Stephen King

[dethwing]

I've recentaly been reading a lot of Stephen King, to this date I have read:

The Stand; Insomnia; Salem's Lot; The Shining; Tommyknockers

and now I just started Pet Sematary.

I was wondering if anyone else was a Stephen King fan and could recomend my next few selections.

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It's interesting when people die.
Jesus loves you
--Don Henley

[This message has been edited by dethwing (edited 03-16-2003 02:19 PM).]

[Vegtable2001]

I read most of the stand once, and my god that book was boring. Comparable with the Illiad. He lives in maine though! Spiffy!

[Gomez]

'Desperation' is a pretty good one. However, if you're going to read that make sure you don't read 'The Regulators' (also written by King under his Richard Bachman pseudonym) as they have virtually the same plot.

I also really liked 'Hearts in Atlantis', although judging by the reviews it looks like I was the only one.

[Silversunset]

ok, so dethwing, you picked the most boring books to read.
read:
Hearts in Atlantis
Black House
Geralds Game
Dolores Claiborne
Bag of Bones
Nightmares & Dreamscapes
Four Past Midnight
Graveyard Shift
Pet Semetery
Rose Madder
Needful Things
Despiration
The Regulators (richard bachman)

those are the good ones.... well, that' I'VE read...


(edited because i'm an idiot and put an anne rice book in the stephen king list)
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"If you take the Christian Bible and put it out in the wind and the rain, soon the paper on which the words are printed will disintegrate and the words will be gone. Our bible IS the wind and the rain."
42



[This message has been edited by Silversunset (edited 03-17-2003 05:46 PM).]

[rlp]

Firestarter. I haven't read many others. Most of the ones in libraries around here are missing crucial pages. *glares at idiots-who-tear-book-pages*

[El Camino]

The Stand is one of my two or three favorite books ever. I found it to be inspirational and uplifting in the way that all the characters on the side of "good" come together as one and sacrifice themselves (whether it be through death or another way) for the good of the cause.

I have also read his short story Hope Springs Eternal: Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption and his serial novel The Green Mile after seeing those movies. Both movies (especially Shawshank) are taken nearly word for word from his stories.

[Sessie]

I actually just started reading his books; weird coinkidink. I've read Carrie so far, and I'm about 1/3 of the way through 'Salem's Lot. I liked Carrie a lot. Way creepier than the movie. Especially the way she kills her mom. *shudder*

[Antrax]

I would recommend reading (in this order, more or less, otherwise you miss out on some things):
It, Dark Half, Needful Things, The Gunslinger, Drawing of the Three, The Wastelands, Wizard and Glass (the best he wrote so far, IMO), Hearts in Atlantis, The Talisman, Black House.
Everything else you can read pretty much at random, even though Desperation and The Enforcers form a sort of mini series, with a third one whose name eludes me at the moment.
Antrax


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"If it comes down to a choice between being unloved and being vulnerable and sensitive and emotional, then you can just keep your love." -Victor Mancini, "Choke"

[mikegoo]

The Bachman Books. I love "The Long Walk".

[dethwing]

Bah, I liked the stand. Insomnia sucked, yes. But the stand was cool.

Thanks for all the input everyone.

[Qball]

Just finished Insomnia. It is by far the worst King book ever. It's even worse than the Tommyknockers.

"It" and Salem's Lot were my favorite by far.

[wordcross]

Yes, the Darktower series ROXORS!!! That would be the (so far) 4 books that Antrax gave: The Gunslinger, Drawing of the Three, The Wastelands, Wizard and Glass. I'm eagerly awaiting the time when they announce his fifth one

Also, "The Eyes of the Dragon" is another good Fantasy read.

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All things equal, fat people are harder to kidnap.
I don't suffer from Insanity. I enjoy every minute of it.

[Vegtable2001]

Didn't like the gunslinger much either.

[Neo]

Christine was alright.

[Chuck]

I haven't read any of his books but I've seem some of the movies. Most were boring. The Langoliers was pretty good though.

[Ferris]

dethwing,

If you're keen on fantasy, then the Dark Tower series already mentioned by Antrax and wordcross is pretty good. I'm another one standing in line for the fifth book, as the various plot strands are coming together very nicely at the moment.

I also heard on the radio that he's got a new collection of short stories out which sound rather interesting.

[Aarondalf]

The four stories in Different Seasons are all fantastic. They are all about 200 pages of pure gold.

The Shining and Cujo are pretty cool.

[Antrax]

You didn't like Insomnia? It's one of the more important cornerstones of the metauniverse he creates. I'm fairly surprised. You can get four of the Bachman Books in a compilation called "The Bachman Books" (surprisingly enough), and the other two are Thinner and The Enforcers (or regulators? something like that). I agree The Gunslinger is somewhat dull, but it's crucial for the understanding of what is so far the best series (The Dark Tower). Also, if you have a hard time finding books, I have a couple here I can probably mail you.
Antrax

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"If it comes down to a choice between being unloved and being vulnerable and sensitive and emotional, then you can just keep your love." -Victor Mancini, "Choke"

[Lilifreid]

I've only read a couple of his books (Carrie, Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption , and Cycle of the Werewolf) I didn't much like them, myself. Great ideas, but they just didn't feel like they lived up to their potential. Like in Carrie, (invisible in case it's a spoiler for somebody) you know fairly soon she's going to flip and go all vengenance-y. I was hoping for something a bit more surprising, and I ended up being disappointed that so many townsfolk survived, cause they'd been irritating me.

I really liked the movie versions of Shawshank Redemption and Green Mile though.

[Hitchhiker]

I can't believe nobody mentioned The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon. That was great. The Dead Zone and The Dark Half were pretty good, and his novellas and short stories have a very broad range of quality (superb, mediore, awful, or just bizarre).

The Green Mile was excellent, though you could tell from the format that it had been a serial novel -- each section kind of reviews the previous section before continuing.

[chief ten beers]

dethwing, I guess the general consensus is, read all the Steven King you can get your hands on.



[This message has been edited by chief ten beers (edited 03-16-2003 08:36 PM).]

[dethwing]

Yeah...I noticed

[Beartalon]

Misery...

[ML]

My personal favorites:
IT
Needful Things
Gunslinger Series (every damn one of them)
The Stand (although it's probably not a good first Steven King book)

[KingPin]

I have just read From a Buick 8. It was great. I really enjoy all of his books Mr. King has a very weird imagination. I am reading Black House next! I can not wait, since I loved The Talisman. **Travelin Jack**

Every Stephen King fan should be awaiting the release this week of the movie Dream Catcher I hope that it lives up to the book!!

[Antrax]

It won't. The book was crap, IMO, anyhow. Squandered potential. He should've made it longer and actually used all the motives, instead of just writing it short and disappointing.
Antrax

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"If it comes down to a choice between being unloved and being vulnerable and sensitive and emotional, then you can just keep your love." -Victor Mancini, "Choke"

[jesternl]

I find it interesting to see the different favorites...
My personal favorite I think is It. Cujo and Gerald's Game are interesting because they nearly entirely play in a single setting. Of his short stories I just read 1408 which I found very scary, very Lovecraftian...
What I like in general is what Antrax called the Meta-universe. As far as I can tell every book features at least one event or character from another book, and some of his earliest books contain events that only happen in his latest books, suggesting some sort of "master plan". Supposedly The Gunslinger cycle is what brings it all together. The Dark House has strong ties with that cycle as well...
Another one I enjoyed a lot is "Silver Bullet", and one I thought was a pretty big waste of paer was Dreamcatcher.... Although I can see the movie potential in it.

[This message has been edited by jesternl (edited 03-17-2003 12:51 PM).]

[Antrax]

jester, it definitely comes together. That's the added value, IMO
Antrax

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"If it comes down to a choice between being unloved and being vulnerable and sensitive and emotional, then you can just keep your love." -Victor Mancini, "Choke"

[borschevsky]

Originally posted by wordcross:

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I'm eagerly awaiting the time when they announce his fifth one

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They already announced it, along with the 6th and 7th.

Originally posted by Vegetable2001:

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Didn't like the gunslinger much either.

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Maybe you'll want to try it again soon; he rewrote it.

[Antrax]

~waves at bors~
Antrax

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"If it comes down to a choice between being unloved and being vulnerable and sensitive and emotional, then you can just keep your love." -Victor Mancini, "Choke"

[borschevsky]

~waves~

[jesternl]

Antrax, have you read Dark House yet?

[Samadhi]

[Antrax]

jester, I read halfway through it (kinda dull, really) before leaving Israel, then decided to read The Talisman first.
Antrax

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"If it comes down to a choice between being unloved and being vulnerable and sensitive and emotional, then you can just keep your love." -Victor Mancini, "Choke"

[Silversunset]

black house is a very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very good book....

*goes back to hiding.*

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"If you take the Christian Bible and put it out in the wind and the rain, soon the paper on which the words are printed will disintegrate and the words will be gone. Our bible IS the wind and the rain."
42

[Coyote]

Yoiks--was anyone else thinking this?:

All work and no play makes Siversunset a dull girl. All work and no play makes Siversunset a dull girl. All work and no play makes Siversunset a dull girl. All work and no play makes Siversunset a dull girl. All work and no play makes Siversunset a dull girl.
All work and no play
makes Siversunset
a dull girl.
All work and no play
makes Siversunset
a dull girl.
All work and no play makes Siversunset a dull girl. All work
and no play makes Siversunset a dull girl. All
work and no play makes Siversunset a dull
girl. All work and no play makes
Siversunset a dull girl. All
work and no play makes
Siversunset
a dull
girl.

[chief ten beers]

I'm sorry, but that was funnier than hell!

[The Ktulu]

I actually haven't read much Stephen King books, and only about a half-dozen of his short stories, but of those I have, I love.
The Stand
Insomnia
Misery
Dreamcatcher
It feels to me that I'm forgetting one....
But I did not think very highly of the first book I read by him, Bag of Bones.
I've seen IT,The Shining, and Carrie. I'm glad I don't remember much of IT, because I didn't like the movie but I'm sure the book is great.

Dreamcatcher comes out of my birthday. I think I might go see it. I hope they did a good job (though I've already heard that Mr. Gray's obsession with bacon is cut from the movie )

[KingPin]

The "bacon obsession" is gone!!! Damnit damnit damnit. That was one of the best parts of the book.

[Antrax]

~blinks~ (post in invisible, as to not to spoil):
So how, praytell, do they delay Mr. Gray?
Antrax

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"If it comes down to a choice between being unloved and being vulnerable and sensitive and emotional, then you can just keep your love." -Victor Mancini, "Choke"