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The Lost Work of Stephen King: A Reference Guide to the Master's Rarest Writings
Featuring biographical information, a detailed bibliography, and a filmography, a chronological survey of rare writings by novelist Stephen King covers forty years' worth of his unpublished fiction, nonfiction essays, poetry, and more. Reprint.
394 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1960
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
August 18, 2013
Hmm... Well, a few things come to mind when considering the rating for this book: 1) The title is more than a little misleading; this is NOT a book OF the lost work of Stephen King, this is a book ABOUT the lost work of Stephen King. In other words, it will tell you what the 'lost' writing is about, where/when it was published, how easy (or impossible) it is to get ahold of the writings, etc. There is only one short essay that they reprinted in this book in Stephen King's actual words. 2) This book is a bit outdated, as it was printed in 1998, and a lot of this material has either been published since then or is otherwise available on the internet. 3) This book is not for the casual reader who catches a Stephen King book every once in a while. No, NO! This book is for the dedicated, rabid King fan who wants to read every little thing King has ever written, like essays, book/movie/album reviews, intros to other books, speeches for conventions et. al., etc. Personally, I feel that King eventually publishes everything that he writes that is worth reading, and I trust his judgment. Hehehe.
The one thing the book has going for it is the King trivia tidbits that are scattered throughout the text.
The one thing the book has going for it is the King trivia tidbits that are scattered throughout the text.
December 9, 2024
Despite its age, going way back to around 2000 and King's publishing of Bag of Bones, I found this an extremely entertaining and readable walkthrough of the lesser-known (often now impossible to find) writings of Stephen King. Spignesi does an excellent job in synopsising, reviewing and contextualising a whole range of works, from unfinished or unpublished novels, to book introductions, essays and even short columns King wrote during his college days for the University of Maine campus magazine (he called himself a strong Republican back then!).
With these types of books, especially when they are not authorised, you often get too much of a lame-ass, "please pay attention to me" fanboy kind of writer who annoys you more than anything else. Stephen Spignesi - despite still being a bit of a devotee who more or less worships the ground Mr King walks on - addresses the subject's work with obvious respect, passion and knowledge. For what is essentially a reference guide, this book could not be more enjoyable to read. Spignesi executes it so well that you often feel like you are reading Stephen King himself, rather than a summary of his obscure works.
Of course, some parts were more interesting than others. There is a brilliant and surprising defence of police officers, rendered all the more impressive given the fact King wrote it in college, during the time of the Civil Rights movement. And some of the novels he never published sound bloody awesome (what a damn shame he probably will never pen that sequel to Salem's Lot). I did find his repeated complaints against censorship a little annoying after a while. Don't get me wrong, he was right to be concerned when organised bodies were lobbying to ban certain books from schools and public libraries. But he undermines his attempts at bridging the middle-ground when, after previously arguing that parents are responsible for choosing what their children are exposed to, he then goes ahead and urges "kids" to defy their parents and seek works like Lady Chatterly's Lover and Cujo somewhere else. I wonder if he'd be so nonchalant about defying mainstream values if the books kids sought were along the lines of Mein Kampf instead.
But yeah, small moments of disagreement aside, this book was a blast and it does Stephen King justice. Highly recommended for any fan.
With these types of books, especially when they are not authorised, you often get too much of a lame-ass, "please pay attention to me" fanboy kind of writer who annoys you more than anything else. Stephen Spignesi - despite still being a bit of a devotee who more or less worships the ground Mr King walks on - addresses the subject's work with obvious respect, passion and knowledge. For what is essentially a reference guide, this book could not be more enjoyable to read. Spignesi executes it so well that you often feel like you are reading Stephen King himself, rather than a summary of his obscure works.
Of course, some parts were more interesting than others. There is a brilliant and surprising defence of police officers, rendered all the more impressive given the fact King wrote it in college, during the time of the Civil Rights movement. And some of the novels he never published sound bloody awesome (what a damn shame he probably will never pen that sequel to Salem's Lot). I did find his repeated complaints against censorship a little annoying after a while. Don't get me wrong, he was right to be concerned when organised bodies were lobbying to ban certain books from schools and public libraries. But he undermines his attempts at bridging the middle-ground when, after previously arguing that parents are responsible for choosing what their children are exposed to, he then goes ahead and urges "kids" to defy their parents and seek works like Lady Chatterly's Lover and Cujo somewhere else. I wonder if he'd be so nonchalant about defying mainstream values if the books kids sought were along the lines of Mein Kampf instead.
But yeah, small moments of disagreement aside, this book was a blast and it does Stephen King justice. Highly recommended for any fan.
May 27, 2020
A pretty thorough review of Kings hard to find works. The only downside, no reflection on the book, is it's from early 2000.
October 25, 2022
Outdated by today's standards of twenty plus years more of work churned out by Stephen King, Stephen J. Spignesi's informative, unofficial, non-fiction book on King's background, history, unpublished stories and manuscripts, and alternate scenes for some of King's books is a love letter to Stephen King fans worldwide.
February 25, 2018
This is for that obsessive fan that wants to win at Stephen King trivia. I have a feeling it only scratches the surface though.
January 4, 2021
Very informative glad I bought it
February 10, 2017
Interesting, but would have been better if we got to actually read some of his early works.
November 26, 2011
I recently "re-discovered this work after having found it in my brother's collection of Stephen King books he had recently boxed and ready to remove (along with some other books of mine). The book gives a great series of images of King's early work and progression as a writer.
I wouldn't say they're different, it's classic King, but the later works - obviously - seem more sophisticated and rely more on good writing than supernatural impact. What I like best is that it's broken down into segments and it doesn't have to be a linear, front-to-back read. I also use it as a reference book when I re-read King's early works as to what was going through his mind and life when he wrote it.
I wouldn't say they're different, it's classic King, but the later works - obviously - seem more sophisticated and rely more on good writing than supernatural impact. What I like best is that it's broken down into segments and it doesn't have to be a linear, front-to-back read. I also use it as a reference book when I re-read King's early works as to what was going through his mind and life when he wrote it.
June 5, 2013
Not quite what I expected. It was great about giving a great look into who Stephen King was, how he got started (who knew his spelling and grammar sucked so bad?), and just how many pieces he wrote at the time the book was written. It is also depressing that so many of his works are either impossible, or almost impossible to find, so in that respect, it was a bit of a tease.
September 5, 2011
Signed / Limited #375/1,000.
Of several King Bibliographies I own - some purported to be "complete" - I don't think any are actually that. Then again, a complete bib of or modern Bard's work today could be outdated tomorrow, let alone next year. Spignesi's research shines in this one. Several of King's works had indeed been lost until publication of this work. Sept 2011, $90 on AbeBooks.
Of several King Bibliographies I own - some purported to be "complete" - I don't think any are actually that. Then again, a complete bib of or modern Bard's work today could be outdated tomorrow, let alone next year. Spignesi's research shines in this one. Several of King's works had indeed been lost until publication of this work. Sept 2011, $90 on AbeBooks.
September 1, 2007
Don't be fooled when buying this book. I thought it actually contained some "lost work", but instead it's about some things he's written that haven't been published, or have been really lost. It's a fun read though.
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November 24, 2012Comprato a Bangor, Maine nell'estate del 2003.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews