Title:
The Essential Stephen King: Complete and Uncut Edition
Author: Stephen J. Spignesi
Artist:
Publisher: GB Books
ISBN: 0-8362-0455-7
Year: 2001
Dimensions:
State: Limited edition of 666 numbered copies, 52 lettered copies plus 9 presentation copies. Issued in a black acrylic slipcase signed by the author and all 8 contributors
The interior paper is 60# Windsor, Each copy of the limited edition is encased in a handmade acrylic case manufactured in Virginia.
The lettered state is bound in red leather and is encased in a handmade wooden slipcrate manufactured by Paul Beahm.
This edition contains substantial material not included in the trade edition, including the excised text from the trade edition and new material and new material - a new piece by Spignesi, a new piece by Beahm, a revised afterword by Beahm and an in-depth interview conducted with Spignesi by Beahm.
Interesting Note: This book was originally distributed by Stuart Tinker of Betts Books.
About the Book:
Spignesi, credited with over 20 books (The Stephen King Quiz Book; The Celebrity Baby Name Book; The Beatles Book of Lists; etc.) in the past decade, views Stephen King as "our greatest living author." With his staggering 18,000-item Complete Stephen King Encyclopedia, he was labeled "the world's leading expert on Stephen King" by Entertainment Weekly, and he again beelines for his favorite destination. This time he itemizes 553 works by King and selects his 101 favorites from among King's novels, short stories and nonfiction (with one poem). His top 10 picks are all novels, including It, The Stand and Bag of Bones. Each selection is shoehorned into a template that includes, for example, rank (and justification for such), publication date, King's comment about the work, Spignesi's brief personal reaction ("what I really liked about the book"), film adaptations and a short excerpt from each work. The author's colloquial style is peppered with such sentences as "Yikes!" and "Great fun." Personal anecdotes, parenthetical digressions and Spignesi's worshipful approach signify mammoth first-draft fanzine more than serious critical study. Short pieces by Spignesi's friends and colleagues, including an interview with a King collector, add to this effect.
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