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A chronological look at the written word of Stephen King, with some personal notes that may be ignored at will.1974 Carrie "...she had crossed a line, and now the fairy tale was green with corruption and evil" The first published novel. Rather experimentally written - as a blend of news paper articles, courtroom statements, and "normal" narrative - yet a moving story about a girl with very little in life except a talent for telekinesis. A twisted Cinderella tale set in the often cruel world of high school. Also the first King novel to be filmed. 1975 Salem's Lot "The town new darkness" Basically Dracula, set in 1970's New England, with remarkably believable results. This book has what you expect from a King novel, but also some chapters that are unlike most of what I've read by him; chapters that describe the small town - as an almost sentient being - and those living there, in a wonderfully poetic way, with both distance and affection. 1977 The Shining "In the Overlook all things had a sort of life." The ultimate haunted house novel, right up there with the masterpieces by Shirley Jackson and Henry James, and as psychologically complex. As much a story about a haunted man as a building, it portrays the gradual going-insane of Jack Torrance - one King's most memorable characters - in a hotel that's not as empty as it supposed to be. 1978 Night Shift "I came to you because I want to tell my story" (The Boogeyman) The first of currently three books that contain King's short stories, previously published in magazines of very varied style and quality. Here are some genuine classics, such as Quitters Inc, Children of the Corn, The Boogeyman and Strawberry Spring. And let's not forget one his most beautiful stories, The Last Rung on the Ladder, which is very far from horror. Several of the stories here have been turned into bad films. The forewords by King and John D. MacDonald are both wonderful. The Stand "It was a face guaranteed to make barrooms arguments over batting averages turn bloody." This face belongs to Randall Flagg, one of King's most famous incarnations of evil and corruption. He makes his first appearance in The Stand. This 1200 page novel is the favourite of many fans, and although I would personally rank at least IT and Misery higher, it sure is powerful. A true epic, turning america into a post-apocalyptic battleground for a very biblical Good and Evil. Both mystical, almost Tolkienish, and ruggedly realistic, it is still unique in the way it blends different levels of reality so seamlessly (lousy metaphor, please suggest a better one). The first edition was a measly 800 pages, but it was restored to its intended length in 1990. 1979 The Dead Zone "What a talent God has given you, Johnny." As with Firestarter, some might dismiss it as "another King story about ordinary people, blessed or cursed with unusual powers". As before, this is an entirely different story, with some recurrent motifs. Another of his pet subjects, religious mania that serves as an instrument of truth, is also present here, if discreetly. One of King's own favorites, from what I've read. The town of Castle Rock is introduced here. 1980 Firestarter "It was a pleasure to burn" (Ray Bradbury, Fahrenheit 451) Oh, another story about a young girl with awesome powers, some might smirk. Yes, but aside from the simplest of summaries, Firestarter is vastly different from Carrie. More mobile, more complex and more of a normal thriller. One of his most mainstream books, you might say. Whereas Carrie is perhaps distancing itself from the reader somewhat in its experimental form, Firestarter takes you along on an adventure, an involving story, vividly told, with a moral dilemma as a bonus. King the storyteller. 1981 Cujo "Free will was not a factor." Horror in the 'real world', whatever that may be. Here the monster is a rabid dog, a kind dog that didn't want to harm anyone but made the mistake of chasing a rabbit into a bat cave. Naturalistic, pessimistic and not entertaining in the ordinary sense of the word, it's a good example of one of the things that make King great; he doesn't write what the reader wants him to, but what the story demands. Danse Macabre A wonderful book that takes a wise, loving look at horror and its neighbouring genres, mostly from the 50's to the 80's. King sits down and has a fascinating conversation with the reader, adding interesting facts about himself and his life along with his insight in horror fiction and film. Often very funny, often very enlightening. And, best of all, he makes you want to read and watch the books and films he's talking about - the good as well as the bad ones. 1982 Creepshow "I want my cake." A loving tribute to E. C. Comics in the form of a comic book. Stephen King stories illustrated by Berni Wrightsson, where everyone gets their just or unjust deserts with a little help from the supernatural, from the north pole or from space. The Dark Tower 1: The Gunslinger "The man in black fled across the desert and the gunslinger followed." The Dark Tower is one of King's most ambitious projects, a story to be told in six or seven books spanning thousands of pages. The first book, which introduces the gunslinger Roland and his mysterious mission, is rather short, and offers more questions than answers. Hypnotically strange and very poetic. Different Seasons "Are there many more rooms upstairs?" The Body, Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption, Apt Pupil, The Breathing Method Novellas. What are those? Well, according to the afterword they're stories of 25000 to 35000 words. These do not snugly fit into any category, and are difficult to publish, being neither short stories nor novels. So they collected four works into one volume, that shows a side of King that not everybody is aware of. Although there are elements of horror these are more "normal" stories, staying pretty much in the world of established fact. What makes them King are, of course, the sheer quality of the stories, their ability to grab the reader's attention and keep it till the final sentence. Some very good films have come from these tales. One of my favourite places in King's world, the club at 249B East Thirty-fifth Street, is introduced here. Here, stories will always be told, and it is the tale that matters, "not he who tells it". 1983 Pet Sematary "Death was a vague idea; the Pet Sematary was real." Perhaps the darkest story King has ever told. It is not entertainment, nor uplifting. The "problem" with King is that his characters are so real and likeable that when they get into trouble, it really hurts to read it, and here you have Trouble. If you're looking for a pleasant roller-coster ride type of fear, this is not it. Christine "His single-ended purpose. His unending fury." Definitely not bad (i think King is literarily incapable of writing bad fiction), but perhaps one of King's least challenging books. The story of another high school loser, Arnie Cunningham, and a car that's his ticket out of loserdom and into something worse. 1985 Cycle of the Werewolf King's second collaboration with Berni Wrightson. Originally intended as an almanac, with short texts by King and drawings by Wrightson, it grew into a short novel. No masterpiece but interesting as an experiment and nice to look at. Was poorly filmed as Silver Bullet. Sceleton Crew "Do you love?" More short stories, very varied in theme and length. From the epic novella The Mist to the short poem Paranoid: a chant, it spans every aspect of human emotion, focusing, of course, on fear. My favourites include Nona, The Raft and Survivor Type, and the non-horror The Ballad of the Flexible Bullet. 1986 IT "Come on back and we'll see if you can remember the simplest thing of all: how it is to be children, secure in belief and thus afraid of the dark." Probably the greatest horror novel to be written in the 20th century. A rich book in every regard. Stories within stories withing stories, and then some, but without a trace of pretentiousness. Sometimes provocative, always fascinating, absolutely wonderful. 1987 The Tommyknockers "Ugly fuckers" A much needed renaissance for the alien from space as a creature of evil and corruption, rather than a cuddly saviour from the stars. Though not a fav among critics it has one of my favourite King characters, Jim Gardner. Reminiscient of The Bodysnatchers but the subtext is about nuclear power here, rather than communism. The Dark Tower 2: The Drawing of the Three "This is that other world. the gunslinger thought." Roland, the gunslinger, continues his quest for the vague dark tower, bringing travel companions from other times and worlds. The story takes place as much in our reality as in his strange, desolate world, and sets the stage for things to come in The Waste Lands. The Eyes of the Dragon "It was the doll's house about which Flagg had had vague misgivings so long ago which was now Peter's only real hope of escape." Written for King's daughter Naomi - who did not like his horror stories - this is a cozy but unmistakably Kingesque fairy-tale about the sons of a mediocre king and an evil magician with the familiar name of Flagg in a kingdom called Delain. Being a kids' book of sorts it may not be King at his most ambigous or exciting, but it is a good story well told. Misery "...if I write this novel for you, will you let me go when it's done." [...] "You speak as though I were holding you prisoner, Paul." One of King's very best, which means that it's one of the best books ever written. As always with King there are several things going on at once, but mainly a story about enthusiasm turned into obsession and about the process of writing. Not cutely metaesque, but a deadly serious book about books. 1989 The Dark Half "And you know what happens to people who lose their happy thoughts, don't you?" "Part two" in what could be considered a trilogy of tales about books and writing, beginning with Misery and ending with Secret Window, Secret Garden. Drawing on his own experiences with Richard Bachman, King tells the story about a writer whose pseudonym refuses to be put to death. A many-levelled taut thriller, which was filmed by George A. Romero. 1990 Four Past Midnight Four more novellas, collected in one volume. These are generally longer than the ones in Different Seasons, and closer to horror. The Langoliers is an absorbing tale in the Twilight Zone vein. Secret Window, Secret Garden is another look at writing, focusing on plagiarism. The Library Policeman is a small gem, very King and very good. The Sun Dog is probably the weakest of the bunch, leaving no greater impression. 1991 Needful Things "Not all the things which happen in small towns are known to the residents, no matter how sharp their eyes are or how energetically their tongues wag." The farewell to Castle Rock, an epic tale of corruption visiting the small town in the shape of shopkeeper Leland Gaunt. Seldom has villainy been so passive, yet efficient. Gaunt himself does very little - he only turns the people against each other in an intricate plan designed to create total chaos. Very entertaining. 1992 The Dark Tower 3: The Waste Lands A lesson in the craft of creating worlds. Some of the loose threads from The Gunslinger and The Drawing of the Three come together and a complex and fascinating weave is beginning to take shape. Metaphysical fantasy at its best, with a cliffhanger ending that has had readers waiting for the last five years. Dolores Claiborne "An accident" she says, in a clear voice almost like a schoolteacher's, "is sometimes an unhappy woman's best friend." Written in first person perspective in dialect, it's one of the rather experimental books that King has taken to writing the last years. More drama than horror, revolving around events taking place during the same solar eclipse that is at the heart of Gerald's Game. 1993 Gerald's game "...she didn't know if she was crying because of the possibility - finally articulated - that she actually could die here or because for the first time in at least four years she had come close to thinking about that other summer place..." The second of the "feminist solar eclipse" novels. A bit like Misery in that the central story is confined to a very small space, while most of the "action" is taking place in the mind of the main character. Bold, often unpleasant and, of course, very good. Nightmares and dreamscapes The third collection of short stories is, perhaps, the weakest. These tales are often from the numerous horror collections that King has contributed to, and though entertaining and well written they rarely approach the brillance of Sceleton Crew and Night Shift. Personally, I would recommend mainly The Ten o'clock People, My Pretty Pony and It Grows on You. 1994 Insomnia "There are worse things than insomnia." Some inspired person in the alt.books.stephen-king newsgroup said that Insomnia does for old age what IT does for childhood. I couldn't phrase it better. Except for the theme of trying to cope with old age, this long novel revolves around a pro-choice, pro-life debate gone insane and around Ralph, who is losing sleep and gaining something else. It starts off rather undramatically and smoothly and gradually works its way ever further from we call reality, with links to the Dark Tower universe. His new pet subject - men beating women - also finds its way into Insomnia, like a preparation for Rose Madder. 1995 Rose Madder "Get out of here, that deep part of her mind said suddenly. Get out here right now." Rose gets out, without a plan or thought, leaving a marriage turned into hell and hoping to start again. This is something of a finale to King's recent "feminist" theme, a story which is just as moving as it is scary. Almost "realistic", but with King the supernatural is never far away, nor is it completely absent in Rose Madder. 1996 The Green Mile, parts 1-6 "Your name is John Coffey." "Yes, sir, boss, like the drink, only not spelled the same way." Another of Kings experiments, which of course doesn't mean that the story takes second place. Published in six parts, a month between, these books revive the time-honoured art of the serial story. The tale, taking place mostly on death row some decades ago, has been filmed by Frank Darabont, the man responsible for one of the best King adaptations ever; The Shawshank Redemption. Now available in one volume. Desperation "You're in my house now, the house of the wolf and the scorpion and you better not forget it." Published along with The Regulators, Desperation tells one version of the basic story that these novels share. It's rather confusing, but in a fascinating way, and the books (imho) actually strengthen each other rather than cancel each other out. Desperation is prime King; epic, cruel and moving all at once, utterly absorbing, though there are times when you might want to look away from the horrors taking place in the Nevada Desert. The main theme is faith, and though this is often an important element of King's novels its rarely been so frankly and seriously explored. We're talking God, here, no vague concept or Star Wars Force, a biblical God who doesn't always do what you want Him to, but makes high demands. This may put some readers off but then again, King does not write to please you. 1997 Six stories Haven't read these, I'm ashamed to say. But who knows what the future
will bring. The Dark Tower 4: Wizard and Glass "And scary as Ka is, I find the idea of no Ka even scarier" Although it tells more of the travels of Roland and 'the three', in Mid-World and other worlds, Wizard and Glass is mostly about what happened before, in Roland's dark youth. Names that have flickered by in brief memories before- such as Cuthbert and Susan - turn into real characters and Roland himself becomes more human, almost understandable. Here King's other work - mainly The Stand - and the tales of others - from The Wizard of Oz to the Arthurian Legends - come together in a way that's much more than playful referencing. There's so much ambition here, and sheer storytelling that IT may yet be overthroned, and I'm as determined as Roland's new companions to follow him all the to the dark tower. Let's hope it's not another five years till the next installment. 1998 Bag of Bones "help r" A haunted love story, the cover calls it, and it's as good a description
as any. I wouldn't know how to summarize it, other than with superlatives
and hype-words, because this is - hype, hype - in my mind, one of King's
finest. Not only one the scariest, it's also one of the most moving,
funny, poetic and complex novels King has written. Written in first
person, which in itself is unusual for King, it reminds me of Peter
Straub's books, being sort of a puzzle, where you only see the
whole picture as you finish it and take a step back. While you read
it, it's hard to have enough distance to analyse and discover the clues,
the story being - to me, at least - hypnotically involving. Only afterwards,
you see the signs for what they are. Other things that make me think
of Straub are the theme of dark secrets in the past and some neat details,
like mentions of "blue roses" and "Underwood".
No disrespect to Straub, though, but his novels seldom glow with life
like, say, Bag of Bones. 1999 The Girl who Loved Tom Gordon "I can't stay out here all night, she thought. No one can expect me to stay out here all night." A remarkably short novel for King, just above 200 pages. No links to the Dark Tower universe or his other work. Just a story about a young girl lost in the woods. This is Blair Witch horror, where half of the terror comes from the very real fact of being lost and ever more hungry and desperate and slowly going insane; the other half coming from a conviction that there's something out there. Something hostile, and terrifyingly playful. Trisha McFarland's one link to the real, civilized world is her Walkman, on which she listens to baseball games, rooting for her hero; pitcher Tom Gordon, hence the title of the book. Read it late at night. Hearts in Atlantis "When someone dies you think about the past." Five stories, of very varied length but with a common theme; the Vietnam war. Very few pages of story take place in the actual war, however. This book is about how it affected people, not only those who fought, but those who protested against it or applauded it in the states, and how, somehow, a entire nation was seemingly changed by it, though not a second of actual battle was fought there. Atlantis is, obviously, King's metaphor for an America that sunk into oblivion and now seems like a myth or legend, the America of the 60's. He doesn't romanticise it, but seems to feel a genuine grief over the loss of that mentality. This would be a good book to offer one of those few lingering people who still insist that King is 'just a horror writer'. 2000 On Writing "Write a lot and read a lot." A non-fiction book on writing fiction. Begun before the road accident in 1999 and finished afterwards, this book is a should-read for not only every King fan but people who are serious about writing and want some initiated advice. The book consists of three parts, equally interesting. First out is a brief memoir of events that shaped King as a writer and a person, from childhood memories to the beginning of his success. King, always an honest writer, tells his own story as plainly and clearly as anything else, including the less flattering parts. A collection of tips and thoughts on writing follows, and its not a bunch of vague, philosophical nonsense, either. Some very practical advice can be found here, often conveyed in a very humorous way, and best of all, it makes you want to write. King manages to infect the reader with his obvious love for the craft of telling stories. Finally (well, almost), King summarizes the events around and after the accident in 1999 that nearly killed him. A perfect ending for a book like this, as it ends with the difficult road for King back to writing. Perhaps the main point of the book is that writing is hard work (emphasizing work), but can be very rewarding. 2001 Dreamcatcher "SSDD" Revisiting both Derry, the haunted town of IT, and the bodysnatcheresque Sci-fi tone of The Tommyknockers, Dreamcatcher is a rather extreme and often stomach-turning yarn about the events following the crash of a hostile alien spacecraft in New England. Most of the story is concentrated to one or two eventful days, but there are also a number of flashbacks to the main characters' past, as a small gang of boys in Derry become friends with a strange boy called Duddits. Dreamcatcher swings wildly between black comedy, horror and moving drama, all these emotions skillfully juggled by a King writing in long-hand, since sitting by a computer was too physically painful after the accident. There are a number of memorable characters here, such as general Kurtz, the alien Mr Gray and, above all, Duddits. Many of my favourite scenes involve an alien using the body of Jonesy, one of the main characters, as a vehicle, trying to get used to both this strange planet and unpractical human flaws like emotions and hunger, as Jonesy meanwhile, trapped in a "room" inside his own brain struggles to thwart the alien and his evil schemes. I have a theory that the "memory palace" of Dr. Lecter in Thomas Harris's Hannibal inspired some of these strange and facinating scenes.
The Bachman Books As early as 1977, King began publishing novels under the pseudonym Richard Bachman, both as way to get out stories that the publishers didn't think was Kingesque enough and to find out if he could "do it again", start from scratch and work his way up. Although Bachman did get some attention - one critic said that Thinner was the sort of book King would have written if he'd only could - the books sold a lot better after the truth was revealed. In 1985 King chose to go public with his alter ego, before someone else could prove that he was Bachman. Look here for more thoughts and info on Bachman by TJ. 1977 Rage "...when we increase the number of variables, the axioms themselves never change." The Catcher in the Rye on acid, perhaps. A student flips out and holds his class prisoner at gunpoint. The situation quickly develops in a quite different way than to be expected, and under those weird circumstances some interesting truths come out, about the students and about other things. The first draft was written as early as 1967, and it is a "young" book in both good and perhaps not so good ways. 1979 The Long Walk "Lots of steps. Long way to go." Two of the Bachman books describe competitions where the loser risks to lose his life. The Long Walk is very powerful work, telling the story of a hundred young men setting out on a marathon "promenade" - a competition held yearly by the government - which only one of them will finish. As in Rage, the interest lies not only in the dark and violent situation but in what people talk about along the way. 1981 Roadwork "...if the world was only a demo-derby, wouldn't one be justified in stepping out of his car?" The most low-key of the Bachman books, a psychological drama about a man whose life suddenly falls apart, through the death of his only child and a highway construction that necessitates the destruction of his home. Bart Dawes responds by going quietly insane, in both dark and amusing ways. Well worth reading, but if you expect horror, or even action, you'll put down the book disappointed. 1982 The Running Man Written in a mindboggling 72 hours, this short novel is an entertaining thriller about a world where death is a natural part of tv entertainment. No intellectual challenge, but energetic, imaginative storytelling with a serious core. 1984 Thinnner "Han satte sig pa en av stolarna" Bachman's most horrific (Kingish?) story. A gypsy curse sends Billy Halleck on a quest for the one person he thinks can remove it. Along the way some interesting questions are asked, but Thinner offers no easy answers and definitely no sigh of relief at the end. Dark, dark, dark, and then some. An interesting and perhaps somewhat disappointing fact is that King instead of genuine romani chose to use incoherent sentences in swedish for the gypsies lines. From what I've heard, these sentences where plucked from a Swedish translation of a King story. 1996 The Regulators "We're gonna wipe this town off the map." Published "posthumously", (since Bachman died of cancer soon after his true identity was reveiled) The Regulators tells "the other side of the story" in Desperation. Some characters are basically the same, others have switched names, the evil is the same but the setting is quite the opposite. One could argue that Desperation is the more serious of the two, but your perception of the books hinge a lot on which one you read first. The Regulators is, like Carrie, a blend of regular writing and fake newspaper articles, diary entries and letters, managing through the talent of King to read like story, rather than an experiment.
With Peter Straub The Talisman 1984 Peter Straub, another excellent writer of sometimes horror, is a longtime friend of Stephen King. In The Talisman, they collaborated on a horror-fantasy epic, sometimes writing together, writing other parts alone, imitating each other's styles and creating a book that feels as if one person had created it. Not only that, it's a captivating, strange and often beautiful story. Many have tried to guess who wrote which parts, but Straub has made it clear in his postings to alt.books.peter-straub that, with perhaps one example, they're wrong. And that's how it should be, for after all: It is the tale, not he who tells it.
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