Absolute Chaos Discussion Boards
Miscellaneous => Chatterbox => The AC Book Club => Topic started by: mare on June 26, 2012, 10:32:38 AM
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A place to post about all stories SK.
And a place to discuss 11/22/63 lol
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Yay!
OK, so I started the book last night and have got to the part where Jake's just got back to the diner after his first trip into the past. I liked that Al didn't give too much away at first and that Jake was open to believe him.
I'm really loving it so far as time travel has always interested me.
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He does an excellent job with the time travel storyline. I LOVE his foreshadowing too. It's always been one of my favorite things about him the way he always alludes to what may or may not happen.
All of the characters in this one are so strong!
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I'm wondering what the janitor has to do with it all, if anything. I suppose I'd better get reading and find out!
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He's pretty important lol i'm about to read the next chapter. I read a chapter a day. His chapters are pretty long as is this entire novel lol I'm on chapter 26 yay me! lol
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I've just got to the part where Jake is considering going back to stop the JFK assassination.
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I have lunch soon so I was going to finish reading the sample on lunch and then I can buy it if I want to continue which I probably will, Steph and I tend to like the same kinds of stories. :)
I never read the Dark Tower series either. I've just avoided him since he is known for his horror though I thought about reading a couple of the books for the few movies of his I've seen. LOL.
I think I just sort of "forget" about him when looking for new authors to read. I tend to look for books similar to what I've been reading. And that is what bothers me about Amazon... it recommends books based off of what you've read but it doesn't help at all when you are looking for something new. I loved Borders for that ... not sure where the closest B & N is to me either.
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Lore, we do tend to like the same kind of thing don't we :)
I've kind of overlooked him too, even though I read and enjoyed a few of his books when I was younger. I remember reading Carrie, Misery, Dolores Claiborne, Needful Things, Firestarter, IT and I can't remember if there was anything else.
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I love him & read most of his books but my favorites have always been his non horror ones like Eyes of the Dragon, The Dark Tower Series, The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon and now this one. He writes fantasy really well and all those except for Tom Gordon, fall into that category.
I get into a habit of always reading the same authors, like him & Jodi Picoult. That's why I'm forcing myself to buy some new stuff this go round lol
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I need to read 11/22/63! It looks interesting, different for Stephen King. I'm glad to hear you liked it, Mare!
I'm definitely a fan of Stephen King. I've read quite a few of his books. I tend to prefer his older horror ones. My favorites are Misery, 'Salem's Lot, Cujo, and The Stand.
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I loved The Stand as well!
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The Stand is one of those books that requires a lot of patience because it's SO long and moves so slowly, but it's so epic that it's absolutely worth it. I wish they'd make a good movie version of it. There's that miniseries from 1994 with Gary Sinise and Molly Ringwald, but it's BAD. Bad acting and even worse special effects. It deserves the big-budget treatment!
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I agree! That's how this novel is too. It's really long and sometimes moves a little slow but then suddenly speeds up. Kind of like walk walk walk jog run walk walk walk lol
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Long doesn't bother me, but slow pacing is hard for me sometimes... I have to know it's going to be worth it in the end! But I trust your taste and SK's talent, so I'm sure it is!!
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11/22/63 is a freaking amazing book. I need to get it back from my cousin, I lent it to him to read but the little shit still hasn't read it yet lmao. Definitely need that back so I can re-read lol. I really liked where it went with it, for an unrealistic concept he really carried it off in a believable way. Jake makes a choice I'm not sure I'd be able to make at the end.
My faves are always gonna be the Dark Tower series (amaaaaaazing, I never get sick of reading them), and The Stand lol. The first book I ever read by him though was Firestarter, which is just a classic.
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I only have two chapters to go so I'll probably be finishing it up today. :)
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Hey Rose, have you read the brand new Dark Tower book yet?
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11/22/63 is a freaking amazing book. I need to get it back from my cousin, I lent it to him to read but the little shit still hasn't read it yet lmao. Definitely need that back so I can re-read lol. I really liked where it went with it, for an unrealistic concept he really carried it off in a believable way. Jake makes a choice I'm not sure I'd be able to make at the end.
My faves are always gonna be the Dark Tower series (amaaaaaazing, I never get sick of reading them), and The Stand lol. The first book I ever read by him though was Firestarter, which is just a classic.
Just finished it. It ended exactly the way I wanted it to. I have to admit I chortled at the mention of Canada lol weird!
What a great book! I got a little teary at the end, I admit.
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Hey Rose, have you read the brand new Dark Tower book yet?
OMG no, I forgot about that lol. I knew there was another coming out but I haven't picked it up yet. You? Is it as good as the others?
Just finished it. It ended exactly the way I wanted it to. I have to admit I chortled at the mention of Canada lol weird!
What a great book! I got a little teary at the end, I admit.
I loved the Canada mention LMAO. OMG the ending got me so misty eyed! I loved it though, it's an ending, not perfect or anything. Just how it should be.
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I haven't gotten it yet. I'm kind of on the fence about getting the new one. I just feel like it's over & done with lol I'm probably going to cave and read it though!
And I love most of his endings. They always just seem perfect. Not over the top happy or sad but just right. lol
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After I've finished 11.22.63 I'll read the Dark Tower books I think.
I ended up going to sleep much later than I planned last night as I couldn't put the book down!
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There are so many layers to this book that sometimes it can get confusing lol I think it would make an epic movie as long as they don't ruin it like they do most of his stories.
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Dude, I dunno how I feel about a new DT book either. Like part of me is uber-excited, and part of me is like...um, this is supposed to be over lol.
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Exactly! I mean theres really no place to go since we all know the scoop lol
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I haven't started to read 11/22/63 more as I got caught up in another series of books but I'm about half way through the second one and the third hasn't been published yet. I am not going to enjoy waiting for that I'm sure. *sigh* Once I'm done with it though it is 11/22/63 until I finish. :)
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Interesting interview with SK about 11/22/63
http://www.stephenking.co.uk/site/112263_interview.php5
:)
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That was an interesting interview :)
Well I'm just over 20% through the book now and loving it so much. I also like the fact that he's included characters and things from IT, like the clown, the saying "beep-beep Richie", etc. Derry sounds like a depressing place though, I'm imagining it like it is on the IT film.
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He always does that. It's one of the things I love the most about him lol
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Ah right, it's been such a long time since I read one of his books that I wouldn't have noticed. But the book IT has always stood out to me because I hate clowns, lol.
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Me too! lol
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I actually have watched IT. I don't watch/read horror but I watched that one and I'm not afraid of clowns... now Tim Curry on the other hand ;) lol
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I just think clowns are scary looking, especially Pennywise the clown, lol.
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I've never trusted clowns, they're always a little too happy!
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The circus opens in town tonight and it made me think of Stephen King's Pennywise *shudders*
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I just got to the part where they discussed the child deaths in Derry. I knew when I first heard Derry that I knew that town name for some reason... well duh! :)
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Yeah, a lot of his stories take place in Derry lol
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65% of the way through, I could tell you what page that is if you really wanted to know. I'm loving it. I love all the little tidbits of history there is. Sure it's slow right now because he's waiting but it doesn't bother me it is such a good read. :)
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Yay! Glad you're enjoying it. I can't wait for you & Steph to finish so we can discuss lol
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Wow Lore, you're way ahead of me! I'm still loving it though, need to go to bed earlier so I can read more as I like to read before I go to sleep.
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Finally finished reading it. Wow, what a book! I was willing him to get there in time to stop Lee, and every obstacle in their way had me on the edge of my seat. I didn't like the sound of that future, it kind of reminded me of the alternate world BSB ended up in during Whatever The Night May Bring.
I can't begin to explain how much I loved this book, I've just spent the last 4 hours finishing it though as I couldn't put it down when I got to the crucial part.
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I know! It was pretty epic! I am glad he went and saw the older version of ack... Can't remember her name lol
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Sadie. Yeah, I'm glad he went to see her too, perhaps after that he would be able to move on. I would've liked a happy ending for Jake and Sadie, but that's just the romantic in me and I loved what Stephen King did with the story.
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I don't think all of that would have happened if JFK had lived. That's what the new yellow card man was telling him. It was because he changed the past that it all happened, it created those earthquakes and the chage was so huge that it was literally tearing the world a part. Some of the changes were a result of JFK living but also because of the way the world was reacting, the earthquakes and other natural disasters that were occuring changed things that might not have been if JFK had lived originally. I thought it was a great way to show that making changes like that would never be for the good no matter what you thought.
I was cheering for him to get up there too. And when she was killed! wow! I KNEW something like that was going to happen though. He messed with the past and Al told him it doesn't want to be changed. Now we know why.
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Makes you wonder if this world is so crappy because someone went and changed something in our world. lol
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Yeah, I didn't think the changes in the future were just down to JFK living, rather that it was because every little change he made caused something more major to happen in it's place. Yes, time didn't want to be changed, but it would've been nice if it had wanted to be, but then we wouldn't have had all that suspense and excitement.
I was really sad when she died, but I knew something had to happen to counter balance Lee's death :(
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Makes you wonder if this world is so crappy because someone went and changed something in our world. lol
It certainly does get the brain thinking! I've always loved the idea of time travel and often wonder what the world would be like if certain things in history hadn't occurred.
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Me too!
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Me three!
I do like how he explained the change didn't happen, or why it was changed back. I was wondering how it was going to work since we obviously live in a world that JFK died in.
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Yeah, I'm glad it reset! Part of me was thinking when he tried to go through the last time that it would be too late and not reset.
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Yeah, I wondered if it would reset after such a major change in history, because Al hadn't really changed anything had he? Just bought meat and then watched Lee until he became too ill to carry on.
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Part of me thought that too because of the original yellow card man dying. I'm interested to learn about THEM. where/what time do they come from? How did they create these time holes? what happened to create them? I want to know about them.
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Al did change something. He kept that girl from being a wheelchair.
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Al did change something. He kept that girl from being a wheelchair.
Oh yeah, I forgot about that!
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Part of me thought that too because of the original yellow card man dying. I'm interested to learn about THEM. where/what time do they come from? How did they create these time holes? what happened to create them? I want to know about them.
I wanted to know more about them too, would be an interesting story.
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Know SK I wouldn't count out a short story dealing with the yellow card man or them showing up in another novel at some point.
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well this is only the second SK book I've ever read and the first one was an "accident". I found a book that didn't have an author, I was interested, read a bit and was hooked. It was a historical fiction journal about a woman who marries some man and moves into a house.... how was I to know it it was the companion story to Rose Red by him. I didn't realize it until I caught part of the mini series on TV and thought, 'hey that sounds like the book I read' and so I looked into it more. Man I felt dumb.
anyway to the point of the post, I hope he writes a companion with the yellow card men or something else with them in it. I'd probably read that one just to find out, unless it's horror. I'd be sad if it was horror.
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we should have warned people... spoilers abound for 11/22/63 in this thread ... heh
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You would think people would kind of figure it out since this thread is to discuss the book lol
Rose Red was a crazy book! lol
I think if you decide to read anything else by him, you should go for the Dark Tower Series or Eyes of the Dragon.
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I'm going to read the Dark Tower books once I've got through the couple of books I've got.
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I am going to *cringe* finish Twilight then I have a couple on my Kindle and some books my husband liked that we own that I'm going to give a shot before I go on the hunt for more books. :) I have put them on my list though, at least to try.
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I finally got 11/22/63! Started reading it the other night and am not very far into it yet, but I'm really enjoying it so far! It's so different from other SK books, but that's okay! Will come back and actually read this thread when I finish it; I don't want to read any spoilers.
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Yay! Excellent!
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Awesome Julie! It's a great book. :)
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It's such a great book, I still can't get it out of my head!
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I finally finished 11/22/63 last night - took me forever to read because I just read a little bit each night in bed before I went to sleep, but OMG, it was so good!!! I loved it! I stayed up til midnight the other night because I got to the climax and couldn't stop reading!
I have never been a big fan of historical fiction or sci-fi/time travel stuff, but I do love history, and I thought this book was SO interesting and so well-written! It sucked me in right away, and although it was really long, I didn't feel that it moved slowly - certainly not as slowly as the first half or so of The Stand. I loved all the little details he included about life in the late 50s; it made me wish I could live in that time (except for the blatant racism LOL). I also found myself Wikipedia-ing Lee Harvey Oswald and his family quite a bit throughout the second half. I learned a lot!
[SPOILER!!!]
I thought the ending was perfect. In every story I've ever read about someone going back in time to stop some historical disaster from happening, the lesson learned is that you can't change history - no one ever stops the Titanic from hitting the iceberg, etc. So I was surprised that Jake actually did succeed in saving Kennedy - but I LOVE how that didn't lead to the perfect rewrite of history that Al had envisioned, but instead ruined the world. It was very Whatever the Night May Bring, Mare. In fact, I couldn't remember when you read this book and was wondering if you'd read it before you came up with the idea for that story - I didn't think so because this book is so new, and that made it even eerier to see all the similarities! Including the Canada reference LOL.
[End spoiler]
I also loved the first person narration of this one... Stephen King doesn't usually write in first person, so it was different from his usual style, but I thought it flowed better. Really great book!!!
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You brought up a reason why I love historical fiction books. Though I know they are fiction and facts can be changed to fit the story, I always look up the actual historical person/event to see what really happened. It piques my interest in that person or time period which leads me down a path to research of my own.
I also like that how he incorporated his own "history" into it with Derry.
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I still haven't read anything since this book which I've enjoyed as much. It's definitely the best book I've read in a long time.
Like you Julie, I wanted to go back to those times (minus the racism). If only I could find a portal to another time, LOL.
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I read this book long after I write whatever the night. I admit I was kind of blown away by the similarities. lol it's nice to know that Stephen King & I think the same way lol
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Random comment but apparently Stephen King just showed up at a high school in a town I cover news for in New Brunswick. The students in grade 12 had been pushing to get him to come there so he just drove up unannounced to say what's up and check out their library, read some of their writing and talk to them about being a teacher and a writer and just about life. Crazy.
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That's super cool of him!!
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That was really nice of him!
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I love him!
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Did you all see that JJ Abrams is in talks to make 11/22/63 into a TV show? I really hope this happens! I can see it actually working because of the length of the novel and subject matter. It would be really easy to keep him in the past as long as they needed to as long as they kept the integrity of the book as they did it. No people living who die or happy happy endings etc... lol
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OMG really? That would be so amazing! It's still the best book I've read in a long time, I just hope the TV series lives up to the book. No, I don't want them to change anything either.
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I think it would be great as a TV show too! It's far too long of a book to be made into a [good] movie. I hope this happens!
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Did you all see that JJ Abrams is in talks to make 11/22/63 into a TV show? I really hope this happens! I can see it actually working because of the length of the novel and subject matter. It would be really easy to keep him in the past as long as they needed to as long as they kept the integrity of the book as they did it. No people living who die or happy happy endings etc... lol
OMG I'd love that! I know there's the whole Under the Dome show too but I would love 11/22/63 as a show WAY more.
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Has anyone picked up SK's new one, Joyland? I haven't yet, but I may at some point this summer. I like the retro look of it. Judging by 11/22/63, he does retro well.
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He also co-wrote a musical with T Bone Burnett and John Mellancamp about twin brothers who die and come back to haunt a cabin. I was thinking about it getting Joyland, but I think I might get the new Dan Brown book first. I got about $50 worth of B&N gift cards so might get both, although there's also that new book from the guy who wrote The Kite Runner too!
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Interesting... I didn't know he'd co-written a musical! Pretty cool. I caught part of an interview with him on the Today show the other day where he was talking about how he gets inspired by images and excavates the stories that go with them, almost like digging fossils. I wish I had that kind of creativity LOL.
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Me too!
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So, I did buy Joyland and am about halfway through it. It's a good read so far. Nothing really suspenseful has happened. It's basically about a 21 year old and his summer working at an amusement park. It's a coming of age type story. There was a mention of a murder in the horror house and a ghost that still roams around there but it really hasn't been the central part of the story. It reminds me a bit of The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon which is another SK novel I loved. Not sure why there is a hard case crime banner on the book and the girl looking horrified on the cover. It's kind of misleading and I can see how SK horror lovers might be disappointed if they go for this one in hopes of gore etc... I mean it might be coming, it IS Stephen King lol but as of now, not too much.
It's a sweet story and probably a quick read.
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Thanks for the review! I'm trying to get through some of the books I've had lying around here that I haven't read yet, but once I run out of things to read, I'll probably pick it up.
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"The last good time always comes, and when you see the darkness creeping towards you, you hold on to what was bright and good. You hold on for dear life." ~ Stephen King's Joyland
Excellent book, I give it two thumbs up. You'll need tissues at the end.
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I will have to look out for that one when I go shopping :)
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I started reading "It" back in March, and I am only just halfway through it... OMG, it is so long LOL. I haven't been reading it consistently, obviously; it was slow-going at first, but I've gotten back into it and made more progress lately, and it is getting a lot better. I want to finish it before the new movie comes out this fall. I've actually never seen the 90s miniseries in its entirety, only bits and pieces, so I want to watch that too once I'm done with the book. Anyone else read it or looking forward to the movie?
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I read it a very long time ago. My sister is reading it now and said the same thing. Stephen King tends to write really long novels. lol
I enjoyed the mini series. The movie looks horrifying. I'm not sure if I'll be watching that one or not.
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He does, but the other super long ones I've read (like 11/22/63 and The Stand) have been among his best, so I'm hoping It will be too. I thought 11/22/63 was paced really well, but I remember The Stand being slow in the beginning too and then being epic once you got to the end.
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I'd like to read IT. I saw the mini series and loved it and am looking forward to the new movie.
11/22/63 is one of my favourite books.