stephen king c/d?

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So, I need some easy summer reading, and seeing as the new Michael Connelly isn't in paperback yet, I thought I'd try some Stephen King for the first time -- any recommendations?

More specifically, I kinda fancy checking out "The Stand" because the Lost writers keep name-dropping it -- is it worth it (it's long!) and should I read the old/short or new/long version?

Apart from that, Pet Sematary and Salem's Lot look interesting.

― Chuck_Tatum, Wednesday, 9 May 2007 20:47 (nineteen years ago)

The Stand is my favorite of them; read the unabridged version. It's perfect if you like end-of-the-world type stuff.

Pet Sematary and Salem's Lot are also solid choices. Of his more recent books, I really liked Bag of Bones.

― Sara R-C, Wednesday, 9 May 2007 20:49 (nineteen years ago)

I love the Stand but I don't know if I would start out with that.

Misery and The Shining spring first to mind. I don't remember PS or SL enough to say if they'd be better choices though. Carrie is also good. Basically I think any of the more well-known ones would be a good first choice before you delve into some of the longer, more King-y ones.

I'm sure someone on ILX will disagree.

― Ms Misery, Wednesday, 9 May 2007 20:49 (nineteen years ago)

I re-read Misery last year and was amazed at how compelling I found it. (I mean, it's not like I didn't know the ending.) The Shining is also very good. I might steer clear of reading Cujo, though because it's just soooooo depressing.

Oh, and his short story collections Skeleton Crew and Night Shift are really great.

― Sara R-C, Wednesday, 9 May 2007 20:55 (nineteen years ago)

Not showing up to disagree, but It is still my favorite King.

But Misery and The Shining are both good recommendations.

― Fluffy Bear Hearts Rainbows, Wednesday, 9 May 2007 20:56 (nineteen years ago)

Ahh, yes It was one of my faves too. I *loved* King as youngster but it's been a long time since I read anything of his. Will have to dig some out. . .

― Ms Misery, Wednesday, 9 May 2007 20:57 (nineteen years ago)

It -- I've seen the TV mini series: is the book different? Does the baddie still turn into an Evil Spider at the end?

― Chuck_Tatum, Wednesday, 9 May 2007 20:59 (nineteen years ago)

It scared the hell out of me the first time I read it. I was in high school, so too old to be as freaked out as I was... I'd start thinking about It in the shower and finish washing my hair as fast as I could so I could get out of there.

― Sara R-C, Wednesday, 9 May 2007 21:03 (nineteen years ago)

I re-read It post-college and still enjoyed it thoroughly, though it was obviously a little less frightening than when I read it at 13.

I avoided the TV mini-series. But it sure looked like crap. I guess it's technically very loyal to the novel. Did King have anything to do with it? Because that is a sign of a bad movie.

Read The Stand. It's as good as any, and it's a big source for pop culture references.

― Fluffy Bear Hearts Rainbows, Wednesday, 9 May 2007 21:03 (nineteen years ago)

Yeah. It works better in the book.

Of the books you mentioned, I like The Stand the most but would recommend 'Salem's Lot first. I hated Pet Sematery.

I read It during a period of time when I was travelling back and forth between Minnesota and Louisiana to visit my comatose brother in the hospital. It was... unsettling.

― HI DERE, Wednesday, 9 May 2007 21:05 (nineteen years ago)

I've only read the first four Dark Tower books, but we have all of them. My favorite was the fourth (Wizard and Glass). I've heard mixed things about the rest of the series.

Also considering getting the Dark Tower graphic novel interpolations or prequels or whatever they are.

― Sara R-C, Wednesday, 9 May 2007 21:07 (nineteen years ago)

Whoa Dan, that would be unsettling. (All of it.)

― Sara R-C, Wednesday, 9 May 2007 21:09 (nineteen years ago)

I stopped at the second Dark Tower and had lost track by the time he followed up. I should really pick them back up b/c I loved that series.

Did King have anything to do with it? Because that is a sign of a bad movie.

haha, absolutely. I don't know if a series/movie of IT would work so well period.

― Ms Misery, Wednesday, 9 May 2007 21:10 (nineteen years ago)

Yeah Sara, I was already depressed, then I was reading this huge book about a monster that ate kids while staying in a hotel room with huge, forbidding-looking closets, and I didn't sleep very much.

― HI DERE, Wednesday, 9 May 2007 21:11 (nineteen years ago)

Aw, I just want to travel back in time and give you a hug. And TAKE THAT BOOK AWAY FROM YOU FOR A WHILE.

― Sara R-C, Wednesday, 9 May 2007 21:14 (nineteen years ago)

I didn't realize that was when you read It.

― Fluffy Bear Hearts Rainbows, Wednesday, 9 May 2007 21:14 (nineteen years ago)

It could have been worse! I could have been reading Johnny Got His Gun.

― HI DERE, Wednesday, 9 May 2007 21:14 (nineteen years ago)

ha ha - I read that at John's recommendation. And it haunts me to this day.

I just remember that I read It in 11th grade; but I also remember Dan saying that It had freaked him out - yes, that is all I remember of Mr. H3b3rt's biology class. So you must have read it the year before I did, then, Dan. (Also, I didn't realize that your brother had been in a coma for long enough for you to travel back and forth... wow you went through a lot during that time.)

― Sara R-C, Wednesday, 9 May 2007 21:18 (nineteen years ago)

(Actually I have one other memory of Dan from that biology class; the day that he refused to take his hat off.)

― Sara R-C, Wednesday, 9 May 2007 21:19 (nineteen years ago)

I liked the Dark Tower series, but I think it's because I haven't read a fantasy novel since 5th grade (when Fellowship of the Ring bored me to death and turned me off of reading altogether for the next five years) and a part of me still yearns for epic quests where the fate of the world hangs in the balance etc etc. At any rate, it was a relatively guilt-free way to get my fix, so I'm not complaining.

I get why people hate the ending, and I didn't immediately embrace it either, but I'm cool with it now. I'm not a big ending guy anyway.

― bernard snowy, Wednesday, 9 May 2007 21:19 (nineteen years ago)

Stephen King's endings always seem to be his weak spot. I have a friend who is a writer and she was really peeved by the ending of Cell. Actually, I think she's still annoyed about the ending to It as well.

― Sara R-C, Wednesday, 9 May 2007 21:23 (nineteen years ago)

There's a copy of Cell in my house! I might read that. The cover is great: "Your Number is Up!" (Stormclouds in background, etc.)

― Chuck_Tatum, Wednesday, 9 May 2007 21:24 (nineteen years ago)

Oh God, the fucking hat story. Ugh.

King's anthologies are really great; Skeleton Crew is one of the most fun things I've ever read.

― HI DERE, Wednesday, 9 May 2007 21:26 (nineteen years ago)

Cell is not bad... I liked it and I didn't mind the ending.

Whatever you do, I'd avoid Insomnia. From a Buick 8 kind of left me cold, too.

Skeleton Crew was what made me a King addict. I still can't read "The Mist" without my palms sweating.

(Dan, sorry to bring up the hat story.)

― Sara R-C, Wednesday, 9 May 2007 21:28 (nineteen years ago)

My scalp is tingling now. Either I am about to be attacked by The Green goblin or my father scarred me mentally for life.

― HI DERE, Wednesday, 9 May 2007 21:29 (nineteen years ago)

lol... sorry. I blame myself. (Seriously, what WAS your father thinking?)

― Sara R-C, Wednesday, 9 May 2007 21:32 (nineteen years ago)

"The Mist" was a fun read.

― Anonymous, Wednesday, 9 May 2007 21:32 (nineteen years ago)

He was thinking it was 1960 instead of 1990?

― HI DERE, Wednesday, 9 May 2007 21:33 (nineteen years ago)

yeah, Skeleton Crew was great. I thought the ending of "The Mist" was perfect, with the sudden shift of focus from a very small geographic area to this entire weird terrifying world filled with horrors you can only begin to imagine. it's a total mindfuck moment, and left me so freaked out that I didn't even really care about the fate of the characters anymore.

― bernard snowy, Wednesday, 9 May 2007 21:34 (nineteen years ago)

OK, why do I not remember the hat story?

― Anonymous, Wednesday, 9 May 2007 21:34 (nineteen years ago)

Yes, please share.

― Ned Raggett, Wednesday, 9 May 2007 21:36 (nineteen years ago)

I'm resisting writing my dim memory of it out because I fear it would not be accurate.

"The Mist" is terrifying. I was on an airplane when I read it the first time... surrounded by clouds.

― Sara R-C, Wednesday, 9 May 2007 21:44 (nineteen years ago)

i'm dreading/anticipating the movie

― latebloomer, Wednesday, 9 May 2007 21:45 (nineteen years ago)

FB = RUMBLED

The hat story: Because it was a pain in the ass to get haircuts in the Twin Cities and my family didn't trust the hairdressers in town to know how to do black hair, my haircuts were very, very infrequent, usually something on the order of 8 months apart. In the midst of one of these haircut lapses, my dad decided that it would help make my hair more manageable if he straightened it. I didn't fully understand the logic behind it, but I deferred to his 33 years of added life experience and let him put relaxer on my head. The end result, of course, was that he burned all shades of holy shit out of my scalp and created a situation where all of the hair on my head essentially stuck straight out and my scalp was so damaged that even a light breeze wafting across my head caused intense pain. I got around this by wearing a baseball cap. The next day in biology class, the teacher decided that it was hellaciously disrespectful of me to wear a hat in his class and demanded that I take it off. I told him no and tried to relay what my dad had done to me, but he was hearing none of it. The thing basically turned into a shouting match where I finally yanked off my hat and displayed my comedy afro + oozing scabby scalp and said, "THERE! ARE YOU HAPPY NOW?" He took a horrified look at my head and said, "Okay you can keep the hat on," to which I said, "THANK YOU!" and slammed the hat back on my head, which of course was followed by a muffled yelp of pain.

Good times.

― HI DERE, Wednesday, 9 May 2007 21:45 (nineteen years ago)

fun fact: "The Mist" was part of the inspiration for Half-Life

― kingfish, Wednesday, 9 May 2007 21:46 (nineteen years ago)

Argh I forgot to add King content in that last post.

Carrie is an excellent read because it's short and the way it's written is really, really compelling; I don't know that he's done a book like that since.

― HI DERE, Wednesday, 9 May 2007 21:49 (nineteen years ago)

Other fun fact: Infocom made a text-adventure game of the story

― kingfish, Wednesday, 9 May 2007 21:50 (nineteen years ago)

> drop pig's head

― Ned Raggett, Wednesday, 9 May 2007 21:51 (nineteen years ago)

Yikes, Dan, I had forgotten about the burning part. Ouch!

And more S.K. info:

BTW, I had just finished Desperation when I went into preterm labor with Alex. Connection?

Then, when I was pregnant with J., I decided to go on a massive Stephen King re-reading binge, starting with The Stand (because I had a cold). Stephen King is, apparently, my comfort reading.

― Sara R-C, Wednesday, 9 May 2007 21:52 (nineteen years ago)

css

― HI DERE, Wednesday, 9 May 2007 22:02 (nineteen years ago)

I agree with much that's already been recommended here. The Stand is still my favourite, for the apocalyptic thing, sure, but all those compelling characters, and probably for the circumstances in which I read it. Thinking about it now, it's like the ultimate reality show, albeit on a way bigger backdrop than, say, the Cook Islands or Vanuatu -- "Survivor: the Continental United States". (And it has Trashcan Man!)

I reached the end of The Dark Tower with some trepidation after hearing about all the disappointment, but I loved it! To me, it was only way he could[ have ended it without it appearing forced. There's another thing he does toward the last two or three instalments, though (and I won't say what in case anyone on this thread decides to read the whole thing), that I'm not so sure about.

Everyone OTM (or 808080808 or whatever the new OTM is) re: his collections. They're probably better written than his novels over all, as he is finally forced to edit something! Skeleton Crew and Night Shift are excellent, yes, but don't forget the collections of shorter novels like Different Seasons and Nightmares And Dreamscapes. The former is almost perfect (and contains the two stories that formed the basis for two of the few decent King-inspired movies -- Stand By Me and Shawshank Redemption -- and both stories are better than the films.

I read his latest, Lisey's Story, and I'm still trying to get my head around it. It has its faults, but it may well be the most beautiful of his novels, and is quite achingly tender at times without necessarily falling into the maudlin trap he's sometimes prone to. Cell is fun, a lighter, breezier The Stand and an obvious tribute to George Romero.

Dan OTM re: Carrie and the way it's constructed, very readable and nowhere near as bulky as most of his novels. A good start for anyone new to King. Although I loved Pet Sematary (while being utterly horrified by it in a similar way to Cujo, that Sara has already alluded to).

Sorry, this is long.

(And if I haven't fucked up any of that code, it'll be a miracle, so apologies ahead of time if everything ends up in italics.)

― Lostandfound, Thursday, 10 May 2007 18:49 (nineteen years ago)

How could I forget Different Seasons? Sooooo awesome.

I liked Lisey's Story for a lot of reasons - and was surprised to find myself in tears at the end of it - but some of the "inner language of a marriage" stuff was kind of grating.

Also, I think I've heard about what you're referring to in the latter [i]Dark Tower[i] books, Lostandfound, and I kind of dread it... but maybe it will work for me, who knows.

― Sara R-C, Thursday, 10 May 2007 18:55 (nineteen years ago)

He's terrific at plot constuction and spookily poetic imagery, however he has a ridiculously undisciplined style, to the extent that most of his books could probably be half the length and still have the same ammount of story (maybe why they're good for filming?). I haven't actually read too much of his stuff because of this.

― chap, Thursday, 10 May 2007 18:55 (nineteen years ago)

I think his inability to effectively end a story actually worked to his advantage in Needful Things.

― HI DERE, Thursday, 10 May 2007 18:56 (nineteen years ago)

I would blame editors for that problem.

― Ms Misery, Thursday, 10 May 2007 18:59 (nineteen years ago)

i think part of the reason Pet Sematary is my favorite novel of his is because it's just the right length.

― latebloomer, Thursday, 10 May 2007 19:00 (nineteen years ago)

I think his editors are either afraid to do anything to his work at this point (and for a long time now) OR they don't care, since the stuff is going to sell like mad anyway. I mean, the entire first chapter of Black House should have been scrapped.

(King's not the only author with this problem; the 5th Harry Potter book desperately needed editing. Someone must have stepped in for #6, though, as it was a lot better...)

― Sara R-C, Thursday, 10 May 2007 19:02 (nineteen years ago)

I liked Lisey's Story for a lot of reasons - and was surprised to find myself in tears at the end of it - but some of the "inner language of a marriage" stuff was kind of grating.

Yes, exactly. The pet words they used, etc. But other than that, there was a pretty hefty emotional payoff, wasn't there? Surprised me a bit. Especially after the whole can opener scene (I didn't think he could rescue it after that, which was also surprising in that King isn't usually sadistic).

Also, I think I've heard about what you're referring to in the latter Dark Tower[i] books, Lostandfound, and I kind of dread it... but maybe it will work for me, who knows.

It was odd. I still can't decide if it was audacious or gimmicky (or both!), but it didn't ruin the series in the end (for me). I know that he's been accused of phoning in the last three books, but I was there for the whole ride and loved every minute of it, even though you can tell he had no idea where to go with the plot at various points. as with a lot of his stuff, it comes down to characters -- when they're stock clichés, it's boring, but when they compel you, you can't interrupt the damn thing even to go to the bathroom. For me, [i]The Dark Tower (in spite of a few sagging sections) is in the latter group.

― Lostandfound, Thursday, 10 May 2007 19:18 (nineteen years ago)

See, I knew I'd fuck up this code.

― Lostandfound, Thursday, 10 May 2007 19:19 (nineteen years ago)

Not to worry, I'm still following you.

but when they compel you, you can't interrupt the damn thing even to go to the bathroom...

Or sleep... or study... when I read Wizard and Glass I was going through horrible insomnia, so it worked out perfectly.

King isn't usually sadistic.

Wait, are we reading the same Stephen King books? (Misery leaps to mind first).

― Sara R-C, Thursday, 10 May 2007 19:23 (nineteen years ago)

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