The IBIC Guide to Books By Stephen King
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May 17, 1996
I'm not a King maniac--in general, I don't much like the horror
genre--but I have read about half of his ouevre, and thoroughly
enjoyed several of those books. I'd have to say that my current
personal favorite is MISERY, the story of a best-selling author
trapped by a psychotic fan who demands that he produce more
books in his series--or else. MISERY is an almost
perfectly constructed novel that combines gripping terror with
sly, audacious observations about the relationship of reader
with author. For this reason, I'd recommend MISERY before any
other King book as a thought-provoking choice for the
book-lover.
I've had an interesting series of responses to
THE GREEN MILE. I loved the idea of a return to serial
publication of novels. That's an automatic for anyone who, like
me, is a huge Dickens fan--I'm about half-way through the
life-time project of acquiring and reading the entire Oxford
Dickens.
When
the first book, THE TWO DEAD
GIRLS (#1) came out, I liked the Death
Row setting and the vivid characterization; but I was bothered by
the graphic description of the title crime, I thought the prison
guard narrator was way too nice to be plausible, and I thought
the mouse was silly. After THE MOUSE ON THE
MILE (#2) and COFFEY'S HANDS
(#3), I had the same misgivings, but imperceptibly, I had
become hooked. I definitely want to finish the series. If King
can pull off a good ending, this will be a very good novel.
After that, the issue will become whether serial publication is
a viable alternative, or merely a stunt.
Comments from IBIC readers are welcome.
Please send a letter to the editor, subject line "Guides [Author/Genre]."
Be sure to mention the URL
of the page about which you are making a comment.
Usenet newsgroup alt.books.stephen-king--a high-volume newsgroup
The Green Mile Web site--includes a letter from King; current publication info; and some gratuitous Java animations.
Editor's Recommendations, Summer 1996
In this inaugural edition of IBIC's Featured Books, I'd like to
draw your attention to several titles which have helped to shape my life
and thinking.
- When I was around fifteen, I came across Larry Niven and
Jerry Pournelle's science fiction novel, INFERNO. This '70s remake of Dante's
classic describes science fiction writer Allen Carpentier's
descent into Hell. It's still a very fresh, accessible take on
the classic. What a great movie it would make!
- The Niven/Pournelle INFERNO
immediately inspired me to read the original Divine Comedy.
I've read a number of translations over the years, but my
favorite is the one by Dorothy Sayers (INFERNO;
PURGATORY;
PARADISE). The notes
are excellent, and Sayers had such a knowledgeable and witty mind that reading
her prose is a pleasure in itself. (For those interested in a more contemporary translation, I should mention that Robert Pinsky received excellent notices for his 1995 THE
INFERNO OF DANTE : A NEW VERSE TRANSLATION; it's a very handsome book.)
- I also want to tell you about the late Henry Fairlie's THE SEVEN DEADLY SINS TODAY,
which probably did more than any other single book to galvanize me into a lifetime interest
in Christianity that led me, eventually, to faith. Ironic, because Fairlie was a self-proclaimed agnostic socialist! But
reading between the lines of this insightful and deeply feeling book, one realizes
that the love of God cannot have been far from Fairlie's heart.
- Finally, I should draw to your attention a more recent
acquisition, the very handsome NIV
STUDY BIBLE (10TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION) from Zondervan, indexed and bonded in leather in
IBIC's theme color, burgundy (black
and brown
are also available). The notes to this Bible are amazing. They
appear to provide you with a very substantial portion of what you need to
know to have an intelligent layman's appreciation of the
linguistic and historical issues involved in understanding
Scripture.
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