Group 1: 'Salem's Lot

[Jean]

'Salem's Lot, 1975
http://www.thedarktower.org/gallery/data/510/medium/Salem_slot_trade_face.jpg

Please grade 'Salem's Lot (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%27Salem%27s_Lot) in the following three areas using the grades A, B, or C:


Strength of Plot
Character Development
Quality of the Story's Ending


If you haven't read this book yet, please vote Never Read. Feel free to discuss your votes in this thread.

IMPORTANT: Please make sure to select only one grade in each grading area. For complete instructions, see this post (http://www.thedarktower.org/palaver/showpost.php?p=314275&postcount=1).

[Jean]

Strength of Plot: C

There isn't really any plot to speak of.

Character Development: A

Should be B, but Callahan and Mark Petrie cover a multitude of sins

Quality of the Story's Ending: A

Without any reservations

[Shannon]

Yuck! For me, easily one of the most forgettable things Kings written.

[pathoftheturtle]

Strength of Plot: C
Character Development: B
Quality of the Story's Ending: B

And it averages to B+ overall.
I know: I don't understand why, either.

[harrison ryan]

Probably the second book by King I ever read. Love the early work. Maybe nostalgia clouds my judgement?

[mcdonaldj]

Surprised to see ratings so low - one of the best behind IT and Gunslinger in my opinion.

[Jean]

yes. It is because the system needs perfectioning. I will have to give It, my favorite King book ever (as it is yours) a B on "strength of plot", and I have already given same to The Stand. I really really do not think we love King for his plots (mainly nonexistent) or endings (often hated by most)

[mae]

yes. It is because the system needs perfectioning.

Jean, if you have anything in mind, I'd love to discuss it with you.

[biomieg]

Just substitute 'Strength of Plot' with 'Strength of Story'.

[Jean]

yes

King has wonderful stories, but they are not always fitted into good plots. The question now is, whether or not it is important, and to what extent, to the quality of a novel.

pablo: I think this version of grading, the one we've always had, is superb, generalily speaking, but maybe now that we've collected some statistics of voting over the years we can begin thinking of reajusting it specially for King. Maybe we should dedicate the next year to discussing the possible readjustments, site-wide. What biomieg said sounds very good to me, and maybe working all together we might have other great ideas as well

[pathoftheturtle]

Also not sure that what King does is Character Development. He's very good at Characterization -- he creates and presents characters who are believable and affecting... but only sometimes do the events they experience actually change them in meaningful ways.

[Jean]

I just thought about it when I tried to grade Pet Sematary. There is no character development, or no characters to speak of - but it's the analysis of what is happening inside father's soul, all the evolutions of his grief and obsession what makes the book, so it sure has something to do with the second question of the poll. Maybe it's just "psychology" rather than "development"; I personally would much rather speak of soul, but I realize that it is not a widely accepted term.

There are some developing characters, of course - Harold and Larry, with their opposite vectors, come to mind immediately - but I agree it is not very often.

[pathoftheturtle]

So it's agreed we're sticking to this system this year. Yes? So, I think it might help if pablo detailed his own votes and reasoning for numerous examples in this round, just to better illustrate the intention of the existing standards.
Anyhow, I'm sure we're all grateful to him for designing them. I know that I am certainly quite impressed by his work in most respects on this forum, for one person at least.

[mae]

Well, first, thanks for the gratitude, but I wasn't the one who designed the polls, actually. It was Aaron, and I believe it's a fair and balanced system, touching upon all the main parts of a novel or collection. I think it was and is a very good system to gauge popular opinion based on a three-tiered system. That said, I think a reworking of the system is certainly something to look at, I think there is always room for improvement. Once this contest is done, we'll start a new thread for suggestions and opinions on how to evolve the CRAs going forward.

[Dan]

First book that got me hooked on King. It's been several years, about time for a reread. Loved the re-appearance of Father Callahan in TDT.

[Patrick]

Strength of Plot: C
Character Development: B
Quality of the Story's Ending: B
...
Yep.

[BROWNINGS CHILDE]

Jean, can you change my vote on the ending from C to A. This was a mistake.

[Garrell]

This was my first SK read when the pb came out, and is still my favorite:)

[Jean]

Jean, can you change my vote on the ending from C to A. This was a mistake.
yes, I can, and I have!

It is a big relief. I had been wondering who was the idiot among us.

[Jean]

Last chance to vote! The poll is closing!

[mae]

The poll has closed. This round 'Salem's Lot has earned an OAG (overall average grade) of 2.600000000 or 86.67% in addition to its FAS (final average score), making it 6.978378378 or 87.23%.

Grade breakdown:
Strength of Plot: A - 2.500000000 (83.33%)
Character Development: A - 2.633333333 (87.78%)
Quality of the Story's Ending: A - 2.666666667 (88.89%)

[Garrell]

Yea!!!!!! A's for a classic:)