Well, my favorite McKillip (maybe tied with Bell) is In the Forests of Serre. It's rather like a Grimm's fairytale, only darker and dreamier. And there's a firebird, and a brave, compassionate princess, and a heart-stealing witch, not to mention some of the most gorgeous descriptions I've found in her work.
Also, although *shhh* I've never read it, her Riddlemaster trilogy is reputedly excellent, and I think others here could confirm that for you pretty enthusiastically.

sweet! I'll try to read Forests soon .

I really really loved Sealey Head though. I was really kept in the dark most of the time. It was so intriguing, descriptive, beautiful, and relatable. Twas awesome . My only complaint would be that at parts it was a tad confusing and I didn't really completely understand the ending. But I loved it anyway . I'm sure a re-read will be due soon .

Ooh malkah I remember loving Mr Popper's Penguins when I was younger! I should probably re-read that sometime too .

I'm reading The Red Pyramid by Rick Riordan right now. I really really like it so far but my only complaint is that I seem to know more about Egypt and the mythology of that country than the main character who has pretty much lived there his whole life !

GtG, being confused while reading a McKillip book is pretty normal. She definitely does not do from point a to point b plots. They're all tangled and interwoven and benefit from re-reads. Which is a pretty big part of the awesome.

Yay! I'm so glad someone else in this thread loves Frances Hardinge's books and has read her newest, Kate. I was especially excited to see that Megan Whalen Turner gave The Lost Conspiracy a great review. I think I posted the link to it several pages back. I've also read The Demon's Lexicon and really disliked it, mainly because I found the main character to be unbearably obnoxious. And it reminded me too much of a weird Supernatural fanfic.

Haven't read anything spectacular lately, only the fourth Fablehaven book. Really beginning to think that series should have been a trilogy.

Shadowlander, good to hear from you mate.
I've been meaning to read The Dark Tower series for some time. I tried The Gunslinger and it was short but it didn't seem to go anywhere (that just frustrated me). I read most of it. Maybe I should go back and read the last bit, then try the second book. I've heard it's a lot better.

Great idea Shantih! Yes the movie version is quite hilarious. Poor Stephen King hasn't had many successful movie adaptations. Concerning The Stand, I love how the story is so compelling and you feel like you really get to know the characters. King writes great character development but sometimes that can be detrimental if you don't like the characters. Case in point: I read about half of IT. I thought the premise was great but it just seemed to waffle on and there was plenty of character development but I didn't care for the characters. Not so with The Stand.

Shadowlander, good to hear from you mate.
I've been meaning to read The Dark Tower series for some time. I tried The Gunslinger and it was short but it didn't seem to go anywhere (that just frustrated me). I read most of it. Maybe I should go back and read the last bit, then try the second book. I've heard it's a lot better.

I really liked the Gunslinger and am constantly amazed that so many people never warm to it that might otherwise really latch on to the DT series. The Gunslinger is really just a "taste" of the world Roland inhabits, filled with themes and settings one can expect to find throughout the rest of the series...a cowboy/knight chasing down evil on his quest to find the Dark Tower. The world around him as "moved on" and is in the process of collapsing, a world that seems very familiar to us and yet filled with some very strange stuff. It's LotR meets Cowboy/Western meets King Arthur meets Isaac Asimov. DT is just so hard to quantify, but everyone who reads it falls in love with it. Drawing of the Three is much better than The Gunslinger, and The Wastelands was where the series really hit its high note. It was a real page-turner! Wizard and Glass was decent, but the three after it...blech. I just wished the ending hadn't have been so stupid.

Yes the movie version [of The Stand] is quite hilarious. Poor Stephen King hasn't had many successful movie adaptations. Concerning The Stand, I love how the story is so compelling and you feel like you really get to know the characters. King writes great character development but sometimes that can be detrimental if you don't like the characters. Case in point: I read about half of IT. I thought the premise was great but it just seemed to waffle on and there was plenty of character development but I didn't care for the characters. Not so with The Stand.

The irony is he has a better track record for mini-series translations of his books than he does in the movie theaters. Misery was good...*thinks*...The Shawshank Redemption was outstanding...*thinks some more*...The Green Mile was also excellent. Hmmm....I honestly can't remember any others that were really worth watching.

The TV version of The Stand was terrible but I see that a lot of people love it...ok, it does have Ray Walston, so that's a plus, but Harold Lauder should have been a large, pimply kid, not a tall, skinny one. They nailed Stu Redman with Gary Sinise though...or maybe it's just because he's such a good actor, so it might be a combination of the two.

Check out Salem's Lot and especially It, both excellent (if not a bit hokey at times, which is definitely the case with It) renditions of their book counterparts. It, the book in particular, is um....well, there's something towards the end of the book which made my jaw drop (and maybe should have landed King into some legal trouble) and which I will not reveal here, suffice it to say you exited out of the book in time, W4J. The movie is much better, more streamlined, keeps the important things in, and doesn't sacrifice on character development. Salem's Lot, the book, didn't scare me...the miniseries version definitely did, and still does a little bit truth be told.

I too found The Gunslinger uninteresting, but carried on with the series out of faith in King. I'm glad I did I'd encourage you to push on with DT, Warrior, it gets better.

I got very involved in the character development of IT, but I did first read it when I was younger (and probably shouldn't have ) so I could relate to the characters a bit more. I think I wanted my own Barrens and gang to play around with...it would have been great fun without the evil clown Some of my favorite parts of IT are the chapters dealing less with the big evil and more with the day to day lives of the characters and the history of Derry. These are both fascinating and really build up that growing feeling that something is wrong with this town. I agree about that section, Shadowlander, I skip past it whenever I reread this book. As probably evidenced by being a huge King fan I'm not easily offended, but I had to draw the line somewhere and that was it.

King has a new set of novellas coming out in autumn (I think) which I'm really excited about. He's one of few modern authors who really love the short story/novella format and it's going to be awesome to be able to spend an evening or a rainy day reading some new King stories. It's called Full Dark, No Stars and will contain four novellas, one of which will be set in Hemingford Home, Nebraska (ring a bell? )

You forget The Shining, Shadowlander! Although it skips some great scenes from the book (I guess a lot wouldn't come across in film, I remember being terrified by the section with the topiary animals but this would look ridiculous on screen). Some others have perhaps not aged well, but I still think are pretty good films, like Carrie and The Dead Zone. Hearts in Atlantis is also fairly enjoyable (and if you haven't seen it, you might also enjoy Kingdom Hospital, which isn't an adaption but was developed by King and is very reminiscent of his work). The many uninspiring adaptions are by and large due to King being so laid back about allowing people to adapt his work, which although means there's plenty of bad ones out there, I still find to be a very refreshing attitude.
Enough of that though, before us mods have to tell ourselves off for going off topic

I haven't posted in this thread for a while, I haven't stopped reading, I promise But I guess I've been reading a lot of stuff that wouldn't ignite much discussion in here. It's mostly been a lot of non-fiction, in particular new feminism and the Russian revolution (a slightly strange mix ), lots of books about and by Trotsky and Stalin (if anyone is interested in the Stalin period I cannot recommend the work of Simon Sebag Montefiore enough, he delves into archives and brings everything together in one of the best written biographies I've come across).

I recently attacked my new books pile with impressive gusto in an attempt to make me feel less guilty about all these books. Some highlights were The Heart is a Lonely Hunter by Carson Mcullers, We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson, Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee by Dee Brown, and In Cold Blood by Truman Capote. Continuing the russian theme, I also spent an evening reading The Heart of a Dog, by Mikhail Bulgakov, who wrote The Master and Margarita, one of my favorite books. He manages the same cutting, hilarious satire as he did in Master. Some bits had me laughing out loud, although attempts to explain why to my friends failed

I can't start my planned reread of The Stand and perhaps some other King favourites (in particular IT and Pet Cematary) until I go home for the summer, I in fact dropped off a lot of books back home to make moving out easier, and this has left me with almost entirely non-fiction books. I love non-fiction as I think you can tell, but I'm really looking forward to being able to bury myself in a good story over summer

And here endeth my ridiculously long book post

Yes, the movie IT was quite good. Personally, I didn't find the movie creepy, except where Pennywise is in the drain. Dang! And also, the scene in which IT masquerades as one of the character's girlfriends/lovers.
I love Stanley Kubrick's version of The Shining (I haven't read the book but I've heard it's very different). I'll borrow Salem's Lot at some point too. I'm planning on reading The Dark Tower series, and I will but I've got some others books I wish to read first.

I haven't read much King at all but I'm eager to hear people's recommendations (other than The Dark Tower series). What do you all believe are his best works/your favourites?

I thought Misery was very good, I obviously love The Stand and I thought IT certainly had it's moments of greatness. His novella The Langoliers was also very enjoyable.

...Cranford, by Elizabeth Gaskell. I settled for this instead of North & South because my library is being ridiculous and doesn't have N&S in its system. I liked it? I didn't think it was bad, but I didn't think it was great either.

I felt the same way about Cranford. It’s kind of just... random; but I bought it because of the amazing mint green leaf cover. You should definitely read North and South though; it’s an excellent story, a bit like an Austen but not as classy or something. I loved it –it’s a tad Cinderella-esque but with more depth; especially when dealing with the whole step-mother/daughter relationship. EDIT: Oops, I've run Wives and Daughters into there. N&S was actually very melancholy and lovely and sad.

And interesting thoughts on Bleak House. It reminds me how little of Dickens I have read. I’ve been meaning to read Hard Times for ages; I’ll have to add Bleak to my list as well.

My little brother and I started on Mr. Popper's Penguins a few days ago. We're reading it aloud, complete with different "voices", and he's loving it. It was one of my favorites when I was little, but I don't remember it being such a witty, hilarious story!

Isn’t it though? I picked this book up randomly (well, I do like penguins) a couple of years ago when borrowing books for my little sister; and ended up reading it that night. It was so funny and quirky –I should find some quotes.

Now that I’ve finished exams, I’ve been meaning to re-read all the Winnie the Pooh books; a little bit inspired by AC’s avatar and the need to read something light. I’ve completely forgotten all the stories; so I’m kind of excited to re-discover them.

Re Fanny in Mansfield Park; I thought she was really sweet, a little lost and very lovable -and the story is one of my favourites. However I can see how she could come across as annoying to some people. I agree with Kate and lys on how that doormat syndrome Fanny has is a flaw; and how being shy can be a sort of selfish deprivation thing; it’s all really quite interesting. I loved that story though; the way Edmund comes round reminds me a bit of Wives and Daughters. I think I like that sort of romance best (not sure what number that would be in stardf’s epic list; but one of them!)

I'd better get to the library soon and borrow old Pooh before school holidays start and all the little kiddies rush for it.

EDIT: Shantih, I've been reading a bit of non-fiction lately as well. It's really refreshing. I read a bit of The Sorrows of Empire by Chalmers Johnson (very eye-opening), the biography of a Priest on the run who has more than a million dollars on his head, and I want to get my hands on a biography called Son of Hamas -but they're all a bit political so I won't delve into them here. (and, this is random, but that line about growing up and sleeping styles by King you mentioned is really spot-on; I've never read any of his books and I don't know if I'd be into them but I like that [paraphrased] line a lot!)

I had the joy of growing up with an older sister who loves King as much as I do, so a lot of his books were in the house for me to pick up once I got over the scary face of Carrie on one of the spines We also share a few rarer editions, and a signed copy of Lisey's Story from when he came to London for the first time in years to promote the book's release.

Favorites...I've mentioned The Stand, IT and Pet Sematary. The latter I found to be one of his scariest, but some friends who read it think I'm mad and didn't find it that scary at all. I think it depends on what you personally find scary, the terrible march of fate in this book and the repeated warnings about the ground being 'sour' kept me awake long after I finished it. The Dead Zone is entwined with the Cold War and all the fear and nervousness that comes with it, I wouldn't say it's a horror but it is a tense, unsettling novel. Cujo, while a good book, isn't one of my favorites but it has one of the the best opening paragraphs which references back to The Dead Zone. I often get my copy out and just re-read that opening page

Another favorite is one of his earlier novellas, The Long Walk. There's no supernatural stuff in this one, it's set in a future, possibly fascist US, in a contest where young men can enter this walk to win a prize which is anything they want, for the rest of their lives. It's pretty simple on paper - they walk and walk until there's only the winner left, but being a King work I think we all know it's not that easy It's probably one of the best examples of his character work, how else could you keep a plot going which consists of a bunch of guys walking and talking?

Have you read The Green Mile? If not, I can't recommend it enough. It's a prime example of just how well King can do non-horror work. It's heart rending, nostalgic, and just an amazing story.

Hearts In Atlantis is a collection of connected novellas, which are alright but the first and longest of them, Low Men in Yellow Coats, is possibly my favorite King novella. It's got a lot of crossovers with the DT universe, but is also an amazing coming of age story about a boy called Bobby who becomes friends with this guy called Ted and likes to read. This was one of the first King works I read, I was probably about 12 and it hit what growing up is like so perfectly. There's one line near the end about how he doesn't sleep spread eagled anymore, he feels safer curled up on his side, that hits the nail on the head.

I love all of his short story collections, I think a few favorites that I can recall are The Jaunt, Children of the Corn, Riding the Bullet, Mrs Todd's Shortcut, The House on Maple Street, Dolan's Cadillac, The Man in the Black Suit, The Road Virus Heads North, and N from his newest collection Just After Sunset.

I'll stop now or I'll be here all day

Oh wow, thanks mate! Looks like I'll be set for awhile.

I haven't read much King at all but I'm eager to hear people's recommendations (other than The Dark Tower series). What do you all believe are his best works/your favourites?

*scratches his chin and contemplates deeply*

The Stand is definitely excellent, as you well know. The DT series is mindblowingly awesome, exceeding even The Stand. At least up to a point. The Green Mile was a really good read as well, but nothing comes close to The Stand and DT. Nothing. As for recommendations, to second one book which Shantih pointed out, The Long Walk, that is an excellent read. A short synopsis is that in a future fascist-like US there's a contest held annually in which 100 young men start off at the US-Canadian border (in Maine, as I recall) and walk south until only one is left, sort of like a slow motion marathon. If at any point a contestant stops walking they get shot. One has to maintain a certain pace and falling under that pace repeatedly gets you shot. But the last one standing (er...walking) wins the game and is allowed to have anything he wants for the rest of his life. Shantih rightly points out that this is a book King really hit a home run with since, other than walking and the occasional execution, there's not much action and the book rests almost entirely upon the conversations between characters. It's really a riveting book! As an FYI King penned the book under a pseudonym which he uses from time to time, that being "Richard Bachman".

He also wrote a short book called The Running Man that they later made a movie out of with Ahnuld . The book and the movie share the same, general plot idea, and a few of the names. Other than that they have almost nothing in common. The book is set in the same type of futuristic, fascist US as The Long Walk. On the TV is the modern equivalent of the old Roman "bread and circuses", with citizens watching blood sports for entertainment. The protaganist, Ben Richards, is a poor but highly educated young, married man, who enters the contest because he considers himself smarter than the average contestant and can potentially win the contest. The rules are as follows; contestants are given a 12 hour head start and can head anywhere in the world. Chasing them are Hunters, who are tasked with killing the contestant on sight. Every day the contestant must post a letter to the network brass to let them know they're still alive and in the game, however this also allows the Network track contestants, which makes it that much harder to win. No one has ever won The Running Man game before, and Richards desperately wants to win the $1 million dollar reward to support he and his new wife. Major page-turner!

I liked Dreamcatcher quite a bit. Its movie incarnation wasn't quite up to the book, but decent enough. The book is definitely better. The Tommyknockers was also quite good and touched on related subject matter. Oh, and lest I completely forget, you'll want to check out The Talisman, which King cowrote with author Peter Straub. It's a really inventive and entertaining book. And I'll go ahead and also recommend The Eyes of the Dragon, which is King's only foray into open, traditional fantasy. A short book but quite good.

His novella The Langoliers was also very enjoyable.

The Langoliers was excellent, and the only of King's books/short stories that made me feel anything close to fear. Or maybe it was anticipation, since the reader can hear the Langoliers approaching in the distance but never really does see them until the end. That was by far the best of the 4 short stories King had in Four Past Midnight and an excellent read! The made-for-TV movie they had wasn't quite able to pull the story off, but I tip my hat to them nonetheless.

You forget The Shining, Shadowlander! Although it skips some great scenes from the book (I guess a lot wouldn't come across in film, I remember being terrified by the section with the topiary animals but this would look ridiculous on screen

I did forget that one! The book is pretty good but the movie adaptation was even better. Jack Nicholson was majorly unhinged in the movie and frightened me. His character in the book was more rooted and his grip on sanity was better than in the movie. That was a rather unsettling movie, wasn't it?

GtG, being confused while reading a McKillip book is pretty normal. She definitely does not do from point a to point b plots. They're all tangled and interwoven and benefit from re-reads. Which is a pretty big part of the awesome.

hehe . Nice to know . But I will be reading another book by her soon, I really like her writing style .

I have a plan on reading Oliver Twist. Many says it's nice and I have watched the Musical of it and thought it was interesting. I saw the book and... WHOA, it was thick and the fonts were almost very small to be read. haha. But I still am going to read it.

I don't think that my worldview and [Sarah Rees Brennan's] completely line up everywhere and thus I don't think her books will be favorites.

That is exactly why I have yet to read Demon's Lexicon despite being very tempted. (I usually end up stifling giggles every time I read one of her adventures. If you say her book is just like that, I am doomed... resistance will be futile. ) I'm not really surprised that Booky compares it Supernatural, but that wouldn't really bother me since I'm not very familiar with the exact plot.

lthough *shhh* I've never read it, her Riddlemaster trilogy is reputedly excellent

!!! What are you waiting for? !!! You can even read it before 100 Cupboards.

Levin needs more levity in his life.

A little bit of leven goes a long way...

So Dandelion Fire is better, then?

I am very biased on this point, but there is a character in it who rivals Faramir for most-awesome-character-in-the-book. (Naturally, this assumption ignores all the other awesome characters out there, like *reaches into grab bag of awesome characters* Morgon of Hed and Milo and Fallon and Hopalong Cassidy...)

On my to-read list: Henry IV

I'm not really reading anything. Except I am rereading Till We Have Faces again, but that's about it. I really need to go to the library.
As for Oliver Twist, I have read that many times, and it was one of my favorites of his. I think the best thing about it was the fact that he was able to write about the dregs of society without either romanticizing or using bad language. Some scenes are kind of violent, though.

sandy: yay I hope you enjoy it! It is a little long but it's very interesting so it's not hard to read, though you might want to have a dictionary handy .