One might consider oneself a Stephen King fan, but even the most dedicated Constant Reader may not have read all of his many, many books and short stories. It’s understandable: Stephen King has written almost 70 books of fiction, a handful of non-fiction books, and literally hundreds of short stories. He’s a machine, and one can be forgiven for not having read every single word he’s written.
Even casual Stephen King fans have likely read the big ones, though: The Stand. It. Misery. Carrie. The Shining. The iconic titles – we all know the ones. But his lesser-known or unconventional works tend to get less love, even though they deserve just as much praise as the classics. If you want to call yourself a true Stephen King fan, even a Constant Reader, the books on this list are ones to read.
5
On Writing
1999
Stephen King is primarily a fiction writer, but he’s also done a few nonfiction books and even one how-to book. Those who come to King for his fictional prose and horror can’t be blamed for not picking up On Writing, especially if they themselves don’t actually want to be writers.
But On Writing is one of Stephen King’s best non-fiction books, as much a memoir of King’s career as it is him offering his readers tips on how to write well. It covers everything from the substance abuse of his early years to why he doesn’t love some of the books he wrote in the ’90s. Anyone who wants to truly know how Stephen King’s mind works and get an insight into his writing process simply can’t understand it until they pick up On Writing.
4
Thinner
1984
Even though Stephen King was outed as Richard Bachman decades ago, some people still haven’t read all his early books written under his pen name, particularly younger readers. That may have changed for a few titles, with some readers picking up copies of The Long Walk and The Running Man in anticipation of the upcoming adaptations by Francis Lawrence and Edgar Wright, respectively.
In an especially fun twist, Thinner was the book that finally officially outed him as Bachman.
But one of his Bachman books that may have flown under the radar is Thinner, a story about an entitled lawyer who accidentally hits and kills an old Romani woman while driving and triggers a curse that causes him to waste away. It’s is a trim, nasty little tale, and it should be on the list of any Stephen King completionist. In an especially fun twist, Thinner was the book that finally officially outed him as Bachman.
3
Lisey’s Story
2006
There are many mixed opinions on Stephen King’s books from the ’90s through the ’00s, and that’s fair. Before his accident on June 19, 1999, he’d been experimenting with more structured, planned-out novels, to mixed results. After his accident, it was, well, not always easy writing or reading. So Lisey’s Story may have fallen through the cracks for some readers who drifted away from the author or missed a few books in that era.
Related
Every Stephen King Story Inspired By His Own Life
Stephen King mostly writes fictional horror stories, but in many cases, he has been inspired by events and people from his life.
Still, Lisey’s Story is arguably the most autobiographical of Stephen King’s books, and well worth reading for that reason. The story was partly inspired by his near-death experience; while he was in the hospital, his wife, Tabitha, redecorated his work space to surprise him, and he said it gave him a glimpse of what the world might be like had he not lived. The titular Lisey and her siblings are also based on Tabitha and her sisters. In many ways, it’s King’s love letter to his wife and marriage of over half a century, as well as a way to grapple with his own mortality.
2
Cycle of the Werewolf
1983
While Stephen King has generally tended to invent brand-new monsters for his stories, he’s occasionally dipped into the well of folklore and borrowed creatures from older myth, most notably vampires. He’s written about ghosts, too – lots of ghosts. He’s also put on the page a werewolf story, too, yet it didn’t get as much attention as his other traditional monster books. Cycle of the Werewolf was that book, a great story about a werewolf from early in his career.
Cycle of the Werewolf was later loosely adapted as the 1985 movie Silver Bullet; Stephen King penned the script adaptation himself.
It arguably flew under the radar compared to some of the bigger hits of that year, Christine and his collection Different Seasons. It’s short; at a trim 127 pages, Cycle of the Werewolf is more of a novella than a novel, but it shows flashes of the curious, experimental style King would exhibit throughout his career. While the book follows a werewolf stalking and killing people in a small town, each chapter is a short story and stands on its own. It’s a quick read and worth it simply to see King testing out a new format as a young writer.
1
Revival
2014
Revival may seem like an odd choice for this list, considering that, in the long span of King’s career, it’s a relatively recent novel, having come out only 11 years ago. But Revival was a true return to form for King. In so many ways, it was a perfect distillation of all the trademarks he’d stamped his work with through the years and the experience of 50 years of writing melding together in one masterful story.
Related
I Can’t Believe This Underrated Stephen King Book Still Hasn’t Been Adapted
Despite the glut of recent Stephen King adaptations, one of his best books of the past decade still hasn’t gotten a movie or TV adaptation.
King has always been a student of pop culture and literary history, and that shines through in Revival, which borrows from classic horror novels like Frankenstein and H.P. Lovecraft’s work. But the low-brow stuff and the pop culture is there, too – it wouldn’t really be a Stephen King story otherwise. Like his epic tales from earlier in his career, Revival is a slow-burn that builds up to horror that lingers, making it an instant classic in King’s bibliography.
Stephen King
- Birthdate
-
September 21, 1947
- Birthplace
-
Portland, Maine, USA
- Professions
-
Author, Screenwriter, Producer, Director, Actor