Since I was asked about it over here, I am going to post a thead to say I love Tabitha King’s novels. Her trilogy of “Pearl” “The Book of Reuben” and “One on One” is wonderful.
I find her writing to be down to earth and insightful and nothing like Stephen!
Has anyone else read anything of hers? Do you think she would be more widely read and recognized if she wasn’t “Stephen King’s wife”? And I have to point out they have a wonderful marriage, have raised three great children (writers Joe Hill & Owen King and Naomi) and have survived their early poverty and later riches and fame, Stephen’s drinkiing and drug use and that horrible accident. Stephen acknowledges his wife’s importance in his life and he likes her writings too.
I’ve only read The Book of Reuben, and that was years ago, but I did like it very much. The last time this came up on the board I went to get her stuff on Amazon and found it was out of print - looks like it still is, which is such a shame. It’s hard to say if she got more of a chance to publish because of her famous name or got overshadowed or seen as a “novelty” act because of it - at any rate, she should be more well known than she is.
I remember reading something by her over 10 years ago… A story about a person who was shrunk (shrinked? shrunken?) and lived in a dollhouse? I liked it well enough.
ETA: Found it! Small World. After reading the reviews, I kind of want to reread it.
I haven’t read Small World or The Trap, but have re-read Pearl, The Book of Reuben and One and One. Caretakers is good, too. I left off Candles Burning midway through; it didn’t hold me at the time. I will try and pick it up again later. I never finished reading Survivor, either.
Have to come back and retry the unread novels. But I’m another huge fan of the “trilogy”.
A Gradual Canticle For Augustine is quite a lovely poem. I must come in and say that in koeeoaddi’s link, the poem has, I think, an unfortunate typo. According to my copy of SK’s On Writing, the first word of the last line should be hears, not bears, which makes it sound like she is making an overobvious pun; it diminishes the poem, in my opinion.
(Some links other than the one in question do have it as bears, while others have hears; I suppose it’s just possible that On Writing has it wrong–but I would hope not.)
Tabitha King is a wonderful author. I first found One on One, and after reading it went and found the rest of the Nodd’s Ridge books on ebay, (Caretakers, The Trap, Pearl, One on One, and The Book of Reuben) and find them to be a delightful and engrossing series. I also have Small World and Candles Burning, which are good enough to read again, although I find Small World to be a bit over the top.
I agree with Annie-Xmas that the Kings have a marriage which is, at least from the outside looking in, a fabulous model for what marriage ought to be. “For better or worse” indeed. I do think that Tabitha would have garnered more acclaim for her writing if she had not been married to Stephen, but I don’t know if that bothers her, she has accomplished many things outside of writing, and they as a couple have done/are doing so much philanthropic work, that I believe that she has plenty to feel content about.