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Your favourite Stephen King
Which is your favourite Stephen King and why?
Also, do you think age fourteen too young to read The Stand? Are there any age restrictions on any of his books, do you know, please?
Comments
What Steven King has is a very good command of suspense and fear. If the 14 year old is at all vulnerable, I'd say they were too young. If they are down to earth and not given to nightmares i should think they'd be ok. Stephen King has a very strong MORAL thread though his books - good and bad are very clearly defined.
My favourite is The Shining.I love his short story collections too. It's what made me want to write horror shorts. I wouldn't worry too much about age. Stephen King hardly has any shock horror gore. It's more suspense and twisted realities like Liz said. Also a teenager knows if the book is too much and stops reading.
I've read one or two from King's short story collections.
Are there any of his anyone knows are not worth reading, only I vaguely remember a while back somebody mentioned to me he did write a few books that weren't so good yet I can't remember the title(s).
I loved IT, The Shining, Pet Semetary, Needful Things, Misery is spine-chilling. I thought Insomnia was fine. I've read many more but would have to go through his catalogue to be reminded.
I admire the way he creates his atmospheres, and builds suspense.
IT is my fave because I found it so scary I couldn't put the light off to go to sleep, and no other book has ever made me as scared.
My fave one was second fave was the one about the isolated hotel in the mountains of Montana (?) where things are going on (of course) and the topiary shrubbery comes alive. I think it's The Shining but I can't remember.
Enjoyed The Dark Half but it didn't thrill me. Must complete the Dark Tower series, supposed to be brill, and I must read some of his newer stuff.
Films: Carrie. I didn't want to go back to school after I had first seen it.
The Shining. 'Here's Johnny'. Need I say more?!
I was just about to buy a copy: the reviews are very good.
There's also a book by the (sadly) late Maeve Binchy 'The Maeve Binchy Writers' Club'. Has anyone read this, and if so, is it worth buying?
Great line though not actually in the book as Nicholson made that up on the day. The shining is almost a perfect novel, forget genre. If it came out today classed as literature it would be universally respected. Though not sell the million truck loads.
Im hunting for book four of The Tower series. My friend said his mum has read them all and was cursing Stephen King at the end but he failed to say why. He also said that he found after he was hit by van, in his option, his writing became worse. Ive not read enough of Stephen Kings work to comment.
Went to the library y'day and took out Blaze, and Full Dark No Stars, so will try them now.
Told my son I'd dig out The Stand for him and he keeps telling me to naff off, he'll find his own books thank you. Charmin!
Love King's short stories.
Not keen on his son Joe Hill's writing; I recently read a father/son collaboration and didn't enjoy it all.
Hope I'm not saying something sacreligious here.
I love that title and I really want to read that one. Thanks for reminding me, dora.
Thanks SilentTony :-) I didn't know that. I can just imagine Jack coming up with it ... he's one of the 'greats' in my opinion!
P.S.I did have it under 'films', as I must admit to not having read that particular book.
I've subsequently bought the DVD and book.
I am a horror writer, but my leaning is definitely towards supernatural (dark fantasy as it's known these days). I don't like the branch of horror that could be described as "man's inhumanity to man": the thought that it could actually happen disturbs me too much.
I saw The Exorcist at the cinema when I was 14 - I don't know how I got in! I'm sure I didn't look 18. I enjoyed it and didn't come to any harm as a result.
Scallywag!
I didn't read the Green Mile, but loved the film - so sad to hear about the death of Michael Clarke Duncan.
I really like the way he convinces you of the normality of the book's world before he asks the reader to suspend their disbelief.
http://uk.movies.yahoo.com/stephen-king-to-publish-sequel-to--the-shining--next-year.html
I read 'The Girl who loved Tom Gordon' about ten years ago and really enjoyed it, even though it was quite a departure from his usual style. I adored The Stand and really enjoyed the film (made me fall in love with Crowded House's song from the soundtrack 'Don't dream it's over'.
However, my favourite book by King was in fact a joint fantasy novel with Peter Straub called The Talisman. co- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Talisman_(King_%26_Straub_novel) and I also really enjoyed the sequel, The Black House which is a bit darker and was written just over a decade ago http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_House_(novel)
The summer before I headed off to uni, my father handed me The Talisman (although he had read all the classics, he also consumed everything we kids took home from the library regardless of the genre) and recommended it to me. At one point he came into the living room and found me with tears running down my face and said, 'I see you're at the part where xxxx dies" (won't put the name in and spoil it) In fact, just writing about it has made me want to go out and get this book, reread it and then let my son have it... :)
Definitely possessed :-)
The Stand, loved the original, but get the revised version, it;s The Stand that King wanted published but the Publishers said it was too long.
The Green Mile, only book that's made me do a proper big cry, we're talking big sobs must have looked like the ickle kid in The Neverending Story when Atreiu dies and he's reading it.
Different Seasons, that's a defoo to read, Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption, The Body (Stand by Me was based on that novella) Apt Pupil.
One's I'd stay away from, Gerald's Game and Insomnia (I found it cured it.)
See I'm getting all giddy now. IT, has to be read, it was the first horror book I read and it made me want to write horror. It was page two and I couldn't believe what he had written, I thought, 'You can't write things like that can you? it's rude' turns out you can.
Cujo is a good one for a boring sunday, easy to read. I did like The Girl who Loved Tom Gordon, non-horror but entertaining. As St. Force said, Under the Dome was good, but the ending let him down a lot, he does that a lot it seems, takes you on an incredible journey, Dreamcatcher, then gives you a bif of a damp firework at the end.
Gonna stop typing now...for now...
Will make a list and see what I can find at the library next time as we do have quite a big section for King in there.
Unfortunately this is what happened with my son said last time I showed him my book 'The Stand'
[quote=dora]Told my son I'd dig out The Stand for him and he keeps telling me to naff off, he'll find his own books thank you. Charmin!
[/quote]
plus the fact he's just bought himself Halo 4 so is a of a non-reader at the moment, but I will keep on with it. TBH, my youngest who is ten, has been reading books for teens for the last year, so he may be onto the king stories sooner than his elder bro, lol
Watch it you.
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Now, Clive Barker is a whole different ball game as I find his writing is much darker than King's. In fact, Weaveworld is, for me, the darker version of the Talisman - I just love anything that involves 'slippage' and alternative existence!
And I mean 'darker' in a more interesting way! The Books of Blood, The Damnation Game, etc, etc...
Barker has achieved commercial success not only with his short fiction but also with his novels, which tend to be epic in scope and to blend elements of horror with those of high fantasy.
Barker is one of the more influential voices in horror cinema, having written and directed a number of films. His printed works include The Candle in the Cloud, Absolute Midnight, The Scarlet Gospels, and Black is the Devil's Rainbow: Tales of a Journeyman.
His films include Dread, Tortured Souls: Animae Damanatae, and Hellraiser.
After minor success with several plays such as "Frankenstein in Love," Barker vaulted onto the horror fiction scene with the publication of his short stories, "The Books of Blood." Later books such as "The Damnation Game," "Imajica," and "Everville" have further established his reputation as a Master of Horror.
Do you like Fargo, Tiny?
Have to say I'm not a King fan or a Barker fan... sorry! I think I must be someone who likes horror/dark stuff entwined into other genres like sci fi and fantasy rather than straight horror, eg Iain Banks.
I have read On Writing and enjoyed some of it - I really liked his description of writing a book as digging up a skeleton - the further you dig down, the more you find. I've been trying to dig down further into my writing ever since.
Never heard of it, Lou.
If it's snowy, I'm in.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0116282/