New King readers: don't start with these books

[King fan from trinidad]

I also don't think they should start with any of the bachman books even though I loved The long walk.

[Learah Greene]

In the past two months, two of my friends who never read SK before have started The Gunslinger and gone powering straight into The Drawing Of The Three. I think the Dark Tower is an excellent introduction if the reader shows decent concentration abilities.
Agree that short stories are also good: my brother got hooked through Nightmares and Dreamscapes. I started off with Pet Sematary in '93 after being told for years by my parents that King's novels were too adult. Eventually I just said 'feck it' and dug in. They bought me The Talisman the next Christmas

Three that I would not recommend are Rose Madder, Lisey's Story and Gerald's Game. Funnily, they all have strong female characters, which only occurred to me after typing. I loved these (yes even RM, which ties in so perfectly to Insomnia) but I think they require a degree of patience. Their respective stories unfold at a slower pace and they don't boast the wide casts of characters and colourful little details of small town life that draw readers in with a lulling sense of familiarity!

[The Bishop]

This forum is pretty simple. If your interested in trying out SK, you start with his earlier work so you fall head first in love with him, then SLOWLY move your way up through his later works

[nate_watkins]

The Dark Tower is what got me into his other books. The only other SK book I'd read was Cell, which I liked. I did struggle with the beginning of the Gunslinger, but was urged by a friend to finish it. Some books I found very easy to read are: The Green Mile, Different Seasons, The Talisman (and Black House), From a Buick 8, and Rose Madder. But I've found that my tastes differ from others that I've seen posting on the board.

Show Spoiler

And also The Regulators.

[Pufnstuff]

The Long Walk was my first SK book. I recommend it highly to anybody.

[Pufnstuff]

My own experience is a bit on the strange side... Apparently I read all the wrong stuff first.
My first exposure to Sai King was The Long Walk, which at the time was not known to be King. It was while he was still writing as Bachman, my Sophopmore year in HS. Only later, near the beginning of my Junior year, I read Salem's Lot, and realized right away that Bachman was King. Up until then I had avoided King, because I "didn't like horror", not realizing that King doesn't write ONLY horror. Then, in 1984 before leaving for College, I picked up a paperback of The Talisman, and my love for Sai King's work was cemented. After Talisman it was, in order, The Gunslinger, Carrie, Firestarter, and The Bachman Books collection.
When I'm recommending King to other people who have not read, it always depends on what they like to read. If they're not Horror fans, like I was, I usually suggest one of the more mainstream style stories like Shawshank or Green Mile (I got my Dad to read Green Mile after he enjoyed the movie). If they are Fantasy fans, I'll still suggest The Talisman or Dark Tower. For Sci-Fi fans I suggest Firestarter or Tommyknockers. Otherwise, If they're open to the whole King experience, I always suggest they start at the beginning and read in order of publication date. That way, they get to experience Sai King's growth as a storyteller and get to mature right along with him.

[unclelouie]

My first SK novel was Rage. When you could still purchase it at the book store!

[Lina]

I agree with the list of books that one should not start with. I would only add Lisey's Story to it.

Me, I started with The Shining, and I am still in love with the book, it was a great choice for me, so now I can enjoy almost all the SK books.

[shorty27]

It depends on the person and what type of books they like but would agree not to start off with the DT series.

[kylallie]

Being a longtime SK reader, who still hasn't managed to get right through the first DT book , I would recommend The Green Mile, Salems Lot, Christine or the Shining for first time readers. Great gripping stories, with the just the right element of the supernatural for someone who isnt familiar with SK's writing. My first Stephen King book was Christine (sneaked from my Dad's bookshelf when I was a kid) and I loved it!