Stephen King: favorites and least favorites [merged]
10-13-01, 12:36 AM
#3
DVD Talk Hall of Fame
Join Date: Sep 2001
Location: florida
Posts: 9,412
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Originally posted by Wormwood
I've only read Carrie, but I can tell you that one's a stinker.
I've only read Carrie, but I can tell you that one's a stinker.
I'm not a stinker
oh, you meant the book not me, oh well
I love Carrie
I am Carrie
10-13-01, 02:08 AM
#5
DVD Talk Hero
King's best books were his books from the '70s:
"Carrie" - an interesting examination of teenage trauma and the conflicting value systems of the '50s and '70s.
"'Salem's Lot" - Essentially King channeling Bradbury, but still good. A lot energy, but it set the stage for most of lackluster "King formula" books to follow. (Evil comes to a small town...)
"The Shining" - King's take on the dysfunctional family dynamic. Deeply disturbing to watch Jack Torrance slowly lose his mind and turn on his family.
"The Stand" - Probably King's most popular book. Excellent characterization, but the ending is a huge cheat. Also tends to be somewhat bloated and overwritten (which makes the cheat ending even more disappointing). The re-write was also unnecessary, and leads the reader to try to spot the new bits. (Hey, King couldn't have known Reagan was going to be elected president when he wrote this...)
"The Dead Zone" - Examination of the post-Watergate mistrust of politicians.
"Night Shift" - Some real gems. I'd like to say that King redefined the short horror story in a way nobody has done since Lovecraft, but I'm not willing to go that far. Sometimes the stories come off as sort of corny, but there's a lot of youthful energy in them. Even the worst stories have flashes of brilliance.
These books had either politically relevent storylines, or had a lot of dynamic energy. A lot of the stories in "Night Shift" might seem sort of dumb or goofy now, but there wasn't anything like them at the time. I'm also not a huge fan of "The Stand" and find it deeply flawed, but it's still an important work. His best post-80s work has been outside of the horror genre that made him famous: "The Body," "Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption," and "The Green Mile."
King's worst books...
Hard to tell. But it seems like most of the things (at least horror-related) from the '80s on just seem to be him running on autopilot. Books like "It," "Needful Things," and "Tommyknockers" just seem to be (bloated) rehashes of themes he covered better in previous books.
I really don't know where to put "The Dark Tower" series, as it's a work in progress, and, as far as I'm concerned, could go either way.
"Carrie" - an interesting examination of teenage trauma and the conflicting value systems of the '50s and '70s.
"'Salem's Lot" - Essentially King channeling Bradbury, but still good. A lot energy, but it set the stage for most of lackluster "King formula" books to follow. (Evil comes to a small town...)
"The Shining" - King's take on the dysfunctional family dynamic. Deeply disturbing to watch Jack Torrance slowly lose his mind and turn on his family.
"The Stand" - Probably King's most popular book. Excellent characterization, but the ending is a huge cheat. Also tends to be somewhat bloated and overwritten (which makes the cheat ending even more disappointing). The re-write was also unnecessary, and leads the reader to try to spot the new bits. (Hey, King couldn't have known Reagan was going to be elected president when he wrote this...)
"The Dead Zone" - Examination of the post-Watergate mistrust of politicians.
"Night Shift" - Some real gems. I'd like to say that King redefined the short horror story in a way nobody has done since Lovecraft, but I'm not willing to go that far. Sometimes the stories come off as sort of corny, but there's a lot of youthful energy in them. Even the worst stories have flashes of brilliance.
These books had either politically relevent storylines, or had a lot of dynamic energy. A lot of the stories in "Night Shift" might seem sort of dumb or goofy now, but there wasn't anything like them at the time. I'm also not a huge fan of "The Stand" and find it deeply flawed, but it's still an important work. His best post-80s work has been outside of the horror genre that made him famous: "The Body," "Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption," and "The Green Mile."
King's worst books...
Hard to tell. But it seems like most of the things (at least horror-related) from the '80s on just seem to be him running on autopilot. Books like "It," "Needful Things," and "Tommyknockers" just seem to be (bloated) rehashes of themes he covered better in previous books.
I really don't know where to put "The Dark Tower" series, as it's a work in progress, and, as far as I'm concerned, could go either way.
Last edited by Josh-da-man; 10-13-01 at 02:10 AM.
10-13-01, 03:00 PM
#6
DVD Talk God
I would have to go with Rose Madder and The Stand as favorites, though I love the Dark Tower stuff as well. Crap, Desperation was also excellent.
Least favorites would probably be Gerald's Game and Delorous Claiborne, though I still enjoyed them.
Least favorites would probably be Gerald's Game and Delorous Claiborne, though I still enjoyed them.
10-14-01, 02:19 AM
#8
DVD Talk Ultimate Edition
Join Date: Sep 1999
Location: Grounded in reality. For the most part.
Posts: 4,806
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
My favorites are The Stand, It, and The Gunslinger Series.
Insomnia and The Tommyknockers are 2 I probably wouldn't read again.
-Steve
Insomnia and The Tommyknockers are 2 I probably wouldn't read again.
-Steve
10-14-01, 08:40 PM
#10
DVD Talk Legend
Thread Starter
Join Date: Aug 2001
Location: Second star to the right and straight on 'til morning.
Posts: 16,055
Received 1,077 Likes
on
676 Posts
Thought I'd add my two cents to the thread I started....
Best Book - The Stand (although "It" held a place in my heart for a long time...then again, if I had included short stories of novellas then, hands down, The Body)
Worst Book - I could not get into Dolores Claiborne no matter how hard I tried.
V
Best Book - The Stand (although "It" held a place in my heart for a long time...then again, if I had included short stories of novellas then, hands down, The Body)
Worst Book - I could not get into Dolores Claiborne no matter how hard I tried.
V
10-14-01, 08:43 PM
#11
Guest
Join Date: Aug 2000
Posts: 153
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
My favorite of the books by him I've read is Bag of Bones. Favorite short story is that one about the boy who stays awake for teleportation type of travel and goes crazy because it seemed like it took forever (can't remember title). The one about the grandma who took over her grandson's body was pretty scary too.
Worst book is hard to say, since I don't make it through books I don't like. I flipped through Gerald's Game but thought it looked crappy and didn't read it. I read The Tommyknockers but didn't really like it.
tasha
Worst book is hard to say, since I don't make it through books I don't like. I flipped through Gerald's Game but thought it looked crappy and didn't read it. I read The Tommyknockers but didn't really like it.
tasha
10-15-01, 06:52 AM
#12
DVD Talk Platinum Edition
Originally posted by tasha1
My favorite of the books by him I've read is Bag of Bones. Favorite short story is that one about the boy who stays awake for teleportation type of travel and goes crazy because it seemed like it took forever (can't remember title). The one about the grandma who took over her grandson's body was pretty scary too.
Worst book is hard to say, since I don't make it through books I don't like. I flipped through Gerald's Game but thought it looked crappy and didn't read it. I read The Tommyknockers but didn't really like it.
tasha
My favorite of the books by him I've read is Bag of Bones. Favorite short story is that one about the boy who stays awake for teleportation type of travel and goes crazy because it seemed like it took forever (can't remember title). The one about the grandma who took over her grandson's body was pretty scary too.
Worst book is hard to say, since I don't make it through books I don't like. I flipped through Gerald's Game but thought it looked crappy and didn't read it. I read The Tommyknockers but didn't really like it.
tasha
I have always liked his short stories better.
10-15-01, 10:52 AM
#14
DVD Talk Ultimate Edition
Best books: IT has always been my favorite of his "horror" books. The Dark Tower books are some of my favorite books of all time. Eyes of the Dragon was really great, too.
Worst: I'm a huge King fan, so I usually find something redeemable in all of his books, but I have to say, if I never read Tommyknockers again, it would be okay with me. Just not a fan of that one.
X
Worst: I'm a huge King fan, so I usually find something redeemable in all of his books, but I have to say, if I never read Tommyknockers again, it would be okay with me. Just not a fan of that one.
X
10-15-01, 06:06 PM
#17
DVD Talk Hero - 2023 TOTY Award Winner
I have always found Salem's Lot to be his best work. The first 500 or so pages of The Stand are also magnificent but the novel loses its way in the last third or so.
I have never been especially fond of The Dark Half in particular. Frankly, much of his more recent work has been disappointing for me.
I find his novels which feature large numbers of characters to be the easiest to enjoy (with rare exceptions). King's greatest gift is in his characterization.
I have never been especially fond of The Dark Half in particular. Frankly, much of his more recent work has been disappointing for me.
I find his novels which feature large numbers of characters to be the easiest to enjoy (with rare exceptions). King's greatest gift is in his characterization.
01-27-02, 06:18 AM
#18
Senior Member
Join Date: Jun 2000
Location: Albany, OR, USA
Posts: 656
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Stephen King fans: your favorites and least favorites:
Yeah, yeah, I know, Stephen King is a very prolific author and this has probably been done before, but I'm new here so I'm doing it anyway. 
As far as favorites go, for me it is a toss-up between Christine (read 5 times) and It (read three times, and would have read more often if it weren't such a ponderous tome). These two books would definitely rank near the top of my all-time top ten list.
Now as far as least favorites go, this is a much more difficult call, but I would have to say The Dark Half...not because it is a particularly bad novel, but I believe that it was at this point in King's career that he decided to stop writing about childhood, which I feel was his forte. He just seemed to have a knack for capturing the essence of childhood (a passage from Christine comes to mind here where Arnie and Dennis are hiding out from Arnie's mom and eating mustard and Wonderbread sandwiches). Just my $.02...
As far as favorites go, for me it is a toss-up between Christine (read 5 times) and It (read three times, and would have read more often if it weren't such a ponderous tome). These two books would definitely rank near the top of my all-time top ten list.
Now as far as least favorites go, this is a much more difficult call, but I would have to say The Dark Half...not because it is a particularly bad novel, but I believe that it was at this point in King's career that he decided to stop writing about childhood, which I feel was his forte. He just seemed to have a knack for capturing the essence of childhood (a passage from Christine comes to mind here where Arnie and Dennis are hiding out from Arnie's mom and eating mustard and Wonderbread sandwiches). Just my $.02...
01-27-02, 02:56 PM
#21
Mod Emeritus
Join Date: Oct 1999
Location: Outside of the U.S.A.
Posts: 10,674
Likes: 0
Received 1 Like
on
1 Post
Re: Stephen King fans: your favorites and least favorites:
<small>
</small>Now how did that happen....?
Originally posted by Stangman68
Yeah, yeah, I know, Stephen King is a very prolific author and this has probably been done before....
Yeah, yeah, I know, Stephen King is a very prolific author and this has probably been done before....
01-27-02, 04:30 PM
#22
DVD Talk Hero
Best: probably The Stand. Worst: probably The Dark Half (much inferior to the somewhat similarly plotted Mr. Murder by Dean Koontz).
As for Gerald's Game, I don't understand why it is so reviled here. I thought it was a fascinating study of this woman in a horrible predicament (although I can't say I much liked its companion piece, Dolores Claiborne).
As for Gerald's Game, I don't understand why it is so reviled here. I thought it was a fascinating study of this woman in a horrible predicament (although I can't say I much liked its companion piece, Dolores Claiborne).
01-28-02, 03:55 AM
#24
DVD Talk Special Edition
Join Date: Mar 2000
Posts: 1,849
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
warning - potential spoilers
I used to be able to read horror (mostly King and Koontz) but can't really anymore - just not where I am right now in my life. But back when I did read them, my favorites were Salem's Lot (to date the most scared I have EVER been - still get all freaked out when I think of the tapping...shivers!), It (clowns have always scared me, so I couldn't re-read this one, but boy did it get under my skin - especially the stuff about the photographs - brilliant), The Stand (the ending was not so great, but the journey was), The Shining (freaky!), and lastly, the novella The Body (just incredible beginning to end).
Least favorites - recent stuff - Dolores Claiborne, Rose Madder, Gerald's Game, etc. Granted my assessment is unfair since I just disliked the premise of each so had no desire to actually read the books themselves, but I always feel compelled to answer the whole question.
Sorry to any fans of these books.
Never read The Tommyknockers, Carrie, Christine or Cujo - maybe someday I will. And I'll definitely read The Dark Tower series if and when it is ever finished - but I refuse to start before a series is ended (lesson learned from Jean Auel and Robert Jordan).
I used to be able to read horror (mostly King and Koontz) but can't really anymore - just not where I am right now in my life. But back when I did read them, my favorites were Salem's Lot (to date the most scared I have EVER been - still get all freaked out when I think of the tapping...shivers!), It (clowns have always scared me, so I couldn't re-read this one, but boy did it get under my skin - especially the stuff about the photographs - brilliant), The Stand (the ending was not so great, but the journey was), The Shining (freaky!), and lastly, the novella The Body (just incredible beginning to end).
Least favorites - recent stuff - Dolores Claiborne, Rose Madder, Gerald's Game, etc. Granted my assessment is unfair since I just disliked the premise of each so had no desire to actually read the books themselves, but I always feel compelled to answer the whole question.
Sorry to any fans of these books.Never read The Tommyknockers, Carrie, Christine or Cujo - maybe someday I will. And I'll definitely read The Dark Tower series if and when it is ever finished - but I refuse to start before a series is ended (lesson learned from Jean Auel and Robert Jordan).
01-28-02, 01:34 PM
#25
Mod Emeritus
Join Date: Oct 1999
Location: Outside of the U.S.A.
Posts: 10,674
Likes: 0
Received 1 Like
on
1 Post
<small>
</small>[
I think I should just merge those two long series/delayed reading threads from earlier this month!]
Because of all the hoopla here over the past several months I've recently ordered the Dark Tower series: it better be good!!
To answer the two people that asked the question - which I should have done yesterday rather than being flip with my smiley - I've not read so much King but have fond memories of It and Firestarter.
I don't recall being quite as impressed with Tommyknockers; science-fictional horror.
I was surprised overall at liking King so much.
For years I'd just assumed him to be another horror hack. I caught part of Firestarter in an old Omni magazine way back when and realised I'd allowed myself to be misled. Some years later I was loaned It. I've picked up several of his novels since then and never actually been disappointed: IMO he really knows how to put together a story and I was a little surprised at the comparison with Koontz for at least one novel whom I always considered (perhaps unfairly) far more of a hack. I've not seen any of King's more recent material, however.
(Let's hope I do actually get around to reading those Dark Tower books I ordered!)
Originally posted by WarriorPrincess
And I'll definitely read The Dark Tower series if and when it is ever finished - but I refuse to start before a series is ended (lesson learned from Jean Auel and Robert Jordan).
And I'll definitely read The Dark Tower series if and when it is ever finished - but I refuse to start before a series is ended (lesson learned from Jean Auel and Robert Jordan).
I think I should just merge those two long series/delayed reading threads from earlier this month!]Because of all the hoopla here over the past several months I've recently ordered the Dark Tower series: it better be good!!
To answer the two people that asked the question - which I should have done yesterday rather than being flip with my smiley - I've not read so much King but have fond memories of It and Firestarter.
I don't recall being quite as impressed with Tommyknockers; science-fictional horror.
I was surprised overall at liking King so much.
For years I'd just assumed him to be another horror hack. I caught part of Firestarter in an old Omni magazine way back when and realised I'd allowed myself to be misled. Some years later I was loaned It. I've picked up several of his novels since then and never actually been disappointed: IMO he really knows how to put together a story and I was a little surprised at the comparison with Koontz for at least one novel whom I always considered (perhaps unfairly) far more of a hack. I've not seen any of King's more recent material, however.
(Let's hope I do actually get around to reading those Dark Tower books I ordered!)
Last edited by benedict; 01-28-02 at 01:36 PM.