Stephen King Fans discussion
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What was your first Stephen King book?
Bryana wrote: "Nick wrote: "Bryana wrote: "Nick wrote: "Bryana wrote: "Gosh...Pretty sure my first SK book was The Dark Half and then shortly after I read The Shining, which is still probably one of my favorites...."So we do a group read of a King book every other month. Maybe we should consider the dead zone or the dark half, since people seldom talk about them.
It was pet sematary. I was between this and the cell, which I haven't read yet (but I will, pinky promise) At the beginning I thought that I had found the mystery but then it turned out that I was quite wrong. That's what I love to SK. He always finds a way to surprise me. I don't think I have to mention that I was hooked by the way he writes and his awesomely disturbed ideas.
Anastasia wrote: "It was pet sematary. I was between this and the cell, which I haven't read yet (but I will, pinky promise) At the beginning I thought that I had found the mystery but then it turned out that I was ..."Pet Sematary was definitely one of the scariest King books I read.
My first was Langoliers. Im only on my fifth SK book now. But plan to read a lot of them!
Louis wrote: "Georgie wrote: "The first SK book I read was the Tommyknockers, but I'm currently reading The Shining and loving it! What other SK books would you propose I start? :)"Salems' Lot is a great one t..."
If you've read The Shining, you might want to treat yourself to that book's sequel, Dr. Sleep.
Nightmares and Dreamscapes. I read it like twenty years ago and just bought it at a bookstore to revisit it this year. I remember liking it a lot. See if I feel the same way now that I'm older.
It was so long ago that I don't remember, but I am pretty sure that it was "Carrie." When I read that book, especially the last 20 pages or so, I was frightened out of my wits but also thought that it was one of the best pieces of writing I had read to date.I still go back to King's book on writing more times than I can count. I gave my first edition copy to a fellow King fan and never saw it again. No matter. I bought a paperback copy and keep it on my writer's shelf.
Nick wrote: "Bryana wrote: "Nick wrote: "Bryana wrote: "Nick wrote: "Bryana wrote: "Gosh...Pretty sure my first SK book was The Dark Half and then shortly after I read The Shining, which is still probably one o..."That could definitely be a great idea!! I haven't participated in one yet!! I am hoping to get The Bazaar of Bad Dreams in time for this next read though to finally jump in :)
I remember after going through most of the RL Stine and Christopher Pike books at the library, I was ready for something a little more mature...and a little more scary. My mom had a few King books and I asked her if I could read one. She was very strict about what I read and watched so she allowed me to read Thinner as a sort of test and said that if I could handle that then she would let me read Stephen King books.I can still picture myself reading certain parts of the book and thinking "she's letting me read this"? It was pretty tame overall and it was my gateway to getting to read books like Cujo and Carrie after that. It all seems pretty silly looking back and then looking at my bookshelves filled with King books.
my first king book was Misery, loved it!
My first SK book and also the first book I read was The Gunslinger, was a very good book to start and I became in a real fan of the "King of horror".
My first experience with King was The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon and the next book I read was Carrie. What a difference between the two, and I've been hooked ever since.
Fairly certain it was Skeleton Crew. It was a book of short stories. I was a teenager, and I devoured them. And then went back to the book store and bought another, and another... Avid King fan! It's easier to say which ones I haven't read! :-)
My first King book was It. The second one I just finished, Gerald's Game. Sadly I just got to know how good of an author King is last year.
Hmmm... I can't quite remember. I know I started IT in middle school but didn't finish. I also read Carrie, Christine and Cujo around that time. Not sure which was first, but it was probably Carrie.
Christine, back in the 80's. I was in high school at the time. After I read Christine, I decided that I would read everything SK had written. It took me awhile to get around to it. I refused to read anything until I could read it all. In order. Meanwhile, he kept writing. More and more and more... Well, you get the idea. I finally 'got around to it' in 1999. I managed to get 'caught up' on 12/31/1999 shortly before midnight.
My sister gave me The Firestarter, that's the first that I've got, but the first that I've read was The Green Mile.
Either THE GREEN MILE or PET SEMATARY
My first Stephen King was Salems Lot as I'm a big vampire fan. Stephen King even acknowledges Bram Stoker in the novel. His short story Jerusalems Lot was a kind of homage to Lovecraft. Even SK has his heroes I guess ☺
My first *real* SK novel was Eyes of the Dragon (precluded by Cycle of the Werewolf ... Anyone read this one?).
The Green mile back when It was coming out as a Series. Got me hooked on uncle Stevie:)
Brittany wrote: "My first *real* SK novel was Eyes of the Dragon (precluded by Cycle of the Werewolf ... Anyone read this one?)."Yes! Eyes of the Dragon was my first SK novel. I loved him since. I've read The Cycle of the Werewolf, too :) I am on a waitlist at my local bookstore for a copy if it ever becomes available.
My first was Different Seasons. My mom gave it to me about 6 or 7 months ago and I am so glad she did.
Dylan wrote: "My first was Different Seasons. My mom gave it to me about 6 or 7 months ago and I am so glad she did."'The Body,' one of the best things anyone has ever written, in any genre.
Try the collection with the 'Sun Dog' in it, which is in: Four Past Midnight.
Put your brain back in the 1970's and read. If you have no memory of this decade, think 'That 70's Show' or similar. Then read it. One of the scariest things King ever wrote. I re-read it every summer.
My little brother has Four Past Midnight. I will definitely get it from him. Thanks for the suggestion.
So I had mentioned a couple weeks ago that I had never read anything by King but was very interested in him. You all gave me some great suggestions however, Mr. Mercedes happen to fall into my book pile through a friend and i was wondering about y'alls opinion on the book. No one had mentioned it while giving me recommendations.
Desperation...I was about 13. Fell in love with him and he's been my favorite ever since!
To Stephanie:I think I feel like those kids who 'grew up' with the Harry Potter books. They were the same age - or close to it - as Harry when the first ones came out, then eagerly awaited each new one through the years.
I'm the same way with Mr. King. I bought his first book when it came out and as each new one was released, bought or borrowed the books from friends or the library. I own a lot of the originals, and there are only a few I didn't like. Most I LOVED. But as he is known primarily for writing horror, and Mr. Mercedes is more like a mystery, I'd suggest a new reader go with Carrie, or Salem's Lot, or Pet Cematary or even try to tackle The Stand. (Any of the basic or 'classic' king novels.)
Don't me wrong, I loved Mr. Mercedes, but to get a real feel for King you need to read some of his classic, and best, horror novels.
Jaksen wrote: "To Stephanie:I think I feel like those kids who 'grew up' with the Harry Potter books. They were the same age - or close to it - as Harry when the first ones came out, then eagerly awaited each n..."
I agree. You should read a few of the oldies first to get the scare factor like The Shining (read Dr. Sleep right after The Shining), 'Salem's Lot, Carrie, definitely Pet Sematary.
Then read some thought provoking ones like 11-22-63 and Revival - not really scary per se - but excellent.
Then maybe some of the who-dunnits, like Joyland and the Mr. Mercedes series. They are also good, but my least favorite. I like the scary stuff!
Once you become a die-hard fan, then tackle IT, The Stand Un-Cut, and the Dark Tower Series.
Also, his new book of short stories, The Bazaar of Bad Dreams was excellent. All his books of short stories are good - I also liked Just After Sunset.
If you like scary, try Heart Shaped Box by Joe Hill (SK's son) - excellent book - very scary.
Stephanie wrote: "So I had mentioned a couple weeks ago that I had never read anything by King but was very interested in him. You all gave me some great suggestions however, Mr. Mercedes happen to fall into my book..."I might as well jump in here too. I really didn't care for Mr. M. Certainly not one of Mr. King's best, but if you haven't read any of his other works you'll probably like it, but why start there. I agree that you should go with classic King: The Shining, or if you don't like horror, get Different Seasons which is a compilation of 4 short novels including the shawshank redemption and The Body (basis for the movie Stand By Me) Salem's Lot is good too.
I think it's so interesting to see which books people enjoyed and why!
My first was The Eyes of the Dragon and as soon as I finished that one I read Misery
Mine was 'The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon', which I think was a perfect, more mild novel of his to start with. I think I've read ten or twelve more since then.
The Stand. Still the best (and have read it 3 times)!
It! And I loved every page of that book!
The Stand was my first book and I still think it is his best, though The Shinning comes in at a close second.
My first full King book was The Stand. I'm glad I read that first I don't think it would have been as impactful if I read IT first since I did like IT more.
I read Salem's lot first after loving the TV mini series with David Soul... Book was far better :)
Alexis wrote: "Gerald's Game creeped me out!! I know it wasn't like a scary book or a thriller or anything but that book actually gave me nightmares. It was so descriptive, I almost felt like I was there helpless..."Yes it was so messed up.... One of the best book by him
Tracey wrote: "I read Salem's lot first after loving the TV mini series with David Soul... Book was far better :)"That series had the perfect creep factor and even though it was made so long ago, I bet it would stand up even now.
I was there at the beginning. My first King book was Carrie. I read every single one after that with the exception of the Dark Tower series. Never really got into those.
Cindi wrote: "I was there at the beginning. My first King book was Carrie. I read every single one after that with the exception of the Dark Tower series. Never really got into those."Might be time to reconsider... or try the graphic novels.
Nick wrote: "Cindi wrote: "I was there at the beginning. My first King book was Carrie. I read every single one after that with the exception of the Dark Tower series. Never really got into those."Might be ti..."
I finished the Dark Tower series last year, a great work. If you choose to read it, Cindi, be careful, there are many references to other King's books. If you have already read all, you don't have problems. I would like to read the graphic novels.
Stephen King Fans
Books mentioned in this topic
Nightmares and Dreamscapes (other topics)The Long Walk (other topics)
The Mist (other topics)
The Eyes of the Dragon (other topics)
Christine (other topics)
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Stephen King (other topics)Kurt Vonnegut Jr. (other topics)
Ray Bradbury (other topics)
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Yeah, I think I will definitely need to read again. You are right about the ending - I don't remember specific details but I know that was the main thing. At this point I couldn't say exactly what made me feel disappointed about it...Being an avid reader now, in SK book and other, I think I would see things totally different if read again. I would have to agree - It does seem like a book that very rarely gets mentioned. Which, on that same note, I have not read The Dead Zone yet....shame on me!!