Stuff you have not read...

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Mel217

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Mar 10, 2017
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Are there any novels you haven't read for a particular reason?
I haven't read Pet Semetery. We have dogs, cats, and horses buried on our property and I don't need any creeper ideas floating into my mind. Their gravesites are maintained with garden fences, plaques, marker stones, and solar lights (our property must look like an airport runway from above at night) so it's cheerful and I want to keep it that way! My friend does have a very handsome gray cat that we make Church jokes at, though.
Cujo is another read I've passed on, even though I know it's a tearjerker. Growing up we had one of those naturally "good" dogs that was a child's dream and was as trustworthy as they come, but as he got old his hips began to fail him to the point that, if touched while sleeping, he would come out of a sound sleep snapping his jaws at anything and everything from the pain.
Another instance was a childhood cat that had that demeanor of cool and collected confidence yet was great with us kids, but he had a blood clot that (IIRC) traveled or burst or something, an embolism. As an adult, I've read that the pain in this situation (for the pet) is unimaginable; this cat (from what I remember) was dragging his rear legs along the ground and crying out and was acting erratically. At the vets office, the signals in his brain must have been so messed up that he was attacking things that weren't there and the only solution was euthanasia. A cat belonging to a friend (in my adult life) suffered the same thing and the end was no different, so the idea that a good animal that turns because of something they cannot control (while a sad part of reality) hits home and isn't something I'm dying to read about.
Anyone else?
 

Mel217

Well-Known Member
Mar 10, 2017
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5,756
....there are countless books I haven't read, but with King's works.....I've gnawed on all of them repeatedly.....

Gnawed is a good way to put it. A few of them I practically treat like study material or reference guides.
I read The Stand as a teen, and remember being completely swept away by the story. Once I'm done chewing on "It" again, The Stand it is!

Thanks to Nostalgia Critic, when I see the moon I think of Pennywise and think of the comment that "it's a beautiful Tim Curry (moon) out tonight". A day or so ago I was playing internet Hearts and shot the moon and we happily coined the phrase "Shot the Tim Curry". (No insult intended--Tim Curry's a bro!)
 

Doc Creed

Well-Known Member
Nov 18, 2015
17,221
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I haven't read Pet Semetery.
:shock:

Get thee to a nunnery!

Jk, hope you pick up a copy and read it.

Are there books that I haven't read? Of course. That's why I still get that buzz walking into a library or old bookstore...treasures await and they're all mine. I am always trying to shrink my list of classic literature and I'll never catch up on all the new stuff, but that's exhilarating to me. As I've gotten older it has only made me more focused and dedicated to read only the best.
Confession: I've only read two or three short stories of Flannery O'Conner. I'll try to read her novels one day soon.
 

Zone D Dad

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Apr 17, 2017
359
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Chicago Suburbs
I've never read Carrie. I know I should, and I'm not sure as to why I've avoided it. I've also never read Mr. Mercedes or End of Watch. Also missed out on Duma Key, Lisey's Story, and I know at least one of the short story collections. I tried to listen to an audio book of From a Buick 8, but that didn't turn out so well. Looks like there's quite a bit out there that I've missed. There was a time when it seemed like SK was all i read, now I just go back to the well every once in a while.
 

Mel217

Well-Known Member
Mar 10, 2017
904
5,756
I go through spurts, Zone D Dad. For awhile all I want to read is a certain type of book or of a certain subject, and after that burns out a bit I move onto something else. A few years back all I wanted to read was *short* ghost stories and in searching through boxes and bags of old books I forgot I owned, I found ghost stories that I read as a kid. I remembered a few of the stories but was fascinated all over again by the creepy and detailed illustrations!
scarystories.jpg

(Mel--a middle aged person who still sleeps with a nightlight thanks to these pictures, LMAO)
 

Tooly

Well-Known Member
Jul 13, 2014
179
658
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Victoria, Australia
Started War and Peace but never finished it. Probably because it's over a thousand plus pages. I read The Dark Tower, however, which is way over a thousand pages.So, what does Stephen King have that Tolstoy doesn't?
Just a guess. It's probably the language of the day that's used. I've found reading Dickens to be a rather hard slog, but the stories are pretty good, so managed to get through them. I wonder what people will think of King's language in 50-100 years from now.
 

FlakeNoir

Original Kiwi© SKMB®
Moderator
Apr 11, 2006
44,082
175,641
New Zealand
Just a guess. It's probably the language of the day that's used. I've found reading Dickens to be a rather hard slog, but the stories are pretty good, so managed to get through them. I wonder what people will think of King's language in 50-100 years from now.
I thnk its hly p'sble nbdy wil undastnd it.
4shw, pce owt!

:blush: Sorry, couldn't help myself.
 

prufrock21

Well-Known Member
Jun 2, 2011
2,956
12,657
The Caribbean
Just a guess. It's probably the language of the day that's used. I've found reading Dickens to be a rather hard slog, but the stories are pretty good, so managed to get through them. I wonder what people will think of King's language in 50-100 years from now.
It's not the language, since I've read other classics, such as Moby Dick, and the language was not a barrier. There must be another reason. For example, it's not the type of novel that grabs you from page one and doesn't let go.
 

Kurben

The Fool on the Hill
Apr 12, 2014
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There are some classics i havent read and authors i've read very little of that i feel i should have read more of but when it comesto King i have read all i could get my hands on. I feel that even the worst of King is rather good compared to the absolute drivel some other authors publish. And the best of King will be read for a long time cause it is the BEST!
 

Connor B

Well-Known Member
May 24, 2015
766
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I go through spurts, Zone D Dad. For awhile all I want to read is a certain type of book or of a certain subject, and after that burns out a bit I move onto something else. A few years back all I wanted to read was *short* ghost stories and in searching through boxes and bags of old books I forgot I owned, I found ghost stories that I read as a kid. I remembered a few of the stories but was fascinated all over again by the creepy and detailed illustrations!
scarystories.jpg

(Mel--a middle aged person who still sleeps with a nightlight thanks to these pictures, LMAO)
I remember these books fondly. It's a shame that the stories within didn't live up to such nightmarish imagery.

I admit, with much painful regret, that I am a very slow reader. I'm still stuck on The Shining, and there are countless other books and short stories I've been meaning to read. Some of them, I dread for various reasons. I almost finished Misery, but it got so intense for me I had to stop. Maybe it was a blessing in disguise, as I really began to love Stephen's work after that. After I break out of the Overlook with Wendy and Danny, I'll give it another shot.

One work of Stephen's I'm hesitant about even starting is Cujo. I love my dog so much, and with my history of depression, it would be a recipe for disaster. It just sounds so bleak and heartbreaking.