I want to start reading Steven King... any suggestions?

Question

loads of my friends like him... which book should I start with?

Answer 1

First of all, have patience. His books start out very slow, but once they get moving, it's nothing but greatness. I started with Christine and Cujo and struggled through both. I highly recommend The Dark Tower series. 7 books full of mystery, horror, sci-fi, love.. it's unlike anything he's ever written. I recently read The Stand, and, like most of his books, I found the first part difficult to get through. The second and third parts were well worth it. Great book.

Some, as with any author, are better than others. My list is below and I think my top (other than the gunslinger series) are Needfull Things and 'Salem's lot.

Enjoy!!

Answer 2

I agree with the first suggestion, you should start with Carrie, the Tommyknockers is another good one to read off the bat. You could also read some of his short story collections. I would stay away from reading The Stand and any of the Dark Tower series until you are really into King. They are all fantastic books but they are kind of heavy to start out with. Just my opinion...

Answer 3

Stephen King is actually my favourite author. I read "Pet Semetary" when I was 10 years old and since then I've been hooked. Some of my favourite Stephen King books were "Insomnia", "Misery", "It", "Dreamcatcher", "From A Buick 8" and "Cell." You should definitely try "The Dark Tower" series since many of Stephen King's books are related to it. It's a collection of 7 books. You won't be disappointed.

Answer 4

My younger sister started his books with Salem's Lot. To this day nearly 35 years later she still has to have all the lights on in the house when she reads it scared her so much. Today, though with all of the different vampire books and movies out, it may not be so bad. But if you like really scary stuff, this is a good one to start with.

Answer 5

I've been a collector of his works for a very long time, and find that it's sometimes best to start with the earlier work and progress as the author did. And don't leave out his Richard Bachman books either.

You really can't go wrong, but I'd suggest starting with Carrie and working your way through :)

Answer 6

Carrie is my favorite, and it was his first published book, that's an excellent place to start. The Shining, Firestarter, Pet Semetary, and It were also pretty good. His books with short stories are good too. Different Seasons is my favorite, though really those are probably more novellas than short stories. I'd start with his older work, a lot of his new stuff is terrible.

Answer 7

Misery by Stephen King
It's a great story that is just creepy enough to be fun too read without being too much. Misery would be a nice way to carefully introduce yourself to the ways of the great Stephen King. If you want to jump right in, I would suggest The Shining.

Answer 8

If I were you, I'd start with "The Gunslinger," the first book in his Dark Tower series, and go from there. The Dark Tower series is his signature series and it's the best writing he's ever going to do. It's also pretty fun and will give you a lot of reading material.

Answer 9

Turn on all your lights and read during the day--and not by yourself either.

No, really, any of his books would be fine to start with. On here you'll get everyone's opinion about which they liked best or they feel is a good starter. It's really up to you.

Answer 10

I love love love Stephen King.

My two favorites books by him are Insomnia and Bag of Bones.

Of course, all of his books are good, so you'll like whatever one you decide to read first.