# Best Stephen King book to start my kid on? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 11, 2015, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-stephen-king-book-to-start-my-kid-on/724862 "2015-07-11T16:13:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2015, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-stephen-king-book-to-start-my-kid-on/724862/41 "2015-07-13T15:31:09Z")
> [@Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](#): > > I’m happy to say that “The Moving Finger” embodies for me the tagline, “This won’t just scare you - it’ll fuck you up for life.” > > And isn’t that what we all want for our children? _wiping away a tear_ It truly is. I’m excited you’re getting Night Shift…some of his best work, and short…she’ll be hooked in no time. 😃 For the novels, I like _The Shining_ and _Carrie_. Hey, let us know what she thinks, whatever you wind up with! ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2015, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-stephen-king-book-to-start-my-kid-on/724862/42 "2015-07-13T17:22:23Z")
> [@Tamerlane](#): > > _Skeleton Crew_ at least has the story **The Raft** - teen(?) sex transitioning right into some truly serious unpleasantness. Both great collections though with some really disturbing/frightening stories even absent sex scenes. I always found **Gramma** in particular to be seriously creepy. In a good way. Skeleton Crew was my introduction to King. It was great because there was no commitment to anything too long, and it allowed me to pick and choose some stuff that appealed to me. “The Jaunt” and “Survivor Type” were especially terrifying (in a great way) to my 13-year-old self. _‘Longer than you think, dad! Longer than you think!’_ ---
**Author:** ![stillownedbysetters](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/41988e/32.png) [@stillownedbysetters](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stillownedbysetters)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2015, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-stephen-king-book-to-start-my-kid-on/724862/43 "2015-07-13T17:36:03Z")
Another enthusiastic vote for Night Shift. Great stories, well written, and assessing which of the stories she likes, well help you know what to recommend for her next. ---
**Author:** ![PeskiPiksi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/e495f1/32.png) [@PeskiPiksi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PeskiPiksi)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2015, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-stephen-king-book-to-start-my-kid-on/724862/44 "2015-07-13T18:07:43Z")
I’m gonna vote for IT, just because it’s my favorite and because I mean, come on…the main characters are all at the same age as your daughter! (At least in the 1950s timeline.) So much good stuff in there about just the average everyday life of a kid, and the specific ways life can be hard at that age that she might really relate to. And I wouldn’t worry about all the sex/perversion in King. Pretty much impossible to avoid it, and why is the sex worse than all the horror, anyway? If she can handle one, she should be able to handle the other. ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2015, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-stephen-king-book-to-start-my-kid-on/724862/45 "2015-07-13T18:56:10Z")
> [@Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](#): > > Of course my husband pointed out that her self-described taste in books is “depressing things and epidemics,” so _The Stand_ might be for her. Maybe I’d get it on the Kindle so she doesn’t get freaked out by how long it is. Ever see the size of those Harry Potter tomes (especially combined)? I’m not saying she reads Harry Potter but today’s kids don’t seem large-book adverse if they’re enjoying it. ---
**Author:** ![tullsterx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e9bcb4/32.png) [@tullsterx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tullsterx)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2015, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-stephen-king-book-to-start-my-kid-on/724862/46 "2015-07-13T19:22:06Z")
I was into King when I was 12. . . I think the Shining was the first. . . then The Stand. . . never read Carrie, Salem’s Lot, or the Dead Zone. . . I guess cause I saw the movies first. ---
**Author:** ![dracoi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/90db22/32.png) [@dracoi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dracoi)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2015, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-stephen-king-book-to-start-my-kid-on/724862/47 "2015-07-13T21:02:41Z")
The Stand was my first exposure to King, at about 14 or so. It’s got some adult elements, but I think a lot of people underestimate what young teens know about things like sex. It was a long time before I finally got around to reading The Shining, but that’s an excellent book. Like The Stand, there are some age-sensitive elements I’m actually a big fan of King’s Bachman novels (the ones he wrote under a pen name). The Running Man is more relevant today than it was when he wrote it in 1982, and The Long Walk caused an indelible emotional response in me. In some respects, I consider it his best novel. The Long Walk is not traditional horror (no supernatural bogeyman, just brutal “war” conditions) and I don’t think there’s any sex in it. Hopefully, any 12 year old will realize that The Hunger Games are just a silly pop-culture remake of those two books. And then they’ll get off my lawn. 🙂 Note: I see on Wikipedia that > [@](#): > > In 2000, the American Library Association listed The Long Walk as one of the 100 best books for teenage readers published between 1966 and 2000. There’s irony for you. It’s the only Stephen King book on that list, and it’s not under his name. :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Cartooniverse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cartooniverse/32/3084_2.png) [@Cartooniverse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartooniverse)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2015, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-stephen-king-book-to-start-my-kid-on/724862/48 "2015-07-14T00:14:03Z")
> [@Superdude](#): > > First one of his I ever read was _The Stand_. Have you thought about starting there? The unedited version. It is possibly the perfect Stephen King novel. And this is coming from an immense King fan. I bought “The Shining” when it came out in paperback and I was about…14. Started reading it on Saturday morning. Never stopped. Finished early Sunday morning. Completely frightened. Not so much of the hotel. But of adults. Of what adults can become… with a little bad help. Over the years, it might have emerged that this was my favorite King story because of the Kubrick film. I’m a Steadicam Operator, and that film has great meaning for those of us who are practitioners of that gentle art. ( yes, yes, I know King detests the Kubrick film except for moments when he doesn’t. ) Anyway, I vote for **The Stand**. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2015, 4:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-stephen-king-book-to-start-my-kid-on/724862/49 "2015-07-14T04:18:28Z")
_'Salem’s Lot_ was the first SK book I ever read (in high school), and it hooked me. Some scenes and dialogue have stayed with me even up to now. _Firestarter_ would be a good one to start out with, too, as would _The Dead Zone_, or any of his early short-story collections. I suspect _The Stand_, although a great book, would be a bit too much for most teenagers as an intro to King. ---
**Author:** ![Runs\_With\_Scissors](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/278dde/32.png) [@Runs\_With\_Scissors](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Runs_With_Scissors)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2015, 4:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-stephen-king-book-to-start-my-kid-on/724862/50 "2015-07-14T04:53:02Z")
> [@Tangent](#): > > _Pet Sematary_ was my first King book, and my first book in the ‘horror’ genre. I was 15. I was instantly hooked and went on a tear through the rest of his books. Same, except I was 18. Perfect first SK book. And it’s so awful in the most tantalizing, delicious way. Follow it up with _Different Seasons_ for a mind bender. (The same author wrote _that_?) ---
**Author:** ![bengangmo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/50afbb/32.png) [@bengangmo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bengangmo)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2015, 8:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-stephen-king-book-to-start-my-kid-on/724862/51 "2015-07-14T08:24:10Z")
There’s a few I’d go for - My first was The Shining - I can’t reliably remember how old I was, but it should have been early teens Other than that - Christine? I’d very much second Firestarter - very accessible Deadzone might be pretty cool - I remember it being a relatively easy read. Also would suggest “The Bachmann Books” - Long Walk, Running Man, Rage …all relatively good. Something more recent if she likes to be “scared” could be “Full Dark, No Stars” - I found it very very dark. Also - The Green Mile - it’s a bit of a departure from some of his other stuff, but I really enjoyed it ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2015, 8:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-stephen-king-book-to-start-my-kid-on/724862/52 "2015-07-14T08:43:52Z")
I’m a bit of an outlier and my tastes may not be hers, but the Stephen King book I wish I’d had when I was 15 (it hadn’t been written yet) is **On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft**. It demystifies the entire act of writing in a way that I think teenagers would find particularly beneficial. ---
**Author:** ![gladtobeblazed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/85f322/32.png) [@gladtobeblazed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gladtobeblazed)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2015, 12:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-stephen-king-book-to-start-my-kid-on/724862/53 "2015-07-14T12:33:13Z")
I found that some of King’s earlier work can be a pit slow paced. Maybe _Desperation_ would be better for a kid. It is a lot more fast paced than the typical King novel and was pretty creepy. ---
**Author:** ![phungi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/phungi/32/395_2.png) [@phungi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phungi)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2015, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-stephen-king-book-to-start-my-kid-on/724862/54 "2015-07-14T17:31:08Z")
Two of his newer novels, _Mr. Mercedes_and _Finders Keepers_ involve a retired detective and a high school student, and may be of interest… they are King’s first attempt at this type of detective work, and are quite good. That said, why hold back, jump right in with _It_ and _The Stand_ ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2015, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-stephen-king-book-to-start-my-kid-on/724862/55 "2015-07-15T01:39:27Z")
> [@gladtobeblazed](#): > > I found that some of King’s earlier work can be a pit slow paced. Maybe _Desperation_ would be better for a kid. It is a lot more fast paced than the typical King novel and was pretty creepy. Eh. The “mirror” novel to that one, **[The Regulators](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Regulators)**, gripped me much more, though I was 19 when the books came out so that’s a fair bit older than the OP’s daughter. ---
**Author:** ![Infovore](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/infovore/32/420_2.png) [@Infovore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Infovore)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2015, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-stephen-king-book-to-start-my-kid-on/724862/56 "2015-07-15T21:21:31Z")
I read my first King at somewhere around that age–I think it was Carrie–and I was hooked for life. I suggest something classic, like IT, The Stand, or Pet Sematary. Even with the kiddie-sex scene at the end (which was creepy, but IIRC it wasn’t super-explicit), IT is my all-time favorite SK book, just chock-full of images guaranteed to hit the nightmare buttons on just about anybody. And let’s not even talk about the clowns. \ Let her see _why_ King is considered such a master of horror, then if she likes him, introduce some of his newer stuff. I thought _The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon_ was a bore, but maybe that was just me. ---
**Author:** ![Max\_Torque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Max\_Torque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Torque)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2015, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-stephen-king-book-to-start-my-kid-on/724862/57 "2015-07-16T16:19:39Z")
I would have voted for **Cujo** but for the scene where the ex-lover breaks into the house, vandalizes everything in sight, and ejaculates all over the bed. My first King book was **It** , which is crazy scary but has that one bit that just, ech. Short story collections would be ideal, I think. I vote **Skeleton Crew**. I feel that it’s stronger than **Night Shift** , plus it has “The Jaunt”. Funny how that story seems to make an impression on everyone who reads it, and it’s not really even horror until the very end. ---
**Author:** ![Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eyebrows_0f_doom/32/3119_2.png) [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eyebrows_0f_Doom)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2015, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-stephen-king-book-to-start-my-kid-on/724862/58 "2015-07-16T17:14:26Z")
**Gerald’s Game**! Haha, no. I forget which King novel was my first, my dad had a whole bunch of his old paperbacks in the closet that I would pull out and read when I was around your daughter’s age, and then I would go to the library every week to check out more. The first one may have been **Firestarter** or the **Bachmann Books**. Or maybe it was **Pet Sematary** or **IT**. I read so many in such a short period. It’s funny, the scene in **IT** that disturbed me the most wasn’t anything to do with supernatural horror (or kiddie sex, which I don’t even remember reading at that age), but was when the sociopathic kid tortured the puppy to death, because people really **do** shit like that. Now I really want to go read all these again! ---
**Author:** ![GargoyleWB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gargoylewb/32/199_2.png) [@GargoyleWB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GargoyleWB)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2015, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-stephen-king-book-to-start-my-kid-on/724862/59 "2015-07-16T18:19:20Z")
I didn’t see **Thinner** mentioned (queue reply for “it was post #17 doofus”). It is a wonderful fast-paced read, one of my first King books way back in the day. Others were **Salem’s Lot** and **Pet Semetary** that really got me hooked. ---
**Author:** ![WOOKINPANUB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wookinpanub/32/132_2.png) [@WOOKINPANUB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WOOKINPANUB)\ **Post date:** [July 16, 2015, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-stephen-king-book-to-start-my-kid-on/724862/60 "2015-07-16T18:34:19Z")
> [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](#): > > **Gerald’s Game**! Haha, no. > > I forget which King novel was my first, my dad had a whole bunch of his old paperbacks in the closet that I would pull out and read when I was around your daughter’s age, and then I would go to the library every week to check out more. The first one may have been **Firestarter** or the **Bachmann Books**. Or maybe it was **Pet Sematary** or **IT**. I read so many in such a short period. > > It’s funny, the scene in **IT** that disturbed me the most wasn’t anything to do with supernatural horror (or kiddie sex, which I don’t even remember reading at that age), but was when the sociopathic kid tortured the puppy to death, because people really **do** shit like that. > Now I really want to go read all these again! Of all his books, _IT_ affected me the most, I mean in a way that nothing ever has before or since. That being said, I don’t really even remember the part with the kids having sex. I mean, I’m \*aware \*of it, but mostly because we’ve spoken about it here. And, mercifully, I really don’t remember any puppy torturing. I’ve often wondered if the book would affect me the same way if I reread it now, but I really do not want to read about animal cruelty. Back to the subject; I too cut my teeth on The Shining, right around the age of 11. It would seem to be more of a rite of passage than a bar mitzvah!This would be my recommendation as it’s pretty quick reading, you don’t have to wade through tons of exposition before things get creepy and I overall think it’s the classic example of King’s writing. One that I haven’t seen anyone mention is _Delores Claiborne_. There is a back story about molestation but the molester gets his just punishment in the end. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-stephen-king-book-to-start-my-kid-on/724862.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-stephen-king-book-to-start-my-kid-on/724862.md?page=4)