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Post by Mrs B on Apr 11, 2007 17:38:38 GMT -5
Just wondering if anyone here had read his novel? I've just started it. I've always found King quite hard to get into to be honest - I cant put my finger on it as to why. But i'm gonna give this one a go
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Post by stevepre on Apr 11, 2007 20:18:25 GMT -5
No I have not read that novel but I heard it's supposed to be great. One of king's scarier novels. I'm currently reading IT and it is fabulous. The Stand is by far the greatest by book my eyes have ever laid on.
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kent
Bruiser
Yo Adrian, I Did It!
Posts: 126
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Post by kent on Apr 12, 2007 13:07:47 GMT -5
I used to read King A LOT when I was in middle school. I found his books to be fun and all but once I got into some of his bigger novels: IT, Needful Things, and The Stand, I found it harder to read. Don't get me wrong, his stories were good, but I thought in put in WAY too much unneeded details in those bigger novels. Pretty much telling us what everyone was thinking at every second and what they were doing every minute. Got to be a little too much/boring for me after a bit. Still a classic author though! I would have to say Cujo is my favorite novel of his...out of the ones I've read anyways.
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Post by stevepre on Apr 12, 2007 18:19:47 GMT -5
ironically, how he details everything the characters are feeling is what I love about his novels. It gives you almost a 1st person experience to what these guys are seeing. Like how he describes what it is like to be close to the devil in the Stand, Randall Flagg, how cold and scared you feel and how his presence and grin is unbearable. I loved it. I liked how he described in detail of everybody. For instance, he would always have something where you knew "boom.....its Pennywise the clown or its Randall Flagg." Like with Pennywise, he always says "they seem almost too.......float." or "you could just barely see the orange pompoms going down his shirt." Or like in the Stand "The sound of rundown bootheels coming closer and closer, the air seems to drop 50 degrees. The red eyes of the devil, just staring at you.........grinning." - Stu wakes up, panting, sweating. I am a fanatic of The Stand; I could go all day. I have to say that IT, the Langoliers, and the Stand have given me many sleepless nights (King writes them so well you could almost hear the rundown bootheels of Randall Flagg coming at you). One other aspect I like of his stories is the idea of fighting the supernatural. Like The Stand, 99.4% of the world pop. dies of the plague, and the remaining survivors are chosen to go with Mother Abigail (she's basically the book so I won't give too much away) or the Devil Randall Flagg......the ultimate evil. It's like you can almost feel what the characters are feeling. Also, guys gambling 10,000 dollars in one hand of poker. What does money mean now? Everyone's dead; take what you want. Man, what a mind.
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Post by Mrs B on Apr 24, 2007 20:32:08 GMT -5
WOW!! Thanks for the responses hree guys - so sorry its taken me an age to respond. I think the attention to deatil depend what mood you are in! i mean i would love to have al the time in the world to drink-in a novel - but unfortunately, i have to enjoy it as much as I can when i get 5 mins to myself - so at those times, i'm like 'Steve!!! Get on with it!!' LOL. But in general, i love all the desciption too. I will definately read that Stand and Cujo - and IT. I adored the film IT - simply brilliant IMO. I bet the book is even better. Ste - the quotes you gave gave me shivers man - he inded is the Master. on the back of the copy of Salems Lot I have, he is compared to Dickins for 'grabbing readers by the throat'.
I am only just a way into Salem at the moment, but the nuggets of what is to come are being sown!! You know what would be great? if someone on here could get a copy and read it with me as we we go along! say a chapter a day? it would give me a kick up the ass to read and would be fun too. Anyone up for it?? If not, then its cool. Just an idea.
Karma for you both, too - for inspiring me to read more King (even if you do find SOME of his work hard to get into like me, Kent, lol)
EDIT: Inidently, where it said 'thingyens' - it now says 'Dickins', lol. It came out wrong because of the censored words setting on the forum - but i've sorted it now!
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Post by stevepre on Apr 28, 2007 14:11:30 GMT -5
;DMrs. Balboa, I love your enthusiasm to King's books! I am abou halfway through IT and I can happily say that if you like the movie, you'll love the book. Another thing I've noticed that King does is he briefly references things early in the book that turn out to be significant in the later stages. That's what gets me going to just keep reading. Because then you think like "O man." and I even looked back to that chapter and thought to myself "unbelievable". And yes, I still get the chills every time I pass by a storm drain on the sidewalk, hoping not to see a clown underneath it with razor-sharp teeth......asking me for a balloon. ;D
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Post by Mrs B on Apr 28, 2007 16:55:45 GMT -5
Thats great Steve. When i've finished Salems Lot, i'll get it. Your recommendation is an excuse to read it - seeing as I loved the film so much. The type of story you mention is absolutely my favourite type of story! The type where the seeds are sown all the way through and you realise why the smallest things are so significant. Yep - it is a buzz and I too find myself going back to enforce the links that give me shivers.
A book that I mentioned in another thread - 'A Knight in Shining Armour' is like that (you wouldnt like though, I dont think - its a historical romance novel, lol - unless you are a sensitive guy of course who doesnt mind that, which is great if you are!). Anyway, half of it is set in medival times, and the other half is set in the modern day.....and so when you go back and forth between the two time periods - everything links up like a puzzle!! You're like 'Oh my God!! Thats why that happens in the present day! because she did that in the past!' - or 'OMG! The history books are wrong! It didnt happen that way at all!! I know what really happened!!' - or 'Thats why things are the way they are, because such and such a thing was said all that time agao...' etc etc - you get the jist, yes? She basically goes back in time (unintentionally) to 'find' (although she doesnt know it) he absolute soul mate - even time itself could not keep them apart - and you see how they struggle to be together even though over 500 years separate them. The autor weaves it magnificently as to how they change time itself...it all unravels so beautifully!
Anyway, lol, just an example of how I adore that sort of writing too. It takes a lot of planning and a very, very clever mind, I assume - and King has definately got that!! Can you imagine being inside that guys head? even just for a minute? Wow.
and yea - I defy anyone to not look down a grid and 'see' Pennywise staring back at them with his ear to ear grin, razor teeth and ballons....*shivers*
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Post by stevepre on Apr 29, 2007 9:44:59 GMT -5
Haha that book does sound good and does follow how King writes. If you really enjoy that type of writing, IT is perfect for you. I must tell you that if your a stephen king maniac like I am to save The Stand for last. I found that out the hard way. It was the first book I read of his and I wish it was the last because plain and simply, as good as all the other books he's written, that one sticks out the most. The Stand also uses that type of reference writing. The one thing I must point out about The Stand is that King describes the characters so well you continue to read the book and ask yourself "Did this really happen?" or "Do these people actually exist." He relates the characters to real life events (e.g. Randall Flagg was the one who told Lee Harvey Oswald to shoot JFK when and where. He also created "Some group called the KKK.") Granted, the book is 1150 pages, but I couldn't put it down. The Lincoln Tunnel with Larry Underwood is my personal favorite. He has to climb over the corpses of plague victims, through the tunnel in pitch black when all of a sudden he hears something......something thats moving....towards him.
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Post by Mrs B on May 7, 2007 10:23:07 GMT -5
Haha that book does sound good and does follow how King writes. If you really enjoy that type of writing, IT is perfect for you. I must tell you that if your a stephen king maniac like I am to save The Stand for last. I found that out the hard way. It was the first book I read of his and I wish it was the last because plain and simply, as good as all the other books he's written, that one sticks out the most. The Stand also uses that type of reference writing. The one thing I must point out about The Stand is that King describes the characters so well you continue to read the book and ask yourself "Did this really happen?" or "Do these people actually exist." He relates the characters to real life events (e.g. Randall Flagg was the one who told Lee Harvey Oswald to shoot JFK when and where. He also created "Some group called the KKK.") Granted, the book is 1150 pages, but I couldn't put it down. I am definately going to read IT and The Stand, like I said.....and yes its cool that he mixes his fiction storylines with real life events. I imagine it does make it all the more real! The guy is really creepy. There was a couple of small sentances in Salems Lot that read a while back....but they have stuck in my head. So subtle and yet so brilliant at getting your imagination into overdrive.. "The town is not slow to wake - chores won't wait. Even while the edge of the sun lies below the horizen and darkness is on the land, activity has begun"*shivers* I really dont know what it is about those sentences what gets me....but there it is *shivers again*
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Post by stevepre on May 7, 2007 20:00:46 GMT -5
Yea King has a knack of getting words and images inside your head. For example, during IT when the killings began again 27 years later, King describes the first of the murders like this... "I saw Hagarty first, then I saw the clown. The clown was dragging Adrian out on the far side with one arm, ballons in the other. Adrian was dripping wet, moaning....choking. The clown twisted its head and grinned up at me. I saw it's shining silver eyes and its bared teeth-great big teeth. Like lions at the circus man, razor sharp, like knives pointing in all directions. Then he bit into Adrian's armpit. I think...." "You think what Chris?" "......I think he wanted to eat him."
Now I read that at about midnight and I couldn't sleep that night. All I could think about was that clown and his teeth, smiling at me. That the clown was gonna be there when I looked at my window. And please forgive me for bringing The Stand up again, but the fear I'm getting from IT.......The Stand was worse; much worse. Rundown bootheels coming closer and closer. The air becoming colder and colder. All of a sudden a pair of red eyes came into Stu's view with Flagg himself just standing there....grinning at him. I can't even imagine what Salem's Lot must be like; just from that one line makes me want to go out and buy it ;D. I hope your enjoying the book as much as I'm enjoying mine.
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Post by Mrs B on May 8, 2007 4:30:15 GMT -5
eek!! ............... My God. I'm not surprised. I think a book can sometimes have way more effect than anything you see on screen. On screen, the boundaries are put in place fgor you. you only see whatever the filmakers want you to see. With a book, you've got to use your imagination - and that has no boundaries. A scary thoughton it own. I mean one minute, Pennywise is grinning at that lad whilst dragging his friend off and eating him...the next minute, he's in your bedroom with you...waiting...teeth at the ready, grinning horribly....just waiting for you to glance at your window, where he'll be there, silhouetted against the moonlight..and ready to pounce on you with lightning speed goddamn, lol hey don't apologise! you've sooo made me want to read the thing now. I'm like that when I love something...I tell everyone...you just GOTTA read this!! or you just GOTTA see this. Its only natural. espechially when you know someone has an interest in it. again....eek!!! lol, well it seems like we're both really enjoying some King at the moment! I'll post some more quotes for ya as I go along. Its actually the first King book I have read properly, so I have nothing else to compare it to. I may be really enjoying it, but of course I may love IT or the stand 10 times more! Conversely, you may read Salem and think its not a patch on his other work - because you are in a position to compare it. However, i'm sure you wont think that. Its scaring the hell out of me and nothing much has really happened in it yet! lol Its taking me ages to get through it, simply because I dont have freakin' time to read! between my kids, my job, this board and a constantly growing pile of marking and lesson plans to do, I have very little time left to indulge. But i'll get there. After i've read Salem, i'm gonna read The Stand or IT (whichever I can get hold of first) After you've read IT, read Salems Lot go on.. I DARE YA!!!!!
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Post by stevepre on May 8, 2007 5:38:23 GMT -5
haha sounds good. Yea if you like imagery, those books are perfect for you. Salem's Lot will be on my to-do list ;D
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slylover
Bruiser
'Keeper of Rockys bedroom eyes'
Look at that face! Someone hose me down!
Posts: 147
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Post by slylover on May 21, 2007 10:09:52 GMT -5
I always liked Steven Kings stories but im just not one to sit and read a book. Pop in a movie of his and i can sit and watch it. Maybe its because i rarely have time to myself and when i do im either talking about Slyvester with my sister or just on here and surfing the net.
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Post by Mrs B on May 21, 2007 17:43:03 GMT -5
I know how you feel - I have a tribe myself. I mean I am just about halfway through salems lot and I started it ages ago! I just dont have time - and when I do have time, I tend to just chill out online for a while
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Post by stevepre on Jun 1, 2007 11:06:40 GMT -5
how's the book coming along Mr.s B?
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