Fanfic recs

[selenak]

Better Call Saul:

Eighty-Six Years. Kim after the series finale, to put it as unspoilery as possible, rebuilding (not least herself)...

The Sandman:

Poets and Dreamers: "how they met and became an item" backstory for Morpheus and Calliope.
***

The Guardian put out a list of Where To Start With Stephen King, which made me discover I have some firm King opinions, because I disagree with most of their choices. Given the sheer number of his books, this is bound to happen and doesn't mean their choices are bad, just that there are a lot of novels to choose from.

For example: My choice for the category "If you're in a rush", aka the one for readers who don't have the time or patience for a long Stephen King novel would be "The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon". Only novella length, intense story, very sympathetic young heroine, executes its deceptively simple premise (young girl gets lost in the woods, manages to survive) beautifully.

Comments

[princessofgeeks]

What are the chances of there ever being a DVD of S6 of Saul? Should I abandon hope now?

[selenak]

I have no idea, especially since the US and Europe are in different dvd zones and sometimes we don't get something the Americans get and vice versa.

[hannah]

I've also suggested The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon as an entry point. As I explained to the person I suggested it to, a lot of King's strength is in very fine and specific internal character work - not just their end goals, but their motivations and driving traits - that's more commonly found in literary fiction.

I'm also surprised Hearts in Atlantis, The Body, and Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption aren't on the list.

[bimo]

I disagree with most of their choices

Pretty much the same here, actually there isn't one single choice except maybe On Writing that I'd wholeheartedly agree with.

Books/works that are clearly missing on this list, in my opinion:

Pet Sematary, which would be my recommended entry point, because it's so wonderfully self-contained and creepy as hell. Also, glimpses of King's wider Maine cosmos, however without overwhelming the novice reader.

Herman Wouk is Still Alive as a masterpiece short story.

Bag of Bones as one of those novels that clearly deserve more attention. Tends to get overlooked more often than not, despite being perfectly engaging.

[selenak]

Hermann Wouk is still Alive I haven't yet read, so now it's on my personal list, thank you. :)

Pet Sematary is very good and self contained, but it's also pitch black dark with no hope at the end for any of the main characters, and that's atypical for King, and possibly off putting to a newbie?

[bimo]

Of course I can only speak for myself here, but a certain German thirteen-year old definitely wasn't put off when she discovered a copy of Friedhof der Kuscheltiere at her local small town library ;-)

My first Stephen King ever and the begin of a lifelong reading affair. I still remember picking up the book mostly because the title appealed to me, with little idea what to expect except for the info given on its cover. And wow, was I in for a ride, scared and at the same time pleasantly thrilled and feeling incredibly grown up *g*

Hommage to King in "Die Zeit"

[thalia_seawood]

Just discovered this article today which offers some well-deserved praise.
https://www.zeit.de/kultur/literatur/2022-09/stephen-king-fairy-tale-schriftsteller-karriere/komplettansicht

For the record, my favorite King novels are "Dolores Claiborne" (such splendid women characters, such a cool narrative voice), "Lisey's Story" (an homage to invisible author's wives who are much stronger than one might think; also brilliant interactions between sisters - Amanda rocks!) and "The Shining" (which never fails to both frighten and move me).
Oh, and "Lisey's Story" is also a perfectly read book on Audible.

As for "Salem's Lot": This book traumatized me as a teenager. I don't know why, but I was mortally afraid after reading it and would hang crosses on doors and windows for some weeks. Thank heavens that irrational fear dissipated after a while, but I vowed to myself never to read that novel again.

Re: Hommage to King in "Die Zeit"

[selenak]

Alas the article is hidden under a paywall!

Dolores Clairborne is one of my favourites as well, and I will have to give Lisey's Story another shot, I began it and stopped early on because at the time I was overcrowded with other stuff I had to read, and somehow never went back to it.