Stephen King is a master writer and he has written wonderful books and a number of masterpieces. The one book which moved me immensely was The Body which was included in Different Seasons. The movie was of course superb but the book brings the four young boys to life. The final page moved me to tears. Such is the power of Stephen King. Pet Semetary was my first read and I still regard it as one of my favourites. IT was epic and Pennywise is perhaps King's most grotesque creations. The ending however after a long thrilling journey is....bewildering. I visited Maine a few years ago (I'm from England) and because King has been in my life for what seems forever I half expected to see a creepy looking clown.....Great review. Well done.
I first read The Stand when I was around 15 years old back in the early 2000s, and I've read it at least 3 more times since then. It's always been my favourite ever book of all time! Funny how we're now actually living through a virus pandemic....
It's so difficult to choose a list of favourites from an author as prolific (and brilliant) as Stephen King. I think your list is really interesting and I definitely want to read Revival now. Surprised by the omission of Salem's Lot but these things are so subjective. I agree that Needful Things is so underappreciated. I always liked the Dead Zone but rarely see it on anybody's favourites list. Anyway I really enjoyed your video and now I am going to dig out my copy of Revival.
Now I'm gonna have to read Under the Dome. Needful Things is a long-time favorite, and I agree with you about his "small town descending into chaos" trope: he does it brilliantly. It's even there in Carrie. Hell, it's the entire concept of Derry in IT; the chaotic backbiting and general selfish meanness is baked into the town itself. My personal favorite is Skeleton Crew. That collection has one of my favorite short stories of all time, The Reach. Never fails to get me all emotional. Skeleton Crew also has The Mist, Nona (shudder), Uncle Otto's Truck, and a lot of other major creepers. Plus poetry!
So with you on Revival. The finale is so striking and its imagery has stuck with me. Love how these lists are so different and our judgement can be so influenced by what we're going through when we come to them.
@@uptown3636 I would recommend reading Castle Rock in this order, or you'll get some minor spoilers: The Dead Zone, Cujo, The Dark Half, Needful Things. :)
This is such a great list. I love all of these books including your honorable mentions. I would add 11/22/63, Lisey's Story, Joyland, Misery, The Drawing of The Three, The Wastelands, Doctor Sleep, The Talisman, andNightmares and Dreamscapes.
Nice list and thoughtful analysis.,Salem's Lot freaked me out one night in 1985 whilst in a basement apartment. Around 2 am there was a power outage and I read the book by candlelight with doors double bolted.
They should, but probably never will (or not until his death) . Time and time again I here and read people saying that fiction like this is low brow, that it’s not worthy of modern classic label. Plenty of his books are already cult classics, the shining, the stand, IT. And given his amazing storytelling abilities and character development there’s no reason why he work shouldn’t be. I’ve read much worse reportedly ‘modern classics’.
@@karleyknight2960 exactly I honestly think Carrie, the stand, the shining and pet semmetary should all be modern classics. I honestly thought they were but I guess Stephen King isn’t marketable maybe for the classic audience since his books are very with the times
@@taylortalkstales8106 I'm leaning towards starting everything off with Carrie, since that is his first published book. I just bought a Billy bookshelf from IKEA yesterday and I'm going get it assembled on Tuesday. I'm so excited. I can't wait to get reading.😊
@@andudontstopyo Carrie is a really good place to start. My first King book was The Stand followed by Needful Things, but Carrie was the third one I read. It will always have a special place in my heart since I read it when I was getting bullied myself. I hope you enjoy it! And congrats on the bookshelves! I need to get a new one myself since I'm running out of space on my current shelves haha.
I agree with your list. Also: I remember really liking Needfull Things, Christine, Full Dark No Stars, Skeleton Crew, Cujo. I recently collected about 40 of his hardbacks and plan to read/reread them all! Thanks for your video I’m sure it will inspire new readers to Stephen King!
I haven't read any Stephen King yet. I just bought "Different Seasons", "The Long Walk", and "Misery". I am very excited to read them! If I enjoy them I feel like I need to pick up "Pet Sematary" and "The Shining". I was not a huge fan of the movie The Shining, but your description of the book makes me want to read it! :)
I'm a pretty big King fan but I haven't gotten into a lot of his modern stuff. Recently read the outsider because the mini series was coming out, and it was surprisingly great. Either way good recommendations I think I'll check out under the dome next
I am reading King's books in chronological order and I'm currently reading The Dead Zone (I've read all the other books that are published before that). The Dead Zone is really good but my favourite books right now are The Shining and the short story collection named Night Shift. I'm really enjoying watching Stephen King videos and I really hope that I'll find a lot of new favourite King's books in the future! I finished reading The Stand in January and it took me about 7 months to read... :D And it was a good book but for me, it was too long and not my favourite. But I appreciate it for what it was and I totally understand why people love it.
That's awesome! I like that idea of reading an author's work chronologically. Haven't done it before but sounds really cool. Yay for The Shining! It's pretty amazing and I contemplated putting Night Shift on here. Oh yes, The Stand is definitely very long. I love it but I understand it's not for everyone. There is an abridged version out there. I prefer the full length but it might be worth checking out if you wanted it to be shorter.
My favourite one is 11.22.63. I thought reading it was just a joy. I just love the sensibility of the main character. It's so immersive. Anyway, great video :)
My top 5: The Talisman, the stand, pet cemetery, the long walk and Duma Key. Honorable mention Liseys story. Not conventional picks but they satisfied and surprised me the most. Keep in mind I've only read 40+ of his books I got more to go
Those are all great choices! If I could go back in time, I would definitely add Duma Key to this video. I didn't end up reading it until this summer. It's a fantastic story and one of King's underrated works in my opinion. I toyed with putting Lisey's Story on here too actually. I picked Bag of Bones instead but I did think about including Lisey's Story for a while.
Thanks for your video. I really enjoyed it. My favorite book at the moment is also Needful Things. It took me just the first five pages to know that this book would be a good story. My favorite character is of course Mr. Gaunt maybe because of his enigmatic and misterious allure. Hopefully you can also review Under the dome? Your short comments on it, made me very curious. I will definitely read it.
Thank you so much for your comment Juan! I'm glad you're also a Needful Things fan too. It's an underrated one in my opinion! Thank you for the request. I will definitely review Under the Dome for you, so stay tuned for a review in the future! :)
I’m reading Needful Things right now!! It’s my spooky October read. *SIDENOTE* Joyland is one of my favorite and most underrated recent King novels. I find it to be one of his most
I found an old cut version of The Stand at a garage sale for 50 cents in pristine condition. It's cool just to.have it. The unabridged is better, though
King has so many great books! Pet Semetary was the first book I ever read of his so it holds a special place for me. I agree with most of these, although I've never read Under the Dome. I LOVED Revival while I was reading it, but boy do I absolutely despise the ending. I liked Needful Things, it's nice to hear it mentioned. Another couple of books that I really liked that seem to get little love are From A Buick 8 and Hearts In Atlantis.
Loved this video! I come from "Rachel and the Shades of Orange", who made a shout-out to your channel and I can say you're totally my jam! I'll be checking all your more recent videos (and then some!) soon. Keep it up!
I just came across this video and I loved it. I think Stephen King's the best and I even got some ideas of what to read next. There's a lot of books from him I haven't read yet. I agree with you wholeheartedly on IT. If those people aren't willing to overlook that scene, they're really missing out on a fantastic story. Love the shining and Pet Sematary of course. I think so far, IT, Pet Sematary, the shining, Carrie and misery are my favorites. Oh and Salem's lot. I don't know if you've read that one but if you haven't, you should. it's great. I might give needful things a try now; I don't hear a lot of people talking about that one. I've been looking at revival too. Great video!
Totally agree with your assessment of The Shining. I sometimes wonder if the people who say they prefer the movie have actually read the book. Jack Torrance’s character is fascinating and so deep, and is flattened so much in the film...
Thank you so much! Those are all excellent choices! Funny enough, Salem's Lot was supposed to be in this video but I skipped over it. I'll probably do a updated version in the future so I can include it, along with Duma Key which I read over the summer for the first time and loved.
I havent read a lot of Stephen king but I'm working on that lol, heres my ranking of the books I've read and finished by him 1. Pet Sematary 2. IT 3. Carrie I'm currently working on christine and I am loving it! Also I completely agree with you about the pet sematary movies
Those are three great books by him! Love all three of them. Pet Sematary is probably the Stephen King book I've read the most times since it's not a super long one. Each time I read it I get something out of it.
Great books all. I love Christine and think it deserves more attention than it gets. People tend to dismiss it because it's about a car but it's a amazing ghost story and much more.
Bit of an update since this was 9 months ago lol 1. Dolores Claiborne 2. Misery 3. Pet Sematary 4. IT 5. Carrie Theres also some that I've started but havent finished because of being busy, and I'll rank those here too lol 1. Geralds Game 2. The shining 3. Christine 4. Thinner
I love so many of the books mentioned here, and I agree that there's something special about Full Dark, No Stars. That book feels like King, after spending much of his career infusing fantastic elements into the things that go *bump* in the night, decided to look at monstrous aspects of humanity through a more realist lens. 1922 and The Good Husband are both unnerving stories that put the reader so very close to unimaginable evil. These novellas are a perfect exercise in POV and voice. The one book on this list I've never read is Needful Things, and I just bought that one for a spooky autumn read.
Thank you! You'll have to let me know what you think about Needful Things! I really hope you enjoy it. I love it and think it doesn't get the love it deserves.
Felt the same about Revival. Being a musician and loving the coming of age/kids friendship story, it was great. The ending was also fantastic. I thought of it as how many religious people think the afterlife would be good and you’d be reunited with loved ones etc. But in this story he describes something different and it’s like a twilight zone ending. Mind bending. After reading this you may think - maybe it’s better that there is no afterlife compared to this option.
Exactly! You are spot on. I thought it was very brilliant of Stephen King to end it the way he did. It's certainly polarizing, but I loved it and it has really stuck with me.
I've so far read Pet Sematary, Misery, The Shining, Revival, Thinner and Night Shift. From those, I loved Pet Sematary the most, followed by Revival, so I am glad the latter got some attention here. :)
Magnificent video. I really enjoyed how you explained your personal background story about each book. "my top King's books" has million versions on YT but very few really personal and engaging. Found your channel today, will surely revisit as often as possible.
Great list! I'm reading The Stand right now and am only on the character development/deaths but am still interested and really look forward to how it plays out. Also I couldn't agree more about both Revival and Full dark, No stars.
So far, my favorite SK book is IT. The setting of the 1960's, the bonds of friendship between the "Losers Club," the town of Derry being incredibly fleshed-out and feeing real and alive, etc. There was one particular scene I was not a fan of, but since it was only 1-2 pages of a 1,000+ page novel I can easily skip over it and enjoy the other 99% of it. I have yet to read a lot of his best books, however. Like, The Stand, Pet Sematary (I'm actually about to start this one), Salem's Lot and The Dark Tower series. I have read The Shining and thought it was great. I think Kubrick's interpretation of it was absolute genius even though he changed-up the story a bit. I think that might actually be the one film I like more than the source material (barely though). The book I do find amazing. They're so close to each other that I honestly go back and forth over which I prefer. I think Kubrick's film is an example of a genuine cinematic horror masterpiece, the likes of which are extremely rare. And I think the Native American genocide aspect added a lot of weight to the story.
You can never go wrong with a list talking about your favorite Stephen King books. I for one really enjoy what he writes and am looking to get into more of what he has written. The Green Mile and Bag of Bones are among my favorites of what he has written as well. I think that both are a lower dosage of horror and possess more literary elements to them. I also liked Hearts in Atlantis a lot and how immersed I became with the period of time in which he writes. I agree with your thesis in how there have been film adaptations that are completely unfaithful to the book, but are still great films. The Running Man is perhaps the greatest example, in how it complete ignores the book, but yet the film was such a happy cheese delight and says a lot about the television climate. I thought Richard Dawson as game show host Damon Killian did a fantastic job. Arnold Schwarzenegger as Ben Richards was okay. The Shining has become a phenomenon onto itself, though I personally feel the book has much more substance where as the film is meant to cater to horror film-goers. If there was a film I thought was actually better than the written work, it was The Shawshank Redemption. While I enjoyed reading the novella, the film rearranges it so that each of the characters exists with one another instead of pacing it out. As for works of horror, I thought Pet Sematary was his scariest, followed by The Shining, Cujo, Misery, and 'Salem's Lot. I thought that the concept of Thinner was also one that can leave someone uneasy. It is great to see that you have some selections that are often overlooked. I also really need to read The Stand. I have heard mixed thoughts, but a lot of people cite this as his monument work. Out of curiosity, which King work do you believe is his scariest and which ones are your least favorites? Thank you for sharing your thoughts on Stephen King! -Josh
Hi Josh! I apologize for the slow reply. Took an unplanned hiatus from UA-cam but I'm back now :). I still need to read Hearts in Atlantis! It's been on my TBR for a very long time. I agree with you about the Shining and about The Shawshank Redemption. The Shining book has much more depth, and The Shawshank Redemption movie is basically a perfect film in my eyes. I think Pet Sematary and It are tied for the scariest King books to me (The Stand is my favorite but I don't consider it scary), and my least favorite is probably Tommyknockers, although I also didn't really care for Sleeping Beauties or Dreamcatcher much.
It's all good! Unplanned hiatuses are perfectly understandable, but I am happy to hear back from you and to see that you are back and running! :) I hope you enjoy reading Hearts in Atlantis when you get to read it! I was immersed in what King put together in that book. I agree that The Shawshank Redemption is such a great film! It is my favorite film adaptation based on a King work and I can still remember watching it for the first time with my grandfather. IT was a very immersive book in how you become very much invested in the book and the world that was created, which is helpful for something over 1000 pages. I have not read The Tommyknockers, Dreamcatcher, or Sleeping Beauties, though I could see where a combination of 1000+ pages and King at the height of his high can result in something outlandish, but not necessarily the good kind. From what I recall, Dreamcatcher had some odd moments, while Sleeping Beauties seemed agenda driven. I would have to read them before I can assure you what I officially think, though. My least favorites that I have read were Carrie and The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon.
One of my favourite King books which never seems to be anyone else's is Insomnia. I love Ralph, the ties to the Dark Tower series, the idea of things going on around you that you are unaware of. I'm also only on book 4 of the dark tower series. I'm finding it a hard read.
Hi Taylor, really enjoyed your reviews! I’m a lifelong SK fan. Started reading him in high school, I’m 52 now lol! Anyway, my favorite has to be the dark tower series. I began that journey in high school and had to wait years between books . My favorite book outside of the DT canon has to be the Stand, with Salem’s lot an honorable mention. I think a lot of his more recent works are hit or miss. Loved, Under the Dome, full dark no stars , and 11/22/63. Didn’t really care for the Hodges trilogy, revival( sorry, thought it started out great but lost steam) and doctor sleep. Anyway just some thoughts. I am desperately holding on to hope that he writes one more DT novel.
@@taylortalkstales8106 Hi there! my first Stephen king book was PET SEMATARY when i was twelve years old! if i would have to make a top five, it would be the next: 1- PET SEMATARY 2- THE SHINNING 3- MISERY 4- CHRISTINE 5- THE DEAD ZONE Greeting from Argentina!
Great list, and totally agree about IT. So far I have only read 7 King books. Here is my ranking so far: 1. Pet Sematary 2. IT 3. Salems Lot 4. The Shining 5. Misery 6. The Institute 7. The Colorado Kid What would you recommend next!? I was thinking Needful Things :)
Thank you so much! You've read some good ones so far. I would say either Needful Things or The Stand depending on your mood. The Stand is very onpoint with what's going on with coronavirus right now haha.
@@taylortalkstales8106 You're welcome! Needful Things sounds like it could be the next one. I've also been intrigued by The Dead Zone and Christine... I've heard so many good things about The Stand, though that seems a monster of a book to get through ha ha. Have you read Joyland?
Hi Samuel! Thank you so much. I appreciate the support and glad you like my channel! My reviews are on Goodreads. If you would like to either follow me or become my friend on there, here's the link to my account www.goodreads.com/user/show/24622819-taylor-taylor-talks-tales
Just finished Under the Dome. It’s similar in some ways to The Stand regarding the two opposing camps. And though I didn’t mind the ending of the Stand (though it wasn’t my favourite) I think I liked the ending of The Dome more. King is a similar story teller to Rod Serling in the sense that stories are grounded in reality, but they can get metaphorical (and therefore ‘magical) in order to elucidate a point. In this case treating people humanely, as opposed to torturing citizens in Iraq, or burning ants etc. Great ending which for me competes with Revival. I read Dome, Revival and Needful Things because of your reviews. Thanks
Also I always say that the shining movie is a masterpiece but the book is something that haunts you and it will go down in history as one of the great literary works of the 20th century. It’s unfair for both movie and book to be compared to each other. Oh! A funny story: my fav music band is called Shining and they are from Sweden ;)
I completely agree! I just consider them to be seperate works because they're so different and unique. That's awesome! I've always wanted to visit Sweden since I have some Swedish heritage (via my grandmother).
I’ve only read about 25 of his books so far but here are my top 10 10. Misery 9. Cujo 8. Carrie 7. Pet Semetary 6. Joyland 5. The Institute 4. Needful Things 3. Mr. Mercedes 2. Salem’s Lot 1. The Stand
@@taylortalkstales8106 you really should! It does such a good job developing the main character in the short length. Also its extremely well written and to-the-point.
I started Pet Semetary about 10 years ago and had terrible nightmares! Since then I have seen both movies and I agree, the new one is awful, the first one I thought rushed through a lot of emotion and character building. Im going to start reading this book again tonight, wish me luck. Hope I dont see Zelda when I close my eyes! PS just subbed
Thank you so much Antony! Oh yes, the new adaptation of Pet Sematary is soooo bad. I unfortunately saw it in theaters and couldn't believe how much was changed for the worse. Good luck! I reread Pet Sematary last year right before I saw the remake film, and it's the kind of book that is always good no matter how many times you reread it. Zelda will always be creepy.
I am a huge Stephen King fan and if you haven't read his book Dreamcatcher please please PLEASE do. It is one of his lesser talked about pieces of work. It is one of my all time favorite books. I have so much of his work. I have more books by him than ANY other writer.
@@taylortalkstales8106: You have a Rod Serling Twilight Zone book in the background. What's that about? The TV episodes written down, or something different? I read a book by him long ago. It was surprisingly well written. I was quite impressed. It had a story about a racist and I remember some criminal ran into an art gallery in the dark and went into a painting.
To be honest as a Filipino, Reading books written by Stephen King kills me 😭 Maybe you can have some walk through reading in the future with his works. Lol. Just hoping 😂. By the way, nice videoooo
@@marvinenriquez1777 hahaha, I've a already read more sk books now. I'm getting used to his style na kaya gets ko na 😂😂 Nakaka overwhelmed lang pala talaga sa simula
Thank you! It's such a shame when great books get poor film adaptations. For me it's the worst when the film completely changes the themes or important beats of the book. It's one thing to omit stuff for the sake of time or ease of filmmaking, it's another to butcher the core ideas or arcs of the book. This is what the new Pet Sematary did with all of the huge changes, especially to the ending :/.
@@taylortalkstales8106, yes! Thats why I prefer the shining book, as you said in your video, they completely altered Jack Torrance's character. They it appear like yes, the hotel was effecting him, but not to the same extent as in the book.
I’m trying to start my own Stephen King collection. I have 7 books and 1 audiobook book so far. The physical books I have are; IT, Pet Sematary, Carrie, The Shinning, Cujo, misery and 11/22/63. The audiobook I have on my moms Audible account is The Stand. Someone on Facebook is supposed to be mailing me a hardcover book of Fire Starter but it doesn’t have a dust jacket. She hasn’t put the book in the mail yet. I’m also 1/2 way through Pet Sematary.
I noticed Duma Key plainly showing in the background. I have that one but haven't read it yet. Is it any good? It looks odd, like, "Huh, what kind of book is this?" And do you really reread his huge, fat books like The Stand? I read the first, shorter version of it in the early '80s, the 800+ page version not the 1,400 page version, and I cannot fathom how I could ever read that book again to get the FULL story, revisiting what I already read, and where on earth I could even find the time for it with all the other books of his that I still haven't gotten to. Do you even sleep? Where do you find the time for all this reading and rereading? Are you a speed reader?
Subscribed as soon as I saw you were a Constant Reader and I saw you a box set of Riyria Revelations. I still need to get back to finish Needful Things, but the more you talk about the King I haven't read I want to go straight to those books. I agree about IT and that one scene. I know it's a pretty disturbing scene, but it's one scene that only lasts a handful of pages.
im reading the stand.. im loving it! why are people so critical about 'Needful things'?? i was intrigued by the synopsis.. in comment section too i see.. many liking it! and one more question... is Under the dome novel worth it???? because i was bored of tv series 🥲🥲🥲🥲
Stephen king books #1 It #2 the talisman #3 the stand #4 carrie #5 the green mile #6 nightmare and dreamscapes #7 misery #8 cujo #9 the bizzar of bad dreams #10 the tommyknockers #11 the body .
I love watching collection videos from everyone who loves Stephen King as much as I do. How much do you guys paid for old editions of his books that are no longer sold? I live in Slovakia and so many books that he published some years ago are no longer available-no reprint to be exact :( except for books such as IT as it was made into a movie in 2017. I was recently pretty lucky and I found some of the books I am missing in my collection online. The overall price for approximately 13 books is around 230€
10. Salems Lot 9. Finders Keepers 8. Wizard and Glass 7. Revival 6. IT 5. Different Seasons 4. The Green Mile 3. 11/22/63 2. Liseys Story 1. Pet Sematary
I've only read Misery and The Green Mile and found both of them underwhelming (especially The Green Mile); in fact, I think the films are better. I'm going to give The Shining a try next. I really want to like King but just based on those two books so far, I can't see what most other readers see.
Definitely give The Shining a shot. The book and film are very different from each other. I appreciated getting to know Jack's character in the book better, and think his descent into madness is far more heartbreaking than in the film where he seems a bit unstable from the get-go. One of my friends doesn't like King much at all, but she told me she likes The Shining and Pet Semetary.
And thats completely fine. I do feel for you finding Misery underwhelming (that's my favorite book ever.) But its still your opinion. That being said, I do believe Stephen King is very hit or miss, because you either really love his novels or hate them.
I could only get part of the way through pet Sematary and it freaked me out so bad I couldn’t finish it I might try it again now that I’m a little older
Yes favorites r quite objective many love tha stand while there r many people hate and felt bored reading it. The theme doesn't interest me much. I don't know how the stand can hook me up without boring me as its 1300+ pages long. So i haven't bought it yet im scared to read it.
*SPOILER BELOW* It's the scene where the kids of the Loser's Club lose their virginities in the sewer. It's a controversial scene because of the content. I personally just skim past that scene and move on because it's a very short part of a very large book and I think the rest of the book is worth reading.
have you watched the mini series of The Shining from 1997 it follows the book so well and correctly. It is soo much better than the original movie by Stanley Kubrik. I feel like everyone always judges the book off of the movie when they haven't watched the mini series.
Love your channel and just subscribed. I know the scene in it your talking about and agree. I hate to say it but most people that complain about that stuff are women. I read a review where this book tuner loved a book but said it was gross that a 16 year old girl thought the main character was hot. They didn’t even have a relationship, she just though he was hot and this woman says 16 year old girls never think that about older men . Lol umm I’m a bodybuilder and have had females that age that are my gym buddies or that I’m training try coming on to me all the time. Lol. Some people take their own life experiences and think it applies to everyone. It’s mostly when a book has sexual content Involving women Meanwell men are being chopped pieces and no one cares. Lol. I say just calm down and enjoy the book. Unless it really is actually pro abuse of course
Well as much as I love horror I just decided to start getting into Stephen King books because I came up on such a deal I was able to pick up 30 of them from a store going out of business at a dollar a piece first one I tried to read it's called dreamcatcher I think it is very very horrible but after watching your video most of the books that I was able to buy or on your list so I'll give it another shot and try to read bag of bones next since you highly recommend it but dream catcher is just not my cup of tea
Stephen King is a master writer and he has written wonderful books and a number of masterpieces. The one book which moved me immensely was The Body which was included in Different Seasons.
The movie was of course superb but the book brings the four young boys to life. The final page moved me to tears. Such is the power of Stephen King. Pet Semetary was my first read and I still regard it as one of my favourites. IT was epic and Pennywise is perhaps King's most grotesque creations. The ending however after a long thrilling journey is....bewildering. I visited Maine a few years ago (I'm from England) and because King has been in my life for what seems forever I half expected to see a creepy looking clown.....Great review. Well done.
Dude , without a doubt "the shining " was Stephen King's best creation ever.
I agree on your thoughts about Revival. Super underrated, it caught me by surprise. It's also one of my favorites.
I'm glad there's another fan out there. It really deserves more attention and love.
Revival is fantastic stuff
It's one of my favorites
I first read The Stand when I was around 15 years old back in the early 2000s, and I've read it at least 3 more times since then. It's always been my favourite ever book of all time! Funny how we're now actually living through a virus pandemic....
It's so difficult to choose a list of favourites from an author as prolific (and brilliant) as Stephen King. I think your list is really interesting and I definitely want to read Revival now. Surprised by the omission of Salem's Lot but these things are so subjective. I agree that Needful Things is so underappreciated. I always liked the Dead Zone but rarely see it on anybody's favourites list. Anyway I really enjoyed your video and now I am going to dig out my copy of Revival.
Now I'm gonna have to read Under the Dome. Needful Things is a long-time favorite, and I agree with you about his "small town descending into chaos" trope: he does it brilliantly. It's even there in Carrie. Hell, it's the entire concept of Derry in IT; the chaotic backbiting and general selfish meanness is baked into the town itself.
My personal favorite is Skeleton Crew. That collection has one of my favorite short stories of all time, The Reach. Never fails to get me all emotional. Skeleton Crew also has The Mist, Nona (shudder), Uncle Otto's Truck, and a lot of other major creepers. Plus poetry!
So with you on Revival. The finale is so striking and its imagery has stuck with me. Love how these lists are so different and our judgement can be so influenced by what we're going through when we come to them.
Needful things is sooo underrated. My favorite king book besides IT
I'll be reading Needful Things in the coming weeks. It'll be my first Castle Rock book--do I need to read any others first in order to enjoy it fully?
@@uptown3636
I would recommend reading Castle Rock in this order, or you'll get some minor spoilers: The Dead Zone, Cujo, The Dark Half, Needful Things. :)
@@bagel7080 Thanks!
Thank you so much for the Needful Things love. Its one of my favorites too and it feels like most people dont like it. Great list.
Thank you so much Travis! So glad you like Needful Things too. It really does need more love because I think it's a very enjoyable read.
This is such a great list. I love all of these books including your honorable mentions. I would add 11/22/63, Lisey's Story, Joyland, Misery, The Drawing of The Three, The Wastelands, Doctor Sleep, The Talisman, andNightmares and Dreamscapes.
Nice list and thoughtful analysis.,Salem's Lot freaked me out one night in 1985 whilst in a basement apartment. Around 2 am there was a power outage and I read the book by candlelight with doors double bolted.
I honestly think at this point his work should be considered modern classics.
I agree!
Who thinks they're not? Snooty literati types?
They should 😊
They should, but probably never will (or not until his death) . Time and time again I here and read people saying that fiction like this is low brow, that it’s not worthy of modern classic label. Plenty of his books are already cult classics, the shining, the stand, IT. And given his amazing storytelling abilities and character development there’s no reason why he work shouldn’t be. I’ve read much worse reportedly ‘modern classics’.
@@karleyknight2960 exactly I honestly think Carrie, the stand, the shining and pet semmetary should all be modern classics. I honestly thought they were but I guess Stephen King isn’t marketable maybe for the classic audience since his books are very with the times
I'm just now buying Stephen King books. You did and awesome job reviewing each of your top ten. 😊
Thank you so much! I appreciate your comment :). Which Stephen King books are you planning on reading first?
@@taylortalkstales8106 I'm leaning towards starting everything off with Carrie, since that is his first published book. I just bought a Billy bookshelf from IKEA yesterday and I'm going get it assembled on Tuesday. I'm so excited. I can't wait to get reading.😊
@@andudontstopyo Carrie is a really good place to start. My first King book was The Stand followed by Needful Things, but Carrie was the third one I read. It will always have a special place in my heart since I read it when I was getting bullied myself. I hope you enjoy it! And congrats on the bookshelves! I need to get a new one myself since I'm running out of space on my current shelves haha.
You don't need to buy them. You can get them for free at the library.
I agree with your list. Also: I remember really liking Needfull Things, Christine, Full Dark No Stars, Skeleton Crew, Cujo. I recently collected about 40 of his hardbacks and plan to read/reread them all! Thanks for your video I’m sure it will inspire new readers to Stephen King!
I haven't read any Stephen King yet. I just bought "Different Seasons", "The Long Walk", and "Misery". I am very excited to read them! If I enjoy them I feel like I need to pick up "Pet Sematary" and "The Shining". I was not a huge fan of the movie The Shining, but your description of the book makes me want to read it! :)
Just stared reading Stephen King, I have read 11/22/63 and currently finishing Pet Semetary, thanks for the great video😊
The institute is great. The long walk is one of my all time fav books!
Taylor where are you?!… I just found your channel and love it! Please come back!
wonderful enthusiastic reviews and connection to your evolution as a reader and person.
I'm a pretty big King fan but I haven't gotten into a lot of his modern stuff. Recently read the outsider because the mini series was coming out, and it was surprisingly great. Either way good recommendations I think I'll check out under the dome next
Thank you! I enjoyed the Outsider as well. It was a contender for this list but didn't quite make it. I hope you enjoy Under the Dome!
Under the Dome is fantastic!
I am reading King's books in chronological order and I'm currently reading The Dead Zone (I've read all the other books that are published before that). The Dead Zone is really good but my favourite books right now are The Shining and the short story collection named Night Shift. I'm really enjoying watching Stephen King videos and I really hope that I'll find a lot of new favourite King's books in the future!
I finished reading The Stand in January and it took me about 7 months to read... :D And it was a good book but for me, it was too long and not my favourite. But I appreciate it for what it was and I totally understand why people love it.
That's awesome! I like that idea of reading an author's work chronologically. Haven't done it before but sounds really cool. Yay for The Shining! It's pretty amazing and I contemplated putting Night Shift on here. Oh yes, The Stand is definitely very long. I love it but I understand it's not for everyone. There is an abridged version out there. I prefer the full length but it might be worth checking out if you wanted it to be shorter.
@@taylortalkstales8106 I want to read the books as they were originally written so that's why I read the uncut-version of The Stand :)
I've read 26 of them so far! Working on the 27th one which is The Stand now.
My favourite one is 11.22.63. I thought reading it was just a joy. I just love the sensibility of the main character. It's so immersive. Anyway, great video :)
My top 5: The Talisman, the stand, pet cemetery, the long walk and Duma Key. Honorable mention Liseys story. Not conventional picks but they satisfied and surprised me the most. Keep in mind I've only read 40+ of his books I got more to go
Those are all great choices! If I could go back in time, I would definitely add Duma Key to this video. I didn't end up reading it until this summer. It's a fantastic story and one of King's underrated works in my opinion. I toyed with putting Lisey's Story on here too actually. I picked Bag of Bones instead but I did think about including Lisey's Story for a while.
The Long Walkbest book I've ever read. my favorite one by far
Thanks for your video. I really enjoyed it. My favorite book at the moment is also Needful Things. It took me just the first five pages to know that this book would be a good story. My favorite character is of course Mr. Gaunt maybe because of his enigmatic and misterious allure. Hopefully you can also review Under the dome? Your short comments on it, made me very curious. I will definitely read it.
Thank you so much for your comment Juan! I'm glad you're also a Needful Things fan too. It's an underrated one in my opinion! Thank you for the request. I will definitely review Under the Dome for you, so stay tuned for a review in the future! :)
I’m reading Needful Things right now!! It’s my spooky October read. *SIDENOTE* Joyland is one of my favorite and most underrated recent King novels. I find it to be one of his most
Nice video! I really enjoyed it. I wish you'd mentioned Duma Key, which was visible in the background all the time.... 😅
I found an old cut version of The Stand at a garage sale for 50 cents in pristine condition. It's cool just to.have it. The unabridged is better, though
That's awesome and a really good deal! I agree about the unabridged version being better.
I have the 78 version on audiobook! I prefer it, you lose some good stuff, but it’s set in the correct time 1980
You are so right about Needful Things , it’s so underrated. 🔥👍
My favs: the shining, pet semetary and bag of bones. I LOVED bag of bones. I’m currently reading the stand
Great choices! Are you enjoying the Stand?
King has so many great books! Pet Semetary was the first book I ever read of his so it holds a special place for me. I agree with most of these, although I've never read Under the Dome. I LOVED Revival while I was reading it, but boy do I absolutely despise the ending. I liked Needful Things, it's nice to hear it mentioned. Another couple of books that I really liked that seem to get little love are From A Buick 8 and Hearts In Atlantis.
Loved this video! I come from "Rachel and the Shades of Orange", who made a shout-out to your channel and I can say you're totally my jam! I'll be checking all your more recent videos (and then some!) soon. Keep it up!
I just came across this video and I loved it. I think Stephen King's the best and I even got some ideas of what to read next. There's a lot of books from him I haven't read yet. I agree with you wholeheartedly on IT. If those people aren't willing to overlook that scene, they're really missing out on a fantastic story. Love the shining and Pet Sematary of course. I think so far, IT, Pet Sematary, the shining, Carrie and misery are my favorites. Oh and Salem's lot. I don't know if you've read that one but if you haven't, you should. it's great. I might give needful things a try now; I don't hear a lot of people talking about that one. I've been looking at revival too. Great video!
Pet Sematary is so good! I'm reading IT right now. I'm loving it. I'm only about 450 pages in.
Both are excellent books! Are you still working on It or have you finished?
@@taylortalkstales8106 still working on it. Haven't been reading nearly as much as I should! 😅
Great little breakdown, sub
Thank you very much! :D
I've only read a few of his books so far but heres my list of the ones I've read:
1 Dolores Claiborne
2 Pet Sematary
3 IT
4 Carrie
you should really read doctor sleep! i've read 3 of his books and is definitely my favorite of them all :)
@@fefaisbored I've heard really good things about that one! I'll probably read it right after I read the shining
After the Shining is best!@freegreen6527
Totally agree with your assessment of The Shining. I sometimes wonder if the people who say they prefer the movie have actually read the book. Jack Torrance’s character is fascinating and so deep, and is flattened so much in the film...
My top King books are IT, The Stand, Salem’s Lot, The Shining, Mr Mercedes, The Outsider & Night Shift
Keep up the great videos 😎👍🏻
Thank you so much! Those are all excellent choices! Funny enough, Salem's Lot was supposed to be in this video but I skipped over it. I'll probably do a updated version in the future so I can include it, along with Duma Key which I read over the summer for the first time and loved.
I havent read a lot of Stephen king but I'm working on that lol, heres my ranking of the books I've read and finished by him
1. Pet Sematary
2. IT
3. Carrie
I'm currently working on christine and I am loving it!
Also I completely agree with you about the pet sematary movies
Those are three great books by him! Love all three of them. Pet Sematary is probably the Stephen King book I've read the most times since it's not a super long one. Each time I read it I get something out of it.
Great books all. I love Christine and think it deserves more attention than it gets. People tend to dismiss it because it's about a car but it's a amazing ghost story and much more.
Bit of an update since this was 9 months ago lol
1. Dolores Claiborne
2. Misery
3. Pet Sematary
4. IT
5. Carrie
Theres also some that I've started but havent finished because of being busy, and I'll rank those here too lol
1. Geralds Game
2. The shining
3. Christine
4. Thinner
Another update on my current list:
1. Misery
2. Dolores claiborne
3. Pet sematary
4. The outsider
5. Geralds game
6. It
7. Carrie
I love so many of the books mentioned here, and I agree that there's something special about Full Dark, No Stars. That book feels like King, after spending much of his career infusing fantastic elements into the things that go *bump* in the night, decided to look at monstrous aspects of humanity through a more realist lens. 1922 and The Good Husband are both unnerving stories that put the reader so very close to unimaginable evil. These novellas are a perfect exercise in POV and voice.
The one book on this list I've never read is Needful Things, and I just bought that one for a spooky autumn read.
Thank you! You'll have to let me know what you think about Needful Things! I really hope you enjoy it. I love it and think it doesn't get the love it deserves.
I’d love to hear your thoughts on Firestarter, Misery, and ‘Salem’s Lot, they’re some of my favourites!
Love your channel btw
I love misery and carrie
Felt the same about Revival. Being a musician and loving the coming of age/kids friendship story, it was great. The ending was also fantastic. I thought of it as how many religious people think the afterlife would be good and you’d be reunited with loved ones etc. But in this story he describes something different and it’s like a twilight zone ending. Mind bending. After reading this you may think - maybe it’s better that there is no afterlife compared to this option.
Exactly! You are spot on. I thought it was very brilliant of Stephen King to end it the way he did. It's certainly polarizing, but I loved it and it has really stuck with me.
I've so far read Pet Sematary, Misery, The Shining, Revival, Thinner and Night Shift. From those, I loved Pet Sematary the most, followed by Revival, so I am glad the latter got some attention here. :)
Magnificent video. I really enjoyed how you explained your personal background story about each book.
"my top King's books" has million versions on YT but very few really personal and engaging.
Found your channel today, will surely revisit as often as possible.
Thank you so much for your awesome comment! It means a lot to me and I'm glad you appreciated my personal touch to it :D
Great list! I'm reading The Stand right now and am only on the character development/deaths but am still interested and really look forward to how it plays out. Also I couldn't agree more about both Revival and Full dark, No stars.
I just found you today. I love how you describe everything!!!! Thank you so much for doing these videos!!!
So far, my favorite SK book is IT. The setting of the 1960's, the bonds of friendship between the "Losers Club," the town of Derry being incredibly fleshed-out and feeing real and alive, etc.
There was one particular scene I was not a fan of, but since it was only 1-2 pages of a 1,000+ page novel I can easily skip over it and enjoy the other 99% of it.
I have yet to read a lot of his best books, however. Like, The Stand, Pet Sematary (I'm actually about to start this one), Salem's Lot and The Dark Tower series.
I have read The Shining and thought it was great. I think Kubrick's interpretation of it was absolute genius even though he changed-up the story a bit. I think that might actually be the one film I like more than the source material (barely though). The book I do find amazing. They're so close to each other that I honestly go back and forth over which I prefer. I think Kubrick's film is an example of a genuine cinematic horror masterpiece, the likes of which are extremely rare. And I think the Native American genocide aspect added a lot of weight to the story.
The Green Mile is such a great book!!
You can never go wrong with a list talking about your favorite Stephen King books. I for one really enjoy what he writes and am looking to get into more of what he has written. The Green Mile and Bag of Bones are among my favorites of what he has written as well. I think that both are a lower dosage of horror and possess more literary elements to them. I also liked Hearts in Atlantis a lot and how immersed I became with the period of time in which he writes. I agree with your thesis in how there have been film adaptations that are completely unfaithful to the book, but are still great films. The Running Man is perhaps the greatest example, in how it complete ignores the book, but yet the film was such a happy cheese delight and says a lot about the television climate. I thought Richard Dawson as game show host Damon Killian did a fantastic job. Arnold Schwarzenegger as Ben Richards was okay. The Shining has become a phenomenon onto itself, though I personally feel the book has much more substance where as the film is meant to cater to horror film-goers. If there was a film I thought was actually better than the written work, it was The Shawshank Redemption. While I enjoyed reading the novella, the film rearranges it so that each of the characters exists with one another instead of pacing it out. As for works of horror, I thought Pet Sematary was his scariest, followed by The Shining, Cujo, Misery, and 'Salem's Lot. I thought that the concept of Thinner was also one that can leave someone uneasy. It is great to see that you have some selections that are often overlooked. I also really need to read The Stand. I have heard mixed thoughts, but a lot of people cite this as his monument work. Out of curiosity, which King work do you believe is his scariest and which ones are your least favorites? Thank you for sharing your thoughts on Stephen King! -Josh
Hi Josh! I apologize for the slow reply. Took an unplanned hiatus from UA-cam but I'm back now :). I still need to read Hearts in Atlantis! It's been on my TBR for a very long time. I agree with you about the Shining and about The Shawshank Redemption. The Shining book has much more depth, and The Shawshank Redemption movie is basically a perfect film in my eyes. I think Pet Sematary and It are tied for the scariest King books to me (The Stand is my favorite but I don't consider it scary), and my least favorite is probably Tommyknockers, although I also didn't really care for Sleeping Beauties or Dreamcatcher much.
It's all good! Unplanned hiatuses are perfectly understandable, but I am happy to hear back from you and to see that you are back and running! :) I hope you enjoy reading Hearts in Atlantis when you get to read it! I was immersed in what King put together in that book. I agree that The Shawshank Redemption is such a great film! It is my favorite film adaptation based on a King work and I can still remember watching it for the first time with my grandfather. IT was a very immersive book in how you become very much invested in the book and the world that was created, which is helpful for something over 1000 pages. I have not read The Tommyknockers, Dreamcatcher, or Sleeping Beauties, though I could see where a combination of 1000+ pages and King at the height of his high can result in something outlandish, but not necessarily the good kind. From what I recall, Dreamcatcher had some odd moments, while Sleeping Beauties seemed agenda driven. I would have to read them before I can assure you what I officially think, though. My least favorites that I have read were Carrie and The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon.
One of my favourite King books which never seems to be anyone else's is Insomnia. I love Ralph, the ties to the Dark Tower series, the idea of things going on around you that you are unaware of. I'm also only on book 4 of the dark tower series. I'm finding it a hard read.
Just finished The Outsider. Great book
So-so.
It and The Stand are my top two King books.....nice list.
Hi Taylor, really enjoyed your reviews! I’m a lifelong SK fan. Started reading him in high school, I’m 52 now lol! Anyway, my favorite has to be the dark tower series. I began that journey in high school and had to wait years between books . My favorite book outside of the DT canon has to be the Stand, with Salem’s lot an honorable mention. I think a lot of his more recent works are hit or miss. Loved, Under the Dome, full dark no stars , and 11/22/63. Didn’t really care for the Hodges trilogy, revival( sorry, thought it started out great but lost steam) and doctor sleep. Anyway just some thoughts. I am desperately holding on to hope that he writes one more DT novel.
Last weekend (12.09.2020) I did read just in one afternoon ELEVATION, amazing ending!! I almost cry with it! Greeting from Argentina 😁
Awesome! I'm glad you enjoyed it. Was it your first Stephen King book? That's so cool you're watching from Argentina! :D
@@taylortalkstales8106 Hi there! my first Stephen king book was PET SEMATARY when i was twelve years old! if i would have to make a top five, it would be the next:
1- PET SEMATARY
2- THE SHINNING
3- MISERY
4- CHRISTINE
5- THE DEAD ZONE
Greeting from Argentina!
Great list, and totally agree about IT.
So far I have only read 7 King books. Here is my ranking so far:
1. Pet Sematary
2. IT
3. Salems Lot
4. The Shining
5. Misery
6. The Institute
7. The Colorado Kid
What would you recommend next!?
I was thinking Needful Things :)
Thank you so much! You've read some good ones so far. I would say either Needful Things or The Stand depending on your mood. The Stand is very onpoint with what's going on with coronavirus right now haha.
@@taylortalkstales8106 You're welcome! Needful Things sounds like it could be the next one. I've also been intrigued by The Dead Zone and Christine... I've heard so many good things about The Stand, though that seems a monster of a book to get through ha ha. Have you read Joyland?
shamrock balls I listened to Joyland here on YT. It was good but not a horror book. Barely a thriller.
@@AllenFreemanMediaGuru I'm half way through Joyland at the moment and I'm really enjoying it.
shamrock balls Glad you like it so far! It really sets the time and place putting you there.
Great video. Of his more recent work I think the Bill Hodges trilogy is my favorite.
Agreed. The Stand is my #1 book, Pet Seminary, a close second. Thanks!
New subscriber from the mountains of Colorado! Great stuff! Keep it up the good work!
Are your reviews on Goodreads?
Hi Samuel! Thank you so much. I appreciate the support and glad you like my channel! My reviews are on Goodreads. If you would like to either follow me or become my friend on there, here's the link to my account www.goodreads.com/user/show/24622819-taylor-taylor-talks-tales
Just finished Under the Dome. It’s similar in some ways to The Stand regarding the two opposing camps. And though I didn’t mind the ending of the Stand (though it wasn’t my favourite) I think I liked the ending of The Dome more. King is a similar story teller to Rod Serling in the sense that stories are grounded in reality, but they can get metaphorical (and therefore ‘magical) in order to elucidate a point. In this case treating people humanely, as opposed to torturing citizens in Iraq, or burning ants etc. Great ending which for me competes with Revival. I read Dome, Revival and Needful Things because of your reviews. Thanks
I like Long Walk. 350 pages of people walking and it is one of the best books I've ever read.
best book I've ever read. my favorite one by far
Yes I've just read it and it was incredible, my new favorite
Also I always say that the shining movie is a masterpiece but the book is something that haunts you and it will go down in history as one of the great literary works of the 20th century. It’s unfair for both movie and book to be compared to each other. Oh! A funny story: my fav music band is called Shining and they are from Sweden ;)
I completely agree! I just consider them to be seperate works because they're so different and unique. That's awesome! I've always wanted to visit Sweden since I have some Swedish heritage (via my grandmother).
Pet Sematary was my first Stephen King read as a teen...I have been a Constant Reader ever since!
I’ve only read about 25 of his books so far but here are my top 10
10. Misery
9. Cujo
8. Carrie
7. Pet Semetary
6. Joyland
5. The Institute
4. Needful Things
3. Mr. Mercedes
2. Salem’s Lot
1. The Stand
Awesome choices! I still need to read Joyland.
@@taylortalkstales8106 you really should! It does such a good job developing the main character in the short length. Also its extremely well written and to-the-point.
I agree, everyone loves It so much, I agree the characters are fantastic. But after the like 600th page of just gets bad.
What the fuck you Included CUJO and left "the shining "
@santanu I haven’t read it yet.
If you haven’t already I highly recommend the institute!
I started Pet Semetary about 10 years ago and had terrible nightmares! Since then I have seen both movies and I agree, the new one is awful, the first one I thought rushed through a lot of emotion and character building. Im going to start reading this book again tonight, wish me luck.
Hope I dont see Zelda when I close my eyes!
PS just subbed
Thank you so much Antony! Oh yes, the new adaptation of Pet Sematary is soooo bad. I unfortunately saw it in theaters and couldn't believe how much was changed for the worse. Good luck! I reread Pet Sematary last year right before I saw the remake film, and it's the kind of book that is always good no matter how many times you reread it. Zelda will always be creepy.
Thanks for your opinions Taylor. Really interesting.
I am a huge Stephen King fan and if you haven't read his book Dreamcatcher please please PLEASE do. It is one of his lesser talked about pieces of work. It is one of my all time favorite books. I have so much of his work. I have more books by him than ANY other writer.
Love seeing Revival on the list. Very underrated.
Full dark no stars is highly underrated, also loved all 4 stories!
Needful Things is like a Rod Serling Twilight Zone story, which means it's GREAT
I agree!
Needful Things looks similar to Bradbury's Something Wicked This Way Comes.
@@taylortalkstales8106: You have a Rod Serling Twilight Zone book in the background. What's that about? The TV episodes written down, or something different? I read a book by him long ago. It was surprisingly well written. I was quite impressed. It had a story about a racist and I remember some criminal ran into an art gallery in the dark and went into a painting.
I really love your channel and all your Stephen king talk. You do a really great job. Makes me sad you had to deal with bullying.
What a good video ☺️🙏 thank you! Enjoyed it 📚📚
Very well described. Great job.
on IT: Are there that many prudes in the world where one scene would turn them off from reading the greatest living author?
The “scene” in question felt natural to the story. Didn’t bother me at all. Still doesn’t. Thanks for the comment!
To be honest as a Filipino, Reading books written by Stephen King kills me 😭 Maybe you can have some walk through reading in the future with his works. Lol. Just hoping 😂. By the way, nice videoooo
Sakto lang naman hehehe aq den mejo nahihirapan
@@marvinenriquez1777 hahaha, I've a already read more sk books now. I'm getting used to his style na kaya gets ko na 😂😂 Nakaka overwhelmed lang pala talaga sa simula
I completely agree with your thoughts on the Pet Sematary film, the new one is much worse than the old one, and the book is the best of the bunch.
Thank you! It's such a shame when great books get poor film adaptations. For me it's the worst when the film completely changes the themes or important beats of the book. It's one thing to omit stuff for the sake of time or ease of filmmaking, it's another to butcher the core ideas or arcs of the book. This is what the new Pet Sematary did with all of the huge changes, especially to the ending :/.
@@taylortalkstales8106, yes! Thats why I prefer the shining book, as you said in your video, they completely altered Jack Torrance's character. They it appear like yes, the hotel was effecting him, but not to the same extent as in the book.
I’m trying to start my own Stephen King collection. I have 7 books and 1 audiobook book so far. The physical books I have are; IT, Pet Sematary, Carrie, The Shinning, Cujo, misery and 11/22/63. The audiobook I have on my moms Audible account is The Stand. Someone on Facebook is supposed to be mailing me a hardcover book of Fire Starter but it doesn’t have a dust jacket. She hasn’t put the book in the mail yet. I’m also 1/2 way through Pet Sematary.
I noticed Duma Key plainly showing in the background. I have that one but haven't read it yet. Is it any good? It looks odd, like, "Huh, what kind of book is this?" And do you really reread his huge, fat books like The Stand? I read the first, shorter version of it in the early '80s, the 800+ page version not the 1,400 page version, and I cannot fathom how I could ever read that book again to get the FULL story, revisiting what I already read, and where on earth I could even find the time for it with all the other books of his that I still haven't gotten to. Do you even sleep? Where do you find the time for all this reading and rereading? Are you a speed reader?
Subscribed as soon as I saw you were a Constant Reader and I saw you a box set of Riyria Revelations. I still need to get back to finish Needful Things, but the more you talk about the King I haven't read I want to go straight to those books. I agree about IT and that one scene. I know it's a pretty disturbing scene, but it's one scene that only lasts a handful of pages.
No Salem’s Lot?? That’s probably my favorite by him!
im reading the stand.. im loving it!
why are people so critical about 'Needful things'?? i was intrigued by the synopsis..
in comment section too i see.. many liking it!
and one more question...
is Under the dome novel worth it????
because i was bored of tv series 🥲🥲🥲🥲
Im new here, thank you subbed 😍 love from Australia.
Thank you so much! I've always wanted to visit Australia and I'm happy to have a subscriber from there :)
@@taylortalkstales8106 😀
Everything's Eventual Cujo Dreamcatcher
Bag of Bones is one of my favourite books. It is very underrated
Stephen king books #1 It #2 the talisman #3 the stand #4 carrie #5 the green mile #6 nightmare and dreamscapes #7 misery #8 cujo #9 the bizzar of bad dreams #10 the tommyknockers #11 the body .
I've read 0 so far, but I know my first will be Pet Sematary!
Not a bad place to start
My first is The Shining!
@@hannah.crochetandbooks Did you enjoy it?
@lost in a booKCase, that's an intense introduction to King, to put it mildly. Did you enjoy it?
@@uptown3636 I'm starting with "It"
completely agree with you about needful things
I love watching collection videos from everyone who loves Stephen King as much as I do. How much do you guys paid for old editions of his books that are no longer sold? I live in Slovakia and so many books that he published some years ago are no longer available-no reprint to be exact :( except for books such as IT as it was made into a movie in 2017.
I was recently pretty lucky and I found some of the books I am missing in my collection online. The overall price for approximately 13 books is around 230€
My top 3 S.K. novels are 1. Cell 2. IT and 3. His short stories
10. Salems Lot
9. Finders Keepers
8. Wizard and Glass
7. Revival
6. IT
5. Different Seasons
4. The Green Mile
3. 11/22/63
2. Liseys Story
1. Pet Sematary
In my opinion one of the best newer titles is sleeping beauties if you haven’t read that one yet you should
I've only read Misery and The Green Mile and found both of them underwhelming (especially The Green Mile); in fact, I think the films are better. I'm going to give The Shining a try next. I really want to like King but just based on those two books so far, I can't see what most other readers see.
Definitely give The Shining a shot. The book and film are very different from each other. I appreciated getting to know Jack's character in the book better, and think his descent into madness is far more heartbreaking than in the film where he seems a bit unstable from the get-go. One of my friends doesn't like King much at all, but she told me she likes The Shining and Pet Semetary.
And thats completely fine. I do feel for you finding Misery underwhelming (that's my favorite book ever.) But its still your opinion. That being said, I do believe Stephen King is very hit or miss, because you either really love his novels or hate them.
I could only get part of the way through pet Sematary and it freaked me out so bad I couldn’t finish it I might try it again now that I’m a little older
Yes favorites r quite objective many love tha stand while there r many people hate and felt bored reading it. The theme doesn't interest me much. I don't know how the stand can hook me up without boring me as its 1300+ pages long. So i haven't bought it yet im scared to read it.
I see the slasher girls monster boys on the shelf. In the Forst Dark and Deep is a fantastic story in it if you haven't read it.
What was that scene from it she was talking about?
*SPOILER BELOW*
It's the scene where the kids of the Loser's Club lose their virginities in the sewer. It's a controversial scene because of the content. I personally just skim past that scene and move on because it's a very short part of a very large book and I think the rest of the book is worth reading.
have you watched the mini series of The Shining from 1997 it follows the book so well and correctly. It is soo much better than the original movie by Stanley Kubrik. I feel like everyone always judges the book off of the movie when they haven't watched the mini series.
King writes brilliant novels,the stand is the greatest story about good v evil ,the trashcan man best twisted characters
Love your channel and just subscribed. I know the scene in it your talking about and agree. I hate to say it but most people that complain about that stuff are women. I read a review where this book tuner loved a book but said it was gross that a 16 year old girl thought the main character was hot. They didn’t even have a relationship, she just though he was hot and this woman says 16 year old girls never think that about older men . Lol umm I’m a bodybuilder and have had females that age that are my gym buddies or that I’m training try coming on to me all the time. Lol. Some people take their own life experiences and think it applies to everyone. It’s mostly when a book has sexual content Involving women Meanwell men are being chopped pieces and no one cares. Lol. I say just calm down and enjoy the book. Unless it really is actually pro abuse of course
Well as much as I love horror I just decided to start getting into Stephen King books because I came up on such a deal I was able to pick up 30 of them from a store going out of business at a dollar a piece first one I tried to read it's called dreamcatcher I think it is very very horrible but after watching your video most of the books that I was able to buy or on your list so I'll give it another shot and try to read bag of bones next since you highly recommend it but dream catcher is just not my cup of tea
This girl is cute, I like her reviews. I agree, THE STAND is very good! The Stand showcases some of King's best writing!