This will always be a special book to me because it was the first Stephen King novel I ever read. I was 12 years old 
I hope there will be a limited edition made someday....
I hope there will be a limited edition made someday....First King novel I ever read
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I'm sure someone out there has plans to do a limited of it eventually. Look at all of the limiteds coming out: PS Publishing has done Pet Semetary and Christine with Carrie in the pipeline. Cemetery Dance is doing all five of Kings earliest books, plus they did one for It. Subterranean Press has done a gorgeous one for The Shining. There was a time when King wouldn't do any limiteds and that phase included It, Misery, The Tommyknockers, The Dark Half, Four Past Midnight, Needful Things, Gerald's Game, Delores Claiborne, Nightmares And Dreamscapes, Rose Madder, Dreamcatcher, Bag Of Bones, Hearts In Atlantis, Everything's Eventual, Cell, Duma Key, Just After Sunset. These will probably all have limiteds at some point. Guess I'd better start saving! I didn't realize there were so many that never had any limiteds released.
...that first time with a King book is always the most special...AND you never have to apologize for it being over with so fast...
This is one of my very favorite King novels, and I couldn't think of a better one to start with.
The thing I like about needful things so much, other than the fantastic villain in Leland Gaunt, is the richness of the characters and the town of Castle Rock itself. There are so many characters in the book but rather than detract from the story, for me it enhances it. I found myself trying to imagine what all of them were doing at any given time and I love how SK weaves all of their lives together as the book unfolds. Awesome book.
The first book I read by him I didn't like, actually. It was Cujo. But I read Needful Things three times, that's how much I liked it.
I'm almost in the middle of this book.
WOW. Just, WOW.
Just dying to know what's gonna happen next.
WOW. Just, WOW.
Just dying to know what's gonna happen next.
I finished NT a few months ago, first read. I've been putting off seeing the movie for like twenty years now, so I guess I can pop some corn and nestle in for a movie night. The book had good flow, great characters.
I still remember King's description of Leland Gaunt's
palms without lines, smooth and presumably without thumbprints. This gave me a shiver for some reason. It stuck with me.
I just finished re-reading this one. It has elements of Insomnia, Salem's Lot and Under the Dome. Small town conflicts etc. Overall, not one of my favorites although I enjoyed the parts revisiting Cujo and other Castle Rock stories but it feels bloated. A lot of repetition of the dirty tricks. Leland reminded me of the Tall Man from the Phantasm movies.
I just picked up Needful Things from the libray. When I first started reading sai King I read all of his books in order other than the Dark Tower books as at the time they were rare and hard to find. Needful things is where I stopped. It just didnt "move" me and I put King away entirely. Now as I begin it again, I like it much more than I remember. Looking forward to reading the other books I passed by in order. I guess age and time can change your perspective on these things...That or my recent reading of Lisey's Story has made everything else seem wonderful. lol
Spot On-- age, and time can definitely change your perspective on stories.
I know exactly where you're coming from
Finished Needful Things. It was a great read and I'm glad I revisited it having been the last King Book I began and put down years ago. While a long book, I felt the final confrontation seemed rushed and somewhat anti-climactic. Still enjoyable and a good payoff. I'm off now to Duma Key. Oh, PS...Leland Gaunt reminded me of Mr. Christmas Manx in Nos4a2 (sp).
...Charlie and Leland....kissing cousins.....
...awww shucks....I see what you did there......
One of my favorite Stephen King books. I first learned of this particular novel during an undergrad interdisciplinary class I took called The Faust Tradition. We read five different versions of the Faust story spanning several centuries. For a final project we had to choose of modern "Faust" and do a report and presentation. One of my fellow students did his on Needful Things and his description of the story intrigued me, but I didn't read it delve in right away. When I did get around to reading the work I really enjoyed it, but a lot of my perception of the book was tied into my coursework and all the research I had done on Faust. My classmate chose a perfect modern comparison and I loved every second of it!
I just did a 5th re-read. It never gets stale. Wonderful characters, setting and atmosphere. One of Sai King's best, IMO.