Stephen King recs?
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Anonymous
| Want to introduce DS but need recommendations for a good starter. He’s 16 and favors more reality-based stuff. Thanks! |
Anonymous
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My first was 'Salems Lot.
creepy |
Anonymous
| 11/22/63 is fun time travel read. |
Anonymous
| The JFK one! |
Anonymous
And then watch the show! |
Anonymous
| I really loved the prequel to The Shining -- Doctor Sleep. All the Stephen King horror with such a sweet ending that I literally teared up. |
Anonymous
| Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption. It's a novella, so shorter reading than the typical Stephen King. |
Anonymous
| Low Men in Yellow Coats. It was originally a short story and Stephen King rewrote it as a novella. The main character is a boy, not sure of his age but probably around 13-15 years old. After reading that book I decided to start reading the Dark Tower series. |
Anonymous
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Salem’s Lot
The Gunslinger The Shining The Talisman Novellas: Shawshank Redemption The Body (which was made into the movie Stand by Me) |
Anonymous
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- Misery
- Different Seasons (contains 4 novellas, including the ones Stand By Me and Shawshank Redemption were based on) - Pet Sematary: a little supernatural-y but not too far int that direction - Firestarter - short stories: The Mist is specifically worth seeking out (I don't remember what collection it's in) I also enjoyed 11/22/63 but I don't think I'd start there. The Shining, It, The Stand are not my personal favorites at all. I wouldn't ban my kids from It but I would give them a heads up that there is some material I am not comfortable with there and I sort of wish I hadn't read it as a teenager (I'm not talking about the clown, I'm talking about the "group" scene among the kids) |
Anonymous
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IMO, Stephen King is a better short story writer than a novelist, especially once he became "Stephen King Inc." and could basically do whatever he wanted, including ruining The Gunslinger by rewriting it and publishing a truly bloated extended edition of The Stand. (FWIW, I read both The Tommyknockers and Needful Things, so I have earned this opinion even if you disagree.)
The best place to start with his work is early, with the short story collections Night Shift and Skeleton Crew. His best novels are Salems Lot, The Shining, and Pet Sematary. His late work is very hit or miss for me, but if you want one that is entertaining and not focused on the supernatural, I actually rather liked Billy Summers (2021), which is a straight action story that only alludes to supernatural elements. Have not read the JFK one, which many rave about, but to me reeks of baby boomer fan service. YMMV. |
Anonymous
Addendum: The Outsider (2018) was also a fun read, but it defintely has some NC-17 elements so may not be the best choice here. |
Anonymous
| Definitely Different Seasons. Both Shawshank and stand by me were based on short stories from that book. |
Anonymous
| Way back when I loved Pet Cemetery, Christine and Firestarter. |
Anonymous
Low Men in Yellow Coats is amazing. I second this recommendation. |