# What is Stephen King's best novel? \[POLL\] **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 26, 2014, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-stephen-kings-best-novel-poll/708183 "2014-12-26T01:44:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![GrumpyBunny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bc8723/32.png) [@GrumpyBunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrumpyBunny)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2015, 12:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-stephen-kings-best-novel-poll/708183/81 "2015-01-01T00:47:45Z")
> [@Ibn\_Warraq](#): > > I’ll note that one of his draw backs is King is really terrible at ending his books. He doesn’t really leave himself anywhere to go in a lot of the story arcs. (I hope you know what I mean; I’ve got a nice case of Captain Trips and I’m not the sharpest knife in the drawer right now.) ---
**Author:** ![PSXer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/48db29/32.png) [@PSXer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PSXer)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2015, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-stephen-kings-best-novel-poll/708183/82 "2015-01-01T01:22:28Z")
The Stand is great. not surprised it has so many votes I am surprised that Pet Semetary has so few votes, since that is the correct answer ---
**Author:** ![Rachellelogram](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rachellelogram/32/8689_2.png) [@Rachellelogram](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rachellelogram)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2015, 2:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-stephen-kings-best-novel-poll/708183/83 "2015-01-01T02:32:41Z")
I haven’t read all of these. And of the ones I have read, I struggle to pick just ONE favorite. My emotional favorite is _Dolores Claiborne_. The subject matter spoke to me in a very personal way, at a time when I really needed it. The most horrorful (it’s a word now!) I’ve read is _Thinner_. God damn, but I love that dark ending. I’ve never had a problem with his writing style, but I also enjoy plenty of schlock. I’ll read almost anything that sits still long enough, as long as the plot is sufficiently entertaining and the spelling/grammar errors aren’t too numerous. Great thread idea! I’m going to get _The Stand_ and read it this weekend. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![dream-scraper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f9ae1b/32.png) [@dream-scraper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dream-scraper)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2015, 5:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-stephen-kings-best-novel-poll/708183/84 "2015-01-01T05:05:06Z")
> [@Spice\_Weasel](#): > > He’s also one of my favorite writers. His shorts are where I really feel it. Last night I proselytized to two people about ‘‘1408’’, the full text of which is available online [right here](http://www.silveraspen.net/1408.html). I reread it and was like damn, you couldn’t get any tropier than a skeptic sleeping in a haunted hotel. But King can make a trope into a masterpiece. > Agreed. I actually dislike horror, and so avoided King for a long time (also assuming if he was that prolific, he couldn’t be that good.) I think he’s one of the best writers of our time. I think in our historical texts he will be compared to masters like Poe. I agree regarding his short stories. I put it right there at the top. My favorite story is probably ‘The Shining’ due to the isolation & psychological limitations of the characters. I think horror/sci-fi stories are more effective when the characters are in extreme isolated conditions like ‘Alien’ or ‘30 Days of Night’ where there is a low chance for survival… ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [January 1, 2015, 5:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-stephen-kings-best-novel-poll/708183/85 "2015-01-01T05:45:14Z")
> [@Spice\_Weasel](#): > > He’s also one of my favorite writers. His shorts are where I really feel it. Last night I proselytized to two people about ‘‘1408’’, the full text of which is available online [right here](http://www.silveraspen.net/1408.html). I reread it and was like damn, you couldn’t get any tropier than a skeptic sleeping in a haunted hotel. But King can make a trope into a masterpiece. \ I think “1408” is arguably Stephen King’s scariest story. The idea of going into that room and starting off normal, then slowly and inexorably sliding into everything being horrifically wrong, with no logical explanation possible - so, so creepy. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-stephen-kings-best-novel-poll/708183.md?page=4)