10 Favorite

Here are my current 10 favorite King novels, though my list is ever changing.

1. The Stand
2. The Shining
3. Dolores Claiborne
4. Needful Things
5. IT
6. The Green Mile
7. The Runningman
8. Christine
9. The Mist
10. The Drawing Of The Three

Did I surprise you any?  Didn't surprise myself a bit!

Here's what I notice looking at my own list: First, I am not a Dark Tower nut.  I'll roll with it, but I don't think I like the fantasy genre as much as many King fans do.  I also struggle with LOTR.  I also notice that I enjoy works from different King eras.  Remember the three woman novels, Claiborne, Gerald's Game and Rose Madder ?  I thought Claiborne was off the charts good. 

The Stand and IT seem to rank highest for most fans.  In fact, it's almost boring to admit they're fave's, because everyone rattles those two off. 

A note on Needful Things and Christine.  Two novels I think are excellent, and don't get the praise they deserve.  I found Christine to be a horror delight.  It doesn't attempt to be deep or even dramatic!  It's just fun.  Needful Things on the other hand is serous business.  Characters and plot unfold in a careful web -- the horror master at work here.  King finished Castle Rock off with a bang, and I enjoyed all the sparks and fireworks as the devil himself came to town.

So, you're turn.  10 favorite.  If you haven't read 10, then stop reading the blog and go read 10.  (Read your Bible first, said the preacher.  You're welcome.)
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11 comments:

  1. AnonymousFebruary 13, 2012 at 7:42 AM

    I wouldn't say I was surprised Revered, so much as just happen to disagree with you is all. Then again, what did you expect from Catholic?

    I'm just kidding don't worry, I wouldn't starting anything, seriously.

    As for my top ten? That's a bit mor difficult, still, here goes

    1. It
    2.The Shining
    3.11/22/63
    4.Salem's Lot
    5. Dreamcatcher (so sue me)
    6.The Regulaters and Desperation (I see these as just parts 1 and 2 of a single novel)
    7.Hearts in Atlantis
    8.The Body
    9.Bag of Bones
    10.Kingdom Hospital (he wrote it, it counts)

    Going over deciding process for this list, I now realize how arbitrary such lists are.

    ChrisC

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  2. David SquyresFebruary 13, 2012 at 8:59 AM

    Dreamcatcher is good; but I found Desperation difficult.

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  3. AnonymousFebruary 13, 2012 at 12:41 PM

    David, Dolores #3, eh? That's quite a surprise. It is a good book though, definitely best of those 3. Although I remember nothing of Rose Madder.
    I always have a problem with the top 10 books b/c some short stories/novellas to me are better than half of his novels. I'll just go with stories...

    1. The Stand
    2. Lisey's Story
    3. Talisman
    4. End of the Whole Mess
    5. Long Walk
    6. Breathing Method
    7. DT3
    8. Dead Zone
    9. Hearts in Atlantis
    10. On Writing

    Sometimes an audiobook will make a better story for me. Especially Breathing Method
    , Steve's style is a little different than normal but Mueller elevates this story for me in such a way that the combination is just perfect. Other audio versions that made the stories better for me are Gotham Cafe and 1408. I love SK's reading of these for the same reason I put On Writing on there. It is such a joy to listen to Steve talk about his life that you really feel like he's just sitting with you at a diner or next to you in the car.
    I am one of the few that love Lisey's story, I think it's completely original and a great book about love. My wife also loves it.

    I have read the Stand at least 7 times and read/listened to Talisman 5 times. So I guess I like those a little, haha.

    I almost put Nona and Grey Matter on there I love those stories!


    -mike

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  4. Michele (TheGirlWhoLovesHorror)February 13, 2012 at 1:30 PM

    Okay, I'll try.

    1. Bag of Bones (duh)
    2. The Long Walk
    3. The Dead Zone
    4. Needful Things
    5. The Dark Half
    6. The Green Mile
    7. Misery
    8. Cujo
    9. Pet Sematary
    10. Different Seasons (I love all the stories here, so I'm making it count)

    What do you think of that, captain? What I think makes all these books so appealing, at least to me, is that they all have such hard-hitting stories, and King puts his characters through a lot in these novels, which are very dark and disturbing when you think about what they are really about. And we all know that that is what King does best, and I think that quality is wonderfully amplified with these books.

    ReplyDelete
  5. David SquyresFebruary 13, 2012 at 6:52 PM

    Mike, you are the first to offer Lisey's story. I had trouble tracking with it. Someday the magic will happen for me, I guess. I had not thought of On Writing. In that case, I add Danse Macabre.

    Michele, what a surprise. . . bag of bones ! glad to see another get Needful Things on that list! And YES to Pet Sematary!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. AnonymousFebruary 14, 2012 at 8:18 AM

      If Steve had read Danse Macabre I might have been able to finish it, but I did not like the narrator for that one and stopped at disc 3.
      -mike

      Delete
  6. NaveenFebruary 13, 2012 at 9:37 PM

    My Top 10 King fiction would be (in random order):

    1. Salem's Lot
    2. Night Shift
    3. Pet Semetary
    4. Different Seasons
    5. The Dead Zone
    6. The Stand
    7. IT
    8. Misery
    9. The Shining
    10. Needful Things

    Honourable mentions:
    1. Cujo
    2. The Green Mile
    3. Nightmares and Dreamscapes
    4. The Long Walk
    5. Christine

    Worst King would be these:
    1. Rose Madder
    2. Insomnia
    3. Lisey's Story
    4. The Regulators
    5. The Colorado Kid

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. David SquyresFebruary 14, 2012 at 8:20 AM

      What was wrong with Rose Madder and Regulators ? (I haven't read Regulators.)

      Delete
  7. AnonymousFebruary 14, 2012 at 7:22 AM

    Here's a top ten of his published books in general, not just novels...

    1) Pet Sematary
    2) On Writing
    3) Everything's Eventual
    4) Full Dark, No Stars
    5) Salem's Lot
    6) The Dark Half
    7) Night Shift
    8) IT
    9) Bag of Bones
    10) Needful Things

    ReplyDelete
  8. NaveenFebruary 15, 2012 at 7:59 PM

    Well, David, for me Rose Madder is easily the worst book or story King has published to date. Ít may have its supporters among King fans but to me personally it made little sense. I could finish it only with great difficulty! One of the few King books I would never read again.

    As for The Regulators, it definitely pales in comparison with its companion/sister novel, Desperation. The latter was decent King but The Regulators was more gimmicky than creative, I thought. It seemed to be a kind of experimental story - nothing wrong with that, of course, but it just didn't work for me.

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  9. LuisFebruary 17, 2012 at 8:49 AM

    1) Salem's Lot
    2) Pet Sematary
    3) The Stanf
    4) It
    5) The Shining
    6) The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger
    7) The Mist (a novella, but since the OP includes it, so do I. I do, however, exclude short story collections from my list.)
    8) From a Buick 8
    9) Cell
    10) The Dead Zone

    ReplyDelete

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