11/22/63 by Stephen King - Discussion Thread - Page 5

Harlock415 · 12-15-2011, 04:53 AM

I finished the book a few days ago in of all places while waiting in line for Star Tours at Disneyland. Finished the afterward while waiting in line for Space Mountain. This is definitely one of my favorite King books. I had stopped reading his books around the time of Tommyknockers, but had pretty much read everything else by him up to that point.

It was the premise of course that intrigued me, but soon, like the main character I became deeply involved in the town of Jodie, fell in love with Sadie and the cast of characters in his small town. Funny thing I kept doing while reading this was churning in my head what would be the final end that the book arrives at, or how it was all going to tie in together. I kept looking for foreshadowing and would get thrown off by King though, good job of using coincidences purposely.

If you are not a horror fan, it's still easy to get involved in this book as it can't be classified as horror, except for the more real world horror abusive husband, for which there are at I would say 3 depicted in the novel.

beespeckled · 12-24-2011, 03:44 AM

I just finished the paper version from the library. I loved it, wonderfully rounded tale, great ending and author afterward also.

SteveK · 12-26-2011, 11:55 PM

I just finished this book a few hours ago, and I enjoyed it tremendously. I've read very little of Stephen King, but this seems to be one of his better books. Thoroughly enjoyable from start to finish, with good plot and character development.

Enjoy!
SteveK

Roland of Gilead · 12-28-2011, 10:34 PM

Glad I discovered this forum - this is my first post.

I've been a Stephen King fan for years; back in the late '80's-early '90's, I read all of the books he had written up to that point (up to Gerald's Game), and really enjoyed most of them.

However, I lost touch with his books over the years and hadn't read anything new by him in about ten years....until I heard about 11/22/63. I picked up the HC from the library recently, and just finished reading this....Wow...What an amazing book! This is a real page-turner, and even though it's 800+ pages, it went by very quickly. Truly superb in every way, and even though I don't agree with all of the opinions King presented here, this is a great sci-fi time-travel novel:

- SK obviously did his research re: the TX settings, etc. (which he mentioned in the afterword), and it really showed.

- The 1950's/early 1960's settings/attitudes/limited technology were seemingly described very accurately; though this was before my time, you really felt as if you were right there with the characters.

Side-note: If you liked this book & also liked Oliver Stone's JFK film (1991), check out the 1973 film Executive Action. Great movie, which presents a different take on this subject.

Lemurion · 01-01-2012, 05:26 PM

I really enjoyed it.

I think King is at his best when dealing with the issues of coming of age and small-town life in the 50's and 60's, and this book provides exactly that.

taosaur · 01-02-2012, 02:12 AM

I'm at 20% and was drawn right in. It definitely seems more in keeping with fan favorites like It, The Stand, or The Dark Tower. I enjoyed Duma Key and the first couple stories in FDNS (haven't read the others yet), but this is his first book in a while that really grabbed me. I'm thinking a big part of it is less the subject matter than the familiar Stephen King-ness of writing ;D

Eddie Dean · 01-08-2012, 04:14 AM

I've been reading King books since the 7th grade and while I have not read every single thing he's written (close though), this is his best work in about a decade, IMHO. I'm at the 300 page mark now and having trouble putting it down. A good return to form, for a man who, again only my opnion, has fallen off drastically the last ten plus years.

Now, I'm an avid reader of King's work and have gone through It at least eight times (I'm big on re-reading books). How does this relate to 11/22/63? Well, obviously there are characters from It in the new novel, but what bothered me was the mention of Patrick Hockstetter. Correct me if I'm wrong, fellow Stephen King Nuts but near the end of It, when they are adults and approaching It's chamber, they come across the skeleton of Patrick Hockstetter surrounded by bloated schoolbooks, right? That was in the 80's. However, in 11/22/63 someone in the 1950's mentions that they just found the body of the boy, Patrick Hockstetter. How could they find his body if it's under the street in the 1980's?

Or perhaps I'm just a nit-picky a-hole who has his facts messed up... but it's really been bothering me since I read the line. So, anyone else notice this, or am I wrong?

Despite all my ramblings, I love the book so far. Should be done soon, can't wait for the ending! Also, these forums seem very nice, I thinhk I'll hang around awhile. Thanks!

HarryT · 01-08-2012, 05:45 AM

When I saw the title of this book my immediate thought was "I wonder if it's about C.S. Lewis?". I guess there aren't too many people who would automatically associated 23rd Nov 1963 with the death of C.S. Lewis, rather than President Kennedy

. I need to get out more.

MickeyC · 01-08-2012, 09:25 AM

Just finished it and enjoyed it very much. Not quite up to The Stand or It but I sure liked it a lot better than The Dome. Very interesting plot and premise.

I did notice two historical errors:

On page 272, Mike Colsaw says that Bobbi Jill tells him to "man up". But "man up" wasn't an expression used in the 60's but rather more in current times

On page 278, Jim LaDue jumps to his feet and yells, "You rock, Coslaw". But "you rock" is an expression from this century. Don't recall ever hearing it in the 60's.

Those (very minor) points aside, this was a can't put down book that I flew through

siraks · 01-08-2012, 12:26 PM

after reading this thread i'm a little anxious and kind of want to start to read this, i have yet to start anything for the new year but near 1000pages, eeks.

it definitely sounds interesting and and from a lot of the reviews and customer comments all over the place, including this thread i am inches away from pressing the buy button.

i'm not sure how fast i can read a book this big, if i buck down i can maybe get a 300pg book done in 2-3 days (time permitting) so if i had a week to just sit and read i could probably rip through it, i can honestly see 2-3 weeks if i attempted and that's if i read always during my free time moments.

oh well...what the heck. if i don't get through it i can always say i own it lol.

*clicks buy* .. ack.

orlok · 01-08-2012, 06:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by siraks

after reading this thread i'm a little anxious and kind of want to start to read this, i have yet to start anything for the new year but near 1000pages, eeks.

it definitely sounds interesting and and from a lot of the reviews and customer comments all over the place, including this thread i am inches away from pressing the buy button.

i'm not sure how fast i can read a book this big, if i buck down i can maybe get a 300pg book done in 2-3 days (time permitting) so if i had a week to just sit and read i could probably rip through it, i can honestly see 2-3 weeks if i attempted and that's if i read always during my free time moments.

oh well...what the heck. if i don't get through it i can always say i own it lol.

*clicks buy* .. ack.

Well worth it

. I'm not finished yet, but I'm in the home straight, and it has been a good run.

siraks · 01-09-2012, 09:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by orlok

Well worth it

. I'm not finished yet, but I'm in the home straight, and it has been a good run.

I've gotten a lot of 'well worth it's' from all over the place.
I started it last night, late before bed.
Got through the first 30 pages and the writing and story so far (even though much hasn't happened) has me wanting to read more. that's a plus in any book, soooo with that i begin my 11/22/63 journey.

ApK · 01-09-2012, 09:46 AM

My wife just finished it, and surprisingly, she liked it even at the end. She was bracing herself to not like the ending, just because Stephen King is not known for Unicorns and Rainbows. All the way through, I'd ask her if she was still 'into' the story, and she said "Yes, reluctantly...." (although her final assessment was 'it was too long.')

I'm not quite half way through the audibook, looking forward to my commute each day so I can listen to more.

siraks · 01-10-2012, 01:54 PM

I'm 17% in and am enjoying it, a lot. it's a nice read, the descriptions are so vivid i can easily picture what the characters are like and can picture the surroundings as if i was standing there myself. it's easy to believe in the characters, the main ones and the npc's (lol i didn't know what to call them so i just used the non playable characters from rpg ). anyway, it's a good book and one that has me interested to keep reading and find out what happens. the intro, 80 pages or so were good and then around page 84 you get that one 'oh' moment which, of course, makes you want to continue.

thanks for this thread and all the reco's i appreciate it, can't wait to see how it plays out.

my tablet lists it as 857 pages and i'm using cool reader to read so my pages may be off from yours.

tecweston · 01-29-2012, 10:58 PM

Wow, just finished it. I blew through the final hundred pages, I couldn't stop reading it until it was all done. I read a lot of King's books throughout the 90s when I was in high school but I haven't kept up with him since around Dark Tower VI (I gave up when he introduced himself as a character). But I enjoyed 11/22/63 a lot, and also Under the Dome, so I'm thinking I might go back and read some of the books I've missed.

12-28-2011, 10:34 PM	#64
Roland of Gilead Junior Member Posts: 1 Karma: 74 Join Date: Dec 2011 Device: None	Glad I discovered this forum - this is my first post. I've been a Stephen King fan for years; back in the late '80's-early '90's, I read all of the books he had written up to that point (up to Gerald's Game), and really enjoyed most of them. However, I lost touch with his books over the years and hadn't read anything new by him in about ten years....until I heard about 11/22/63. I picked up the HC from the library recently, and just finished reading this....Wow...What an amazing book! This is a real page-turner, and even though it's 800+ pages, it went by very quickly. Truly superb in every way, and even though I don't agree with all of the opinions King presented here, this is a great sci-fi time-travel novel: - SK obviously did his research re: the TX settings, etc. (which he mentioned in the afterword), and it really showed. - The 1950's/early 1960's settings/attitudes/limited technology were seemingly described very accurately; though this was before my time, you really felt as if you were right there with the characters. Side-note: If you liked this book & also liked Oliver Stone's JFK film (1991), check out the 1973 film Executive Action. Great movie, which presents a different take on this subject. Last edited by Roland of Gilead; 12-28-2011 at 11:03 PM.

01-08-2012, 05:45 AM	#68
HarryT eBook Enthusiast Posts: 85,544 Karma: 93383043 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: UK Device: Kindle Oasis 2, iPad Pro 10.5", iPhone 6	When I saw the title of this book my immediate thought was "I wonder if it's about C.S. Lewis?". I guess there aren't too many people who would automatically associated 23rd Nov 1963 with the death of C.S. Lewis, rather than President Kennedy . I need to get out more. Last edited by HarryT; 01-08-2012 at 05:51 AM.

01-09-2012, 09:46 AM	#73
ApK Award-Winning Participant Posts: 7,318 Karma: 67930154 Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: NJ, USA Device: Kindle	My wife just finished it, and surprisingly, she liked it even at the end. She was bracing herself to not like the ending, just because Stephen King is not known for Unicorns and Rainbows. All the way through, I'd ask her if she was still 'into' the story, and she said "Yes, reluctantly...." (although her final assessment was 'it was too long.') I'm not quite half way through the audibook, looking forward to my commute each day so I can listen to more. Last edited by ApK; 01-09-2012 at 09:48 AM.

01-10-2012, 01:54 PM	#74
siraks use the force Posts: 575 Karma: 564666 Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: Ontario Device: Kobo Touch, Lenovo K1	I'm 17% in and am enjoying it, a lot. it's a nice read, the descriptions are so vivid i can easily picture what the characters are like and can picture the surroundings as if i was standing there myself. it's easy to believe in the characters, the main ones and the npc's (lol i didn't know what to call them so i just used the non playable characters from rpg ). anyway, it's a good book and one that has me interested to keep reading and find out what happens. the intro, 80 pages or so were good and then around page 84 you get that one 'oh' moment which, of course, makes you want to continue. thanks for this thread and all the reco's i appreciate it, can't wait to see how it plays out. my tablet lists it as 857 pages and i'm using cool reader to read so my pages may be off from yours. Last edited by siraks; 01-10-2012 at 01:57 PM.

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12-15-2011, 04:53 AM	#61
Harlock415 Connoisseur Posts: 68 Karma: 39572 Join Date: Sep 2011 Device: Kindle Voyage	I finished the book a few days ago in of all places while waiting in line for Star Tours at Disneyland. Finished the afterward while waiting in line for Space Mountain. This is definitely one of my favorite King books. I had stopped reading his books around the time of Tommyknockers, but had pretty much read everything else by him up to that point. It was the premise of course that intrigued me, but soon, like the main character I became deeply involved in the town of Jodie, fell in love with Sadie and the cast of characters in his small town. Funny thing I kept doing while reading this was churning in my head what would be the final end that the book arrives at, or how it was all going to tie in together. I kept looking for foreshadowing and would get thrown off by King though, good job of using coincidences purposely. If you are not a horror fan, it's still easy to get involved in this book as it can't be classified as horror, except for the more real world horror abusive husband, for which there are at I would say 3 depicted in the novel.

12-24-2011, 03:44 AM	#62
beespeckled Zealot Posts: 148 Karma: 80874 Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: Pacific NW USA Device: KOBO Aura One; Kindle Oasis 3	I just finished the paper version from the library. I loved it, wonderfully rounded tale, great ending and author afterward also.

12-26-2011, 11:55 PM	#63
SteveK Addict Posts: 272 Karma: 1017902 Join Date: Nov 2008 Device: Kindle PW, PW2, Kindle3, Kobo Glo, tablets, phone	I just finished this book a few hours ago, and I enjoyed it tremendously. I've read very little of Stephen King, but this seems to be one of his better books. Thoroughly enjoyable from start to finish, with good plot and character development. Enjoy! SteveK

01-01-2012, 05:26 PM	#65
Lemurion eReader Posts: 2,750 Karma: 4968470 Join Date: Aug 2007 Device: Note 5; PW3; Nook HD+; ChuWi Hi12; iPad	I really enjoyed it. I think King is at his best when dealing with the issues of coming of age and small-town life in the 50's and 60's, and this book provides exactly that.

01-02-2012, 02:12 AM	#66
taosaur intelligent posterior Posts: 1,562 Karma: 21295618 Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Ohiopolis Device: Kindle Paperwhite 2, Samsung S8, Lenovo Tab 3 Pro	I'm at 20% and was drawn right in. It definitely seems more in keeping with fan favorites like It, The Stand, or The Dark Tower. I enjoyed Duma Key and the first couple stories in FDNS (haven't read the others yet), but this is his first book in a while that really grabbed me. I'm thinking a big part of it is less the subject matter than the familiar Stephen King-ness of writing ;D

01-08-2012, 04:14 AM	#67
Eddie Dean Junior Member Posts: 2 Karma: 10 Join Date: Jan 2012 Location: Minnesota Device: Kindle Fire	I've been reading King books since the 7th grade and while I have not read every single thing he's written (close though), this is his best work in about a decade, IMHO. I'm at the 300 page mark now and having trouble putting it down. A good return to form, for a man who, again only my opnion, has fallen off drastically the last ten plus years. Now, I'm an avid reader of King's work and have gone through It at least eight times (I'm big on re-reading books). How does this relate to 11/22/63? Well, obviously there are characters from It in the new novel, but what bothered me was the mention of Patrick Hockstetter. Correct me if I'm wrong, fellow Stephen King Nuts but near the end of It, when they are adults and approaching It's chamber, they come across the skeleton of Patrick Hockstetter surrounded by bloated schoolbooks, right? That was in the 80's. However, in 11/22/63 someone in the 1950's mentions that they just found the body of the boy, Patrick Hockstetter. How could they find his body if it's under the street in the 1980's? Or perhaps I'm just a nit-picky a-hole who has his facts messed up... but it's really been bothering me since I read the line. So, anyone else notice this, or am I wrong? Despite all my ramblings, I love the book so far. Should be done soon, can't wait for the ending! Also, these forums seem very nice, I thinhk I'll hang around awhile. Thanks!

01-08-2012, 09:25 AM	#69
MickeyC Grand Sorcerer Posts: 16,732 Karma: 12185114 Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Florida Device: iPhone 6 plus, Sony T1, iPad 3	Just finished it and enjoyed it very much. Not quite up to *The Stand* or It but I sure liked it a lot better than The Dome. Very interesting plot and premise. I did notice two historical errors: On page 272, Mike Colsaw says that Bobbi Jill tells him to "man up". But "man up" wasn't an expression used in the 60's but rather more in current times On page 278, Jim LaDue jumps to his feet and yells, "You rock, Coslaw". But "you rock" is an expression from this century. Don't recall ever hearing it in the 60's. Those (very minor) points aside, this was a can't put down book that I flew through

01-08-2012, 12:26 PM	#70
siraks use the force Posts: 575 Karma: 564666 Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: Ontario Device: Kobo Touch, Lenovo K1	after reading this thread i'm a little anxious and kind of want to start to read this, i have yet to start anything for the new year but near 1000pages, eeks. it definitely sounds interesting and and from a lot of the reviews and customer comments all over the place, including this thread i am inches away from pressing the buy button. i'm not sure how fast i can read a book this big, if i buck down i can maybe get a 300pg book done in 2-3 days (time permitting) so if i had a week to just sit and read i could probably rip through it, i can honestly see 2-3 weeks if i attempted and that's if i read always during my free time moments. oh well...what the heck. if i don't get through it i can always say i own it lol. clicks buy .. ack.

01-29-2012, 10:58 PM	#75
tecweston Comic book artist Posts: 553 Karma: 1760679 Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: Detroit Device: Nook Glowlight, iPad, iPhone	Wow, just finished it. I blew through the final hundred pages, I couldn't stop reading it until it was all done. I read a lot of King's books throughout the 90s when I was in high school but I haven't kept up with him since around Dark Tower VI (I gave up when he introduced himself as a character). But I enjoyed 11/22/63 a lot, and also Under the Dome, so I'm thinking I might go back and read some of the books I've missed.

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