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maybe keep your bigotry to yourself next time. some of us read the forums between Torah study sessions.
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Mar 2, 2016 02:51
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Tbf the Crimson King does do things "jewishly" per book descriptions.
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Mar 2, 2016 02:54
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Is there a non-lovely paperback version of The Stand? The most readily available one out there now is the one with a dude holding a bullet between his teeth. Some books have had some new editions released, I really like the one for IT The original one with the good vs. evil personified fighting I thought was cool but I think it might have only been in hardback. All the current Stand covers blow. I'm an idiot who cares slightly about that stuff. I might just do the kindle version. Also wish they'd come out with a nice Dark Tower box set. I think there is a UK version but that series is due for a reissued version here.
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Mar 2, 2016 04:08
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nosleep posted:Is there a non-lovely paperback version of The Stand? The most readily available one out there now is the one with a dude holding a bullet between his teeth. Some books have had some new editions released, I really like the one for IT The best paperback version is the illustrated face in the sky with a crows face overlapping. It lacks the modernized additions, like date changes. This page has different covers that are available.
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Mar 2, 2016 04:38
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Franchescanado posted:The best paperback version is the illustrated face in the sky with a crows face overlapping. It lacks the modernized additions, like date changes. I read the one that had the rider with a scythe on it. Not really related to any events in the book (other than, yknow, death) but I always thought it looked pretty cool at least.
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Mar 2, 2016 05:25
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I've never really understood why King "modernized" The Stand when he put out the uncut version. Did he really think people would flip out that some of the references were slightly out of date?
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Mar 2, 2016 13:52
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I had the one with the guy and monster with scythes fighting and was pretty mad about the false advertising.
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Mar 2, 2016 14:18
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muscles like this? posted:I've never really understood why King "modernized" The Stand when he put out the uncut version. Did he really think people would flip out that some of the references were slightly out of date? To make it appealing as a modern book, it also came out around the time the mini series came out so it would have a lot of new readers.
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Mar 2, 2016 15:51
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That there was a real reason for the updates, just makes it all the more disappointing that he/his editor didn't do a better job. It wouldn't have been that hard to do a little more than charge the dates, or alternately, just leave the entire thing alone. It's not like we're horribly shocked when a miniseries is updated a bit from the original text.
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Mar 2, 2016 16:04
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muscles like this? posted:I've never really understood why King "modernized" The Stand when he put out the uncut version. Did he really think people would flip out that some of the references were slightly out of date? The uncut wasn't the only time he updated it. He modernised it when it got a paperback edition, to 1984. A lot of the horror of the books plot for the audience was the idea that a secret government weapon could indeed get out of control and kill us all, (it was the 70's when many shady military/CIA programs were being exposed) so updating it to a next Sunday AD for each new batch of readers makes sense. Of course that's kinda impossible to do well without rewriting entire sections of the book so its a bit hoky, apart from strange omissions (No mobile phones, no video games before the plague) the first part still reads like it took place in the 70's with its army mutinies, racial tensions, student revolts and investigative journalists, oh and the USSR and China are still hostile powers in 1990*. *Well the only references to them are made by a jingoistic military intelligence guy whose heavily stressed, paranoid and going on a week long amphetamine binge so maybe he was motivated by spite.
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Mar 2, 2016 17:54
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The Stand is definitely a product of the historical and cultural fabric of the late 60s and early/mid 70s. The entire book is laced with the attitudes and technology and terminology of that era. It should never have been "updated"  It stands up very well as a product of that period. I don't need Salem's Lot with emails or Carrie with Bush-era political digs so I definitely don't need need HWB copy-pasted for Nixon in The Stand. And that new edition epilogue stinks...
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Mar 2, 2016 20:30
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Say, did Marvel ever finish its Stand adaptation? I remember reading Part 1 ages ago. Did that turn out any good?
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Mar 2, 2016 22:29
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Howdy SK thread. I've been a SK reader for most of my life. Picked up Pet Semetary at 12 and went from there. I've got the love/hate for him like it sounds many of you do. Lots of his books I've read and re-read a bunch. Others I've struggled to get through once and never touched again (Looking at you, Lisey's Story). I actually enjoyed all the Dark Tower books, although I know the last 3 kind of went off the rails a bit. The short-stories / novellas about Roland have been really good, and I'd love to see more of them. In one of the early DT books (might have been Wizard and Glass), Roland mentions losing the belt that his mother made for him. He says something along the lines of the way he lost his belt has something to do with his quest for the Tower, and he said he would tell them the story about it, but then it's never mentioned again. It would be neat to get a Wind Through The Keyhole type book about more of his early adventures.
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Mar 4, 2016 15:52
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Saw someone earlier had mentioned how quick 11/22/63 moves and I have to agree. Just started it for the first time in anticipation of the series, and as much as I love the slow buildup/suspense of the Stand, Pet Sematary or Salems Lot, it's real good to get to time travel by page 30.
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Mar 4, 2016 18:39
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DoctorG0nzo posted:Saw someone earlier had mentioned how quick 11/22/63 moves and I have to agree. Just started it for the first time in anticipation of the series, and as much as I love the slow buildup/suspense of the Stand, Pet Sematary or Salems Lot, it's real good to get to time travel by page 30. Save your praise until you've suffered through the novel's entire middle.
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Mar 4, 2016 19:51
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Oxxidation posted:Save your praise until you've suffered through the novel's entire middle. I liked the middle and thought the pacing was fine.
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Mar 4, 2016 20:23
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Oxxidation posted:Save your praise until you've suffered through the novel's entire middle. The middle is the biggest doldrums of any book I've ever read in my entire life.
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Mar 4, 2016 22:24
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Transistor Rhythm posted:The middle is the biggest doldrums of any book I've ever read in my entire life. Not quite but almost for me too. I like slow build-ups (Pet Sematary, Salems Lot) but, man, that saggy middle out-sags the saggiest of middles. I can't get into the ending either. When I re-read it I'll probably stop when the Derry section ends. Great start though... 
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Mar 5, 2016 00:05
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Maybe it's just because I was expecting it to be terrible and wasn't expecting action, but I actually enjoyed the whole book. I thought the crossover with Derry was a bit forced, but overall I enjoyed it cover to cover... Well, cover screen to cover screen since it was on my Kindle. Now, right now I'm forcing myself to read Atlas Shrugged... You want drawn out...
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Mar 5, 2016 00:08
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Medullah posted:Now, right now I'm forcing myself to read Atlas Shrugged... You want drawn out... I tend to limit my criticism to actual books, not schizophrenic essays with fake names in.
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Mar 5, 2016 02:24
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Medullah posted:Maybe it's just because I was expecting it to be terrible and wasn't expecting action, but I actually enjoyed the whole book. I thought the crossover with Derry was a bit forced, but overall I enjoyed it cover to cover... Well, cover screen to cover screen since it was on my Kindle. Just play Bioshock twice instead
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Mar 5, 2016 03:43
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11/22/63 drags a bit in the middle, I even dropped it somewhere around Sadie's LIFE loving STORY but it pays off in dividends. It took me ten minutes to read the last page, I was crying so much. Fantastic story and frankly I think you needed the middle for that effect in the end. This is exactly why the Hulu series unnerves me. To me, King tricked us into reading about an interesting time travel plot as a lead-in for a fantastic love story. And then Hulu changes the way they meet, blasts past their years together in a montage, I don't think the showrunners have the same idea as I do vis a vis what the book is really about. Advice fucked around with this message at 04:12 on Mar 5, 2016 |
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Mar 5, 2016 04:10
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Medullah posted:Now, right now I'm forcing myself to read Atlas Shrugged... You want drawn out... Paying a dominatrix to kick you in the balls repeatedly seems to be a more effective use of your time with the same result.
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Mar 5, 2016 07:38
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I'm really liking 11.22.63 the tv show so far. Even the additional character who seems like such a gently caress up he's probably going to set things back and maybe even force a restart
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Mar 5, 2016 08:20
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So again, not far into reading 11/22/63 so I'm not reading any of these spoilers, but does the series depict James Franco diarrheaing so bad that he has to buy continence pants asking for a friend
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Mar 5, 2016 09:42
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DoctorG0nzo posted:So again, not far into reading 11/22/63 so I'm not reading any of these spoilers, but does the series depict James Franco diarrheaing so bad that he has to buy continence pants They're like three episodes in. You may be thinking of Dany in a Dance of Dragons.
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Mar 5, 2016 10:20
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syscall girl posted:They're like three episodes in. Nah it's part of the Derry sequence. The past tries to stay unchanged by making the protagonist throw up and get diarrhea on the day of the murder. It's not "sunset found her squatting in the grass" tier but I pictured Franco and laughed
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Mar 5, 2016 14:28
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Been reading Bazaar of Bad Dreams. This bespectacled rear end in a top hat's still got it. Thought he lost it, but nope, just misplaced it for a while at worst. I mean look at this poo poo:quote:He was hypnotized by that cleft, looking down a thousand feet of ancient air into the church below: a million years' worth of bone and tusk, a whited sepulcher of eternity, a thrashpit of prongs such as you'd see if hell burned dry to the slag of its cauldron. That's imagery that would make Cormac McCarthy grimace and spit, but in an approving way. In particular he's moving away from the find-replace supernatural stuff and instead focusing on the meanness of human nature as a catalyst for horror. It's a trend he's really gotten into since Full Dark, No Stars and he's disturbingly adept with it.
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Mar 5, 2016 15:17
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Yeah Full Dark No Stars was great. Every so often he can still crank out something great.Josef K. Sourdust posted:Great start though... new thread title
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Mar 5, 2016 16:52
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Started Gerald's Game and, uhhhhhhh, yeah. It's not just that the subject matter is extreme and offputting, it's all of the dialogue and characterization sound like fake fake poo poo and the sense that the protagonist is being "toyed with" by the author is palpable.
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Mar 5, 2016 17:00
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DoctorG0nzo posted:So again, not far into reading 11/22/63 so I'm not reading any of these spoilers, but does the series depict James Franco diarrheaing so bad that he has to buy continence pants Yes, it does. Continence pants were purchased. Continence pants were used.
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Mar 5, 2016 18:07
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Actually the loop ending is bad for many reasons but yeah having king explain THIS ENDING IS BAD BUT I DINT FEEL LIKE DOIN BETTER made it 100x worse
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Mar 5, 2016 18:47
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Transistor Rhythm posted:The middle is the biggest doldrums of any book I've ever read in my entire life. 11/22/63 does drag in the middle but I found The Stand much harder to get through pretty much as soon as they get to Boulder until the end.
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Mar 6, 2016 19:07
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Any part of the stand that not in the first 150 pages or in Las Vegas is kinda bad.
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Mar 6, 2016 19:16
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I loved it at the time but the more I think about it the only things that stuck out to me were any scene with Randall Flagg. Larry Underwood and Glenn the sociologist were pretty cool too. Really I think one of The Stand's big problems is ultimately that Stu is one of King's most boring protagonists.
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Mar 7, 2016 02:22
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DoctorG0nzo posted:I loved it at the time but the more I think about it the only things that stuck out to me were any scene with Randall Flagg. Larry Underwood and Glenn the sociologist were pretty cool too. Really I think one of The Stand's big problems is ultimately that Stu is one of King's most boring protagonists. I was super confused because I started the Stand and was halfway through when the series started. For whatever reason, I envisioned Stu as an elderly redneck, so the romance with Frannie was bizarre to me.
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Mar 7, 2016 02:24
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yeah stu is totally randy quaid
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Mar 7, 2016 03:08
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Are you saying Stu is - in fact - a Gary Stu? I can see why readers feel Stu is a blank slate but I'd say over 50% of narrators/protagonists in SK books are neutral. The idea is that we identify with the protagonist (and that King feels comfortable inhabiting that character). The main protagonists/narrators of Salems Lot, Carrie, Mist, Christine, 11/23/63, Dark Half, Bag of Bones, Misery, It (Bill, who marginally fulfills the I-guy role most) and whole load of others are pretty plain vanilla. Some protagonists have more back story (Gard in Tommyknockers, Bill in Thinner) but they act fairly logically and have the usual range of competences. The most interesting central characters are those who have actual personalities as well as back stories: Jack & Danny in The Shining, Larry in The Stand, Louis in Pet Sematary. They actually have internal conflicts and their backgrounds powerfully influence how they handle situations. But in those cases King has to put that internal conflict at the heart of the drama/plot. For Stu, he has to be fairly likable, logical and competent because we spend so much time with him (esp. at the end with Tom) and - beside Larry and Harold - the characters in The Stand really only need to choose a side and act like cogs in a machine. Stu has to be nice and dependable and want to get back to Fran. Anything too conflicted or complex will obscure the drama and add unnecessary complexity to the story. For the most part we identify with him and root for him and feel good when he gets back to Boulder. That's all he has to do - and all he should do - in the plot. Harold is a fascinating character in The Stand. I love the idea of Harold as a character who has a chance to redeem himself and earn the respect and status that he lacked in the past but he chooses (for various reasons) to allow his bitterness and pride to destroy him and other people's lives. I also love Larry because of his struggles to free himself of the selfishness and cynicism feel real and woven into the relationships and are part of the plot. H and L are like two different paths and both feel real and complex and satisfying to spend time with - even if you're wincing while you watch them. But obviously that can't apply to every character. Also, a lot of SK books are about ordinary people in extraordinary situations. You have to keep the equations relatively balanced to write the standard SK supernatural thriller. Drop Harold in as a protagonist of The Dark Half and you'd have something very complex and odd - actually, I would love to see SK do that and really stretch himself. Too often SK does not really challenge himself. The truth is that King has written far too much. Waiting for a fascinating character and a memorable setting and an exciting plot (e.g. The Shining, Pet Semetary, my favourites) is a risk. You might end up writing just a handful of novels in your lifetime. E: I'd also add that I think Rachel, Louis and Judd in Pet Sematary are all really great, memorable characters and I love the dynamic between them. The way Rachel's haunted past drives her behaviour weaves into the plot and you can see the twisted logic of Louis's desperation. It is all consistent and it drives the plot. Once you accept the single supernatural premise of PS (the burial ground's power), the human dynamic and the interrelationship between the characters make the story very logical. The same for The Shining. There is evil and horror but essentially PS and TS are stories about terrible things happening to characters we care about - some of which they do to each other. Josef K. Sourdust fucked around with this message at 21:52 on Mar 7, 2016 |
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Mar 7, 2016 21:43
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"Josef K. Sourdust" posted:Harold is a fascinating character in The Stand. I love the idea of Harold as a character who has a chance to redeem himself and earn the respect and status that he lacked in the past but he chooses (for various reasons) to allow his bitterness and pride to destroy him and other people's lives. I also love Larry because of his struggles to free himself of the selfishness and cynicism feel real and woven into the relationships and are part of the plot. H and L are like two different paths and both feel real and complex and satisfying to spend time with - even if you wincing while you watch them. But obviously that can't apply to every character. Also, a lot of SK books are about ordinary people in extraordinary situations. You have to keep the equations relatively balanced to write the standard SK supernatural thriller. Drop Harold in as a protagonist of The Dark Half and you'd have something very complex and odd - actually, I would love to see SK do that and really stretch himself. Surprised I forgot Harold, he was awesome. Loved the way his arc ended, and I feel like he really epitomized the theme of showing a real-world stereotype (the nerd) brought to this feral and scary new life by the apocalypse. Reminds me of how weirded out I was by Nadine. Maybe it's because I took a long break while reading the Stand but it seemed like her character took a 180 from "weird ethereal babe" to "borderline succubus" without much warning or buildup. Her backstory chapter was one of my favorite parts, though, especially the Ouija board sequence.
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Mar 7, 2016 21:51
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Medullah posted:I was super confused because I started the Stand and was halfway through when the series started. For whatever reason, I envisioned Stu as an elderly redneck, so the romance with Frannie was bizarre to me. I'm paraphrasing a post I read elsewhere but you can tell King was very young when he wrote The Stand by the way he has Harold Lauder sitting on the Boulder governing committee at the age of 17, Larry Underwood having a mid-life crisis in his 20's and Stu being a wise old man of 30 or so.
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Mar 10, 2016 13:33
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