Tag Archives: Stephen King

Page to Screen in September 2017

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The month of September will see a couple of shows and movies adapted from popular books. Check out what’s upcoming and take a listen before they hit the screen!


It, by Stephen King
Expected Release: September 8th

Stephen King’s #1 national bestseller about seven adults who return to their hometown to confront a nightmare they had first stumbled on as teenagers…an evil without a name: It . Welcome to Derry, Maine. It’s a small city, a place as hauntingly familiar as your own hometown. Only in Derry the haunting is real. They were seven teenagers when they first stumbled upon the horror. Now they are grown-up men and women who have gone out into the big world to gain success and happiness. But the promise they made twenty-eight years ago calls them reunite in the same place where, as teenagers, they battled an evil creature that preyed on the city’s children. Now, children are being murdered again and their repressed memories of that terrifying summer return as they prepare to once again battle the monster lurking in Derry’s sewers.… Read more and listen to a sample

Fallen, by Lauren Kate
Expected Release: September 8th

There’s something achingly familiar about Daniel Grigori.Mysterious and aloof, he captures Luce Price’s attention from the moment she sees him on her first day at the Sword & Cross boarding school in sultry Savannah, Georgia. He’s the one bright spot in a place where cell phones are forbidden, the other students are all screw-ups, and security cameras watch every move.Even though Daniel wants nothing to do with Luce–and goes out of his way to make that very clear–she can’t let it go. Drawn to him like a moth to a flame, she has to find out what Daniel is so desperate to keep secret . . . even if it kills her. Read more and listen to a sample

American Assassin, by Vince Flynn
Expected Release: September 15th

New York Times bestselling author Vince Flynn returns with his most exhilarating political thriller to date, a pulse-pounding tale of espionage that introduces fans to the young Mitch Rapp as he takes on his first, explosive assignment. Read more and listen to a sample


Victoria & Abdul ( Movie Tie-in): The True Story of the Queen’s Closest Confidant
Expected Release: September 22nd

Tall and handsome Abdul was just twenty-four years old when he arrived in England from Agra to wait at tables for Queen Victoria’s Golden Jubilee. Within a year, Abdul had grown to become a powerful figure at court, the Queen’s teacher, or Munshi, her counsel on Urdu and Indian affairs, and a friend close to the Queen’s heart. “I am so very fond of him.,” Queen Victoria would write in 1888, “He is so good and gentle and understanding….a real comfort to me.” This marked the beginning of the most scandalous decade in Queen Victoria’s long reign. Devastated first by the death of Prince Albert in 1861 and then her personal servant John Brown in 1883, Queen Victoria quickly found joy in an intense and controversial relationship with her Munshi, who traveled everywhere with her, cooked her curries and cultivated her understanding of the Indian sub-continent-a region, as Empress of India, she was long intrigued by but could never visit. The royal household roiled with resentment, but their devotion grew in defiance of all expectation and the societal pressures of their time and class and lasted until the Queen’s death on January 22, 1901… Read more and listen to a sample


Stronger: Fighting Back After the Boston Marathon
Expected Release: September 22nd

Up until the marathon, Jeff had been a normal 27-year-old guy, looking forward to moving in with Erin and starting the next phase of their lives together. But when his life was turned upside down in ways he could never have fathomed, Jeff did not give up. Instead he faced his new circumstances with grace, humor, and a sense of purpose: he was determined, no matter what, to walk again. Read more and listen to a sample

Which of September’s renditions are you most excited for? Let me know!

Page to Screen in August 2017

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The month of August will see a much anticipated movie adaption from a popular Stephen King novel. Check it out and take a listen before it hits the screen!


The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger by Stephen King
Expected Release: August 4th

A #1 national bestseller, The Gunslinger introduces readers to one of Stephen King’s most powerful creations, Roland of Gilead: The Last Gunslinger. He is a haunting figure, a loner on a spellbinding journey into good and evil. In his desolate world, which mirrors our own in frightening ways, Roland tracks The Man in Black, encounters an enticing woman named Alice, and begins a friendship with the boy from New York named Jake.… Read more and listen to a sample

Let me know what you think!

10 of Our Favorite Celebrity-Read Audiobooks

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The best audiobooks have the best narrators, and a quick way to find them is to look for Hollywood stars that you love to watch perform. Of course, professional narrators are fantastic but chances are if you love an actor’s voice on screen you’ll love to hear her narrate, too. Here are 10 audiobooks narrated by some of our favorite celebs!

 

The Bell Jar, by Sylvia Plath
Narrated by Maggie Gyllenhaal
The Bell Jar chronicles the crack-up of Esther Greenwood: talented and successful but slowly going under. Sylvia Plath masterfully draws the reader into Esther’s breakdown with such intensity that the insanity becomes real and even rational. Maggie Gyllenhaal’s narration captures and even enhances the haunting mood. Such penetration into the dark corners of the psyche is extraordinary and has made The Bell Jar an American classic.

 

Heartburn, by Nora Ephron
Narrated by Meryl Streep
Nora Ephron shows it’s possible to write a sidesplitting novel about the breakup of the perfect marriage. During her pregnancy, Rachel discovers that her husband is in love with another woman. The fact that the other woman has ‘a neck as long as an arm and a nose as long as a thumb’ is no consolation. Heartburn is a delightfully performed by the lady considered by many critics to be the greatest living actress, Meryl Streep.

 

The Dead Zone, by Stephen King
Narrated by James Franco
This #1 national bestseller was recently released in audio, read by King fan and actor James Franco. Johnny Smith awakens from a five-year coma after his car accident and discovers that he can see people’s futures and pasts when he touches them. When he has a disturbing vision, he must decide if he should take drastic action to change the future.

 

 

Go Set a Watchman, by Harper Lee
Narrated by Reese Witherspoon
This was the novel Harper Lee first submitted to her publishers before To Kill a Mockingbird. Go Set a Watchman features many of the characters from To Kill a Mockingbird some twenty years later. Returning home to Maycomb to visit her father, Jean Louise Finch—Scout—struggles with issues involving Atticus, society, and the small Alabama town that shaped her. Performed by Hollywood star and book lover, Reese Witherspoon.

 

What Pet Should I Get, by Dr. Seuss
Narrated by Rainn Wilson
Fans of The Office television series will fully enjoy listening to the contrast of Dwight Schrute’s voice taking on a mild mannered persona as he reads about kids in a pet store. While this audiobook is for children, all lovers of Dr. Seuss will appreciate how he captures the classic moment of choosing a pet.

 

 

Matilda, by Roald Dahl
Narrated by Kate Winslet
Matilda is a sweet, exceptional young girl, but her parents think she’s a nuisance. She expects school to be different but there she has to face Miss Trunchbull, a kid-hating terror of a headmistress. When Matilda is attacked by the Trunchbull she suddenly discovers she has a remarkable power with which to fight back. Kate Winslet’s narration is calm while her characterizations are full of life, bringing attitude and punch to this classic tale.

 

Scrappy Little Nobody, by Anna Kendrick
Narrated by Anna Kendrick
Anna Kendrick’s essays offer her one-of-a-kind commentary on the absurdities she’s experienced on her way to and from the heart of pop culture. Each word is executed with the fast sarcasm and charming quirkiness typical to the roles she plays. Self-described as a “very, very small weirdo,” Kendrick entertains listeners with her tales of early friendships and discovering her calling as an actress.

 

 

A Life in Parts, by Bryan Cranston
Narrated by Bryan Cranston
Bryan Cranston’s deep, resonant voice is captivating as he discusses his failures as few men do, and describes his work as few actors can. He explains how he searched inward for the personal darkness that would help create one of the most riveting on-screen performances: Walter White on Breaking Bad. In A Life in Parts, Cranston traces his journey from his chaotic childhood to his dramatic epiphany, and beyond.

 


Yes Please, by Amy Poehler
Narrated by Amy Poehler
While listening, you’ll laugh, you’ll cry, and you’ll become convinced that your phone is trying to kill you. Offering Amy’s thoughts on everything from her “too safe” childhood to her early days in New York City, Yes Please is chock-full of wisdom to live by. Alongside Poehler’s genuine and entertaining narration, Yes Please includes guest narration by Carol Burnett, Seth Meyers, Michael Schur, Patrick Stewart, Kathleen Turner, and even Amy’s parents.

 

Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns), by Mindy Kaling
Narrated by Mindy Kaling
In her sarcastic and sassy tone, Mindy invites readers on a tour of her life and her unscientific observations on romance, friendship, and Hollywood, with several conveniently placed stopping points for you to run errands and make phone calls. Mindy Kaling really is just a Girl Next Door—not so much literally anywhere in the continental United States, but definitely if you live in India or Sri Lanka.

Behind the Scenes of The Dead Zone

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It’s almost Father’s Day! Listen to James Franco’s interview about every dad’s favorite author, Stephen King!

The Dead Zone recently came out in audio for the first time, read by James Franco. See some behind the scenes photos, listen to him discuss narrating then enjoy an extended excerpt of The Dead Zone audiobook!

Interview with James Franco

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Extended excerpt

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STAFF PICK: 11/22/63 By Stephen King.

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I’ve listened to extremely long books before so I know it can be daunting at times.  For the month of May, my book of choice was 11/22/63: A Novel by Stephen King. Well, the 30 hours and 45 minutes flew by and I was pleasantly surprised! Having not picked up a Stephen King book since the early 90’s (and even then having only read the popular horror stories, Dolores Claiborne, Misery, The Shinning and It), 11/22/63 was not at all what I was expecting.

11/22/63 audio book by Stephen King

Stephen King takes the listener on fantastic voyage through time back to the late 1950’s and early 1960’s, with the goal of preventing the assassination of JFK. But as our time-travelling hero takes multiple trips through the rabbit hole, he discovers that by changing one moment, one tiny little event, his life in the present time does not always work out the way he’d hoped for. For me, this book was a surprise to say the least. I was expecting some sort of horror elements.  Nope!  None to be found. I was expecting some elements of science fiction, as this is a book about time travel. Nope! King treats time travelling in a very straight forward manner: there are no mad scientists, or huge machines. It’s simply a man with a portal in the back of a sandwich shop that you have to walk through to be transported. What I did find in 11/22/63 was a tragic love story and the cold hard truth that changing the past does not always make the future a better place.

The story starts quickly and continues at a great pace throughout. This is partly due to the talents of the narrator Craig Wasson.  I don’t think I could have finished a book this long if the narrator wasn’t perfectly cast.  And thanks to this great first experience with Craig, I would not hesitate to pick up another book where he’s at the helm.

11/22/63, is so much more than a story about trying to stop the assignation of JFK.  In fact, for me that was just a side story for the wonderful that Stephen King took me on.  This book has something for everyone; mystery, history, politics, and romance.  With 11/22/63, we are offered an amazing glimpse into history, so don’t let the extraordinary length of this book scare you off.  It’s well worth the time.

Let me know what you think!

10 Best Stephen King Audio Books

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Doctor Sleep, the highly anticipated sequel to The Shining was released this week on audio book. To celebrate the new release from this bestselling author, we thought we’d take a look back at our 10 favorite Stephen King books.


Carrie (1974)

King became so frustrated writing this horror story about an outcast high school girl with supernatural powers that he tossed the manuscript in the trash. Luckily, his wife convinced him to keep at it and it became his first of his books to be published. It’s fitting that this is Banned Books Week because Carrie is one of the most frequently banned books in schools. The 1977 movie adaptation starring Sissy Spacek became an instant classic of the horror genre.

Salem’s Lot (1975)

Count Dracula meets Richard Nixon. King has said that his second published work, the story of a small town inhabited by vampires, was one of his favorites. Inspired by Dracula, King also drew on the growing distrust of the establishment fostered by covert activities uncovered during the Watergate era to pen this psychological thriller about an evil, invasive scourge.

The Shining (1977)

King’s third book cemented his place as a master of the horror genre. The tale of an alcoholic writer attempting to escape his demons by moving his family to Colorado and taking up residence as the caretaker of an empty, isolated hotel was his first book to become a bestseller in hardcover. Although King was reportedly unhappy with director Stanley Kubrick’s film adaptation starring Jack Nicholson, audiences weren’t.

The Stand (1978)

This post-apocalyptic story begins with the accidental release of a biological agent from an army base. The virus ravages the population and the book follows the ensuing chaos, leading to a final battle between the survivors.  Much as Dracula and Watergate inspired Salem’s Lot, King’s idea for The Stand came from the unlikely pairing of The Lord of the Rings and the Patty Hearst kidnapping.

It (1986)

Ugh – King brings all of our worst fears about clowns to life in this creepy tale of children terrorized by a mysterious entity.

Misery (1987)

King drew on his own experiences as a writer for this story of an author held against his will by a rabid fan unhappy with the resolution of one of his books. Negative fan reaction to The Eyes of the Dragon led to King feeling confined to the horror genre.

The Green Mile (1996)

The Green Mile began as six volumes published separately. Set in the Louisiana State Penitentiary, it tells the story of a prison guard whose life is forever changed by his encounter with an inmate on death row who displays unusual abilities. The movie version starring Tom Hanks was nominated for four Academy Awards.

On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft (2000)

Part autobiography, part treatise, On Writing covers various aspects of King’s life including his struggles with alcoholism and the 1999 car accident which nearly cost him both his legs. It’s also a practical guide to writing offering tips to aspiring writers and includes drafts of his story ‘1408’.

Under the Dome (2009)

King revisited an unfinished manuscript from 1972 for this story of a town trapped under a mysterious dome. Affected by the ecological problems confronting us today, King wanted to illustrate, on a smaller level, how we all live ‘under a dome’ and the challenges faced when we neglect to care for our environment.

 

11/22/63 (2011)

This novel, combining alternative history with science fiction, was a departure for King. He did exhaustive research to ensure he accurately captured the feel of the 60s for this story of a time traveler attempting to go back and prevent the assassination of JFK.