I am a huge fan of Stephen King, I think I would turn into a pile adoring mush should I ever get chance to meet him (one can dream...) I've often thought he is one of the more misunderstood writers of our time. While he is one the most prolific writers I don't think he gets enough commendation as an artist. In short, the man is GIFTED. I had the great pleasure of studying King at Stirling University during my MLitt and it was a revelation! King has a beautiful way with language and storytelling, his work is the literary equivalent of a ice-cold beer on a long hot day.
Desperation by Stephen King is one of his greatest works, hands down. The novel documents starts with several strangers traveling through the U.S. A family of four traveling back home from Las Vegas who have an oddly wise son, an alcoholic writer traveling on a motorbike trying to come up with a idea for a novel, the writers roadie who follows his boss in a van, a hitchhiker and a married couple. One by one, they are all stopped and kidnapped in the Nevada desert by a sinister policeman who is possessed by an evil spirit who has the town of Desperation in it horrific grasp. It is up to these strangers to try and save themselves and stop the aforementioned sprit from releasing an ancient evil from the depths of the towns haunted mine pit into the world.
As usual King's characters are well rounded, believable and more importantly they are engaging. The sense of dread and the horror of the characters situation are slowly and sensually unfolded for your delectation. Personally the cinema scene is one of the best horror scenes ever written, as King lulls you into a false sense of security before scaring the very pants of you. You will struggle to put this book down and you will undoubtedly struggle to sleep afterwards, truly what's not to like!
And for those King super-fan's such as myself you will know that Desperation is in fact a companion book to The Regulators which King published under the pen name Richard Bachman...AND the very eagle eyed out there will spot characters from King's other novels. (I'm not saying who, send me an email if you spot her...oops I may have said to much!)
Hi! I'm Siobhan and I write at Facets of the Fabulous, an online magazine which amongst other topics regularly reviews book which have impressed me. If you would like to learn more please go my site!http://facetsofthefabulous.blogspot.com/
Article Source: http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=Siobhan_Hanlin
Monday, November 30, 2009
The Dark Tower Series Review- Stephen King Article
Book Review:
The Dark Tower Series -
The Gunslinger,
by Stephen King
Author: Christina PomoniThe inspiration came from Robert Browning's poem "Childe Roland to the Dark Tower Came" during King’s college years. Over a period of twelve years, King published a series of early novels that established him as one of the greatest horror authors in the history of horror literature. Among those novels, “The Gunslinger” is the first of a series of seven books in Stephen King's “The Dark Tower” series.
Written in 1982, “The Gunslinger” is rather a tale of traditional fantasy than a horror tale. Mingling elements of magic, wizard and strange creatures, King introduces the gunslinger, Roland, whose mission is to discover the Dark Tower. In his pursuit, he encounters numerous different characters, which all fit in an emotionless and cold world that, however, resembles an idealized contemporary Wild West. Roland makes his expressionless way along the trail of a mysterious "man in black," and an even more obscure goal, the Dark Tower.
The gunslinger doesn’t know much about the Dark Tower, but his goal is to get there only to save himself and the world. He is determined to defeat even death if necessary and he knows that only death can stop him. He lives in a fantasy world, in a projection of our world in the future and he fights with his demons and the magic creatures that King instills in the plot.
While crossing the desert, the gunslinger meets Jake. Jake is a boy, who died in New York, pushed to the wheels of a Cadillac by the man in black. The gunslinger and the boy begin a horrifying journey, only to question Roland’s honor when forced to choose between Jake’s life and his pursuit towards the Dark Tower.
“The Gunslinger” does not resemble the recent King writings. Written on a black and white pattern, is a rather emotionally dry book, mainly due to its main character, who is not open-minded at all and even becomes uninteresting and sometimes boring out of being so predictable. Roland is such an odd person, that it should have been unfeasible for King to get across the feel of him. Yet he does, brilliantly. On the contrary, the character of Jake instills some freshness and passion in the novel, but overall the book leaves the reader with the taste of a colorless austere read.
The novel can be easily read, although the plot is rather complex and heavy on baffling references. For example, in the series of the seven Dark Tower books, King should provide details about Roland’s teacher Cort, other fellow gunslingers, his lover Susannah and mostly the circumstances that led Roland to his 20-year pursuit. Although “The Gunslinger” provides some background information, it leaves many subplots obscure. This is done almost on purpose as Roland's character is not fully developed in the book so that the reader is hooked and looks for the rest of the series.
About the Author:I work as a financial and investment advisor but my passion is writing, music and photography. Writing mostly about finance, business and music, being an amateur photographer and a professional dj, I am inspired from life.
Being a strong advocate of simplicity in life, I love my family, my partner and all the people that have stood by me with or without knowing. And I hope that someday, human nature will cease to be greedy and demanding realizing that the more we have the more we want and the more we satisfy our needs the more needs we create. And this is so needless after all.
Article Source: ArticlesBase.com - Book Review: The Dark Tower Series - The Gunslinger, by Stephen King
Sunday, November 29, 2009
Step Into The Imagination Of Stephen King Article
Step Into the
Imagination
of Stephen King
Author: Shawna RuppertThere is no other name that is associated as much with the modern horror novel as the master himself, Stephen King. Critical responses to his work have ranged from lauding books as among the most important American novels, to denouncing them as schlock. Yet, amidst their ever changing opinions, one thing has remained certain; it is a fact sure to be revealed during any Stephen King quiz, and that is that King is still, without a doubt, one of the most popular novelists from America to ever put pen to paper. The author will surely hold his popularity until he decides to quite writing, since each of his novels always end up being an instant hit.
Stephen King trivia is certainly going to include questions regarding the many tales that King has concocted throughout his years as a writer. The books most likely to be mentioned include “Carrie”, “'Salem’s Lot” “The Shining” and “The Stand” and “It”. These novels are among his earliest, and among his best sellers. In fact, many people have written of the Stand as being the pinnacle of his early writing career.
While the work was loved, it was not complete in his earlier years; meaning that a newer Stephen King quiz is going to contain references to the Dark Tower. This series of books is what many, including King himself, consider to be his most defining work. This seven book series was started in the early 1970’s and wouldn't be completed until more than thirty years later. The books follow Roland, the last gunslinger, in a quest which begins as a western but goes on to span all of King's various world's, including our own. As with many of his tales that have become movies, King features a version of himself as a character in some of the final books.
What some people who only know King as the master of horror might not realize is that he is also responsible for writing stories that are considered among some of the best in movies. A Stephen King trivia point is that he wrote the story that served as the basis for both “The Green Mile”, and “Stand by Me”, both successful and acclaimed movies in their own right. Another, better known movie that King had a hand in the basis for was “The Shawshank Redemption”, which has been considered by many, including legendary film critic Roger Ebert, and the American Film Association (AFI) to be among the best movies of all time. Movies based on his lesser known stories have traditionally been more successful than those based on his more traditional horror novels.
About the Author:Masters of Trivia is a fun and exciting online destination for \"anything trivia\". Please visit us at
Article Source: ArticlesBase.com - Step Into the Imagination of Stephen King
Where To Find Stephen King Noval Bargins
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Stephen King is a legend in his own time... I don't have to tell you that, because you would not be reading this blog if you did not enjoy Stephen King's novals and movies...
You can find some great bargins from Amazon books at this site:
Stephen King's The Dome is the latest one and you will find it at a bargin price at Amazon's Stephen King Bargin Store...
You can now enjoy more of his writings and save $$$...
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