Body:
Trying to figure out which Stephen King book to read is daunting even for a lifelong fan. In honor of his new book, Doctor Sleep, which comes out today, here’s a very abbreviated guide into the unknown.
Where to start
The Dead Zone (novel, 1979): The everyman-turned-psychic protagonist AND the closet sociopath he has to stop from running for office both go through traumas that are thoroughly explored to suggest how the path of good intentions and evil power are pretty much the same thing until that final judgment.
The Shining (novel, 1977): This ain’t your Jack Nicholson movie. There’s a lot more backstory, all of it creepy and all of it thumping at a relentless pace through the skeletal halls of a giant, empty hotel and the haunted mind of a tormented writer. And no, I couldn’t sleep after I read about the lady in the bathtub, or the hedge animals.
The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon (novel, 1999): By dialing back the supernatural, King shows that the indifference of nature provides plenty of growing horror to a girl who gets lost in the woods with only her favorite baseball team on her radio with its dying batteries. This is shorter, more realistic, and more humane than a lot of King’s novels, so it’s a good place to ease in if you’re not ready for full-on psychosis.
Skeleton Crew (short stories, 1985), Everything's Eventual (short stories, 2002): These two collections are the best examples of King’s versatility, ranging from the gore and science fiction he sold to men’s magazines, to the melding of humanity with creature features, to the not-so-subtle twists that reveal the horrors of real life.
Different Seasons (novellas, 1982): The novella is King’s strongest genre, giving him just enough length for a good meaty story while forcing him to reign in some of his worst repetitive ticks. This collection has three of my favorites – "Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption" (a meditation on justice and freedom with just the right amount of slapstick humor to keep it from depression), "The Body" (“I never had friends like the friends I had when I was twelve. Jesus, did you?”), and "Apt Pupil"(suburban kids are way more capable of evil and way better at finding undercover Nazis than you realize).
On Writing (nonfiction, 2000): If you don’t read anything else by Stephen King, read his stuff on writing. He’s got such a perfect blend of workmanship and artistic sensibility that it seems like common sense, and only when you try it yourself do you see how hard it is to find advice that describes the practical magic of words as well as he does.
Where to go next:
The Green Mile (serial novel, 1996): Mercy, wonder, and life shake up a joint where death hangs out like it’s just another wisecracking prison guard getting through the night shift. This is a serial story, told in chunks that were published separately, so if you get the collected edition, you will have to get through some repetition of story and theme, but it’s worth it to see what happens to Mr. Jingles.
Carrie (novel, 1974), Christine (novel, 1983): Both of these early classics show the confusion of adolescence through the sudden acquisition of powers that their protagonists didn’t ask for and can’t control. But oh do they get their revenge.
Dolores Claiborne (novel, 1992): Told in one long monologue by an old New England housekeeper to the police as she explains murder over the weekend of a solar eclipse, this is King’s deepest and best dive into a character.
Doctor Sleep (novel, 2013): Either the worst or the best sequel idea ever, but we’ll have to read it to find out!
The Dark Tower series (novels, 1982 - 2012): If you’re ready for a commitment across a series of uneven quality that ultimately rewards your effort, then climb on board with the Gunslinger and see where he takes you.
What to Avoid:
Duma Key, Dreamcatcher, Cell, Insomnia, Lisey’s Story (novels): Stephen King hit a rough spot in the late 1990s and early 2000s, and it shows in his writings from then. These date themselves through dependence on badly used slang, quips, and faddish technology – which aren’t new things in his novels, frankly, but the stories are so muddled here that the flaws are glaring instead of quirky.
Check out the Richland Library online catalog and NoveList for more Stephen King novels, short fiction, nonfiction, movies, and biographies – he’s got something for everyone!
Authors, Book lists, Best Books, Supernatural, Horror, Reader's Advisory, Reading, Writing
Adults, Teens
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ISBN Number:
0670260770
ISBN Number:
9780307743657
ISBN Number:
0684867621
ISBN Number:
9780451168610
ISBN Number:
0743235150
ISBN Number:
0670272663
ISBN Number:
0743204360
ISBN Number:
0743210891
ISBN Number:
9780307743664
ISBN Number:
0670220264
ISBN Number:
1880418622
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