The Complete Works Of Stephen King (1970s Edition)

In time for Halloween - some fan favorites, some forgotten gems. Just don't turn out the lights.

1. Carrie (1974)

From Chapters.ca: Carrie White may have been unfashionable and unpopular, but she had a gift. Carrie could make things move by concentrating on them. A candle would fall. A door would lock. This was her power and her sin. Then, an act of kindness, as spontaneous as the vicious taunts of her classmates, offered Carrie a chance to be normal and go to her senior prom. But another act--of ferocious cruelty--turned her gift into a weapon of horror and destruction that her classmates would never forget.

Book best known for: Pig's blood. And introducing young boys to the concept of the 'tampon,' leading to awkward conversations about the phrase 'plug it up.'

Monster: Carrie herself is sympathetic. It is the religious mother and the 'normal' girls that are the real monsters.

Theatrical version: Carrie (1976) by Brian de Palma; Carrie (2013) by Kimberly Pierce

TV treatments: Carrie (2002) by David Carson

Movie sequels not based on books: The Rage: Carrie 2 (1999) by Katt Shea

Other forms: Carrie: The Musical!

2. Salem's Lot (1975)

From Chapters.ca: Ben Mears has returned to Jerusalem's Lot in the hopes that living in an old mansion, long the subject of town lore, will help him cast out his own devils and provide inspiration for his new book. But when two young boys venture into the woods and only one comes out alive, Mears begins to realize that there may be something sinister at work and that his hometown is under siege by forces of darkness far beyond his control.

Best known for: Redefining the vampire mythos pre-Twilight.

Monster: An ancient vampire and his male...consort? A haunted house. Floating children and vampire babies. A noticeable lack of glittering skin.

Theatrical version: Surprisingly, none.

TV treatments: Salem's Lot (1979) by Tobe Hooper; Salem's Lot (2004) by Mikael Salomon

Prequels and sequels: No movie versions, but King wrote a prequel short story (Jerusalem's Lot) and a sequel short story (One for the Road). One for the Road was given the comic book treatment in Secretary of Dreams: Volume II (illustrated by Glenn Chadbourne). The tale of Father Callahan is also picked up in books 5 and following of the Dark Tower series.

Other forms: A limited edition exists, which for an exorbitant sum will give you 50 pages of story that did not make the first cut.

3. The Shining (1977)

From Chapters.ca: Jack Torrance's new job at the Overlook Hotel is the perfect chance for a fresh start. As the off-season caretaker at the atmospheric old hotel, he'll have plenty of time to spend reconnecting with his family and working on his writing. But as the harsh winter weather sets in, the idyllic location feels ever more remote . . . and more sinister. And the only one to notice the strange and terrible forces gathering around the Overlook is Danny Torrance, a uniquely gifted five-year-old.

Best known for: The Stanley Kubrick version, which somehow proves we didn't land on the moon. Least known for Steven Weber of Wing's fame, portraying Jack Torrance in the TV version.

Monster: Ignore Kubrick, to King, Jack Torrance is no monster. The true monster is the Overlook Hotel, a brooding evil that wants the power of Jack's son all to itself. Also, alcohol. And an old woman in a bathtub. And, for some reason, a guy in a dog suit.

Theatrical version: The Shining (1980) by Stanley Kubrick

TV treatments: The Shining (1997) by Mick Garris (teleplay by King himself)

Sequels: No movie version (yet) but King just released the novel sequel, Dr. Sleep.

4. Rage (1977)

From Chapters.ca: No description. This book is no longer being published, due to several school-related shootings that it allegedly inspired.

From the back cover: The sly voices in his mind whispered their terrible warnings, telling Charlie exactly what to do...And one by one the students filed into the room, laughing, talking, never suspecting that today's class would be like no other. For today Charlie would lead them in his savagely dangerous game of Show and Tell - and all their secrets would explode into a nightmare of violence and terror...

Best known for: Being pulled from bookshelves by King himself, who feared further violence.

Monster: High school students. Parents. Life in general.

Theatrical version: None.

TV treatments: None.

Pseudonym: This is the first of the Bachman books, published under King's pseudonym, Richard Bachman. Now you can go to used bookstores and feel very smug when you find a Bachman book located separately from the bookcase of King books.

5. Night Shift (1978)

From Chapters.ca: King's first collection of short stories showcases the darkest depths of his brilliant imagination. Here we see mutated rats gone bad ("Graveyard Shift"); a cataclysmic virus that threatens humanity ("Night Surf," the basis for The Stand); a possessed, evil lawnmower ("The Lawnmower Man"); unsettling children from the heartland ("Children of the Corn"); a smoker who will try anything to stop ("Quitters, Inc."); a reclusive alcoholic who begins a gruesome transformation ("Gray Matter"); and many more shadows and visions that will haunt you long after the last page is turned.

Best known for: Legions of films, including Stephen King's amazingly awful directorial debut; also, the legal battle over getting King's name removed from movie The Lawnmower Man, which shares name but not plot with a King short story.

Monster: Almost too many to name, but let's try: Giant Lovecraftian worms, giant rats, the flu, killer alien eyeballs, demonic laundry equipment, psychiatrists, alcohol, toy army men, trucks, high school zombies, serial killers, pigeons, Greek gods with lawnmowers, psycopathic corporations, emotions, He Who Walks Behind the Rows, ladders, more serial killers, vampires, and cancer. Phew!

Theatrical version: Children of the Corn (1984) by Fritz Kiersch; Cat's Eye (1985) by Lewis Teague; Maximum Overdrive (1986) by Stephen King; Graveyard Shift (1990) by Ralph S. Singleton; The Mangler (1995) by Tobe Hooper

TV treatments: Sometimes They Come Back (1991) by Tom McLoughlin; Trucks (1997) by Chris Thomson; Battleground (2006) by Brian Henson; Children Of The Corn (2009) by Donald Borchers

Movie shorts: The Boogyman (1982) by Jeff Schiro; Disciples of the Crow (1983) by John Woodward; The Woman in the Room (1983) by Frank Darabont; The Last Rung on the Ladder (1987) by James Cole and Daniel Thron; The Lawnmower Man (1987) by Jim Gonis; Night Surf (2001) by Peter Sullivan; Strawberry Spring (2001) by Doveed Linder; I Know What You Need (2004) by Shawn Lealo; La Femme Dans la Chambre (The Woman in the Room) (2005) by Damien Maric; The Boogeyman (Play) (2005) by Graham Rees

Unofficial movies: The Lawnmower Man (1992) by Brett Leonard; Lawnmower Man 2: Beyond Cyberspace (1996) by Farhad Mann; Children of the Corn II: The Final Sacrifice (1993) by David Price; Children of the Corn III: Urban Harvest (1995) by James Hickox; Children of the Corn IV: The Gathering (1996) by Greg Spence; Children of the Corn V: Fields of Terror (1998) by Ethan Wiley; Children of the Corn 666: Isaac's Return (1999) by Kari Skogland; Children of the Corn: Revelation (2001) by Guy Magar; Children of the Corn: Genesis (2011) by Joel Soisson; The Mangler 2 (2002) by Michael Wright; The Mangler Reborn (2005) by Erik Gardner and Matt Cunningham

6. The Stand (1978)

From Chapters.ca: When a man escapes from a biological testing facility, he sets in motion a deadly domino effect, spreading a mutated strain of the flu that will wipe out 99 percent of humanity within a few weeks. The survivors who remain are scared, bewildered, and in need of a leader. Two emerge--Mother Abagail, the benevolent 108-year-old woman who urges them to build a community in Boulder, Colorado; and Randall Flagg, the nefarious "Dark Man," who delights in chaos and violence.

Best known for: Being one of King's best-loved books. Also, for turning a tiny scratch in the back of the throat or a case of the sniffles into almost certain death.

Monster: The flu. The government. Randall Flagg. Nefarious hoodlums who would choose Vegas over a centenarian.

Theatrical version: None, although a possible version is on the way.

TV treatments: The Stand (1994) by Mick Garris.

Prequels and Sequels: Although there is no proper follow-up to The Stand, the Captain Trips virus makes its first appearance in the short story Night Surf, in the collection Night Shift. The main antagonist of The Stand, Randall Flagg, appears in numerous fantasy works, including Eyes of the Dragon and the Dark Tower series. King's latest poem, The Dark Man, was written while he was in college, and serves as a template for Flagg's character. In Wizard and Glass, Roland and his band enter the post-flu world of The Stand.

Other forms: Besides the original printing of The Stand, there is also a Complete and Uncut Edition, that updates the dates of the original and introduces numerous deleted scenes, including entire characters. Marvel recently published a comic form of The Stand.

7. The Long Walk (1979)

From Chapters.ca: On the first day of May, 100 teenage boys meet for a race known as "The Long Walk." If you break the rules, you get three warnings. If you exceed your limit, what happens is absolutely terrifying..

Best known for: The first of King's novellas dealing with killer reality shows.

Monster: The home viewer. And walking.

Theatrical version: None.

TV treatments: None.

Pseudonym: This is another book written as Richard Bachman.

8. The Dead Zone (1979)

From Chapters.ca: Beware, The Wheel of Fortune…

Johnny, the small boy who skated at breakneck speed into an accident that for one horrifying moment plunged him into…the dead zone.

Johnny Smith, the small-town schoolteacher who spun the wheel of fortune and won a four-and-a-half-year trip into…the dead zone.

John Smith, who awakened from an interminable coma with an accursed power—the power to see the future and the terrible fate awaiting mankind in…the dead zone.

Best known for: Actually, not one of his best known books. But may be one of his best written.

Monster: A serial killer and an apocalypse-bearing politician (well played by Martin Sheen in the theatrical version).

Theatrical version: The Dead Zone (1983) by David Cronenberg.

TV treatments: Stephen King's The Dead Zone (2002-2007) by Michael and Shawn Piller. 81 episodes.