only read Dreamcatcher - it's pretty hilarious/terrible
― Kiarostami bag (milo z), Monday, 30 April 2012 21:39 (twelve years ago) link
I've read everything up through The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon, but the only ones I really remember as books are Delores Claiborne and Rose Madder, which for some reason I didn't hate? So I'll vote for Rose Madder, just to be contrary.
I also remember wanting to read Black House because boy oh boy did I love the shit out of The Talisman but I don't think I ever got around to it.
― Polly biscuit face (carl agatha), Monday, 30 April 2012 21:40 (twelve years ago) link
ah sorry didn't notice it said "post Gerald's Game" so I was looking for The Long Walk.
― we are not bemused (onimo), Monday, 30 April 2012 21:42 (twelve years ago) link
Hard to believe how many of his recent books I haven't read - I read pretty much everything up to Tom Gordon then very little other than The Dark Tower books (which pissed me off no end, in the end). I had no idea he was still so prolific.
I suppose I should go spend £5 in a charity shop and catch up.
― we are not bemused (onimo), Monday, 30 April 2012 21:44 (twelve years ago) link
― we are not bemused (onimo), Monday, 30 April 2012 22:44 (Yesterday) Bookmark
Yeah, think i'm gonna pick up a couple this week
― Number None, Tuesday, 1 May 2012 00:26 (twelve years ago) link
i repped for "bag of bones" back in the day since it was king's foray into "literature," but i think maybe there was an element of youthful defensiveness in that pick. i re-read it a few years ago and it didn't hang together as well as i remembered.
― supreme sundae (reddening), Tuesday, 1 May 2012 05:17 (twelve years ago) link
I loke his chamber-novels most, so am voting for the one-character Tom Gordon.
― caro's johnson (Eazy), Tuesday, 1 May 2012 05:57 (twelve years ago) link
love, that is.
s.king is the great popular artist of our times
voted for cell
― thomp, Tuesday, 1 May 2012 07:00 (twelve years ago) link
where's the stand?
― fka snush (remy bean), Tuesday, 1 May 2012 11:07 (twelve years ago) link
post gerald's game pol.
― diafiyhm (darraghmac), Tuesday, 1 May 2012 11:08 (twelve years ago) link
i repped for "bag of bones" back in the day since it was king's foray into "literature," but i think maybe there was an element of youthful defensiveness in that pick. i re-read it a few years ago and it didn't hang together as well as i remembered.― supreme sundae (reddening), Tuesday, May 1, 2012 1:17 AM (6 hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink
― supreme sundae (reddening), Tuesday, May 1, 2012 1:17 AM (6 hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink
How was it supposed to be more literary? I couldn't get past this description in the wiki:
It focuses on an author who suffers severe writer's block
So, okay. Early on, we have Salem's Lot, The Shining, then as far as I can tell things stayed pretty cool until IT, but in that case the writer was part of an ensemble cast. Then we get BAM! Misery. BAM! The Dark Half. BAM! Secret Window, Secret Garden.
All these fucking authors...
― frogsclovetofu (beachville), Tuesday, 1 May 2012 11:51 (twelve years ago) link
was the last one of those even noticed by anybody
― thomp, Tuesday, 1 May 2012 11:54 (twelve years ago) link
It was part of the collection Four Past Midnight and about 10 years later made into a major motion picture with Johnny Depp.
― frogsclovetofu (beachville), Tuesday, 1 May 2012 11:55 (twelve years ago) link
Sorry about the BAM's by the way. Don't know what overcame me.
It's notable in that it's basically the exact same thing as The Dark Half.
― frogsclovetofu (beachville), Tuesday, 1 May 2012 11:56 (twelve years ago) link
yeah but the depp movie was a 'they're adapting that?' deal - the langoliers must have been optioned pretty much immediately, but four past midnight seems to have been a not-a-big-deal stephen king book*
i was going to raise the caveat that the tommyknockers was in between misery and the dark half, but ha er the protagonist in that is also a writer . oh, what to do
i mean i would like to try and excuse it according to some Grand Unified Theory Of Stephen King but basically the answer is 'drugs'
-
*it's interesting that his books lately seem to have become More Of A Big Deal, but i don't know whether that's because he has a better agent now or what -- i mean, i think he's been on a genuinely interesting roll at least since he got the dark tower out of his system and possibly before but i am not going to read those three books any time soon
― thomp, Tuesday, 1 May 2012 12:02 (twelve years ago) link
fuck, somehow I remembered the woman from Tommyknockers as the sheriff or police or something. Guess it's been a while since I read that. I liked that one a lot, at the time.
― frogsclovetofu (beachville), Tuesday, 1 May 2012 12:22 (twelve years ago) link
Speaking of Tommyknockers, did he ever bring back The Shop?
― frogsclovetofu (beachville), Tuesday, 1 May 2012 12:25 (twelve years ago) link
no hearts in atlantis?
― Mordy, Tuesday, 1 May 2012 12:31 (twelve years ago) link
Hearts in Atlantis is listed under "short fiction collections" on wikipedia.
― frogsclovetofu (beachville), Tuesday, 1 May 2012 12:35 (twelve years ago) link
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\? <3 ?
? <3 ?
― diafiyhm (darraghmac), Tuesday, 1 May 2012 12:36 (twelve years ago) link
Have read The Regulators, Insomnia, and Under the Dome. First two were pretty bad. Under the Dome was fine but like almost every King book way too long and crappy ending. Would have voted for Wizard and Glass if Dark Tower books were included.
― justfanoe (Greg Fanoe), Tuesday, 1 May 2012 13:18 (twelve years ago) link
wizard and glass might be my favourite of his, full stop
― diafiyhm (darraghmac), Tuesday, 1 May 2012 13:22 (twelve years ago) link
Hard to believe how many of his recent books I haven't read
Cosign!
I voted for The Regulators, even though it's in some sense a much longer rehash of "It's A Good Life." It's so weird and shut-in and messed up! Under The Dome had some of those enjoyable Big King features but was so unedited and the "this is just like GWB" stuff was too much and too plain. Cell has a virtuoso first act but never really figures out what to do afterwards. Of the ones I've read, I'd rate them Regulators > Cell > Under the Dome > Black House > Desperation > Insomnia. And actually I think the collections are better than the novels in this era!
― Guayaquil (eephus!), Tuesday, 1 May 2012 13:23 (twelve years ago) link
Under the Dome was fine but like almost every King book way too long and crappy ending.
I read an excerpt from it and it seemed like a horror version of the Simpsons movie.
― Respectfully, Tyrese Gibson (Nicole), Tuesday, 1 May 2012 13:24 (twelve years ago) link
Also, I can't forgive the Dark Tower's metafictional turn.
― Guayaquil (eephus!), Tuesday, 1 May 2012 13:24 (twelve years ago) link
xp He was kinda butthurt about the whole Simpsons thing and as a result published some excerpts from a much earlier, unpublished version of the book which was confined to a single building rather than a whole town.
― i love the large auns pictures! (Phil D.), Tuesday, 1 May 2012 13:29 (twelve years ago) link
Of the ones I've read, I'd rate them Regulators > Cell > Under the Dome > Black House > Desperation > Insomnia
that vulture thing has 'desperation' much higher than 'regulators' which is just crazy talk
actually i think those two might be where i'd want to argue he got good again, such a weird thing for a writer of his level of success to do
― thomp, Tuesday, 1 May 2012 13:33 (twelve years ago) link
Yeah, the last Dark Tower book is really, really bad. I don't understand the defenders at all.
― justfanoe (Greg Fanoe), Tuesday, 1 May 2012 13:39 (twelve years ago) link
the last three, tbh. Once SPOILER
he turns up for fuck's sake
END SPOILER
it was a struggle to stay into it
― diafiyhm (darraghmac), Tuesday, 1 May 2012 13:42 (twelve years ago) link
i was just looking at this 80s book of interviews with him and he bitches about people who are proud to read john barth but will hide his, king's, books
― thomp, Tuesday, 1 May 2012 13:43 (twelve years ago) link
I liked Wolves of the Calla, even if it was all a bit pointless.
― justfanoe (Greg Fanoe), Tuesday, 1 May 2012 14:00 (twelve years ago) link
Ok so I just reread "It's a Good Life" and man, there's an argument that Stephen King never in his great career matched this.
http://web.archive.org/web/20091126104154/http://nickelkid.net/docs/greats/its_a_good_life.html
― Guayaquil (eephus!), Tuesday, 1 May 2012 14:02 (twelve years ago) link
Looks like Under the Dome is going to be my first foray into King's 21st century works since it was the one that peaked my interest the most and has been getting favorable talk here... I absolutely loved him and Anne Rice in junior high.
I think my favorite thing ever of his though is his non-fiction book on horror called Danse Macabre. That and the first third of The Stand.
― I will transmit this information to (Viceroy), Wednesday, 2 May 2012 20:24 (twelve years ago) link
Danse Macabre is great
― Peppermint Patty Hearst (VegemiteGrrl), Wednesday, 2 May 2012 20:38 (twelve years ago) link
not really on-topic but whenever I get a crushing I headache I secretly hope it's my unformed evil twin plotting to take me over a la the Dark Half
i vote for this:http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2012/04/30/stephen-king-tax-me-for-f-s-sake.html
― one dis leads to another (ian), Wednesday, 2 May 2012 22:08 (twelve years ago) link
I've read the whole series a few times and yet I struggle to recall anything from him showing up, yet I can remember details about how Cuthbert supposedly looked etc.
Also, this reminds me, I have the new Dark Tower one which I have to read now.
― gyac, Wednesday, 2 May 2012 22:36 (twelve years ago) link
I forgot how he wrote himself in
god I hated that
― Peppermint Patty Hearst (VegemiteGrrl), Wednesday, 2 May 2012 22:37 (twelve years ago) link
re: Bag of Bones being more "literary" than his previous stuff -- the book is nominally about a house/town that's haunted by a malevolent spirit, but the first 3/4ths of the book is surprisingly realist, for king. the main character is a lolwriter who's dealing with the loss of his wife and unborn child, his feelings for a new woman, his grief and writer's block, etc. the last quarter of the book eventually does go full-on thriller, but until that point the paranormal stuff is handled with a pretty light touch.
bear in mind i haven't read it in forever, so these are my remembered opinions from when i stanned for it in high school.
― supreme sundae (reddening), Wednesday, 2 May 2012 22:46 (twelve years ago) link
All the shit with Cuthbert and his "lookout" in Wizard & Glass is serious LOLz.
― i love the large auns pictures! (Phil D.), Wednesday, 2 May 2012 22:49 (twelve years ago) link
Automatic thread bump. This poll is closing tomorrow.
― System, Thursday, 3 May 2012 00:01 (twelve years ago) link
I have read zero of these books, though I think I read everything up through The Dark Half. The only post 1990 books I've read are the Dark Tower series (mixed bag) and On Writing (the best of his I've read). I'm going to use the results of this as a guide to the last 20-odd years of King.
― EZ Snappin, Thursday, 3 May 2012 00:08 (twelve years ago) link
Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.
― System, Friday, 4 May 2012 00:01 (twelve years ago) link
weird
― Peppermint Patty Hearst (VegemiteGrrl), Friday, 4 May 2012 00:02 (twelve years ago) link
well that isn't helpful at all!
― Number None, Friday, 4 May 2012 00:02 (twelve years ago) link
On Writing (the best of his I've read).
I actually don't like On Writing as much as I like Danse Macabre, but they're both up there for me.
I don't feel like Tom Gordon getting 3 votes over a whole cluster that got two votes is any indicator that I should start with Tom Gordon. I'm most intrigued by ideas behind Under the Dome, the Regulators, and Cell though, so maybe I'll start with one of them.
― how's life, Friday, 4 May 2012 12:28 (twelve years ago) link
I mean, if two people each agree they don't totally blow...
― how's life, Friday, 4 May 2012 12:41 (twelve years ago) link
More than one person out there thinks Dolores Claiborne doesn't totally blow. Don't know how that one ended up so underrated.
― jungleous butterflies strange birds (Eric H.), Friday, 4 May 2012 12:43 (twelve years ago) link
tom gordon was only ok for me, but i enjoyed the pulpiness of the regulators.
― underleg aeroboots i have smithed (darraghmac), Friday, 4 May 2012 12:56 (twelve years ago) link
Cell has a virtuoso first act but never really figures out what to do afterwards.
Ahhhhhh, worried about this. I'm about halfway through the book at this point (when they get ready to leave the boarding school) and it hasn't faltered a step for me so far. Very vivid and well-paced.
Regulators was really good too. Although it was almost too brief (I guess there's more to learn about Tak in the companion novel) the ending and epilogue are satisfying.
― coat news for people who love boat shoes (how's life), Thursday, 12 July 2012 00:27 (eleven years ago) link
The main problem with later SK novels is the way WTF is so often replaced by smh.
― bit.ly sno cone maker (Jon Lewis)
bears repeating
― deems irreverent (darraghmac), Thursday, 12 July 2012 00:32 (eleven years ago) link
Ahhhhhh, worried about this.
You should be. King can't write an ending that isn't utter shit.
― an inevitable disappointment (James Morrison), Thursday, 12 July 2012 00:35 (eleven years ago) link
I really, really liked the second act of Cell, btw. Haven't explored any of these since last summer though.
― how's life, Wednesday, 10 July 2013 17:16 (ten years ago) link
Wait, I started on 11/22/63, but only made it a couple of chapters in.
― how's life, Wednesday, 10 July 2013 17:17 (ten years ago) link
Cell was fine. I dunno that I'd go back and reread it but it was enjoyable enough.
― set the controls for the heart of the sun (VegemiteGrrl), Wednesday, 10 July 2013 17:43 (ten years ago) link
I'm about 200 pages into Dreamcatcher, and it's the first King book I'm tempted to just give up on. I don't care about any of the main characters, or their life-changing childhood friendship with Duddits, the aliens plot is taking waaaaaay too long to kick into gear, and all of the farting/belching stuff is just ridiculous rather than scary.
Anyone want to convince me to keep slogging through it?
― Snorting and all (Dan Peterson), Tuesday, 3 January 2017 17:43 (seven years ago) link
I've never read it (the movie is completely ludicrous) but I've been intrigued inasmuch as it's the thing he wrote while recuperating from his accident and is reportedly a document of his state of mind at the time.
― DJ Untz Hall (Old Lunch), Tuesday, 3 January 2017 17:45 (seven years ago) link
The book not only does not get better, it gets an order of magnitude worse.
His recent police procedural trilogy starting with "Mr. Mercedes" wasn't too bad.
― Lauren Schumer Donor (Phil D.), Tuesday, 3 January 2017 17:47 (seven years ago) link
Dreamcatcher was the first one I read, around when the movie came out. Too much farting
― flappy bird, Tuesday, 3 January 2017 17:48 (seven years ago) link
Man, if this was the first King book I ever encountered I never would have read The Stand or It.
― Snorting and all (Dan Peterson), Tuesday, 3 January 2017 18:00 (seven years ago) link
ha i think the second one I read was the collection that had Secret Window or whatever in it, the rebranded movie reissue with Johnny Depp on the cover. Read The Shining and The Stand shortly after that though... finally got around to Carrie and Misery this year, gonna read It real soon....
― flappy bird, Tuesday, 3 January 2017 18:03 (seven years ago) link
The movie of Dreamcatcher is hilarious.
― rhymes with "blondie blast" (cryptosicko), Tuesday, 3 January 2017 18:10 (seven years ago) link
shit weasels
― who is extremely unqualified to review this pop album (BradNelson), Tuesday, 3 January 2017 18:27 (seven years ago) link
is Doctor Sleep any good? I read a review (which was a good review) and it sounded ridiculous
― akm, Tuesday, 3 January 2017 18:29 (seven years ago) link
I didn't care much for Dr Sleep.
― sofatruck, Friday, 6 January 2017 12:19 (seven years ago) link
Dreamcatcher is terrible and yet so memorable
― his eye is on despair-o (Jon not Jon), Friday, 6 January 2017 19:07 (seven years ago) link
I liked Doctor Sleep, though it felt less like a direct sequel to a weighty novel, and more like a Dean Koontz novel. The book reads fast, and should be worth satisfying your curiosity re: the direction an adult Danny would go.
― the body of a spider... (scampering alpaca), Friday, 6 January 2017 21:18 (seven years ago) link
11/22/63 is great so far (first third), I’m kind of scared how King will fuck it up in the last third.
― Greta Van Show Feets BB (milo z), Thursday, 21 March 2019 09:19 (five years ago) link
imo you may be pleasantly surprised
― Squeaky Fromage (VegemiteGrrl), Friday, 22 March 2019 05:23 (five years ago) link
has anyone who read doctor sleep also seen the movieif i think the movie is ok is it worth reading the book?answers, i need answers
― terminators of endearment (VegemiteGrrl), Wednesday, 21 July 2021 04:11 (two years ago) link
You'll get more backstory. The movie's faithful, though Dan turns out to be Abra's half-uncle as Jack Torrance fathered Abra's mom and the True Knot gets defeated differently, with Dan living at the end.
― the body of a spider... (scampering alpaca), Wednesday, 21 July 2021 14:03 (two years ago) link
Cell was so fucking weird
― Guayaquil (eephus!), Wednesday, 21 July 2021 14:55 (two years ago) link
Dreamcatcher is terrible and yet so memorable― his eye is on despair-o (Jon not Jon), Friday, January 6, 2017 1:07 PM (four years ago) bookmarkflaglink
― his eye is on despair-o (Jon not Jon), Friday, January 6, 2017 1:07 PM (four years ago) bookmarkflaglink
fwiw I managed to finish this book 4 years ago, and I just now had to go read the Wiki synopsis to recall what happens, so no, not memorable. But yes terrible.
― Three Rings for the Elven Bishop (Dan Peterson), Wednesday, 21 July 2021 15:23 (two years ago) link
Not sure if I read this one so I read the Wiki synopsis and I'm still not sure
― Guayaquil (eephus!), Wednesday, 21 July 2021 18:27 (two years ago) link
I guess I don't even remember the movie properly because I sure don't remember this
https://s3.birthmoviesdeath.com/images/made/dreamcatcher1_600_446_81_s.jpg
Just why
― Marty J. Bilge (Old Lunch), Wednesday, 21 July 2021 18:35 (two years ago) link
shitweasels
― STOCK FIST-PUMPER BRAD (BradNelson), Wednesday, 21 July 2021 18:42 (two years ago) link