Greatest Stephen King book of all time

[Violet]

Hi. I'm violet. I am new member. I love Stephen King and have read everything he has written. It's hard to pick a favorite of all his work.
If I had to pick my favorite Stephen King novel it would have to be IT. I read it for the first time when I was 12 years old. I've reread it more times than I can remember and it still gives me nightmares. I was wondering if this novel is anyone else's favorite and if they had any thoughts or observations on this novel that they would like to talk about.
:biggrin2::grinning:

[aptpupil]

Hi Violet

I'm sure you'll find a few like-minded people on here with regards to "IT" - a fantastic novel.

I suspect, however, that a poll of the SKMB would show that "The Stand" is the most highly rated of SK's novels. However, it's not like the guy ever writes any bad ones, so every SK story has it's fans out there!

And welcome to the Board. :cool2:

[JoeSherry]

It is definitely my personal favorite. It's a more intimate story than the STand, which I also love, but just hits home a lot more.

[Robert Gray]

I agree that it is his best book. Polls can go to blazes.

[michal]

It is a great book and it's on my Top Three list (right next to Wolves of the Calla and Salem's Lot). It's a real, old-fashion (yet modernly written) horror book and that crazy clown is a haunting image indeed.

[avidreader111]

I also think It is the best SK ever. The characters are so memorable. I was afraid to step away from the bedroom with its light and my husband nearby, even to go to the bathroom. Nevertheless, I could not stop reading it. I loved The Shining, and since I had a young son at the time I was crazed with fury with Jack. The Mist has a great relationship between father and son and I loved it.

[jacobtlong]

It is one of my faves. I didn't want it to end and I certainly want to read it again a few times in the future. :)

[kieronjs]

My all time fave, too, and I rate 'The Stand' and most other SK books, up to and including 'Duma Key' very highly indeed. 'It' was the first hardback book I ever bought new (with wages from my paper round), and is still probably the most satisfying novel I've ever read. It works on all fronts for me- scary, inspiring, and full of 'gotta know' info that is revealed with perfect timing. But I think what makes me love it most as I hit my late thirties is the way SK perfectly recaptures the joys and terrors of childhood. It's the closest you'll come to being able to revisit the past.

[thymeoperator]

its my favourite so far

[jaxter]

IT has my vote. its my favorite book

[plgordon]

I loved IT, but bassed on these replys I think I better read it again

[dumakeykate]

It is so hard to pick one! IT is a top three for sure. Then I read Duma, a top three again, then another and another.... haha. IT for me was a real masterpiece on many levels, fear, love, friendship, bravery, humour, trust and of course balloooonnsss!! Every time balloons were mentioned I got goose flesh along with anything to do with eyeballs! DKK

[fairy76]

IT would by far be my favorite SK book...I read it at 13, most recenty at 31, and probably once a year every year in between. (I even remember once in high school my mom sent me balloons at school for my birthday, and the card said "we alllllll float"--I still have that somewhere :cool2: ) I even had to buy a second copy because the first one was falling apart, but couldn't bring myself to throw away the first!

[freud1977]

After reading UTD I was dissapointed with the book but it did remind me what a great novelist SK is. I needed a fix. I pulled IT off the shelf after 25 years and reread it. Here is how I would rate his best: 1. Stand; 2. IT; 3,4,5 (tie) Shining, Deadzone, Firestarter; followed very closely by The Gunslinger series. Movies: 1. Shawshank Redemption, 2. Shining, 3. Green Mile, 4. Hearts in Atlantis, 5. Misery

[edkemper]

I gotta agree with alot of people here, IT is my favorite SK book. I just read it for the first time and I loved it! Im gonna put this book into my top ten fav books, possibly even the top five, id have to sit and think about that. I find it funny that the book is huge, but I felt like alot of others that it was too short.

[bugaboosy]

just to change things ....i like needful things!!!

[Javier23gol]

Exellent book, I would say that IT is one of the best books made in the History

[Doc Wilson]

I'd have to say its a hopeless 3 way tie between The Stand, It, and The Talisman. IT would have won hands down had it not been for some minor irritations near the end of the novel.

[Jojo87]

Liseys Story is my favorit. This book has been my favorit since I read it years ago.

[davemelnick]

IT is definitely my favorite of SK's...yet, all of his art is good to great. :biggrin2:

[Mary Strickland]

I'd have to say its a hopeless 3 way tie between The Stand, It, and The Talisman. IT would have won hands down had it not been for some minor irritations near the end of the novel.

Is it just me, or does the dialog just LAG in those two author books? They just don't feel right to me.

[Snaggletooth]

Probably one that he hasn't written/published yet. I'm a hopeless optimist.

[boogerb53]

Collectively-The Dark Tower Series....standing alone.....The Dark Tower.

[Midten]

Not my most favorite. But this is probably my second or third favorite!

[Lobstrocities Looming]

I have read every Stephen King novel except for The Cycle of the Werewolf (I can never find it) and IT was my favorite. I love the depth, character development, and mystery of it. I loved the beginning with the flood and the mentioning of the turtle right from the start - it really set the stage.

[kyleckm]

my favorite must be misery but i really want to read IT but i cant find it anywhere and im NOTbuying it online

[Silhouette86]

I think that IT is my favorite because I've always been a sucker for monster stories. Especially ones about clowns; also for the fact of how big the novel was. I don't read a lot of huge novels, ones that are a thousand pages long and still going. I thinnk the length of the novel helped, because it felt like a story that you just didn't want to end.
It's a funny thing, people label Stephen King a horror writer, as if everyone of his novels are about monsters, but I think that about 10% of Stephen King's novels are actually about monsters. I'd say that the majority of his novels are thrillers/suspense.

[mrblonde]

It would have ranked higher for me if a few part were omitted.
The sewer sex scene was very out of place for me, and the long drawn out story of the dead baby really turned me off.

[wizard and glass]

Long time fan, first time posting. I've held off on reading IT for years since I saw the movie ages ago. I'm about 3/4 of the way through and thus far this book is superb. The characters and setting are wonderful. I wish I could go to Derry and hang out at the Barrens with the Losers. Unless things go to h*ll towards the end, this book is going to bump off The Stand as my number 2 favorite behind the DK series.

[Hunnikins]

I love this book, it is so brilliant

[sam peebles]

No tie. The Stand is amazing, but there are parts (Ad Hoc Committee for the middle four hundred pages?) which even King admits he had to explode in order to continue the story. The Dark Tower was a top contender except for the last three novels (and, unfortunately, that's a pretty big chunk of the series, no?). It wins hands down. I know Uncle Steve is for some reason reticent against the atagonist Pennywise, but It IS the greatest King novel.

[Maoster]

This will always be for me my favourite SK book, encapsulates everything I rate in his books, dissection of small town America, the links between child and adulthood and a bloody scary monster! It could have been 2000 pages and I would have been delighted.

[SharonC]

I find it easier to name my least favourite books. There are so many good ones, it's really difficult to say which is the best. Having said that, IT is in my top five re-reads. Insomnia, The Stand, Needful Things and all the short story collections are there as well.

[Horrorchick]

My favorite book(is it bad that nearly the entire book I was cracking up?). I just couldln't stop thinking of how odd it was when Pennywise said and when your down here you float to. I don't know what I found funny about it but I just couldn't stop laughing. During Patrick part with the fridge and the dog scared me and made me cry since I am an animal person and I wondered what caused him to be like that but his parents never bothered to get help for him.

[Stillreading]

I must admit that the size of this novel was daunting -- perhaps that is why I have always had a slight preference for SK's short stories. And I must further admit that I basically read this book in two parts, each one approximately a year apart. It was last year around this time when I first attempted to tackle it, and although I loved it and found it creepy as all hell, I just ran out of steam somewhere around page 600. At the time I figured "IT" would suffer the same fate that The Stand did for me - that is, I'd make it halfway through and just inexplicably lose my motivation to continue. It's now been five years since I first tried The Stand and it remains an "incomplete" on my record. Fortunately, I was wrong about IT. A week ago a sudden and inexplicable drive to pick it up again overcame me and I hammered out the final 500 pages or so in only a few days. Mercifully, the ends fused together seamlessly enough that I wasn't plagued by a constant need to go back and re-read earlier sections in order to understand what was going on. Well, I sure am glad I rediscovered my inspiration for this novel. It is epic and it is horrifying and it is disturbing while being simultaneously touching and heartbreaking, and it is, in short, the most complete novel I've ever read. Admittedly, the "sex scene" struck me like a finger in the eye, but that's the only exception to this story's supremacy. The Shining and The Deadzone still remain my first and second favorites, respectively, but IT is an uncontested 3 and possibly a 2a. Excellent novel. Excellent. I fear everything from here on out is going to be a let down.

[wizard and glass]

I commented on It awhile back when I was 3/4 of the way through. It did not disappoint. This is such a powerfully emotional story of friendship and love and how we lose the "magic" of childhood. Truly, truly superb story. I also like the horror element, of course, but horror just doesn't have the impact on me as it did when I was a kid. If I would have read this when I was 12 or so, it would have scared the life out of me. Pennywise would have hidden in every dark corner of my world. Pennywise wouldn't have had it easy though - he would have had to fight it out with the horde of Sleestaks that invaded my closet every night. :laugh:

[FrankWhite]

:- he would have had to fight it out with the horde of Sleestaks that invaded my closet every night. laugh:


lulz......1st post here but surly not my last

[huf2much]

The one i'm readiing now.
For some reason, that's always my favorite.

[fostek]

My all time favorite is without doubt The Dark Tower. And I do mean all 7 books. I love all Stephen King's books and am so glad he wrote every one of them. But if he had never written anything but The Dark Tower books it would have been enough.

[krs72]

My fav. is "The Stand" but "It" is def. second no quest.

[djbeilstein]

IT is tops. From the beginning–the back and forth narrative between the impressionable years of childhood and the adults that grow out of those experiences, to the horror of Pennywise The Dancing Clown–IT was always my favourite King novel. The sweeping scope of it is wonderful. I read the book in 1990, when I was a kid–about the age
of the losers in the book–I can remember how impacted I was that King realised as an adult how kids think and feel with such accuracy. Now an adult, I am still impressed
with this aspect of the book because it is hard to pull of kids with honest, but I am even more impressed in King's ability to draw a line between the kids and the adults they become which was highly realistic in my opinion. Childhood experience shapes us. Things turn out differently then we expect on many levels for many; but things also turn
out differently then expected for some and King realises this too. All and all, an exceptional piece of work. In fact, I have sense come to realise that my slight disappointment with UTD was due not to the book itself, BUT that it wasn't jarring, sweeping, and epic as IT was. BUT we all should allow each book to be what it should be–and is.

[Lina]

I finally finished reading It. I mustsay it's a great book, I love it. Now it's definitely on my list of favorite SK books, not on the first place (it is taken by The Shining, and nothing's gonna change it :smile2: ) The second position on my list of favorite books would be Pet Sematary. But the third place is definiely taken by It.

[Jojo87]

I read It last summer (summer 2010) And have to say that I love the book. In the beginnig it was a littlebit boring but when I read it more, it become better and better.

[boogerb53]

The Stand and The entire Dark Tower series.

[king family fan]

I really liked it. I found Pennywise to be amazing. the whole idea of an Evil Clown was so imagionative.

[CCAL]

My daughter-in-law is terrified of Pennywise! I thought she was joking, but when I found out it was true I felt kinda sad about the clown I rented....ok just joking about the clown rental!!! relax. She does have a phobia about any and all clowns as far back as she can remember. (we dont spend much time talking about it tho). just thought it an odd thing to fear til I read some posts in here. Sure sorry so many of you have that problem.

[Grimmell73]

Well this is a difficult topic. It depends on the meaning of "greatest."

1. I have wondered idly for years how to get a fan message out about "Salem's Lot." The reason is that I have read the book twice and listened to it (in German translation) five times now. Every time I read it or listen to it, I have nightmares about vampires. Every time! That's some amazing horror writing. In terms of ability to trigger things in the unconscious we might all wish had not been triggered, "Salem's Lot" would be the greatest.

2. I have listened to the William Hurt / Stephen King reading of "Hearts in Atlantis" four more times. The book was plenty good, but if you have not heard this reading, you owe it to yourself to find it and listen to it. Absolutely heart-wrenching portrait of the pain that exists under the surface of so many family facades.

3. As far as an intimate and loving portrait of childhood goes, "It" is as good as anything written by Mark Twain, and I have loved it for decades. The final destruction of the town has a few scenes that are too prolix, a fault neither of the other books shares.

Overall, I think Hearts in Atlantis wins by a nose.

[philn]

Hi Violet I have to agree with you. IT is the a wonderfull book. Just finishing A Game of Thrones by George RR Martin with IT next on my reading pile. Havn't read it since the 1990's and feel as though Im rushing my latest book to become immersed it the world of the Ben, Eddie, Bev, Mike, Bill etc. Can't wait

[Silhouette86]

I don't re-read books, but if I had to choose a book to re-read, it would be IT.

[fljoe0]

What a fantastic wallpaper the new deluxe edition artwork makes

http://www.stephenking.com/promo/IT_25th/images/raw_1280.jpg

[Daniel Lee Severn]

IT is definitely my fav, I have loved all of SK's books but IT just tops all of his others by leaps and bounds. If you love IT, you may also love a novel called Summer of Night by Dan Simmons. This story doesn't have any clowns in it but it is definitely just as creepy and wonderful as IT, in fact SK is a big fan of Dan Simmons. Just thought I'd let you in on that. :-)

[Jaydean]

The stand is a better book, no doubt, if you get the original paperback its longer as well, like 1300 pages of gold. IT was great, but I wouldnt put it in my top 5, DT put a stop to that. Although.....I havent read The Shining. Think it may be about time. Just ordered The talisman and The Dark half. happy reading folks

[prufrock21]

Arguably his greatest piece of writing you'll find--though still a work in progress--in The Plant. Otherwise, his masterpieces are, in my view: It, The Stand and
The dark Tower.

[Cath123]

I've read a few SK books now. But IT will always be the one that I read when I'm bored, or haven't read anything decent for a while etc. When I was little one of my aunt's told me a story about a clown who climbs out of drains and eats children :D And when I realised she was talking about IT, I had to read it. It was even better than I expected, and I will ALWAYS be able to sit down and read the whole thing without getting frustrated over certain parts and skipping over them. I WANT to read every single word.

[prufrock21]

Perhaps 11/23/63 will be Stephen King's greatest book of all time. Certainly because of the subject matter the potential for greatness is there.

[prufrock21]

Correction. I meant 11/22/63.

[Banjo Kazooie]

I love IT! IT is such a great novel, because the characters have to face internal and external struggles, and they're so relatable. I also think Pennywise is the greatest antagonist ever, and I love how he transforms into a leper for Ben, and a bird for Mike, and so on. I love how the Loser's Club, of all children, battle a monster that's been eating children for hundreds (or thousands?) of years! I like how the imperfections of the characters make them seem so much stronger. If only there was an "Uncut" edition for IT. :sad:

[Olivia Dunham]

It was even better than I expected, and I will ALWAYS be able to sit down and read the whole thing without getting frustrated over certain parts and skipping over them. I WANT to read every single word.

I am the same way with this story. IT is definitely one of my go to books and I will read every word even though I have read it a dozen times. I love The Stand and will reread it every year, but I find myself skipping over whole passages and chapters. I will not do that with IT. I savor every word.

[The Nameless]

I would like to agree one day, but I am still new to King and reading fiction - reading just never interested me that much, and it was actually the film that made me want to read the book. Since then, I have bought about 10 more books by King and a couple of other books, so when I have read a few more books, I should be able to start thinking about master-pieces. That said, when I finished IT (IT was my first novel since school - I'm 29 now) I did think I had started at the top, I didn't think anything would get close to IT, but when I read the Langoliers I enjoyed that so much, not quite as good as IT and nowhere near as in depth, but I now realise that not being as good as IT can still be excellent.

I am sure that when I read books like The Stand, Salems Lot, The Shining and the Dark Tower series it may then get some competition for greatest novel.

I do want to reread IT sometime soon.

[bryantburnette]

My favorite King novel, hands down, is It. It's breathtakingly good.

However, if we're talking favorite book by King, that's Different Seasons. All four of those novellas are just awesome, and the older I get the more I think "The Breathing Method" is my favorite of the group.

[SleepingWarrior]

Boy is this one tough choice to make...

IT was the first King book I read, as a 5th grader no less lol, and as such it holds a special place in my heart but The Stand is a book I've read countless times and still manage to stumble across small plot points I never took notice of previously so I'd have to give the edge to that. Other than that they are completely equal in my mind.

[*~*Lily*~*]

This one freaked me out when I was a kid I saw part of the movie and that was it, BUT I got brave and put a hold on the book at the library, I am picking it up tomorrow. I'm a little freaked out!