Stephen King: America’s king of horror

There are few more recognizable names in the horror writing than Stephen King. He is a legend of horror and science fiction writing and has a legion of fans around the world. Many of King’s writings have been made into movies and television show, which demonstrates his enduring appeal. Here are some interesting facts about one of America’s most popular writers.

King was born in Portland, Maine in 1947 and is a huge fan of the Boston Red Sox baseball team

He has had 58 novels published but has also written hundreds of short stories and contributed to many movie scripts. He has sold more than 350 million books and sometimes wrote under the pseudonym, Richard Bachman.

Although primarily regarded as a writer of horror fiction, King has also written in a number of different genres and wrote the novel that the critically acclaimed movie The Shawshank Redemption was based on. The full title of the book was Rita Heyworth and the Shawshank Redemption.

King is an accomplished musician and once played guitar in a band with Simpsons creator Matt Groening.

He was involved in a car crash in 1999 which left him laid up for months with multiple fractures and a collapsed lung. He later bought the car which had caused him all that damage for $1500 and vowed to smash it up with a sledgehammer.

One of his most famous characters which made its way onto a movie screen was that of Jack Torrance in The Shining. The character was memorably played by Jack Nicholson.

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Top Books You Should Get Around To Reading

We’ve all got those books which we’ve heard of but have never simply gotten around to reading. Whether it’s work, chores or other commitments that get in the way, sometimes it’s just difficult to spare the hours in the day. If you need a little help deciding what book to pick next, here are the top titles which should be top of your must-read list for the future.

Catcher in the Rye – JD Salinger

If you didn’t read this book in high school, it’s one that you should prioritize. The story of a student called Holden Caulfield, Catcher in the Rye is set in the 1950s and captures the character’s slow descent into an undefinable insanity.

Ulysses – James Joyce

Written in the modernist style, Ulysses challenges preconceptions about literature. Using experimental prose and a stream-of-consciousness style, the book draws from the Greek myth of Odysseus and is split into 18 chapters just like Homer’s Odyssey, the famous ancient Greek epic upon which it is based.

Fahrenheit 451 Ray Bradbury

Originally published in 1953, Fahrenheit 451 is a dystopian view of the future. In this version of American society, all books are banned with “firemen” burning any which they find. Instead, society is ruled by a network known as The Nine where happiness is rolled out to the public around the clock. Eerily relevant in today’s world of social media, there are many multifaceted themes within this novel to explore.

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