King's worst novel?

[ArtherEld]

I did not like Blackhouse a huge deal. I appreciate it for its entry as a Talisman sequel, but the plot seemed a bit jumbled. And I was really hoping for the Hobbit style journy across an epic distance that was in Talisman. The events of Blackhouse were pretty stationary. Maybe reading it again, getting past that disappointment I'll appreciate it more. (some of you may remember some of my arguments at the .net forums a long time ago about dealing with your disappointments of the last DT books. Now I sort of know how it feels)

Though I did sort of like the cinematic idea of following the bumblebee from scene to scene as an introduction to the main story.

Maybe the whole 2 authors writing it at the same time, had a negative affect this time around. Which didn't happen with the first book which was a success.

Just started reading Tommyknockers. Thus far I'm liking it. I saw the trailer for the adaptation when I was a kid and had absolutely no interest in it. Looked superhokey, even for its time.

Although, now I'm reading it with my own ideas in that department. When Gardener first arrives at Bobbi's house and her freekishly thin and haggered figure comes shambling out of the house, I imagine her as designed by WETA (like how they did Gollum).

[BROWNINGS CHILDE]

The Regulators is the worst SK novel IMO. I hated the Power Rangers on Acid characters. This one was a real clinker for me.

[The Cosmic Geek]

While I haven't read all of King's work yet, I'm a good half way through his work, I can honeslty say I don't think he ever had a bad novel. I might like some more than others, but I liked them all.

[mae]

While I haven't read all of King's work yet, I'm a good half way through his work, I can honeslty say I don't think he ever had a bad novel. I might like some more than others, but I liked them all.

Exactly my thinking.

[T.A.M]

I didn't like Insomnia. Way to long winded. I coulndn't finish reading it. I'm not sure about Tommyknockers. I've tried to read it so many times but I've only been able to read a couple of chapters before I get distracted and forget that it even exists.:arg:

[Ruthful]

I can agree with Cujo too. I enjoyed The Dark Half when I read it though. I haven't ever had the urge to reread it though...

Same here on both counts. Not a big fan of Cujo. Dark Half I read the once and never again. I guess that says something since I typically re-read King stuff. Still, I did like it the once, which is more than I can say (and have said) of some other stuff.

It's funny how different some people's tastes are. I have a friend who's into King's work, and The Dark Half is her favorite novel. Personally, I think you can discard almost every major work he wrote between the time he quit doing drugs/alcohol and dropped his Bachman alter ego and the early '90s, when he started writing coherent stuff again, e.g. Dolores Claiborne, Gerald's Game, Needful Things, etc...

[The Lady of Shadows]

have i mentioned gerald's game?

yes?

okay just checking.

:D

[Heather19]

It's funny how different some people's tastes are.

It sure is. I have to say quite a few of the stories listed here I really enjoyed. While I know there's some that I hated that other people seem to love for some reason.

[Ruthful]

That's so weird, I didn't realize you both had Tori Amos in your sigs.

[MonteGss]

I didn't like Insomnia. Way to long winded. I coulndn't finish reading it.

:thumbsup:
Took me three times to finish it and then felt like I wasted my time. :(

[Ruthful]

The Regulators is the worst SK novel IMO. I hated the Power Rangers on Acid characters. This one was a real clinker for me.

LOL...I love that comparison.

The Regulators and Desperation were sub par novels, IMO. I was especially disappointed by Desperation, since it started out relatively strong.

[The Lady of Shadows]

That's so weird, I didn't realize you both had Tori Amos in your sigs.


yes.
yes we do.
now follow the advice of your avatar.

join us. or die. :wtf:

[Jon]

"Thinner." The worst. I have tried five times to read it. I have never gone past 3/4th of the way.

[Ric]

It would have to be Dreamcatcher for me. I just couldn't get into the premise and the book never really gripped me which is insane for a King book.

[mhelgers]

for me the least loved book from King is Duma, because normaly I lose myself in a story but with Duma I didn't get it . But it's totally not a bad bood

[Heather19]

That's so weird, I didn't realize you both had Tori Amos in your sigs.


yes.
yes we do.
now follow the advice of your avatar.

join us. or die. :wtf:

:lol: Yes, we're slowly taking over the world one at time.



I'm sticking with Insomnia as my least favorite, followed closely by Lisey's Story.

[obscurejude]

:cry: :cry: I fiercely loved both of those.

[Heather19]

:huglove: Sorry Ryan.

[MonteGss]

:o
I loved Lisey's Story too!

I will never, ever tire of saying Insomnia is on my worst list though. :lol:

[obscurejude]

I will heal, in time. :huglove:

[girl at the window]

I didn't like Gerald's Game much. Creepy story and not in a good way.

[Ruthful]

Aren't most of Stephen King's works creepy?

I don't see how you can write about incest without delving into dark territory.

[3 DOORS DOWN]

It took me 4 attempts to finish this book and for that reason Misery is my least favorite sk book.

[Ruthful]

I love Misery. I actually think it's one of his most well-written novels. I can't imagine Stephen King ever winning something like the Pulitzer or Nobel for literature, but if you were going to nominate for one of those prizes the only novel-length work I think you could chose is that book.

[mae]

According to our Constant Reader Awards, Rage is King's worst novel.

[jayson]

According to our Constant Reader Awards, Rage is King's worst novel.

Which is preposterous. It's not even the worst of the Bachman novels as Thinner is a billion times worse than Rage.

[Ruthful]

I think The Regulators was the worst book he wrote under that pseudonym, although I don't know if you'd really consider that a "Bachman book." I also have never read Blaze.

[jayson]

I'd say technically speaking it's Bachamn, at least for the purpose of naming the worst Bachman books. I loved The Regulators and I definitely loved Rage. Thinner was crap. None of the above are the worst King, though Thinner would make my short list.

[Brice]

I love Misery. I actually think it's one of his most well-written novels. I can't imagine Stephen King ever winning something like the Pulitzer or Nobel for literature, but if you were going to nominate for one of those prizes the only novel-length work I think you could chose is that book.

Sorry, but the Nobel isn't given for one work. :nope: It's given for an author's total contribution to literature. ..and I do think King should get it. Misery is excellent though.

[Jean]

According to our Constant Reader Awards, Rage is King's worst novel.
Which it totally is.

(Although I agree with Jayson that Thinner qualifies, too)

[mae]

I would be hard-pressed to name any King novel as his worst. But the people have spoken, as the saying goes, and Rage received the least points in the 1st Round of the CRAs. Since Aaron and I envision this as an annual deal, I think Rage very well may do better next year. Once we do several of these Awards, we could average everything and get more truthful standings, I think, which will reflect what people really feel is the worst novel. But like I said, to me personally there is no "worst" King simply because the man is talented enough to write interestingly even if it's mediocre overall.

[BROWNINGS CHILDE]

I love Rage, and think it one of Kings best with respect to his shorter novels. Only better Bachman book was The Longwalk.

[ClicheGuevara]

tommyknockers most definitely. . . gahhh!!! I tried three times to read that book. . Only King book I've started but didn't finish.

I also liked rage, though when I read it I was a angry young man so that may have something to do with it. I actually loved all the Bachman books.

[MonteGss]

R_of_G, Thinner was indeed crap.
Tommyknockers was also pretty f'in bad. I am surprised on how the voting turned out with regards to Rage. I only read it the one time but never did I consider it something on the same level as Thinner, Insomnia or Tommyknockers. I would gladly pick up Rage again, while I try my best to avoid the other three. :)

[jayson]

I liked Tommyknockers, and you know I love Insomnia. :(

[Jean]

I liked Tommyknockers, and you know I love Insomnia. :(
ditto

[ArtherEld]

So I'm almost done with Tommyknockers and so far I have two criticisms.

1.) Don't like the "gumming" image. You see I have a flaw as a reader: whenever I read a book, I imagine how it would look filmed. And on paper, yes, this plot point works in giving us the idea that people are changing ("becoming") for the worse. But on screen I'm afraid it would come off as being unintentionally hilarious. See, when I was a kid, one of things that would tickle my giggler is seeing old people gumming. Of course, now I know one day I'll be that old, and probably end up looking just like that. But the idea that a whole town, citizens both young and old, suddenly look like great grandma when she's got her teeth in the cup, seeing that filmed brings out that giggling little boy inside me.

2.) Gard on his but till the very end. Perhaps this isn't something I should really complain about. It actually seemed pretty realistic. And maybe the anger the reader feels at Gardener for being pretty frikkin useless until the end of the book (and even then, who knows, like I said, I'm not finished, just got to the part where he finds Anne's buried rental car) is intentional. There are parts in the book where you think Gardener's mental lightbulb is about to turn on, and then, to our disappointment, Gardener crawls inside the bottle again.

However, now that I'm almost done, I can actually visualize how this book could be filmed... now anyway. When I'm done, I will probably watch the old movie. Though it looks utterly hokey, and just judging by the trailer I watched on youtube, it looks like it takes a lot of liberties with the book probably due to budget and whether or not the filmmakers considered certain things in the book to be filmable.

Thus far, if a film were to be made again, I'd like to see what a company like WETA could do in sfx in showing the evolution of the people slowly "becoming" throughout the story.

Or, how about this, or an animated feature. Not japanime, but something more like the "Dead Space" movie.

[sleeplessdwarf]

Tommyknockers
Gerald's Game

[Ste Letto]

Erin, please reread Gerald's Game, it is terrific.

For me, his worst book is probably Thinner, Dreamcatcher, Eyes Of T D or Cujo.

I really liked TommyKnockers, although I found it forced.

[fernandito]

I really liked Thinner. :unsure:

[Whidden]

I liked Tommyknockers, but on re-reads, I skip all the Ted the Powerman garbage, and the junk with the dolls. It can be a good book if you can do a self edit and skip whole chapters that are worthless to the story.


I think my least favorite King book was Needful Things. Just made myself read that one, and after it was done, I wasn't mad or nothing, but it felt like wasted time.

Only King book I never finished was Liseys' Story. I got about a third into it, got Duma Key, read Duma straight through, enjoyed the hell out of it, and couldn't face going back to Lisey's Story.

So I would say Needful Things and Liseys Story as my worst novel. The Jaunt as my worst short story. I didn't find the writing bad, but I felt sorry for the kid, and had nightmares after reading The Jaunt.

[at_one]

TGWLTG. Blah! Short ass book and I still can't finish it, tried three times and each time I get less farther. Junk!

[BeDaN]

Gotta agree on your view of Hearts, I started reading Low Men and really loved it but after that one, the stories just kinda died.


Tommyknockers
Thinner
Bag of Bones
Hearts in Atlantis (except the Low Men in Yellow Coats part, which I like)
The Eyes of the Dragon

I am afraid Cell will be on top of that list, though, when/if I finally get around to finishing it.
Also, I voter Tommyknockers by force of habit, I always thought it was the worst, but it was before I read Bag of Bones and Hearts. And, of course, TEofD, thanks Nikolett for reminding me!

[Ruthful]

I really liked Thinner. :unsure:

I didn't think Thinner was one of the better Bachman books, but I never had a problem with it until they tried to turn it into one of those awful made-for-TV movies Stephen King is notorious for. I don't see why so many people here seem to think it's one of his worst novels, esp. when there are so many better examples already listed, e.g. The Tommyknockers, The Dark Half, Cujo, among others.

[BROWNINGS CHILDE]

5 worst for me....
1.Regulators
2.Bag of Bones
3.The Running Man
4.Hearts in Atlantis (except LMIYC)
5.Rose Madder

[Ruthful]

Hearts in Atlantis and Low Men In Yellow Coats are great novellas.

The rest of the collection is kind of pathetic, but those two make up for it, IMO.

[BROWNINGS CHILDE]

yeah I guess Hearts in Atlantis (the story) was pretty good too. But the others were so bad that the whole book pretty much left a bad taste in my mouth.

[BROWNINGS CHILDE]

In fact, I did not even realize I was reading a collection of novellas until about 30 pages into the second one. I just assumed that I was entering a new "part" of a novel.

[Ruthful]

It's constructed a bit like a novel-the relationships between most of the central characters are weaved into a loose narrative-so in that sense it's not like his other collections, e.g. Different Seasons, Four Past Midnight, among others. I don't know how precisely you'd classify it, but it's usually listed under "collections."

[candy]

its weird looking at some peoples views, i loved tommy knockers and regulators!
geralds game took me a long time to get into, and thats not normally the case with SK books as i whizz through them so i would hav to say GGame.

But as mentioned previously even a bad SK book it considered good when compared with some of the rubbish out there.

[Jean]

I have amended my list, - a couple of months ago I reread The Tommyknockers, and found it absolutely great. On the other hand, I read Lisey's Story and found it absolutely pathetic. Here's the list as of today (contrary to my expectations, Cell didn't make it):

Thinner
Lisey's Story
Bag of Bones
Hearts in Atlantis (except the Low Men in Yellow Coats part, which I like)
The Eyes of the Dragon

[The Lady of Shadows]

JEAN! my bear. my sweet bear. . . .

bag of bones? say it ain't so!

http://i278.photobucket.com/albums/kk95/turtlesong/smilies/shame.gif

http://i278.photobucket.com/albums/kk95/turtlesong/smilies/panic.gif

http://i278.photobucket.com/albums/kk95/turtlesong/smilies/panic.gif

http://i278.photobucket.com/albums/kk95/turtlesong/smilies/panic.gif

http://i278.photobucket.com/albums/kk95/turtlesong/smilies/panic.gif

http://i278.photobucket.com/albums/kk95/turtlesong/smilies/panic.gif

http://i278.photobucket.com/albums/kk95/turtlesong/smilies/panic.gif

sorry. just had to add a little drama. :D

[Jean]

much as the big bear would love to please the little bear, alas - Bag of Bones bores bears, if you pardon the alliteration...

[The Lady of Shadows]

little bears love alliteration. :rose:

[pixiedark76]

I would say that the worst SK novel is The Tommyknockers! :wtf: This novel is so freaking long, and nothing happens; the pacing is terrible! :pullhair: The only reason I finished this book was because I am so very stubborn that I can't leve a book unfinished. This is one SK book that I will never read again.

[pixiedark76]

I would say that Tommyknockers was the worst. I also could not stand Hearts in Atlantis (except Low Men In Yellow coats.) Low Men in Yellow Coats was the only good part of Hearts.

[pixiedark76]

Sorry for the double post, my computer is screwing up!:panic:
It is running really slow and won't do anything right! :wtf:

[Ruthful]

I think a commonality shared by most of these works is that they were written under the influence of a severe narcotic/alcohol addiction.

[Ruthful]

BTW, you should still be able to delete any double-posts. Just click on "edit," then choose "delete" and the comment will disappear.

[Merlin1958]

I have amended my list, - a couple of months ago I reread The Tommyknockers, an found it absolutely great. On the other hand, I read Lisey's Story and found it absolutely pathetic. Here's the list as of today (contrary to my expectations, Cell didn't make it):

Thinner
Lisey's Story
Bag of Bones
Hearts in Atlantis (except the Low Men in Yellow Coats part, which I like)
The Eyes of the Dragon


I with you on Lisey's Story. It was the only King novel I just couldn't bring myself to finish and I have read ALL his stuff since the 70's.

But "Bag of Bones"? You're on your own there my friend!! lol lol

Pardon my asking but, What's up with the "Bears" dude?

[Ste Letto]

I know it has many flaws, but I liked The Tommyknockers.

I liked the main characters, I found their personalities engaging and interesting, and believable.

I liked all the dumb technology stuff, with batteries etc.

Maybe I was just in the mood for a long read, who knows.

Not his worst for me by a lonnnnnnnnnnng chalk.

For me, Dreamcatcher was his worst.

[divemaster]

Obviously, he has written too many to do a poll but what do you all think?

Which novel was his worst? Which one drives you crazy? Is there any that you could not finish reading? What are your reasons?

I'm not completely caught up on all of his books but I've read most of his books more than once. There are only a couple I've read only one time. That, for me, speaks volumes. They are:

Tommyknockers
Thinner
Insomnia

My bottom five hit 2 of those 3. In order from generally 5th worst down to the bottom of the barrel, for me, are:

5) Dreamcatcher
4) Insomnia
3) The Tommyknockers
2) The Regulators

and

wait for it...

the worst...

1) Gerald's Game

Dreamcatcher just didn't do it for me. Aliens? Shit weasels? Byrus? Army patrols? A mish-mash of half-baked ideas. And it seemed like King was trying to make another Tom Cullen out of the Duddits character and failing.

Insomnia--I posted my thoughts in the thread dedicated to its discussion.

The Tommyknockers I am conflicted about. I really like the characters of Bobbie and Gard, but hoo boy the story was no good. I've actually read it twice, mainly to visit the characters again (well, mainly b/c I was stuck at someone's house for a weekend and it was the only book on the shelf I could bring myself to read).

The Regulators was just plain terrible. In fact, I would make it my all-time worst but at least King gets points for trying (referring to his experiment with The Regulators/Desperation dual release. Interestingly enough, I loved Desperation.)

Gerald's Game was just non-engaging. Story was not interesting. Might have worked as a short story, but not as a novel. And unlike most of King's works, I didn't care about any of the characters. She could still be stuck on that bed and I wouldn't care. Epic fail.

[AcidBumbler]

Aw no I love Insomnia and Cell :scared:
Haha.
I'd say Dolores Claiborne or Gerald's Game.
Worst is abit of a harsh word, though :doh:
Sounds like they're actually bad :p

[GirlGoneNineteen]

I didn't think I was going to finish Lisey's Story... on and on and on about the shovel gleaming in the sun blah blah blah for half the book...
then it got good :P
I'm reading Dreamcatcher now and I...really don't care if I finish it. I just don't connect to the characters (except Beav) and I'm 3/4 through it. The flashing between Jonesy and Mr Gray and the warehouse and their childhood and Henry and everythingelseintheuniverse is really distracting.

[lowdown]

tommyknockers

i cant think of any more .......i just remember it being not so good ......but i read it 10-12 years ago...maybe illl try to reread it

[MPatrick]

I really didn't like From a Buick 8. I hate not finishing a book, but that was a chore. I liked some of the ideas, but not the execution.

Gerald's Game was tough too...

Have to think about this some more.

[flaggwalkstheline]

I really didn't like From a Buick 8. I hate not finishing a book, but that was a chore. I liked some of the ideas, but not the execution.

Gerald's Game was tough too...

Have to think about this some more.

geralds game was odd

from a buic 8 was incredible for like the first half of the book then it fell flat

[Ruthful]

I still don't see why so many people here dislike Gerald's Game. Is it because so much of the plot unfolds through flashbacks?

[BROWNINGS CHILDE]

I liked Geralds Game, and Dreamcatcher, and Tommyknockers.

Regulators was my least favorite.

[MonteGss]

I still don't see why so many people here dislike Gerald's Game. Is it because so much of the plot unfolds through flashbacks?

I've wondered the same.
I enjoyed Gerald's Game because it was a different sort of scary book...about the demons and thoughts in your head terrifying you. I thought it was an interesting novel.

[Munchausen]

Haven't read them all but of what I did read, Desperation had the whackiest premise. I finished it and liked some of the characters but on reflection had to ask myself WTF?

[Ruthful]

Haven't read them all but of what I did read, Desperation had the whackiest premise. I finished it and liked some of the characters but on reflection had to ask myself WTF?

http://lampmonster.ytmnd.com/

[TheCrisisKing]

Dolores Claiborne

[birdandbear]

i think it is Cell. everybody around me said its a hit novel and i've read it and i think it's some kind of another version of the DT. you konw, 2 boys, 1 child, 1 girl.

[lextune]

Dolores Claiborne
Bag of Bones
Hearts in Atlantis
Lisey's Story
Duma Key

[blaine]

liseys story and duma key, did'nt make it more than halfway through either, every other boo by king i have read at least twice, some many many more times

[bartonthegreat]

Bag of Bones
Hearts in Atlantis
Agreed!

[Jean]

lextune and blaine: can you please post here in Duma Key thread (http://www.thedarktower.org/palaver/showthread.php?t=1948) and explain why you don't like it?

(the three of us agree on Lisey's Story, though. It's outstandingly boring.)

[lisaki]

The Dark Half
HATED it! Mostly because of the ending...
I'd love it probably if it was by another writer but with Stephen King I want perfection.

[Delah]

Lisey's story. Thank God I only checked that out from the library and didn't pay actual money for it.

But Duma Key ... wow. I loved that one. Checked that one out and then bought it 'cause it was so good.

[soapmaker19]

I would say Lisey's Story would be on the short list. The "slow" part at the beginning, aka character development, was too drawn out and annoying. I though he laid it on awfully thick with the cutesy crap her and the husband said to each other, etc. I nearly didn't make it through because I kept thinking, enough with the @#%& baby talk and tell a story already.

Also, I literally threw the book across the room in disgust when I reached what I call the can opener scene.

I did finish the book, but don't see myself rereading it. Ever.

[murlodin]

Lisey's Story.

That's it, I've read a lot of SK but this one in particular didn't fits in my head. My sis gave it to me, read like twenty pages, then stopped and tossed it away. Sorry, Steve, bad bad intro.

Insomnia at first seemed awfully boring, but I got through all of it, and now that I've finished DT, I realize that it was a very important story, say true:beat:.

Ta.

[soapmaker19]

I agree on Insomnia. Very slow start, which for some reason didn't bother me on this one. I first read it in high school and was somehow totally sucked in to the character development of Ralph. It makes my top 5 for sure.

[candy]

i loved liseys story **puts on big hat and waits for shouting to start**

for me i love nearly all of Sk books, and esp seem to love the ones that everyone else seems to hate.
liseys story
insomnia
tommyknockers etc etc etc

for me the most not liked book (if that is a phrase? as i dont think there is a worse one) would be geralds game as i really did not like the woman so could feel sympathy towards her

[devilweed]

Y'all must be crazy to be Dark Tower fans and hate EotD. It has Flagg as a main character!!!

[devilweed]

I haven't seen this one posted but I think "Needful Things" blows. I'm glad Castle Rock is over

[rico567]

I hesitate to post to this thread, because I'm far from having read even a majority of King's books, so any response I make here is based on limited reading.

Nevertheless.

A writer as enduring as King has almost surely written something very good. Someone said everyone has a novel in them; all I have read are no exception, and usually it's ONE that sticks out. Gunslinger (and, OK, DT by extension) may be that book for King, or The Stand. And Fitzgerald had Gatsby, Hemingway The Sun Also Rises.
But if they keep on writing after the fame is in the bag, they're basically writing for a payday- they know it and to some extent their readership knows. King passed that point somewhere. He could submit his grocery list for publication now, and it would probably hit the NYT bestsellers. I've put down a few of his books partway in because they struck me as "grocery list" books. Regulators comes to mind.....so I'll use it here. What's worst of his oeuvre? I can't say.

[BROWNINGS CHILDE]

I have read them all. And Regulators is my worst.

Actually I must edit this to say that I have not read Lisey's story, and from what I read about it, my "King of the worst" may be usurped.

[Sam]

I realize that many did not like Lisey's Story, but I have to say that I do NOT understand why. I thought Lisey's Story was a very good read, and I hope you enjoy it dude.

Dreamcatcher and The Tommyknockers are his only two that I have never finished.

[BROWNINGS CHILDE]

I have Lisey's Story on my shelf, and have just been waiting for an opportunity to read it. I just finished LotR a week or so ago, and am rereading It right now. But, I think that I will pick it up after that.

[lowdown]

i guess i need to read lisey's story cause i have great patience in Sai King ....but as much as i hate to admit it Talisman was really hard to get into ...mor then any King novel...i mean after shit gets going ....the book is killer ....i love struab too so it just worked for me .....i mean black house worked for me more but .....after hearts in Atlantis ....in DT just a couple words from Ted and we where cumming our pants.....i wasn't expecting a DT connection ...so i was floored

[wahlers]

Lisey's story is the most recent one that I hated. It took me almost 6 months of stopping and starting to finally finish it. I hated all the gibberish they spoke. The odd thing is that I can read the short story/excerpt "Lisey and the Madman" and I enjoy it just fine. The novel was just overly long and overly sentimental.

Others that I don't enjoy would include The Tommyknockers and Eyes of the Dragon.

Insomnia took a while to get going, but I was never really bored, it just wasn't getting anywhere until the end. Bag of Bones on the other hand was boring and never seemed to get anywhere to me. It was enjoyable enough to read, but I just wish I knew going into it that it wasn't going to get anywhere or be thoroughly satisfying.

Gerald's game was also a bit boring, but I can't say that I hated it. Same with Rose Madder.

And this may be sacrilege, but I really dislike the flashback parts of Dark Tower IV (which are obviously most of it). I read it the first time fine, but every time I re-read the book, I cannot trudge through it. There's something really tedious about it the 2nd time on. I just skip through the book now and read the present day sections and then move on to Book V. Of course now I can re-read the comic instead.

[Jean]

Lisey's story is the most recent one that I hated. It took me almost 6 months of stopping and starting to finally finish it. I hated all the gibberish they spoke. The odd thing is that I can read the short story/excerpt "Lisey and the Madman" and I enjoy it just fine. The novel was just overly long and overly sentimental.
Hear, hear. Bears disagree only on two points:
1. "Lisey and the Madman" part was absurd; it chould have been over as soon it started, and would have been over if she hadn't quite artificially prolonged it. The only thing bears marginally enjoyed was the Amanda part.
2. I am not sure it is sentimental. To me, it lacks true sentiment. Verbosity and a certain maudlinness and repetitiveness and getting stuck with every detail for what seems like forever is not enough to produce sentiment. Bears are overly sentimental themselves, and they were not touched a single time while reading that barren, hopelessly overdrawn text. (well, maybe by Amanda a couple of times, few and far between; otherwise, no)

[Myste]

Well... not so good novels for me are: Lisey's Story, Gerald's Game, Dolores Claiborne.

[Jean]

Well... not so good novels for me are: Lisey's Story

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k291/mishemplushem/Facilitation/0134-bear.gifhttp://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k291/mishemplushem/Facilitation/0134-bear.gifhttp://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k291/mishemplushem/Facilitation/0134-bear.gif


Gerald's Game, Dolores Claiborne.

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k291/mishemplushem/Facilitation/bear_angry.gifhttp://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k291/mishemplushem/Facilitation/bear_angry.gifhttp://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k291/mishemplushem/Facilitation/bear_angry.gif

[theBeamisHome]

omg Cell is not anywhere on this page!! I'm putting it here. *bleh* on that book.

Lisey's Story I could deal with once I got past the bad writing... (i know that's supposed to be the point but i actually kinda liked the story)... I didn't like it at all when I started reading it... but it got better for me. I think a lot should have been cut out and it should have been a novella.. that would have helped a lot.

but... Cell!!!

[Jean]

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k291/mishemplushem/Facilitation/bearmood_confused.gif
bears rather liked Cell... especially from the middle onward, till - and including - the very end

[theBeamisHome]

:panic:

[Myste]

I agree with Jean... I liked Cell waaaay more than, for example, "Lisey". It has this kind of "growing story".

[theBeamisHome]

maybe i just hate the cliche zombie/technophobe theme

[Myste]

well yeah... we can't all like the same things. That makes it rich!

[Mark]

Couldn't get in to Cell, so i put it down. Picked it up about 2 months later and started from the middle, basically no new people introduced, so I just carried on to the terrible ending.

[tamez]

interesting thread to be sure!
I loved Lisey's and Cell.

hated the girl who loved tom gordon!
UG
WHAT was the point...

[BROWNINGS CHILDE]

I rather enjoyed Cell. It read like a movie. I read it all in one sitting. Anytime I read a book cover to cover without going to the bathroom, it is exempt from my worst list.

[Ruthful]

Aww, I really like that novel.

I thought it was kind of cool that he was able to write a book that young children could enjoy, which appealed to adults as well. I read "The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon" when I was suffering a horrible case of chicken pox, and it was one of the few things that took my mind off my miserable condition.

[Sickrose]

I enjyed Lisey's and Cell but they seem to have some pretty mixed reviews. They were my first king books for months and I think I was missing him a bit.

I really didint enjoy the Dark Half. I didn't fall into it like I usually or ''find the hole in the paper'' which I think is from Misery.

I haven't read Cujo not sure if i will now ....

[Matt]

Cujo is a great story, classic early King. I would totally read it if you get the chance and it is short.

I loved Cell personally, great take on the zombie thing. The idea that once there are more zombies than regular people who the fuck is weird then?...that grew on me.

I thought Lisey's Story was pretty good but I seriously hated Needful Things for some reason.

[Sam]

interesting thread to be sure!
I loved Lisey's and Cell.

hated the girl who loved tom gordon!
UG
WHAT was the point...

TGWLTG is one of King's better short works for me. I thought the point of it was to take a look at the fear's children experience when they're alone (not with friends, but completely alone) and cut off from the rest of the world. It also took a look at the incredible WILL that children exhibit, something that many of us lose as we grow older and as life beats us up. For me though, it also explored levels of childhood fear that I felt IT didn't aproach (due to the nature of the story, not because of any reluctance on King's part).

That's my take on TGWLTG.

[Sickrose]

Cujo is a great story, classic early King. I would totally read it if you get the chance and it is short.

I loved Cell personally, great take on the zombie thing. The idea that once there are more zombies than regular people who the fuck is weird then?...that grew on me.

I thought Lisey's Story was pretty good but I seriously hated Needful Things for some reason.

Needful Things was a good idea I thought. Sometimes somehting doesnt grab you.

I agree with you about Cell I loved that idea too and how he continued after the inital outbreak and what would happen next and I think he goes on to say how Zombie's wouldnt make such a mess of things as we have!

Maybe I will give Cujo a go I am studying again and it's nice to swtich off with a good King book as well as a bit of DT!!

[LadyHitchhiker]

I'm thinking Blaze was the worst so far, that I have read.

I got to the end of the book and said, "that's it? I expect more from you, Sai king!" But he had already warned me at the beginning of the book that it wasn't that good so I can't really blame myself.

[ur2ndbiggestfan]

I didn't much care for BLAZE either, but the book I had to repeatedly refrain myself from throwing against the wall was LISEY'S STORY. I really hated that book. I disliked every character and had no sympathy for them or their problems.
There are other King books I don't like either, most notably the last three Dark Tower novels, also in danger of brutal wall impactment while reading. In my defense though, I liked the first 4 books in the series (with reservations here and there).

[Sam]

So much hatred for Lisey's Story from so many here. I would like to ask why. Why do you not like the charcters? What is it about them that made you dislike them so much? Was it the way Lisey talked, or her attitude, maybe her relationship with her family? What was it?

[Jean]

So much hatred for Lisey's Story from so many here. I would like to ask why. Why do you not like the charcters? What is it about them that made you dislike them so much? Was it the way Lisey talked, or her attitude, maybe her relationship with her family? What was it?
Sam, let's have this discussion in Lisey's Story specific thread, ok? I hope to post there some day too, I have very much to say.

::thoroughly hates Lisey's Story::

[Sam]

No problem. I'll post that there.

[sombra]

I didn't like Tommyknockers on the first read but enjoyed it the second time around -- and it gave me nightmares for some reason.

At the bottom of my list would be Rose Madder, Salem's Lot, Desperation/Regulators. I have not been able to finish Duma Key.

[Sickrose]

At the bottom of my list would be Salem's Lot, .[/QUOTE]


I am interested in why you didnt like Salem's lot I have read it a couple of times and it scares me half to death everytime! heheh

[Myste]

Yeah... that one got me wondering too. One of the best stories after DT -series imho.

[sgc1999]

definitely Tommyknockers. i couldnt wait for it to end.

[sombra]

I just found Salem's Lot to be extremely boring. I had no connection to any of the characters, the events didn't scare me.

[BROWNINGS CHILDE]

Wow, Salem's Lot is easily in my top 5 non DT King books. Probably 3rd, after Stand and It.
Just, Wow, I cant understand this, of all the King clinkers out there, being on the bottom rung.

Wow:nope:

[BeDaN]

Have to agree with sombra, Salem's Lot just bored the heck outta me. I think it was probably good for it's time.

[sombra]

No insult meant to any of the Salem's fans! My mom loves the book as well and we usually agree on his best work. I love Eyes of the Dragon and I know it popped up a bunch of times in this thread (curious to me, because it's Dark-Tower-ish to me, although "younger"). I thought Dragon was such a wonderful fairy tale!

The Stand and It are big favorites of mine :) I read The Stand each July!

[augella13]

I really enjoyed The Cell, but i was very let down by the ending.

[pluginbaby]

I love Eyes of the Dragon and Insomnia too. I was really young when I first read EotD so maybe that's why it stuck in my head, but I just think it's a great story.
There are a few King books that I never really got into... Lisey's Story, The Dark Half (I really didn't like that one), Gerald's Game, Dreamcatcher. On the other hand though he's written so many that it really is impossible to like all of them!

[BROWNINGS CHILDE]

For the most part, I have a generally declining opinion of Kings work chronologically. As with most authors, I think his early work (Stand,It,Salem's Lot,Shining,etc) were his best, while his later works have been his weakest. Sometimes you just run out of things to say.

[Jean]

For the most part, I have a generally declining opinion of Kings work chronologically. As with most authors, I think his early work (Stand,It,Salem's Lot,Shining,etc) were his best, while his later works have been his weakest. Sometimes you just run out of things to say.
I was inclined to feel the same, and with every new book I read - Dreamcatcher, Bag of Bones, Hearts in Atlantis, Lisey's Story - the feeling grew stronger; and then Duma Key changed everything.

[BROWNINGS CHILDE]

Yes, I know that you are quite fond of Duma Key, and I considered this in the wording of my statement. I enjoyed Duma Key enough, but I wouldnt ever reread, or at least I don't yet feel compelled. I also thought Cell and Dreamcatcher were okay, though not my favs. I didnt like Hearts in Atlantis at all except for Low Men in Yellow Coats, nor did I care for Bag of Bones. When I was young, I would not let a SK new release sit on the shelf for more than a couple of days before gobbling it up like a greedy fat kid with a snickers. But, with the last few books, I kinda get to them when I can. I still have not read Lisey's Story, and it has been on my shelf for a couple of years. Nor have I read Just After Sunset yet, though I have much higher hopes for it than Lisey's Story. In fact, Under the Dome is the first release that I have really been salivating for. I hope it is as good as I want it to be. Lately, they never are.

[Jean]

Yes, I know that you are quite fond of Duma Key, and I considered this in the wording of my statement. I enjoyed Duma Key enough, but I wouldnt ever reread, or at least I don't yet feel compelled.
I think I would have already reread it twice, were it not for a whole bag of books I brought from London still waiting for me, and calling louder and louder every time I pick up a new book in Russian...


I also thought Cell and Dreamcatcher were okay, though not my favs. I didnt like Hearts in Atlantis at all except for Low Men in Yellow Coats, nor did I care for Bag of Bones.
Ditto on all points.


I still have not read Lisey's Story, and it has been on my shelf for a couple of years. Nor have I read Just After Sunset yet, though I have much higher hopes for it than Lisey's Story.
Oh... uh... well, at least it is shorter...


In fact, Under the Dome is the first release that I have really been salivating for. I hope it is as good as I want it to be. Lately, they never are.
I don't have this one yet, and I will have to wait at least till April (when I go to Paris) before I can see it - don't know if I'll be able to buy it there, it will of course be only hard cover... http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k291/mishemplushem/Facilitation/bear_sad.gif

[pluginbaby]

I feel the same as you guys about the decline in the books... I bought Duma Key when I was still in England and never got around to reading it before I left, and I don't think I made it halfway through Lisey's Story before I gave up on it.
Do you think Duma Key is worth giving a try then Smokey? I've discovered a great second-hand book shop in Oz so I've been rebuying all the books I had to leave at home!

[Jean]

Do you think Duma Key is worth giving a try then Smokey? I've discovered a great second-hand book shop in Oz so I've been rebuying all the books I had to leave at home!
Duma Key is firmly sitting in my Top Five now, along with The Stand, It, Black House and Desperation.

[Brice]

I think it was probably good for it's time.

Good books are always timeless. :)

[Jean]

hear, hear!

[boq]

Strange... I really love Hearts in Atlantis.
I've struggled with many of King's latest novels. I remember Dreamcatcher just seeming like a long boring chase to me. Cell, Lisey's, Duma Key and even Blaze didn't pique my interest much at all. I've found myself waiting until my local library has the new books in rather than rushing out to buy them.
I was starting to think I'd gone right off King, but picked up Different Seasons for the first time in years and was absolutely blown away, especially by "Apt Pupil".
I'm hoping for good things from Under the Dome, but will probably again wait for it to arrive at the library.
I quite enjoyed the stories in Just Past Sunset though:thumbsup:

[Myste]

Well... Apt Pupil is excellent story. One of his best shorter stories imho.

[ConstanToweReader]

I never finished Dreamcatcher. I just didn't like it and didn't care.

Needful Things was my least favorite book.

I've liked most of his books, some more than others.

[Jean]

Needful Things was my least favorite book.
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k291/mishemplushem/Facilitation/bear_sad.gif

[Tito_Villa]

Imo its got to be Eyes of the Dragon!

[Brice]

I know, I about died reading that, Jean. I find it inconceivable myself.

I am sorry ConstanToweReader, but you're gonna have to pick a different least favorite. Disliking this book is not allowed. :P

[Jean]

pick Lisey's Story! pick Lisey's Story!!! or, as Tito_Villa has suggested, The Eyes of the Dragon...

[Tito_Villa]

pick Lisey's Story! pick Lisey's Story!!! or, as Tito_Villa has suggested, The Eyes of the Dragon...

I honestly think that Lisey's Story is a great book!

[Jean]

oops...

It has been noticed, though, than no two lists coincide, be it top or bottom five. I doubt even bottom three do.

[candy]

Yes, I know that you are quite fond of Duma Key, and I considered this in the wording of my statement. I enjoyed Duma Key enough, but I wouldnt ever reread, or at least I don't yet feel compelled. I also thought Cell and Dreamcatcher were okay, though not my favs. I didnt like Hearts in Atlantis at all except for Low Men in Yellow Coats, nor did I care for Bag of Bones. When I was young, I would not let a SK new release sit on the shelf for more than a couple of days before gobbling it up like a greedy fat kid with a snickers. But, with the last few books, I kinda get to them when I can. I still have not read Lisey's Story, and it has been on my shelf for a couple of years. Nor have I read Just After Sunset yet, though I have much higher hopes for it than Lisey's Story. In fact, Under the Dome is the first release that I have really been salivating for. I hope it is as good as I want it to be. Lately, they never are.


without appearing to be picky, how can you judge these books without reading them? i personally quite liked liseys story, and while i agree its not up there with the stand and the shining, it must be realised that while writing these books King was also focusing more and more on the Tower books. Thats' one of the reasons i am looking forward to under the dome as he has(hopefully) got it all out of his system and can start afresh without any DT references, that sometimes seemed to take away the essense of his work. If that makes sense?:orely:

[Brice]

You do not like the dt references. :cry:

Could you please just rip my heart out next time?

[candy]

its not that i don't like them, i'm as geeky as you for spotting them and getting a secret thrill knowing that 90% of other readers wouldn't get it.

with some books though i felt king didn't want to be telling that particular story, he wanted to be back in mid world with roland, like all the stories he had in his head ended up linked even though they were never due to start out that way?

and i shall keep your heart kind sir and pop it in my pocket:huglove:

[Brice]

:huglove:

[ConstanToweReader]

I can't pick, well then how about Gerald's Game.

I just thought Needful Things was so darn depressing and the people were just so selfish and unlikable.

[Brice]

:lol: I was joking. You can of course dislike whatever book you like...or don't.

[ConstanToweReader]

I wasn't taking you serious. I should have put a smiley there.
I think it was just things going on in my life at the time I read those 2 books that made me dislike them both so much.

[BROWNINGS CHILDE]

Yes, I know that you are quite fond of Duma Key, and I considered this in the wording of my statement. I enjoyed Duma Key enough, but I wouldnt ever reread, or at least I don't yet feel compelled. I also thought Cell and Dreamcatcher were okay, though not my favs. I didnt like Hearts in Atlantis at all except for Low Men in Yellow Coats, nor did I care for Bag of Bones. When I was young, I would not let a SK new release sit on the shelf for more than a couple of days before gobbling it up like a greedy fat kid with a snickers. But, with the last few books, I kinda get to them when I can. I still have not read Lisey's Story, and it has been on my shelf for a couple of years. Nor have I read Just After Sunset yet, though I have much higher hopes for it than Lisey's Story. In fact, Under the Dome is the first release that I have really been salivating for. I hope it is as good as I want it to be. Lately, they never are.

without appearing to be picky, how can you judge these books without reading them? i personally quite liked liseys story, and while i agree its not up there with the stand and the shining, it must be realised that while writing these books King was also focusing more and more on the Tower books. Thats' one of the reasons i am looking forward to under the dome as he has(hopefully) got it all out of his system and can start afresh without any DT references, that sometimes seemed to take away the essense of his work. If that makes sense?:orely:

I don't think I have judged either book anywhere on this forum. Merely said what I expect from them based on my opinion of his other works of late.... Including the last two Tower books.

[ConstanToweReader]

Lisey's Story wasn't a favorite or a least favorite for me. Its just kind of slow and different. The story wasn't bad. I liked Duma Key a lot more.

Just After Sunset was a good read. I've always liked his short stories.

[fernandito]

With the exception of one or two stories, reading through Just After Sunset was a chore for me.

[Jean]

With the exception of one or two stories, reading through Just After Sunset was a chore for me.
One; and that only because I was dying to like at least something about that book.

[Ka-mai]

I see Bag of Bones is getting a lot of crap, it's actually his most recent novel that I enjoyed. I guess I'm in the minority here. :P

Also I liked Eyes of the Dragon, because it was different (!) from his other works, and because I love fairy tales. :wub:

What I didn't like? Lisey's Story (rehash of everything he's done with a female protagonist and a main character who is an author, give me a break). Very disappointing. I didn't even read Duma Key, I was so put off by Lisey's Story and I also just didn't find the description at all interesting, more like a rehash of Road Virus and Rose Madder. Maybe one day I'll bring myself to pick it up.

[Heather19]

I still have yet to finish Just After Sunset. I think I've still got about 3 more stories to go.

ka-mai, you should. Duma Key is excellent. Not at all like Lisey's Story (which I also hated).

[Ka-mai]

Honestly, everything he has done in the past ten years is like this:

Step 1: Take 2-4 of your previous books.
Step 2: Place in paper shredder.
Step 3: Pull out bits and string them together.

Very few exceptions. If any. Even his new stuff that is pretty good is like "oh, I read this before."

[Alex]

The Stand

[BROWNINGS CHILDE]

The Stand

Pretty sure, you're going to be in the minority on that one. But heh, to each his own.

[Woofer]

I love reading how the same book affects people in differing ways. :)

[jayson]

With the exception of one or two stories, reading through Just After Sunset was a chore for me.

one only for me

and chore is the exact right word

i only finished the book because my mom bought it for me so i felt obligated to read it

[Bloodsoup]

I'd say Cujo. It was so damn boring! Even the best part of it, when they are trapped in that car, still drags on and on.

Also Cell, not really a bad book as such but it's kinda been there, done that.

[stone, rose, unfound door]

The Stand.
Too long, the story's too basic. I basically thought it was a waste of time.

[Brice]

:o :faints: :(

[Jean]

I am shocked at that, too - and so I am every time Little Gem says that. The thing is, The Stand consists of a multitude of stories, all of them with lots of virtues of its own... How about the changes undergone by Larry, or, just the opposite, by Harold? Or my favorite of them all, how Nick met Tom, and their whole line, not ending even after

Nick was dead

Or Frannie and Stu love story, or lots of others, big or small, and Trashcan Man story and how finally it was him who

saved the world, at least for the time being

Now as I am sitting here typing, I realize that they are all so alive in my mind, even though my last reread was almost ten years ago (my students always have my copy!) and I feel so overwhelmed with emotion, and ready to cry again over

The Mayor's wife, remember? "You will recognize it... by the lace"

and hop with joy when

Frannie is afraid it's a dream again, only in her dreams Stu never looked liked that

and shiver with terror when I think of Nadine, and - well, you see what I mean. This story contains such a lot of everything that I just don't understand how it can be dismissed because of any separate reason, like the main story being "basic"... as to the book being too long, I know there are people and animals here who, like me, wish it wasn't so short.

[ChristineB]

Otherwise, I'm having a hard time thinking of a King novel I didn't enjoy. From what I've read above, I suspect that the things a lot of us have problems with in King's work are the same things we have trouble with in reality: injustices happen, good people die for no good reason, etc. King always says he has no control over his stories; he writes what he sees. This is why, in spite of the so-called 'paranormal' or 'supernatural' elements in them, King's novels and shorter works have a verisimilitude to them that is lacking in most fiction, a sense of reality and truth. People in King stories behave as well and as badly as people really do, and weird things happen for no reason anyone can determine or prove, without all the neat explanations that fill other fictions and are never present in real life. It's this honesty that I like about king, and that makes it difficult for me to select books I didn't like, however unpleasant or strange their contents may be. Wouldn't recommend reading the Bachman Books if you're depressed, however, particularly the early ones (though I do think everyone ought to read The Running Man, so they'll be prepared for the kind of future our current leaders are creating for us).

I have to say this is the best description of King's work I have seen to date. Can I use this as a quote in the future?

As to my least favortie books:

Black House: I absolutly (yes I know an adverb) hate the tour guide leading me through this book. It's like someone sitting next to me in a theater and pointing out every little thing that happens on the screen. Not to mention the over descriptions of scenery in the first part of the book, it so screams this part was written by Peter Straub becuase Stephen doesn't over do the sceen decriptions like this. I can't stand that Jack has forgotten about his prior Territories adventures, Richard was forgetting them as they happened so that makes since, but why on earth would Jack forget them? The Talisman was a very uplifting book with great reason for the story, but Black Houses reason for being is just plain depressing. It does get much better by the end and so it is not what I call a bad book, but is one of my least favorites of his.

The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon: The first time I read this one it just didn't work for me, can't tell you why it just didn't. The second reading was much better but is still not one I plan on visiting again.

The Drawing of the Three: I have yet to get through this book, so this is a tainted review. I just found it boring, have tried 3 times and will make it through this book and the rest of the series someday, but for now there are too many other books of his I have yet to read that need my attetion.

The Regulators: On the bottom of the pile at the moment. It just lacked the usual depth of characters to me that his stories have. I think it was a good choice to have it be a Bachman book, it reads more like the Bachman stories then King's stories.

Cell: This one is only here due to the climax in the book. Unlike some the ending works for me, I don't mind not reading about exactly what happens to the son, I can decide for myself. But the climax just fell extremely flat for me, I was still waiting to read the climax when I finished the book. Then I realised the part where they blow up the building was it, just didn't work in my opinion. The rest of the book was awsome though.

[ChristineB]

I haven't read Cujo not sure if i will now ....

I highly suggest giving Cujo a read, classic King and I loved the perspective of the dog vs. the people. It is worth reading and it is short.

[John Blaze]

I am shocked at that, too - and so I am every time Little Gem says that. The thing is, The Stand consists of a multitude of stories, all of them with lots of virtues of its own... How about the changes undergone by Larry, or, just the opposite, by Harold? Or my favorite of them all, how Nick met Tom, and their whole line, not ending even after

Nick was dead

Or Frannie and Stu love story, or lots of others, big or small, and Trashcan Man story and how finally it was him who

saved the world, at least for the time being

Now as I am sitting here typing, I realize that they are all so alive in my mind, even though my last reread was almost ten years ago (my students always have my copy!) and I feel so overwhelmed with emotion, and ready to cry again over

The Mayor's wife, remember? "You will recognize it... by the lace"

and hop with joy when

Frannie is afraid it's a dream again, only in her dreams Stu never looked liked that

and shiver with terror when I think of Nadine, and - well, you see what I mean. This story contains such a lot of everything that I just don't understand how it can be dismissed because of any separate reason, like the main story being "basic"... as to the book being too long, I know there are people and animals here who, like me, wish it wasn't so short.
:ninja; it was the Sherrif's wife

other than that, I agree with you on everything. Harold's story seems the most tragic, both he and Lucy got the short end of the stick.

Cell is, and will be, the worst written and crappiest idea Sk book ever released. I say will be because no matter how shitty his future books might be, they can't be that bad.

[Jean]

:ninja; it was the Sherrif's wife
yes, it was! I said my copy has continuously been read by my students for the last 10 years.

As usual, disagree with you on Cell... the last quarter was quite good, unlike the first three, which were, indeed, crappy.

[John Blaze]

the first 3 quarters ruin my whole opinion of the collected work. So :P

we've had this conversation before, btw. I'm getting deja vu.

[Jean]

we've had this conversation before, btw. I'm getting deja vu.
To dispel this feeling of yours, I can tell you something new.

You know, there's no ka.

[/off topic]

[John Blaze]

we've had that conversation too. Must be because we've known each other for almost 6 years. WOW.

besides, I agreed with you on that one.

[Heather19]

I hate reading about so much hate for Cell :(
(I think that was one of my favorite beginnings to a book ever)

[Brice]

I loved Cell too, Heather!

[Sickrose]

I also really enjoyed Cell I must have read it over a couple of days. I thought it was a good take on the Zombie story but ahh well.

Not a lot of people seem to like Bag of Bones. I have just had a look at the synopsis on wikipedia and realised I have read it! I really don't remeber ! I mustn't have been overjoyed with it.

I wasn't keen on the Dark Half at all and it dragged for me to be honest.

[John Blaze]

I liked Bag of Bones and LOVED The Dark Half :lol: just shows how we weird creatures differ. :couple: it's cool, though. Variety is the spice of life, right?>

[John Blaze]

I loved Cell too, Heather!
<_< you just like to be contrary. :nope:

[Jean]

we've had that conversation too. Must be because we've known each other for almost 6 years. WOW.

besides, I agreed with you on that one.

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k291/mishemplushem/BEAR-HUG.jpg


I liked Bag of Bones and LOVED The Dark Half :lol: just shows how we weird creatures differ. :couple: it's cool, though. Variety is the spice of life, right?>
Right. I rather liked Cell, rather loved The Dark Half, and totally HATED Bag of Bones...

[Sickrose]

I liked Bag of Bones and LOVED The Dark Half :lol: just shows how we weird creatures differ. :couple: it's cool, though. Variety is the spice of life, right?>

heheh thats true for everyone who hated a book it's always someone's favourite!

[John Blaze]

I liked Bag of Bones and LOVED The Dark Half :lol: just shows how we weird creatures differ. :couple: it's cool, though. Variety is the spice of life, right?>

heheh thats true for everyone who hated a book it's always someone's favourite! RIGHT? My mom always said there's a hole for every peg. which if you ignore the perverty connotations, is a good metaphor to explain romantic couples, and pretty much the randomness that is "taste" in general.



we've had that conversation too. Must be because we've known each other for almost 6 years. WOW.

besides, I agreed with you on that one.

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k291/mishemplushem/BEAR-HUG.jpg


I liked Bag of Bones and LOVED The Dark Half :lol: just shows how we weird creatures differ. :couple: it's cool, though. Variety is the spice of life, right?>
Right. I rather liked Cell, rather loved The Dark Half, and totally HATED Bag of Bones...
as long as we meet in the middle, we'll always be close.

[Heather19]

I loved Cell too, Heather!

Well at least I've got good company :couple:

I also really enjoyed both Bag of Bones, and The Dark Half.

[John Blaze]

you're weird :P

[ur2ndbiggestfan]

Books hated - LISEY'S STORY
DARK TOWER V and VI (but not as much as LISEY'S STORY by a long shot!)

Books almost hated - THE GIRL WHO LOVED TOM GORDON
- THE COLORADO KID
- BLACK HOUSE
- FROM A BUICK 8
- BLAZE
- DARK TOWER VII

Books disliked but still found some redeeming value in - BAG OF BONES
- INSOMNIA

Everything else I liked, really liked, or loved reading.
Haven't read JUST AFTER SUNSET or THE DOME yet, so they may make one of these lists later.

[lophophoras]

I wasn't too crazy about Geralds Game and I thought The Colorado Kid was kinda boring.

Can't say I've actually hated any of his work though.

:orely:

[Brice]

I loved Cell too, Heather!

Well at least I've got good company :couple:

I also really enjoyed both Bag of Bones, and The Dark Half.

Me too! :couple:

[stone, rose, unfound door]

I am shocked at that, too - and so I am every time Little Gem says that. The thing is, The Stand consists of a multitude of stories, all of them with lots of virtues of its own... How about the changes undergone by Larry, or, just the opposite, by Harold? Or my favorite of them all, how Nick met Tom, and their whole line, not ending even after

Nick was dead

Or Frannie and Stu love story, or lots of others, big or small, and Trashcan Man story and how finally it was him who

saved the world, at least for the time being

Now as I am sitting here typing, I realize that they are all so alive in my mind, even though my last reread was almost ten years ago (my students always have my copy!) and I feel so overwhelmed with emotion, and ready to cry again over

The Mayor's wife, remember? "You will recognize it... by the lace"

and hop with joy when

Frannie is afraid it's a dream again, only in her dreams Stu never looked liked that

and shiver with terror when I think of Nadine, and - well, you see what I mean. This story contains such a lot of everything that I just don't understand how it can be dismissed because of any separate reason, like the main story being "basic"... as to the book being too long, I know there are people and animals here who, like me, wish it wasn't so short.
:ninja; it was the Sherrif's wife

other than that, I agree with you on everything. Harold's story seems the most tragic, both he and Lucy got the short end of the stick.

The thing about all these stories entertwining is that I couldn't stand most of the characters. I found them lame and cowards and sometimes even stereotypical. I did like the story between Nick and Tom and I almost stopped reading the Stand altogether after Nick dies
I never had any sympathy for Harold, Stu or Frannie. I thought Larry was the perfect image of what "wasted life" means. I found Nadine pretty weird and then downright disgusting.
I did like Trashcan Man but he's one of those stereotypical characters.
And last but not least, I thought the ending was lame. Of course, I really hated the fact that the character I liked least (not to say hated) got to live when the righteous ones (Nick, Abigail) had to die. I also thought making Larry a martyr was a crazy idea: who would buy that? The guy only needs excuses for who he is and repentance is too strong a word for what he does during the entire book, which basically is thinking about himself most of the time.

[cody44]

I think that the Stand has some of the strongest characters in King's entire library of works. I characters of Larry, Stu, and Harold will never leave me. I probably just have a soft spot for them because it was my first King book.

I think so far I have yet to read a bad novel by him, but I still have a few to go. I think he has written a few bad short stories. The Sun Dog comes to mind.

[BROWNINGS CHILDE]

The characters in The Stand are what endeared it to me.

*shrugs*

[Jean]

what cody and BROWNING'S said


Larry a martyr was a crazy idea: who would buy that?
I would.

I really truly think that his is one of the most convincing developments in world's literature.

[BROWNINGS CHILDE]

what cody and BROWNING'S said


Larry a martyr was a crazy idea: who would buy that?
I would.

I really truly think that his is one of the most convincing developments in world's literature.

Almost as crazy as Eddie the Junkie rising up to be an honorable gunslinger eh?

[Jean]

Exactly. They have a lot in common, only Eddie is to a greater extent directed from the outside (by Henry or Roland), while Larry has to undergo his evolution mostly on his own.

[BROWNINGS CHILDE]

Good point. Also, something I never thought of, Eddie had no choice in stopping his heroin abuse while Larry would have literally had free access to all the drugs he wanted.

[MonteGss]

I recently moved Rose Madder onto my Worst Novel list. I have twice tried to read it and have failed twice. It is really a bad sign that I cannot force myself to plow through a novel, especially after a second try. That is why it joins the ranks of Insomnia on King's Worst Novel list.

* I was so pleased to hear that King himself said it was one of his least favorite novels, which he admitted when I saw him in St Paul this week.*

[BROWNINGS CHILDE]

I had a similar experience with Rose Madder, I only made it halfway. This is the ONLY SK novel that I haver EVER put down.

[MonteGss]

Yeah, it is pretty bad! I really thought I could make it through this last time...
I don't know when/if I'll try again. :(

[Jean]

oops... it's not in my Top 5 or even 10, but I rather like it...

http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k291/mishemplushem/Facilitation/bear_sad.gif

[John Blaze]

I like it Monte, I can't believe you didn't!

Maybe it's because I feel I can relate with some of the characters, IDK, but to me it's very believeable.

Vive ze bool!

[ChristineB]

I also like Rose Madder, good story and it was very believable. Different Strokes for different folks.

What was it about the book you couldn't get into?

[stone, rose, unfound door]

what cody and BROWNING'S said


Larry a martyr was a crazy idea: who would buy that?
I would.

I really truly think that his is one of the most convincing developments in world's literature.

Almost as crazy as Eddie the Junkie rising up to be an honorable gunslinger eh?

I never agreed with Eddie being a gunslinger either.

[Woofer]

Otherwise, I'm having a hard time thinking of a King novel I didn't enjoy. From what I've read above, I suspect that the things a lot of us have problems with in King's work are the same things we have trouble with in reality: injustices happen, good people die for no good reason, etc. King always says he has no control over his stories; he writes what he sees. This is why, in spite of the so-called 'paranormal' or 'supernatural' elements in them, King's novels and shorter works have a verisimilitude to them that is lacking in most fiction, a sense of reality and truth. People in King stories behave as well and as badly as people really do, and weird things happen for no reason anyone can determine or prove, without all the neat explanations that fill other fictions and are never present in real life. It's this honesty that I like about king, and that makes it difficult for me to select books I didn't like, however unpleasant or strange their contents may be. Wouldn't recommend reading the Bachman Books if you're depressed, however, particularly the early ones (though I do think everyone ought to read The Running Man, so they'll be prepared for the kind of future our current leaders are creating for us).

I have to say this is the best description of King's work I have seen to date. Can I use this as a quote in the future?

To the point of Mara's comment: s/he couldn't be more wrong about why I don't like certain of King's fiction. It has nothing to do injustices happening or good people dying or bad people living or anything so simplistic. Sometimes stories speak to us, sometimes they do not - like music and painting and sculpture.

A critical analysis of his work, however, would reveal what Mara says and, IMO, is exactly what draws us to his fiction rather than pushes us away. Otherwise, we'd all settle for Dean Koontz.

[Ruthful]

Otherwise, I'm having a hard time thinking of a King novel I didn't enjoy.

I've had the exact opposite problem, esp. for the past six years.

[nocny]

poor you :)

my worst King's book is Tommyknockers. it has sooo many stupid things and is sooo boring, oh God...

[kschneider]

For me I'd put The Dark Half as the worst King book I ever read. It started good with the eye opening up during the surgery, but just got worse after that. High-toned son-of-a-bitch or not, that book sucked compared to any other by King that I've read.

Besides that I'd say Hearts in Atlantis, although the Low Men in Yellow Coats part was good (But hey, like Roland himself I'm a Dark Tower Junkie). The rest I thought was really boring. People I've talked to that grew up in the 60's say they liked it though, so maybe you had to be there? I was born in 1981, so...

Haven't read Tommyknockers or Thinner, which have seemed to come up on here a lot. I read TEofD in the 6th grade and I remember loving it, although I might not enjoy it as much now that I'm 28, it did seem juvenile compared to his other work.

Currently reading The Stand and loving it, but I can't wait to tear into UTD and hopefully DT: VIII not too long from now.

[jsn]

for me it would have to be dreamcatcher.

it's an ok read but i found myself just wanting to get through it.

it un-king like to me.

[mdarkpoet]

I have a few that I didn't like.

Bag of Bones (bored me to death)
Gerald's Game (also didn't move fast enough)
Carrie (WAIT TILL I EXPLAIN: I loved the book and yet I think it should have been set up a little differently, that's all)


And @JSN awww I loved Dreamcatcher :cry:

[Jean]

Bag of Bones (bored me to death)
Me too.

[mdarkpoet]

Bag of Bones (bored me to death)
Me too.
Finally I'm not alone :doh:

[mae]

This is a sad thread, it makes me sad... :cry:

[Brice]

me too. :(

[stone, rose, unfound door]

Bag of Bones (bored me to death)
Me too.
Finally I'm not alone :doh:
We're at least three :)

[Jean]

Yes. I remember your analysis of the book posted, I think, at .net: you said that you weren't in the least interested in any of the characters. That's precisely how I felt about it: it wasn't boring because it was slow (bears love it slow), but because it was so totally devoid of any human (or ursine) interest.

[Brice]

:cry:

I loved Bag Of Bones.

[candy]

:cry:

I loved Bag Of Bones.

i did too, i find i liked a lot of the books that are popping up in here. i especially always feel sad that tommy knockers is amongst them:nope:

[Heather19]

Yes. I remember your analysis of the book posted, I think, at .net: you said that you weren't in the least interested in any of the characters. That's precisely how I felt about it: it wasn't boring because it was slow (bears love it slow), but because it was so totally devoid of any human (or ursine) interest.

:(
perhaps you should try reading it again, or have you tried that already?

[pinkymcfatfat]

For me it's an incredibly close tie between Dreamcatcher and The Tommyknockers.

[Jean]

Yes. I remember your analysis of the book posted, I think, at .net: you said that you weren't in the least interested in any of the characters. That's precisely how I felt about it: it wasn't boring because it was slow (bears love it slow), but because it was so totally devoid of any human (or ursine) interest.

:(
perhaps you should try reading it again, or have you tried that already?
I have... http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k291/mishemplushem/Facilitation/bear_sad.gif

[Brice]

:cry:

I loved Bag Of Bones.

i did too, i find i liked a lot of the books that are popping up in here. i especially always feel sad that tommy knockers is amongst them:nope:

I've never met a King book I didn't love. :D

[velcro_fly]

I got to say I struggled through Bag of Bones:doh:, but did not care for it at all.

[kyngbaub]

I have to say the hardest book for me to get through is Lisey's Story. It's unusual because I've never had that problem before... And for the record I LOVED all the books you all have lised. I'm sure Lisey's story is awesome, I just couldn't get into it.

[Myste]

Yeeeeah... kinda love them all anyway but I had major struggles with Lisey's story and Bag of Bones.

[stone, rose, unfound door]

:cry:

I loved Bag Of Bones.

i did too, i find i liked a lot of the books that are popping up in here. i especially always feel sad that tommy knockers is amongst them:nope:

Perhaps you should wonder about your tastes :D

[candy]

:cry:

I loved Bag Of Bones.

i did too, i find i liked a lot of the books that are popping up in here. i especially always feel sad that tommy knockers is amongst them:nope:

Perhaps you should wonder about your tastes :D

ooo harsh, harsh!! in seriousness though, i don't get what was not to like. Bag of Bones and Tommy Knockers both had good solid characters and story lines and for me kept me glued the whole way through.

hey ho, different strokes for different folks.:rose:

[velcro_fly]

I actually didn't mind Tommy Knockers either.

[Jean]

bears love The Tommyknockers

[stone, rose, unfound door]

As I already said a few times, I thought Bag of Bones lacked characters who felt real. To me, all those characters were nothing more than your average book characters without anything to make them interesting.
I did like the Tommyknockers. Not my favourite read, though.
I mean no harm :)

[candy]

:huglove: i know, its one of the reasons i love this site. Everyone has such differing opinions

[mae]

bears love The Tommyknockers

So do I. I do not understand the hate this novel gets. King in the 1980s was putting out his most amazing prose, in my humblest of opinions. The Best King Decade poll (http://www.thedarktower.org/palaver/showthread.php?t=9224) is proof of that.

[stone, rose, unfound door]

I don't think King is the best when it comes to aliens and UFOs and I wouldn't say the Tommyknockers was one of my favourites but I think people are too harsh when it comes to criticizing this one.

[BROWNINGS CHILDE]

I liked Tommyknockers. Alot actually.

[stone, rose, unfound door]

Then I think you have to prove them all wrong by stating the reasons why you liked it so much. I'd love to hear you defend it :)

[BROWNINGS CHILDE]

Simple really, I was tweaking alot during that time, and the bizarre inventions really appealled to my err...meticulous nature at the time.

No really, I just thought that it was very imaginative, and it caught my attention right away with the mysterious "something buried in the forest". I thought it was completely different from anything I had ever read.

[Jean]

I don't care a damn about aliens or UFOs, but The Tommyknockers is a great human story. There are characters - something which Bag of Bones of Lisey's Story both desperately lack - and their stories deeply touched me; the novel is truly polyphonic, and that is King's most forte forte, as far as I am concerned. A lot of things, situations, little dramas, side stories included there deeply impressed me, and when we were voting the best minor character, I nominated Everett Hillman (that whole story, with the two boys and grandfather, is, to my mind, one of the best King's achievements ever).

[Brice]

Simple really, I was tweaking alot during that time, and the bizarre inventions really appealled to my err...meticulous nature at the time.



...and all this time I thought myself alone. :couple:

[BROWNINGS CHILDE]

:scared:

[Brice]

What? :unsure:

[JameseyLefebure]

I was actually talking about The Tommyknockers in work yesterday with one of the lad's i work with (i've managed to get him to read IT by going on about how good stephen king is.) and while I don't remember much about it I do remember actually enjoying it. I think it was as someone else mentioned a good character story and from what I remember I really enjoyed the ending!

The movie on the other hand......well it's got Traci Lords in it - I think that sum's it up enough!! (i say this but I still have it on DVD!!)

hmmm....i might watch the tommyknockers tonight lol.

Personally my least favourite king novel is either Eye's Of The Dragon or Pet Cemetery. I never actually managed to finish Pet Cemetery and i found Eye's Of The Dragon to be a bit blah - but saying that I'm still planning to give it another go at some point next year.

oh and Christine - now that was a book that I just plain didn't enjoy!!!

Jamesey
xxx

[stone, rose, unfound door]

I don't care a damn about aliens or UFOs, but The Tommyknockers is a great human story. There are characters - something which Bag of Bones of Lisey's Story both desperately lack - and their stories deeply touched me; the novel is truly polyphonic, and that is King's most forte forte, as far as I am concerned. A lot of things, situations, little dramas, side stories included there deeply impressed me, and when we were voting the best minor character, I nominated Everett Hillman (that whole story, with the two boys and grandfather, is, to my mind, one of the best King's achievements ever).

I couldn't agree more with you there. I was just trying to understand why people thought it was such a bad story that it was their least favourite.


I was actually talking about The Tommyknockers in work yesterday with one of the lad's i work with (i've managed to get him to read IT by going on about how good stephen king is.) and while I don't remember much about it I do remember actually enjoying it. I think it was as someone else mentioned a good character story and from what I remember I really enjoyed the ending!

The movie on the other hand......well it's got Traci Lords in it - I think that sum's it up enough!! (i say this but I still have it on DVD!!)

hmmm....i might watch the tommyknockers tonight lol.

Personally my least favourite king novel is either Eye's Of The Dragon or Pet Cemetery. I never actually managed to finish Pet Cemetery and i found Eye's Of The Dragon to be a bit blah - but saying that I'm still planning to give it another go at some point next year.

oh and Christine - now that was a book that I just plain didn't enjoy!!!

Jamesey
xxx

Eyes of the Dragon was written for a child and I think you can feel it in the way it's written. It's not a children's tale but it's meant for a younger audience. I think Pet Cemetery is an incredible book: it has full-fledged characters and there's no waste of time in the entire story.
For what reasons couldn't you finish it?

Funny to see you mentioned three books I thoroughly enjoyed.

[BROWNINGS CHILDE]

Pet Sematary is one of my top 5 SK novels.

[NoLabelBG]

I really like The Tommyknockers! The fact that it was so interesting was a big surprise for me. I thought that a story about aliens just can't be interesting, but a friend of mine insisted that I must red it! And i was hooked up!

I can't pick a book by Stephen King that i don't like! Many people told me, that Firestarter is one of his best books, but for some reason it was hard to read it! Also the first half of Insomnia was very boring, but the second half absolutely compensated it!

[Old Man Splitfoot]

To me, Bag of Bones felt a little bit pointless. It didn't seem to go anywhere, and felt boring. But since it came out right after Wizard and Glass, I kind of think my poor opinion of it is tainted by the fact that I wanted more of the Dark Tower. From a Buick 8, which is my all time least favorite King book, suffers from the same problem. Honestly, most of King's novels from the time I discovered the Tower up till the last book had to kind of work a little harder to get my respect.

[JameseyLefebure]

I really like The Tommyknockers! The fact that it was so interesting was a big surprise for me. I thought that a story about aliens just can't be interesting, but a friend of mine insisted that I must red it! And i was hooked up!

I can't pick a book by Stephen King that i don't like! Many people told me, that Firestarter is one of his best books, but for some reason it was hard to read it! Also the first half of Insomnia was very boring, but the second half absolutely compensated it!

Oh I quite enjoyed Firestarter, but i agree with you about Insomnia - i found the first half a real struggle (so much so that I gave up it first time round) but when I finally forced myself to just read the damn thing I found the second half amazing!!! :)


it never ceases to amaze me how different everyone's tastes are :)

Jamesey
xxx

[Jean]

I really like The Tommyknockers! The fact that it was so interesting was a big surprise for me. I thought that a story about aliens just can't be interesting, but a friend of mine insisted that I must red it! And i was hooked up!

I can't pick a book by Stephen King that i don't like! Many people told me, that Firestarter is one of his best books, but for some reason it was hard to read it! Also the first half of Insomnia was very boring, but the second half absolutely compensated it!

Oh I quite enjoyed Firestarter, but i agree with you about Insomnia - i found the first half a real struggle (so much so that I gave up it first time round) but when I finally forced myself to just read the damn thing I found the second half amazing!!! :)

it never ceases to amaze me how different everyone's tastes are :)

True. Because with bears and Insomnia, it was just the opposite way. Great first part, and rather boring second.

[candy]

the world would be very boring if we were all the same.:rose:

and i LOVED firestarter:cool:

[rico567]

While I confess I'm far from being a promiscuous admirer of King's work, I can't understand some of the hostility shown The Tommyknockers. It is something of a quite methodical Sci-Fi noir piece -and I think this was King's purpose from the start- if you choose to take it as S-F (I just take it for what it is). If I had to choose the likelihood of our encountering aliens between E.T. and Tommyknockers, I would unhesitatingly choose the latter.....although it's more likely that someone advanced enough to get here would either ignore us, or exterminate us in some ludicrously trivial way. I envision it as something with a whole lot less purpose than Douglas Adams in HHGTTG- maybe the aliens land, look around, and leave- except one of them discards a kleenex full of alien snot, and oh, the humanity!

[JameseyLefebure]

the world would be very boring if we were all the same.:rose:

and i LOVED firestarter:cool:

Too bloody true!! :) :) I liked firestarter - have you seen the movie? VERY young Drew Barrymore - shame about the awful sequel that followed it!!

jamesey
xxx

[ur2ndbiggestfan]

FIRESTARTER is probably on my top 5 favorite King books list. Hated the movie.
THE TOMMYKNOCKERS was not that bad, not a real page turner, but I had no problems reading it, and enjoyed it. The same can be said for DREAMCATCHER.
I liked IT, and I also liked the ABC TV movie adaptation.
Loved both versions of THE STAND, far and away my favorite King novel, hated the movie version.
Loved THE GREEN MILE in both book and movie form.
Liked very much: CHRISTINE, and movie version.
Liked The LANGOLIERS, hated the TV movie.
Hated STORM OF THE CENTURY in both TV movie and screenplay form.
Liked THE RUNNING MAN novel very much, very dissapointed by the lame movie version.
And to beat a dead horse some more (take THAT dead horse!), didn't like LISEY'S STORY, THE COLORADO KID, THE GIRL WHO LOVED TOM GORDON, DTs 5, 6, and 7, BLACK HOUSE and BLAZE, to varying extents.
The all time winner in the book I hated the most contest is - LISEY'S STORY!
All the other King books and collections I liked A LOT! (Although I'm only on the 2nd story in JUST AFTER SUNSET right now, so time will tell on that one)

[JameseyLefebure]

FIRESTARTER is probably on my top 5 favorite King books list. Hated the movie.
THE TOMMYKNOCKERS was not that bad, not a real page turner, but I had no problems reading it, and enjoyed it. The same can be said for DREAMCATCHER.
I liked IT, and I also liked the ABC TV movie adaptation.
Loved both versions of THE STAND, far and away my favorite King novel, hated the movie version.
Loved THE GREEN MILE in both book and movie form.
Liked very much: CHRISTINE, and movie version.
Liked The LANGOLIERS, hated the TV movie.
Hated STORM OF THE CENTURY in both TV movie and screenplay form.
Liked THE RUNNING MAN novel very much, very dissapointed by the lame movie version.
And to beat a dead horse some more (take THAT dead horse!), didn't like LISEY'S STORY, THE COLORADO KID, THE GIRL WHO LOVED TOM GORDON, DTs 5, 6, and 7, BLACK HOUSE and BLAZE, to varying extents.
The all time winner in the book I hated the most contest is - LISEY'S STORY!
All the other King books and collections I liked A LOT! (Although I'm only on the 2nd story in JUST AFTER SUNSET right now, so time will tell on that one)

WOW!! I think that you've ust said almost the oposite of everything i like! lol!!

Can I just ask what you didn't like about DT 5,6,7? I haven't read 7 yet and don't remember much of 6 but loved it! and I think you're one of the only people I've heard say anything good about the Abc IT!

[JameseyLefebure]

FIRESTARTER is probably on my top 5 favorite King books list. Hated the movie.
THE TOMMYKNOCKERS was not that bad, not a real page turner, but I had no problems reading it, and enjoyed it. The same can be said for DREAMCATCHER.
I liked IT, and I also liked the ABC TV movie adaptation.
Loved both versions of THE STAND, far and away my favorite King novel, hated the movie version.
Loved THE GREEN MILE in both book and movie form.
Liked very much: CHRISTINE, and movie version.
Liked The LANGOLIERS, hated the TV movie.
Hated STORM OF THE CENTURY in both TV movie and screenplay form.
Liked THE RUNNING MAN novel very much, very dissapointed by the lame movie version.
And to beat a dead horse some more (take THAT dead horse!), didn't like LISEY'S STORY, THE COLORADO KID, THE GIRL WHO LOVED TOM GORDON, DTs 5, 6, and 7, BLACK HOUSE and BLAZE, to varying extents.
The all time winner in the book I hated the most contest is - LISEY'S STORY!
All the other King books and collections I liked A LOT! (Although I'm only on the 2nd story in JUST AFTER SUNSET right now, so time will tell on that one)

WOW!! I think that you've ust said almost the oposite of everything i like! lol!!

Can I just ask what you didn't like about DT 5,6,7? I haven't read 7 yet and don't remember much of 6 but loved it! and I think you're one of the only people I've heard say anything good about the Abc IT! I practically foam at the mouth when I watch it cause i hate it that much!!!
I quite enjoyed Linsey's story and adore blackhouse! I also enjoyed the adaptation of it as well! lol :)

Different strokes for different folks I suppose! :)

jamesey
xxx

[ur2ndbiggestfan]

I actually forgot why I disliked the last 3 DT books until I read some of the remarks in the other threads. They brought back memories of the language (carbella or carmella or whatever it was called) that irritated me greatly every time it was used. The dialect spoken was also painful for me to read (but I've always found novels or stories written in dialect hard to read). The constant repetition of key phrases and/or ideas also irked me. Once is OK, 5 times I can stomach, but King tends to overdo this in MANY of his works, Perhaps (with the eternal exception of THE STAND) this is why I like his shorter works much better, they get right to the point, and the characters don't have an interior monolog and retrospective with themselves after every action that occurs around them, leaving me thinking 'Enough already! Just get on with it!'. Also, I believe that most actions in our lives are random, and we don't have to do THIS first, then THAT second, then THAT third, or nothing will ever work out and the universe will come to an end. The last few DTs were structured somewhat like that, which also did not sit well with me. I hate to criticize, these are just the things that I personally didn't like. As you say, different strokes for different folks make the world a lot less dull. The final nail in the coffin for me was the ending of book 7, which I won't give away just in case you haven't finished it yet, which I found to be totally WRONG and a big cop out. I went through all this epic journeying for THIS?! What a letdown, I felt.
Hope this answers your question!

[Mrs. Underwood]

I had to check to make sure people weren't arguing before I got up the gumption to post here, hehe!

At any rate... Cujo, because it dragged, and the ending really made me feel like I'd wasted the effort reading it.

And The Tommyknockers. It jumped around far too much, and the second half of the book was kind of a disconnected, jumbled mess. Which was sad, because the first half of it was actually good! And I had a lot of affection for Gard.

Really, I think a book is especially disappointing when there are things you love about it, but it just doesn't pan out the way you want, or the execution just wasn't what it should have been. So as always, King has excellent ideas. They just don't always turn out on the page. Not to mention that this is all personal opinion anyway. :P

[east-tennessee]

I can't get into Lisey's Story, I've started it twice and can't get through the first 50 pages.....

I did not like my Pretty Pony....or Bag Of Bones.

Tommy Knockers & Dreamcatcher were so-so..

Salems Lot, DT 1-7, The Green Mile & The Dead Zone our probly my favorites...

[thebumblerinblack]

I can think of two that I didnt really like:
The Colorado Kid and From a Buick 8 (although I did listen to the latter on audio, and the reader had an annoying voice, that might have had something to do with my opinion of it, but I still thought it was majorly lacking in SK awesomeness.