ish). Definitley second The Mist, and agree that the short stories are often excellent. Usually find a few in each collection that I don't like though, but I just skip them if I really don't like them.

Long Walk is excellent too. And Rage.

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Post by Roland of Gilead »

King no longer publishes Rage, because the perpetrator of one of these high school shooting incidents said he was motivated by reading Rage. King has stated that after hearing this, it's the only thing he's ever written that he now regrets was printed, and he won't allow it to be reprinted.
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Post by SPKx »

Hmmm....it will probably take me 20 years to read all those suggestions.
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Post by sgt.null »

King is usually a qucik read. enjoy!
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Post by Cail »

They're really quick reads, and they're hard to put down. I tore through all 1100+ pages if It in a weekend.
"There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." - PJ O'Rourke
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"Men and women range themselves into three classes or orders of intelligence; you can tell the lowest class by their habit of always talking about persons; the next by the fact that their habit is always to converse about things; the highest by their preference for the discussion of ideas." - Charles Stewart
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Post by sgt.null »

and try Roger Zelazney for an even quicker read.
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Post by A Gunslinger »

King is an easy read, not beacuse of any bad qualities, byt because he is an entertaining author who draws characters worth reading about. Also, note that King NEVER uses advebs to describe action. Action is what it is, and his characters are deep enough that we know intrinsically HOW actions are performed by the characters.
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