Trip to the bookstore

[man]

I guess this might not count as literature, but I feel that anyone who hasn't read the graphic novel series "preacher" is seriously missing out. it's phenomenal, and I can think of little else to articulate my affection for it.

as to a substantive contribution to the thread.. uh.. I guess I don't really like stephen king, so um.. he's bad. there.

[ChipWrecked]

Hell's Angels = goot.

As a poster above mentioned though, this was written before he refined the 'gonzo' style.

[diebitter]

Gunslinger - yah it's good, but 'different seasons' is the dog's bollocks for King, IMHO.

If you're interested in childhood and how we are as kids and how this changes as you grow, 'It' is also a tip-top read, but a bit of a brick.

[Spladle Master]

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as to a substantive contribution to the thread.. uh.. I guess I don't really like stephen king, so um.. he's bad. there.

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YSSCKY

[Spladle Master]

Invisible Monsters is an amazing book, IMHO. Story's incredibly [censored] up the way Fight Club and Survivor were. Female narrator kinda like Diary. Basically I'm betting you'll dig it. One request. After you have finished the book, answer a question I'll ask. In the interest of science.

I'm amazed that you haven't read the Dark Tower series. You say that you generally enjoy King. Have you read many other recent Stephen King novels? If so you'll enjoy the series more, 'cause about half of his books are related to the Dark Tower in some way. But they're by no means required reading. A warning. The first book is by far the worst of the lot, so I would advise you to not get discouraged at the get-go. The later books are some of the most amazing bits of story-telling I've yet encountered in my admittedly short life.

[4_2_it]

based on your avatar I assume you are familiar with Clive Barker. Great and Secret Show and Weaveworld are two of my favorites. The Thief of Always is fairly short and reads like a Tim Burton movie.

If you like a thinking man's sci fi than read the first 4 books of Frank Herbert's Dune series. Ignore anything you have see in the movies or on TV. The writing is what makes the series.

What genres do you prefer? I enjoyed Atlas Shrugged, but it is definitely not for everyone.

[Bluffoon]

Nobody's Fool by Richard Russo. You really can't go very wrong with anything by him.

[imported_The Vibesman]

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I'm amazed that you haven't read the Dark Tower series. You say that you generally enjoy King. Have you read many other recent Stephen King novels? If so you'll enjoy the series more, 'cause about half of his books are related to the Dark Tower in some way. But they're by no means required reading. A warning. The first book is by far the worst of the lot, so I would advise you to not get discouraged at the get-go. The later books are some of the most amazing bits of story-telling I've yet encountered in my admittedly short life.

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I'm gonna go ahead and disagree with this. The first book is the best of the series by far (caveat: I have not read the rewritten version he did recently after he got lazy with the story). The first four books as a collective may be King's best work. The 5th and 6th books read like he's racing to get to the 7th, and the 7th book...well, I think "huge disappointment" is an understatement. Just one guy's opinion, and I don't want to get deep into it. There are, I'm sure, fans that will disagree.

The first one is great, tho...romantic, poetic, strange and beautiful. And lots of people get shot.

[MrTrik]

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I'm amazed that you haven't read the Dark Tower series. You say that you generally enjoy King. Have you read many other recent Stephen King novels? If so you'll enjoy the series more, 'cause about half of his books are related to the Dark Tower in some way. But they're by no means required reading. A warning. The first book is by far the worst of the lot, so I would advise you to not get discouraged at the get-go. The later books are some of the most amazing bits of story-telling I've yet encountered in my admittedly short life.

[/ QUOTE ]

I'm gonna go ahead and disagree with this. The first book is the best of the series by far (caveat: I have not read the rewritten version he did recently after he got lazy with the story). The first four books as a collective may be King's best work. The 5th and 6th books read like he's racing to get to the 7th, and the 7th book...well, I think "huge disappointment" is an understatement. Just one guy's opinion, and I don't want to get deep into it. There are, I'm sure, fans that will disagree.

The first one is great, tho...romantic, poetic, strange and beautiful. And lots of people get shot.

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My wife is a huge King fan and has read (and owns) everything he's written. I've probably read 10 or 12 of his books. I like them in a check the brain out of life sort of way. My favorite was the one's with Tak (sorry can't remember the names). Black House was good too. And I enjoyed Insomnia and Dreamcatcher quite a bit.

But I agree with the assessment of the Gunslinger series 100%. Only die-hard fans will enjoy all 7 installments and that's because they are die-hard fans. The first was the best by far.

[Hamish McBagpipe]

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The first book is the best of the series by far (caveat: I have not read the rewritten version he did recently after he got lazy with the story). The first four books as a collective may be King's best work.

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For someone new to the series I would recommend picking up the first two books. I find that the original Gunslinger is a bit disjointed while King really gets going with The Drawing of the Three. If you can get through the 2nd book you will, IMO, be able to judge what this epic is like and where he's going with it.