In 1974, I was 12 years old and found Carrie...oh my goodness. I was frightened an intrigued. Then, I read The Shining at 15...These books cemented my love for this storyteller. He saw the monster within-not some made up creature, but parts of the human psyche. My sister and I sill scare each other with a description from The Stand : A dark sweet treat... I think my age of discovery of his writing plays a huge part in my ranking. 1.Carrie 2. The Shining 3'Salem's Lot (still scared) 4 It (horrified and had to give it away. 5.Skeleton Crew. 6 The Green Mile (the serialization caught me) 7. Dr Sleep (I wondered about Danny Torrence) 8.Needful Things. 9.Hearts in Atlantis 10.Different Seasons. Love your channel so much. No one in my house wants to get into the weeds about books:).
Did you ever hear the story behind Carrie? King wrote it, then doubted himself and threw it away. His wife fished it outbox the trash, curious and after reading it, convinced him to send it in. The rest is history…can you imagine it would have stayed in the trash?! 🙀
At the moment my favorite books of his are: 1 - The Long Walk 2 - Night Shift 3 - Pet Sematary 4 - The Dark Tower III: The Waste Lands (if only choosing one book from the series) 5 - Misery 6 - The Stand 7 - Everything's Eventual 8 - Skeleton Crew 9 - Salem's Lot 10 - The Dead Zone A long time ago I would have said that The Stand was my favorite, but I reread the book a short time ago I saw my displeasure and even hatred with some aspects of the book crystallizing. The Long Walk is what I consider to be the most literary and dense book he has ever written, unlike so many other longer books that don't have much to chew on. And in general I've always preferred his short stories to most of his novels. I finally read Needful Things in July. I was really hoping would become one of my favorites, but unfortunately the book was a disappointment for me. Giving a score I would say it is 6.5/10 or 3/5 stars on goodreads.
Under The Dome had great potential but it suffers similar problems as most Stephen King books, convoluted, absurd and too out there endings. I think IT is probably the only Stephen King book where I didn't feel the need to ask wtf is this shit? The Stand was the most disappointing in this regard. Salem's Lot had alot of potential too, but after about a 3rd of the way it just becomes nonsense.
IT, hands down, the greatest to me. IT is ( IMHO ) Stephen King's all time masterpiece . My mother read the book in one night , from early evening to early morning. 100 stars.
@@cafeaulivre LOL , my mom wasn't the scaredy cat. But this was an awesome achievement given how huge the book is. I am from Germany , now living in the US, and I have the book in both languages. I am right now re-reading IT ( no pun intended ) ! I like his other books too but IT will live forever rent free in my head.
That’s okay…I used to devour them one after another, only to stay away from his books for years afterwards. I only started reading King again a few years ago myself.
@@cafeaulivre Many friends of mine say it’s a MUST DO, I’ve had a lot of interest in The Stand of all his books, so I may end up doing that, we will see haha!
Absolutely loved "The Long Walk". Absolutely adored "On Writing". Felt strangely moved by "Salem's Lot." I still have tons of his books waiting on my shelves. Buts as they age well, there's no hurry.
My top 5 are the following: 5. IT - A classic, but potentially may be dethroned from the top 5 at some point 4. Pet Sematary - Not much else to add from what you said. A creepy tale of how the dead should stay dead 3. Revival - Cosmic horror galore and one of the best (if not the best) Stephen King endings. Existential crisis after I finished. 2. Salem's Lot - My favorite novel of his. Love the town, love the characters, love the spookiness. 1. The Storm of the Century - A screenplay but my favorite story that he has ever written. The atmosphere to this is incredible as is the miniseries.
It's difficult to rank his books because he's had so many excellent ones, but I agree with your top two. IT and 11-22-63 are also the ones that had the greatest emotional impact on me. I'd include Dr. Sleep somewhere in my own top ten.
Fantastic discussion! I love both the Shining book and the Shining movie. No need to choose one over the other--appreciate both on their own terms and you'll be rewarded!
I DNF’d The Stand because we got stuck in traffic in The Holland tunnel leaving NYC , in 1985. I was in a Drum and Bugle Corps and we just had a free ay in the city. I was shocked I made it that far into the book. I thought I only read a couple of chapters. Went back last week to Google and it told me was about 35 chapters into the book. I guess I started before we left for NYC from PA. I read about 5 pages of pet cemetery and my ADHD could not latch on, so I put it aside. It was a dear friend of mine favorite Stephen King Novel. I have not read The Shining, but after listening to the movie from the other room 2 times, watching it without sound a few times, and then putting it together, I was able to watch it. It was a right of passage as an Oregonian, to watch this movie in the 80s. Given that it was filmed at Timberline Lodge on Mount Hood near Portland Oregon. I have been in the parking lot of Timberline, but I have never been in the lodge. We stopped to watch some summer skiers before we continued over the pass towards Bend Oregon. Now the snow level is well away from the lodge, and the US Ski Team no longer trains there since the early 2000s. I do want to read this novel and The Dark Tower Series. I will Try Salems Lot first, but I am unsure if I can handle it. I also DNF’d your Number2 about 650 pages in, and it took me over a year or two to walk within arms reach of a storm drain. I have not seen either film adaptations. My favorite King novel is the one he wrote with Straub, ‘The Talisman’ this is a retelling of a Mark Twain book worth its weight in the number of pages it is. The horror element is barely there for me. I grew up around 12 step programs, so the drug abuse was something I was familiar with. I read this book right before I tried ‘It.’ Thinking because I liked this one, I could handle a clown. I did not like the sexual Black House, I believe the epilogue of The Talisman said it best, this is a story about a boy who went on a journey, to continue the story would ruin it. Then they ruined it with Jack being a middle aged man in law enforcement. I could not believe they decided to write it, but then disappointed they did write it. So, I hold dear The Talisman. Now to see what you rate number one.
Great list, and fantastic number one. Not only is it my favorite Stephen King book, it's one of my 10 favorite of all time. I love that you listed The Gunslinger as well. I see a lot of people talk down on the book, and list it as their least favorite of The Dark Tower series, but I love The Gunslinger as well. Different Seasons would make my top 10 as well. I love each of the stories, and the book produced 3 of Kings best movies...such an underrated book. Very fun video...thanks.
Nice list: I'd never disagree or argue on one's favorites; my personal theory is King is such a good writer, he literally has any number of takes one could find to be their favorite and not be wrong. Me ?...I've been riding with the King since 1976...my list is a bit different 10) Misery 9) The Stand - uncut 8) 11/22/63 7) The Dead Zone 6) The Talisman 5) The Long Walk 4) The Drawing of the Three 3) The Wastelands 2) Wizard and Glass 1) 'Salems Lot
Great list! I would also put the Holly Gibney books as a group on my list. I love her as a character. And I agree with you about 11.22.63....incredible. Totally different genre but captivating.
My favorites from your list are: Salems Lot Misery The Stand The Shining The Green Mile On Writing I would also add: The Dead Zone Danse Macabre The Eyes of the Dragon
@@cafeaulivre absolutely! Definitely my favourite author at this point. I have to say it took me a few days to get over the ending too 🤣 I know people say it was the ending the book needed and it was incredible...and it was... But I can't help but wish it had worked out for the 2 amazing characters. They both deserved it
Great list! Even more helpful: a great explanation of the best audiences for each book. (No gore for me, thank you very much. I started but put down Misery pretty quickly because I could not take it.) I agree with your choice of 11/22/63 as King’s best book. What an exciting ride it provides! What an interesting premise! Not on your list but on mine is a novella,The Body, made into the terrific film Stand By Me by Rob Reiner. Also a great exploration, (like It) of what it was it was like to be 12 in the late 50s/early 60s. Also no horror or gore. I think that King captures the feelings of childhood and adolescence better than any other writer I know.
I agree: King writes some of the best adolescent characters. He truly understands what it means to grow up and be stuck in that twilight zone between child and adult.
Grew up reading King when both he and I were young. My faves are accordingly all early work. Good to see lots of early work stands up! (See what I did there? 😊)
I love just about all early SK (pre-sobriety is what I consider early SK) but the only two I've re-read multiple times were the Shining and Pet Sematary. I'd re-read IT more if it wasn't 27 lb.
Fairy Tale was a fun read, I agree, but having spent my youth with Labyrinth and The Neverending story, to me, it felt at times like something I knew too well. But still a very good book, I agree.
What’s your favorite Stephen King book? Let me know in the comments and we'll talk Stephen King some more!
I never get tired of watching Stephen King Top 10 Lists for some reason lol, great video 👌🏻
There are worse habits 🤣
The Stand is my favorite!
It’s quite the journey, also in length 😋
In 1974, I was 12 years old and found Carrie...oh my goodness. I was frightened an intrigued. Then, I read The Shining at 15...These books cemented my love for this storyteller. He saw the monster within-not some made up creature, but parts of the human psyche. My sister and I sill scare each other with a description from The Stand : A dark sweet treat... I think my age of discovery of his writing plays a huge part in my ranking. 1.Carrie 2. The Shining 3'Salem's Lot (still scared) 4 It (horrified and had to give it away. 5.Skeleton Crew. 6 The Green Mile (the serialization caught me) 7. Dr Sleep (I wondered about Danny Torrence) 8.Needful Things. 9.Hearts in Atlantis 10.Different Seasons. Love your channel so much. No one in my house wants to get into the weeds about books:).
Did you ever hear the story behind Carrie? King wrote it, then doubted himself and threw it away. His wife fished it outbox the trash, curious and after reading it, convinced him to send it in. The rest is history…can you imagine it would have stayed in the trash?! 🙀
@@cafeaulivre No! I didn't know that---what a world it would have been/ My imagination was so stimulated. The library opened my world.
My first Kings were also library copies, with a crumpled cover and yellowed pages.
At the moment my favorite books of his are:
1 - The Long Walk
2 - Night Shift
3 - Pet Sematary
4 - The Dark Tower III: The Waste Lands (if only choosing one book from the series)
5 - Misery
6 - The Stand
7 - Everything's Eventual
8 - Skeleton Crew
9 - Salem's Lot
10 - The Dead Zone
A long time ago I would have said that The Stand was my favorite, but I reread the book a short time ago I saw my displeasure and even hatred with some aspects of the book crystallizing.
The Long Walk is what I consider to be the most literary and dense book he has ever written, unlike so many other longer books that don't have much to chew on.
And in general I've always preferred his short stories to most of his novels.
I finally read Needful Things in July. I was really hoping would become one of my favorites, but unfortunately the book was a disappointment for me.
Giving a score I would say it is 6.5/10 or 3/5 stars on goodreads.
I must say: I have not read The Long Walk yet. Time to bump it up that tbr then!
Omg i loved the long walk!
Excellent video and some great titles. A few not mentioned that would make my personal top 10:
Revival, Under the Dome, The Institute.
I think Under The Dome was one of my first Stephen King reads.
Under The Dome had great potential but it suffers similar problems as most Stephen King books, convoluted, absurd and too out there endings. I think IT is probably the only Stephen King book where I didn't feel the need to ask wtf is this shit? The Stand was the most disappointing in this regard. Salem's Lot had alot of potential too, but after about a 3rd of the way it just becomes nonsense.
IT, hands down, the greatest to me. IT is ( IMHO ) Stephen King's all time masterpiece . My mother read the book in one night , from early evening to early morning. 100 stars.
And did she pull the all-nighter because she was too afraid to go to sleep? 😋
@@cafeaulivre LOL , my mom wasn't the scaredy cat. But this was an awesome achievement given how huge the book is. I am from Germany , now living in the US, and I have the book in both languages. I am right now re-reading IT ( no pun intended ) ! I like his other books too but IT will live forever rent free in my head.
It is a huge book indeed! It’s actually two books in a way: when the Losers’ Club was young and then later
I haven’t read a single King In my life…. I know I know… disappointing… but I’m getting there😂
That’s okay…I used to devour them one after another, only to stay away from his books for years afterwards. I only started reading King again a few years ago myself.
@@cafeaulivre Many friends of mine say it’s a MUST DO, I’ve had a lot of interest in The Stand of all his books, so I may end up doing that, we will see haha!
@@cafeaulivre Same here. I lost interest in the '90s because his books got to where they felt phoned in. The Kennedy book got me back into him.
11/22/63 is a masterpiece and that ending almost made me cry. I am not a crying man.
I can totally relate 😋
Absolutely loved "The Long Walk". Absolutely adored "On Writing". Felt strangely moved by "Salem's Lot." I still have tons of his books waiting on my shelves. Buts as they age well, there's no hurry.
There certainly isn’t! And more will join then!
Great video! Fabulous way of summing up each book. I 100% agree with your top choice. 🙌
Thank you!
Great list, Bart! I'm not reading horror these days but when I did, my favorite King was 'Salem's Lot. 🧛♂
Might be a sign to explore some of his non-horror work then…from The Outsider (which is more a detective novel if I remember correctly) to 11/22/63.
@@cafeaulivre: I've read and enjoyed both of them. I was thinking of reading The Body especially since I've never seen the film Stand By Me.
My top 5 are the following:
5. IT - A classic, but potentially may be dethroned from the top 5 at some point
4. Pet Sematary - Not much else to add from what you said. A creepy tale of how the dead should stay dead
3. Revival - Cosmic horror galore and one of the best (if not the best) Stephen King endings. Existential crisis after I finished.
2. Salem's Lot - My favorite novel of his. Love the town, love the characters, love the spookiness.
1. The Storm of the Century - A screenplay but my favorite story that he has ever written. The atmosphere to this is incredible as is the miniseries.
I don’t think I ever read/watched The Storm of the Century…consider me intrigued !
@@cafeaulivre Oh do yourself the favor and check it out, but wait till the winter as the weather plays a massive role in it.
Will definitely do then! Thanks for rhetorical recommendation!
Finally a unique list 🤣 rather than seeing The Stand at number one
From the 80's novels; I love Cujo the best. From the more modern years, I really loved "Revival".
I havn’t read Revival yet…on the neverending TBR it goes! 😋
It's difficult to rank his books because he's had so many excellent ones, but I agree with your top two. IT and 11-22-63 are also the ones that had the greatest emotional impact on me. I'd include Dr. Sleep somewhere in my own top ten.
Dr. Sleep was good, but you do have to read The Shining first imo.
Fantastic discussion! I love both the Shining book and the Shining movie. No need to choose one over the other--appreciate both on their own terms and you'll be rewarded!
I haven't read any Stephen King, but I've ordered the stand since it's the most interesting to me
That’s an ambitious start 💪
I DNF’d The Stand because we got stuck in traffic in The Holland tunnel leaving NYC , in 1985. I was in a Drum and Bugle Corps and we just had a free ay in the city. I was shocked I made it that far into the book. I thought I only read a couple of chapters. Went back last week to Google and it told me was about 35 chapters into the book. I guess I started before we left for NYC from PA. I read about 5 pages of pet cemetery and my ADHD could not latch on, so I put it aside. It was a dear friend of mine favorite Stephen King Novel.
I have not read The Shining, but after listening to the movie from the other room 2 times, watching it without sound a few times, and then putting it together, I was able to watch it. It was a right of passage as an Oregonian, to watch this movie in the 80s. Given that it was filmed at Timberline Lodge on Mount Hood near Portland Oregon. I have been in the parking lot of Timberline, but I have never been in the lodge. We stopped to watch some summer skiers before we continued over the pass towards Bend Oregon. Now the snow level is well away from the lodge, and the US Ski Team no longer trains there since the early 2000s. I do want to read this novel and The Dark Tower Series. I will Try Salems Lot first, but I am unsure if I can handle it.
I also DNF’d your Number2 about 650 pages in, and it took me over a year or two to walk within arms reach of a storm drain. I have not seen either film adaptations.
My favorite King novel is the one he wrote with Straub, ‘The Talisman’ this is a retelling of a Mark Twain book worth its weight in the number of pages it is. The horror element is barely there for me. I grew up around 12 step programs, so the drug abuse was something I was familiar with. I read this book right before I tried ‘It.’ Thinking because I liked this one, I could handle a clown. I did not like the sexual Black House, I believe the epilogue of The Talisman said it best, this is a story about a boy who went on a journey, to continue the story would ruin it. Then they ruined it with Jack being a middle aged man in law enforcement. I could not believe they decided to write it, but then disappointed they did write it. So, I hold dear The Talisman. Now to see what you rate number one.
It is totally fine if horror is not for you. After all, we read for our own entertainment and if you’re not enjoying it, by all means, DNF it.
Great list, and fantastic number one. Not only is it my favorite Stephen King book, it's one of my 10 favorite of all time. I love that you listed The Gunslinger as well. I see a lot of people talk down on the book, and list it as their least favorite of The Dark Tower series, but I love The Gunslinger as well. Different Seasons would make my top 10 as well. I love each of the stories, and the book produced 3 of Kings best movies...such an underrated book. Very fun video...thanks.
Different Seasons was a bit hit or miss for me…loved some of the stories, others not so much
Nice list: I'd never disagree or argue on one's favorites; my personal theory is King is such a good writer, he literally has any number of takes one could find to be their favorite and not be wrong.
Me ?...I've been riding with the King since 1976...my list is a bit different
10) Misery
9) The Stand - uncut
8) 11/22/63
7) The Dead Zone
6) The Talisman
5) The Long Walk
4) The Drawing of the Three
3) The Wastelands
2) Wizard and Glass
1) 'Salems Lot
Oh, by all means, it’s all personal preference, but I do love how it gets people to share their love for the author and the stories
Great list! I would also put the Holly Gibney books as a group on my list. I love her as a character. And I agree with you about 11.22.63....incredible. Totally different genre but captivating.
Im really curious to see whether he’ll stay on this non-horror path in the future or not.
Very good list, I don’t disagree with any of your choices! My top 3 are: #3-The Green Mile. #2-11/22/63. #1-The Stand.
Clearly not a horror fan 😊
Wizard and Glass and The Stand for me
Great choice!
My favorites from your list are:
Salems Lot
Misery
The Stand
The Shining
The Green Mile
On Writing
I would also add:
The Dead Zone
Danse Macabre
The Eyes of the Dragon
I’m glad to see more people enjoyed On Writing, wasn’t sure if I should include it.
I believe number 1. I just finished that book and it became my favourite book ever. A spot previously held by the stand. So so so good
And it has me wondering about all the books he is still going to write!
@@cafeaulivre absolutely! Definitely my favourite author at this point.
I have to say it took me a few days to get over the ending too 🤣 I know people say it was the ending the book needed and it was incredible...and it was... But I can't help but wish it had worked out for the 2 amazing characters. They both deserved it
Glad to see Needful Things up there.
I really enjoyed it!
Great video! The Green Mile is the one for me, the only one I've read so far.😄 I will read your No 1, thanks for the recommendation.
Hope you enjoy it ! 😊
Great list! Even more helpful: a great explanation of the best audiences for each book. (No gore for me, thank you very much. I started but put down Misery pretty quickly because I could not take it.)
I agree with your choice of 11/22/63 as King’s best book. What an exciting ride it provides! What an interesting premise!
Not on your list but on mine is a novella,The Body, made into the terrific film Stand By Me by Rob Reiner. Also a great exploration, (like It) of what it was it was like to be 12 in the late 50s/early 60s. Also no horror or gore. I think that King captures the feelings of childhood and adolescence better than any other writer I know.
I agree: King writes some of the best adolescent characters. He truly understands what it means to grow up and be stuck in that twilight zone between child and adult.
Favorite novel: 11/22/63
Favorite novella collection: Different Seasons
Favorite short story collection: Night Shift
Different Seasons was a bit of a hit or miss for me…loved Shawshank of course, the others not always.
@@cafeaulivre I'm not a big fan of shorter stories. I much prefer his novels.
Grew up reading King when both he and I were young. My faves are accordingly all early work. Good to see lots of early work stands up! (See what I did there? 😊)
Oh, I noticed 😉
I'm really interested in picking up 'The Dead Zone'. It's Dave Musson's personal favorite.
That was the first of his novels to rank among the ten best-selling novels of the year in the United States.
I love just about all early SK (pre-sobriety is what I consider early SK) but the only two I've re-read multiple times were the Shining and Pet Sematary. I'd re-read IT more if it wasn't 27 lb.
IT is quite the brick, agreed.
I loved fairy-tale ❤ nobody seems to mention it !!
Fairy Tale was a fun read, I agree, but having spent my youth with Labyrinth and The Neverending story, to me, it felt at times like something I knew too well. But still a very good book, I agree.
❤❤❤❤❤ the shining,Carrie pet sematery, Salem lot firestarter love Stephen king
A horror fan indeed 😉
I AGREE WITH NEEDFUL THINGS!!! YOUR LIST IS ALMOST THE SAME AS MINE
Great minds read alike 😋
For now 11/22/63 is number one then fairy tale and the insitute. Might change after reading It and The stand 😊
IT was such a close second for me
I love Insomnia. It is so good.
I remember finding that one a bit confusing, so much was going on.
I do love Pennywise... oh not the killer clown, the punk band.
I have never been able to get into Stephen King. Maybe I should give him another try.
Pennywise, not the clown, was a large part of my youth as well 😉
@@cafeaulivre I knew I liked you.
I was more into grunge, but I never shied away from bands like Pennywise, Bad Religion, Greenday or Alien Ant Farm 🤘
@@cafeaulivre I do love Grunge. Nirvana was the soundtrack of my high-school years.
The stand was a terrible book imho... So many pages of leading nowhere :)
That’s a sign it wasn’t for you and that’s totally fine. Luckily, King has written so many novels by now, there’s bound to be something for everyone
@@cafeaulivre I liked a few
Bro. You straight lost me at Needful Things. Horrible book. I love Stephen King and Needful Things is the worst of his that I've read. Ugh.
And that’s fine, it’s a sign the book just wasn’t for you. Luckily, King has written enough to please every reader