The Stephen King Thread

[dcbc 14465]

1 hour ago, South Austin said:

Agreed on the sequencing, although I've read IT twice in my life, most recently in my late 30s, and didn't read 11/22/63 after it.  Still, weaving in the Derry story was pure magic. 

I need to give 11/22/63 another read.  I loved it, but don't know with a second read that I'll be able to say I like it better than IT (or even a couple of his other books).

I have both the audiobooks saved to my desktop.  I dump them onto SD cards and pop them into my car stereo pretty frequently.  I just finished IT for probably the fourth time, but I wasn't ready for another run through of 11/22/63 yet.  I did them back to back a year or so ago.  Both audiobooks are exceptionally done and hold up on repeat. 

Edited September 30, 2021 by dcbc

[South Austin 52456]

Anybody read King's latest, Billy Summers?  I saw it in a bookstore yesterday but didn't buy it.  The description on the jacket seems interesting, and following his trend of less horror/supernatural. 

[NeverMarryAStripper 21875]

1 hour ago, South Austin said:

Anybody read King's latest, Billy Summers?  I saw it in a bookstore yesterday but didn't buy it.  The description on the jacket seems interesting, and following his trend of less horror/supernatural. 

I thought it was a good read, but yeah it has no horror/supernatural in it except for an offhanded reference to the shining.  It's really a character driven story.

[TwiceHorn 31440]

On 11/23/2021 at 11:27 AM, NeverMarryAStripper said:

I thought it was a good read, but yeah it has no horror/supernatural in it except for an offhanded reference to the shining.  It's really a character driven story.

Good synopsis.  But it follows the King ouevre of putting the protagonist in a hell of a mess that leaves you wondering how he's gonna get out of it.  And has some nice characters.

[Noah Fence 480]

On 11/23/2021 at 9:53 AM, South Austin said:

Anybody read King's latest, Billy Summers?  I saw it in a bookstore yesterday but didn't buy it.  The description on the jacket seems interesting, and following his trend of less horror/supernatural. 

It's good, and I agree with what everyone else has said.

[dcbc 14465]

On 11/25/2021 at 5:51 PM, TwiceHorn said:

Good synopsis.  But it follows the King ouevre of putting the protagonist in a hell of a mess that leaves you wondering how he's gonna get out of it and then a ball of electricity becomes the hand of God and blows everything up.  And has some nice characters.

Fixed it.

[SimonBolivar 10957]

On 9/16/2021 at 4:08 PM, SimonBolivar said:

IT was great even with "the scene"
 

1.) IT

2.) The Institute

3.) Joyland

4.) The Outsider

5.) Finder's Keepers

6.) Mr Mercedes

7.) 1922

8.) End of Watch

9.) Revival 

10.) Elevation

 

 

I've started Needful Things thanks to this thread. I think I'll like it based on the first 5%. We'll see how it goes.

1.) IT

2.) The Institute

3.) Joyland

4.) The Outsider

5.) Finder's Keepers

6.) Needful Things

7.) Mr Mercedes

8.) 1922

9.) End of Watch

10.) Revival 

11.) Elevation

 

Needful Things was solid and I'm about halfway through The Stand and still not really enjoying it as much as say IT. I know it's hard to compare things to IT, but The Stand has that reputation.

Edited January 12, 2022 by SimonBolivar

[dcbc 14465]

41 minutes ago, SimonBolivar said:

. . .

 

Needful Things was solid and I'm about halfway through The Stand and still not really enjoying it as much as say IT. I know it's hard to compare things to IT, but The Stand has that reputation.

I always recommend 11.22.63 right after IT for reasons which I will not mention for spoilers, and also because I think it's King's best book (with IT as a very close second).

The Stand is good, but I put it down after 400 pages to read IT the first time I tried to give it a go.  Eventually, I came back and listened to the audiobook.  I now have listened to the audiobook 4 times.  So I am a fan, but I totally relate to your reaction to it on first reading.

Edited January 12, 2022 by dcbc

[tigol 2395]

I always recommend 11.22.63 right after IT for reasons which I will not mention for spoilers, and also because I think it's King's best book (with IT as a very close second).
The Stand is good, but I put it down after 400 pages to read IT the first time I tried to give it a go.  Eventually, I came back and listened to the audiobook.  I now have listened to the audiobook 4 times.  So I am a fan, but I totally relate to your reaction to it on first reading.

I love 11.22.63. I couldn’t put it down. I’ll have to read IT.

[NeverMarryAStripper 21875]

I picked up a paperback copy of Salem's Lot in an airport while leaving on vacation sometime around 1980.  I still consider it to be one of his best novels, and probably his best example of a true horror novel.  It made me a fan.

[South Austin 52456]

Salem’s Lot is soooo good. It’s due for a re-read.

[dcbc 14465]

1 hour ago, South Austin said:

Salem’s Lot is soooo good. It’s due for a re-read.

I need to give it another go.  Maybe audiobook.  I liked it, but I just read a little bit each morning, and that dragged it out over a long time and I never really got "immersed."

[futureman 22444]

I am about halfway through my first foray into It.  strong to quite strong. 

[South Austin 52456]

7 hours ago, futureman said:

I am about halfway through my first foray into It.  strong to quite strong. 

As dcbc mentioned, read 11/22/63 after IT, if you haven’t already read that one. It doesn’t substantively follow IT, but there’s a really great tie-in.

[NorthLoop 14183]

Salem's Lot was my first King book. Finished it and was like "damn what I have been missing?" 

I immediately picked up 11/22 and blew through it, then read IT next (should've flipped those, but that's ok. I recognized most of the tie-ins anyways from the movie). Even though I loved IT, it was a little bit of a struggle just because of how long it is, and there are some parts that drag a little. Still a great book. 

[futureman 22444]

2 hours ago, South Austin said:

As dcbc mentioned, read 11/22/63 after IT, if you haven’t already read that one. It doesn’t substantively follow IT, but there’s a really great tie-in.

I’m a little confused about what the deal is with 11/22/63. I understand that’s a dumb thing to worry about and I need to trust King and what comes out of his typewriter. But is it just an alternate reality around the assassination? Is LHO a character in the book? From a position of ignorance that just doesn’t seem incredibly appealing to me but I trust your judgment when it comes to SK. I have read enough of the thread for that. 

[South Austin 52456]

2 minutes ago, futureman said:

But is it just an alternate reality around the assassination?

Pretty much this, but also includes a lot of history around the JLK assassination which I found fascinating. And yes, LHO is a character, but not a central one from what I recall (I haven’t read since it first came out).

[dcbc 14465]

On 1/28/2022 at 7:56 AM, futureman said:

I’m a little confused about what the deal is with 11/22/63. I understand that’s a dumb thing to worry about and I need to trust King and what comes out of his typewriter. But is it just an alternate reality around the assassination? Is LHO a character in the book? From a position of ignorance that just doesn’t seem incredibly appealing to me but I trust your judgment when it comes to SK. I have read enough of the thread for that. 

 

On 1/28/2022 at 8:01 AM, South Austin said:

Pretty much this, but also includes a lot of history around the JLK assassination which I found fascinating. And yes, LHO is a character, but not a central one from what I recall (I haven’t read since it first came out).

If you have some interest in the assassination, you probably will like it since that story is the backdrop for the larger story.  It is really well researched and the Dallas in the 1960s setting is really well done.  There's a tie in to IT, which, if you've recently read IT, you will catch way more than the most obvious bit of it.  Lastly, the story is really solid, the characters are well developed and written, and, even as someone who doesn't ever recall having a problem with SK's endings, this book sticks the landing on the ending harder than any of the rest of them.

[dcbc 14465]

Listening to The Institute audiobook now.  It's starting to ramp up (a little over half way through).

[futureman 22444]

finished It.  the end made me sad. the characters’ forgetting in the story and also just the culmination of my journey as the reader. what a fever-dream of a novel.

I know 11/22/63 has been recommended as a follow-up to It but based on other things I’ve read here I think I will pick up Skeleton Crew for “The Jaunt” and also want to read Salem’s Lot as well. How does Cujo stack up to his better novels? Who doesn’t like dogs?

[South Austin 52456]

Cujo was my first Stephen King book. I was in sixth or seventh grade. It was pretty good but haven’t re-read it since. There are a lot more novels better than that. There’s a connection to The Dead Zone if you’ve read that.

[salonghorn 204]

On 1/15/2022 at 10:06 AM, South Austin said:

Salem’s Lot is soooo good. It’s due for a re-read.

Reading it right now for the first time. Agree that it is soooo good. 

[TwiceHorn 31440]

5 minutes ago, salonghorn said:

Reading it right now for the first time. Agree that it is soooo good. 

Notable for it's contribution of "ringmeat kid" to the vocabulary.  Or my vocabulary.

[dcbc 14465]

I enjoyed the Institute quite a bit.  Now, I'm Listening to On Writing, which is solid.

Edited February 14, 2022 by dcbc

[iodeac 138]

finished It.  the end made me sad. the characters’ forgetting in the story and also just the culmination of my journey as the reader. what a fever-dream of a novel.
I know 11/22/63 has been recommended as a follow-up to It but based on other things I’ve read here I think I will pick up Skeleton Crew for “The Jaunt” and also want to read Salem’s Lot as well. How does Cujo stack up to his better novels? Who doesn’t like dogs?

Don't know if I've posted on this thread before but The Jaunt is one of those short stories that's always stuck with me. Hope you like it.

Enviado desde mi SM-G973U mediante Tapatalk

[TwiceHorn 31440]

1 minute ago, iodeac said:

Don't know if I've posted on this thread before but The Jaunt is one of those short stories that's always stuck with me. Hope you like it.

Enviado desde mi SM-G973U mediante Tapatalk
 

I love short stories, period.  I think King's shorts are some of his best work.

[iodeac 138]

I love short stories, period.  I think King's shorts are some of his best work.

I was thinking about Quitters Inc the other day and just the idea of something like that actually existing.

Another one that's always stuck with me is The Things They Left Behind which is really moreso about survivor's guilt from 9/11. Really well done though

Enviado desde mi SM-G973U mediante Tapatalk

[SimonBolivar 10957]

On 2/14/2022 at 11:02 AM, dcbc said:

I enjoyed the Institute quite a bit.  

I want a sequel 

[WhatTheBuck 28775]

Came across this yesterday:

[NeverMarryAStripper 21875]

He has a new one coming out in early September called Fairy Tale.  It looks like another tale of an ordinary kid thrust into a fight between good and evil with the fate of the world hanging in the balance.

[Elmer_Fudd 22204]

On 4/19/2022 at 10:22 AM, NeverMarryAStripper said:

He has a new one coming out in early September called Fairy Tale.  It looks like another tale of an ordinary kid thrust into a fight between good and evil with the fate of the world hanging in the balance.

Sounds like a typical King book that's going to have some crazy "wtf?" moments.  And I absolutely can't wait to read it.

[Viper 12104]

 

[Duane Moore 5237]

For those that liked his short story “N” I’d recommend this animated adaptation of it:

 

[futureman 22444]

On 2/16/2022 at 10:34 PM, iodeac said:

I was thinking about Quitters Inc the other day and just the idea of something like that actually existing.

went nosing around based on this post. found a copy free online for anyone that wants to read. can knock it out in 15-20 minutes. pretty good.

http://www.wcsoh.org/userfiles/4649/Classes/64560/quitters, inc. combined.pdf?id=548992

[SimonBolivar 10957]

On 4/19/2022 at 10:22 AM, NeverMarryAStripper said:

He has a new one coming out in early September called Fairy Tale.  It looks like another tale of an ordinary kid thrust into a fight between good and evil with the fate of the world hanging in the balance.

Damn it come out before the cfb season

[SimonBolivar 10957]

I just finished Billy Summers and liked it. I'm switching it up a gear and reading the Dark Tower series for the first time this summer. Years ago I listened to The Gunslinger before I read any of his works and was pretty lost/disengaged. I'm excited to start it with a Stephen King background.

Edited May 18, 2022 by SimonBolivar

[dcbc 14465]

On 5/18/2022 at 9:55 AM, SimonBolivar said:

I just finished Billy Summers and liked it. I'm switching it up a gear and reading the Dark Tower series for the first time this summer. Years ago I listened to The Gunslinger before I read any of his works and was pretty lost/disengaged. I'm excited to start it with a Stephen King background.

I couldn't make it through the Gunslinger.  I was lost, even with a background in King's other works.  I think it was a bunch of short stories combined to be a novel.  But that attempt at the audio book has kept me out of the Dark Tower series to date.  Let us know how it goes for you this time.

[SimonBolivar 10957]

7 hours ago, dcbc said:

I couldn't make it through the Gunslinger.  I was lost, even with a background in King's other works.  I think it was a bunch of short stories combined to be a novel.  But that attempt at the audio book has kept me out of the Dark Tower series to date.  Let us know how it goes for you this time.

It takes a minute to get adjusted for sure. About halfway through The Gunslinger it stops being super confusing and becomes just good confusing. I'm 3/4 through book 2 and I've forgotten the struggles of the start of book 1.

[Elmer_Fudd 22204]

On 5/26/2022 at 4:37 AM, SimonBolivar said:

It takes a minute to get adjusted for sure. About halfway through The Gunslinger it stops being super confusing and becomes just good confusing. I'm 3/4 through book 2 and I've forgotten the struggles of the start of book 1.

I've only read the first 2, but I absolutely loved part 2.

[Elmer_Fudd 22204]

I've never read Pet Cemetery and decided to finally give it read for this weekend.  Looking forward to some crazy bizarre shit.

[futureman 22444]

*sematary

[Cheeseweasel 26438]

48 minutes ago, futureman said:

*sematary

(Fred) Laws! We were horrible spellas as kids! (/Gwenn)

[Mikey4 2476]

I can't believe I haven't found this thread before now. King is the best. Here's what I've read, ranked from my favorites to least favorites

IT

The Stand

The Shining

The Institute 

Misery

Dark Tower Series (finished all of them, they were hit or miss for me) 

Mr. Mercedes 

 

Currently reading Dr. Sleep and really like it. 

 

 

[South Austin 52456]

On 5/28/2022 at 7:59 AM, Mikey4 said:

I can't believe I haven't found this thread before now. King is the best. Here's what I've read, ranked from my favorites to least favorites

IT

The Stand

The Shining

The Institute 

Misery

Dark Tower Series (finished all of them, they were hit or miss for me) 

Mr. Mercedes 

 

Currently reading Dr. Sleep and really like it. 

That’s a good list. I’d add to your queue Pet Sematary, Insomnia, Desperation, Bag of Bones, Duma Key, Under the Dome, and 11/22/63.

[LCHorn 2615]

Wow, a surprising amount of Institute love here. 
 

I’ve read pretty much everything King has written besides his crime pulp and probably the one that made the biggest impression on me when I read it was Hearts in Atlantis.  
 

At least on this thread I’m not seeing Revival, and if you liked The Jaunt then it should be in your wheelhouse.

Edited May 30, 2022 by LCHorn

[iodeac 138]

I just reread 11/22/1963, I think I read it several years ago and decided to reread since this thread mentioned the tie-in to IT, which I had completely forgotten about. Reading it a second time I thought that part was really well done, and I loved how he described the late 50s and early 60s. I'm not sure I liked the ending just because all the good he did other than the LHO thing was completely for no reason.

One line from this book has stuck with me since I read it the first time is where he says goodbye to Sadie and that she never really knew him, but he loved her.

Sent from my SM-S906U using Tapatalk

[TwiceHorn 31440]

On 5/27/2022 at 11:54 AM, Elmer_Fudd said:

I've never read Pet Cemetery and decided to finally give it read for this weekend.  Looking forward to some crazy bizarre shit.

It's not all that crazy, really.  When you read it as a sort of "parable" on grief and loss, it is actually pretty insightful. You see Louis Creed becoming increasingly desperate to shield his family, then himself from loss and grief using a "tool" that is usually an "introduction" to it for children.

 It's one of my favorites.

Edited May 31, 2022 by TwiceHorn

[Cheeseweasel 26438]

On 5/28/2022 at 7:59 AM, Mikey4 said:

Currently reading Dr. Sleep and really like it. 

The first half of this book was one of the best things I've read in 20 years. 

Second half is decent, but (as King usually does) it loses steam. Pun intended.

[dcbc 14465]

On 5/28/2022 at 7:59 AM, Mikey4 said:

I can't believe I haven't found this thread before now. King is the best. Here's what I've read, ranked from my favorites to least favorites

IT

The Stand

The Shining

The Institute 

Misery

Dark Tower Series (finished all of them, they were hit or miss for me) 

Mr. Mercedes 

 

Currently reading Dr. Sleep and really like it. 

 

 

Reread IT, then read 11.22.63.  I sound like a broken record in this thread, but 11.22.63 is his best book.

[dcbc 14465]

On 5/30/2022 at 8:14 PM, iodeac said:

I just reread 11/22/1963, I think I read it several years ago and decided to reread since this thread mentioned the tie-in to IT, which I had completely forgotten about. Reading it a second time I thought that part was really well done, and I loved how he described the late 50s and early 60s. I'm not sure I liked the ending just because all the good he did other than the LHO thing was completely for no reason.

One line from this book has stuck with me since I read it the first time is where he says goodbye to Sadie and that she never really knew him, but he loved her.

Sent from my SM-S906U using Tapatalk
 

Such a solid book.  I'm listening to the audiobook for the 4th time now.  I loved the ending, but it's tough for sure. 

 

This bit from the book just floored me:

 

“For a moment everything was clear, and when that happens you see that the world is barely there at all. Don't we all secretly know this? It's a perfectly balanced mechanism of shouts and echoes pretending to be wheels and cogs, a dreamclock chiming beneath a mystery-glass we call life. Behind it? Below it and around it? Chaos, storms. Men with hammers, men with knives, men with guns. Women who twist what they cannot dominate and belittle what they cannot understand. A universe of horror and loss surrounding a single lighted stage where mortals dance in defiance of the dark.”