This Is Me--2024 A to Z Theme

My A to Z Themes in the past have covered a range of topics and for 2024 the theme is a personal retrospective that I call "I Coulda Been" which is in reference to my job and career arc over my lifetime. I'll be looking at all sorts of occupations that I have done or could have done. Maybe you've done some of these too!

Thursday, April 13, 2023

King of Modern Day Authors ( #AtoZChallenge )

#AtoZChallenge 2023 letter K

 

      King of Modern Day Authors could be a title that applies to several perhaps. Who comes to your mind?  It's not really a trick question, but the answer is pretty obvious to a lot of us.  Think literally!   Who writes a lot of books?  Stephen King of course!  And I have a lot of books by him and I don't even remember buying most of them.


Stephen King Books

Nightmares and Dreamscapes

       This is one of several very thick King books that I have.  Since they're short stories I should probably check this one out to read at least a few of them. 



        If you're a writer, you likely have at least one or both of these.  They are good writing books worth your time.



      So many more Stephen King books that I could list here, but I'll be referring to more of his books later.  I could fill an entire shelf with the King books in my collection.


Other Books for 'K'

Killing the Rising Sun 

          Though Bill O'Reilly's name is forefront on this book, I'm sure Martin Dugard did most or all of the writing.  No matter who wrote it, this book makes for a fast-paced interesting read.  The book is part of the much larger "Killing" series franchise by O'Reilly and Dugard.  A fine read for World War Two history buffs or anyone else for that matter.


Salt: A World History by Mark Kurlansky

         This is the only book by Kurlansky that I've read, but it makes me want to read some of his other work.  I found this book to be a fascinating history about the quest for salt and the many ways that it was used.  One of those types of books that tell you everything you might have wanted to know about the subject along with a lot of stuff you never even thought about.  I liked this book a lot.



Kon-Tiki by Thor Heyerdahl

            Seeing the 95 cent price on this book I'm guessing that I probably bought this in the seventies when I was in college.  Since the print date in the book is 1972 I would say that it was pretty close to that time when I bought it.  It's a book that I'd heard of since I was in elementary school and I'd always wanted to read it.  Though I don't recall the circumstances of my purchasing this book, apparently I must have seen it in a bookstore and thought it was high time that I read this classic.  Fifty years later, at the beginning of this year, I finally read it.  I'm surprised that I managed to keep this paperback this long, but I've been pretty good about taking care of all my books.

          This is a decent adventure book that lived up to its reputation.  Being relatively short, it's a quick read and it kept me riveted throughout.  The story is a basic tale of survival and wonderment as the crew of Kon-Tiki sails a raft from Peru to the South Seas islands.  Worth the read for anyone who likes this sort of adventure fare.   I'd give it 4 stars.





    Which of these books draw your interest?  Have you read much by Stephen King?   What book did you want to read when you were a child but never got around to doing it until you were an adult?







11 comments:

  1. Jamie (jannghi.blogspot.com):
    I read The Stand (My mom has it at home) when the pandemic first hit and I was temporarily unable to obtain books from the library. Not that big on King books, though.

    ReplyDelete
  2. With all the books that Stephen King has out, I can't say I've read a lot but I've read a fair share. He has some really good stuff out there and I have and have read twice his On Writing which I found very motivating and will even turn to it as reference for writing my own fiction. Most of what I've read of his fiction are his shorter works which I've found really good. The only full-length novel I've read by him is The Shining and it is super chilling!

    ReplyDelete
  3. You'll laugh: the book I wanted to read the most was "Goldfinger" by Ian Fleming. I couldn't have been more than ten because I remember Dad was still alive. Mom was reading it and I asked if I could read it after her. Needless to say, she was vehemently opposed... Twenty or so years later, I got it out of the library and read it just to spite her. The experience was more than a little underwhelming...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. William Stephenson mentions Ian Fleming in his incredible true story about WWII "A Man Called Intrepid." Ian told Bill he wanted to write a book about their adventures after the war. Bill told him nobody would believe him!

      Delete
  4. I haven't read any of the books you listed here except for Stephan King. Like Anonymous, I'm not a huge fan of his. the writing is well done, but I would rather read "happy books" like The House in the Cerulean Sea, by TJ Klune (notice the 'K'?).

    ReplyDelete
  5. The first wife was a big Stephen King fan, for some reason there is any of his stuff in my house.

    ReplyDelete
  6. I thought immediately of The King Is Dead by Ellery Queen, but Anna and the King also comes to mind. I'm not a great fan of Stephen King, but I have 11/22/63 in my TBR pile. :)

    ReplyDelete
  7. It’s next to impossible to name a Stephen King book I don’t own or have at least read, and you just did! Secret Windows is now on my must have list;-) I thought about checking out a few from “The Killing” series but never got around to it. “Salt” sounds like a perfect book for research.

    ReplyDelete
  8. I've read "Salt" and enjoyed it. I also read "Cod" by Kurlansky, and as I recall I liked that one even more.
    https://nydamprintsblackandwhite.blogspot.com/2023/04/king-knox-atozchallenge.html

    ReplyDelete
  9. Most people including me never knew that H.P Lovecraft was one of the giants of "horror." Right up there with Edgar Allen Poe and Stephen King. I found out when Providence hosted the International Lovecraft Festival one week in Rhode Island.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Great post! Hopefully you're enjoying the A to Z Challenge as much as we are this year.
    ~ The Operation Awesome Team
    operationawesome6@gmail.com
    https://operationawesome6.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete

Go ahead and say something. Don't be afraid to speak your mind.
I normally try to respond to all comments in the comment section so please remember to check the "Email follow-up comments" box if you want to participate in the comment conversation.

For Battle of the Bands voting the "Anonymous" commenting option has been made available though this version is the least preferred. If voting using "anonymous" please include in your comment your name (first only is okay) and city you are voting from and the reason you chose the artist you did.

If you know me and want to comment but don't want to do it here, then you can send me an email @ jacksonlee51 at aol dot com.

Lee