Stephen King’s Reading List for Writers

“If you don’t have time to read, you don’t have the time (or the tools) to write. Simple as that.” ― Stephen King In the afterword to his acclaimed guide On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft, Stephen King shares the following reading list of 96 books, covering a diverse range of fiction and non-fiction titles. Accompanying the list is this explanation: These are the best books I’ve read over the last three or four years, the period during which I wrote The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon, Hearts in Atlantis, On Writing, and the as-yet-unpublished From a Buick Eight. In some way or other, I suspect each book in the list had an influence on the books I wrote. As you scan this list, please remember that I’m not Oprah and this isn’t my book club. These are the ones that worked for me, that’s all. But you could do worse, and a good many of these might show you some new ways of doing your work. Even if they don’t, they’re apt to entertain you. They certainly entertained me. Stephen King's On Writing: A Memoir of the CraftPeter Abrahams, A Perfect Crime Peter Abrahams, Lights Out Peter Abrahams, Pressure Drop Peter Abrahams,Revolution #9 James Agee, A Death in the Family Kirsten Bakis, Lives of the Monster Dogs Pat Barker, Regeneration Pat Barker, The Eye in the Door Pat Barker, The Ghost Road Richard Bausch, In the Night Season Peter Blauner, The Intruder Paul Bowles, The Sheltering Sky T. Coraghessan Boyle, The Tortilla Curtain Bill Bryson, A Walk in the Woods Christopher Buckley, Thank You for Smoking Raymond Carver, Where I’m Calling From Michael Chabon, Werewolves in Their Youth Windsor Chorlton, Latitude Zero Michael Connelly, The Poet Joseph Conrad, Heart of Darkness (Project Gutenberg) K.C. Constantine, Family Values Don DeLillo, Underworld Nelson DeMille, Cathedral Nelson DeMille, The Gold Coast Charles Dickens, Oliver Twist (Project Gutenberg) Stephen Dobyns, Common Carnage Stephen Dobyns, The Church of Dead Girls Roddy Doyle, The Woman Who Walked into Doors Stanely Elkin, The Dick Gibson Show William Faulkner, As I Lay Dying Alex Garland, The Beach Elizabeth George, Deception on His Mind Tess Gerritsen, Gravity William Golding, Lord of the Flies Muriel Gray, Furnace Graham Greene, A Gun for Sale (aka This Gun for Hire) Graham Greene, Our Man in Havana David Halberstam, The Fifties Pete Hamill, Why Sinatra Matters Thomas Harris, Hannibal Kent Haruf, Plainsong Peter Hoeg, Smilla’s Sense of Snow Stephen Hunter, Dirty White Boys David Ignatius, A Firing Offense John Irving, A Widow for One Year Graham Joyce, The Tooth Fairy Alan Judd, The Devil’s Own Work Roger Kahn, Good Enough to Dream Mary Karr, The Liars’ Club Jack Ketchum, Right to Life Tabitha King, Survivor Tabitha King, The Sky in the Water Barbara Kingsolver, The Poisonwood Bible Jon Krakauer, Into Thin Air Harper Lee, To Kill a Mockingbird Bernard Lefkowitz, Our Guys Bentley Little, The Ignored Maclean, Norman: A River Runs Through It and Other Stories Maugham, W. Somerset: The Moon and Sixpence (Project Gutenberg) Cormac McCarthy, Cities of the Plain Cormac McCarthy, The Crossing Frank McCourt, Angela’s Ashes Alice McDermott, Charming Billy Jack McDevitt, Ancient Shores Ian McEwan, Enduring Love Ian McEwan, The Cement Garden Larry McMurtry, Dead Man’s Walk Larry McMurtry and Diana Ossana, Zeke and Ned Walter M. Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz Joyce Carol Oates, Zombie Tim O’Brien, In the Lake of the Woods Stewart O’Nan, The Speed Queen Michael Ondaatje, The English Patient Richard North Patterson, No Safe Place Richard Price, Freedomland Annie Proulx, Close Range: Wyoming Stories Annie Proulx, The Shipping News Anna Quindlen, One True Thing Ruth Rendell, A Sight for Sore Eyes Frank M. Robinson, Waiting J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azakaban J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone Richard Russo, Mohawk John Burnham Schwartz, Reservation Road Vikram Seth, A Suitable Boy Irwin Shaw, The Young Lions Richard Slotkin, The Crater Dinitia Smith, The Illusionist Scott Spencer, Men in Black Wallace Stegner, Joe Hill Donna Tartt, The Secret History Anne Tyler, A Patchwork Planet Kurt Vonnegut, Hocus Pocus Evelyn Waugh, Brideshead Revisited Donald Westlake, The Ax

“If you don’t have time to read, you don’t have the time (or the tools)
to write. Simple as that.” 
― Stephen King

In the afterword to his acclaimed guide On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft, Stephen King shares the following reading list of 96 books, covering a diverse range of fiction and non-fiction titles.

Accompanying the list is this explanation:

These are the best books I’ve read over the last three or four years, the period during which I wrote The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon, Hearts in Atlantis, On Writing, and the as-yet-unpublished From a Buick Eight. In some way or other, I suspect each book in the list had an influence on the books I wrote.

As you scan this list, please remember that I’m not Oprah and this isn’t my book club. These are the ones that worked for me, that’s all. But you could do worse, and a good many of these might show you some new ways of doing your work. Even if they don’t, they’re apt to entertain you. They certainly entertained me.

1. Peter Abrahams, A Perfect Crime
2. Peter Abrahams, Lights Out
3. Peter Abrahams, Pressure Drop
4. Peter Abrahams,Revolution #9
5. James Agee, A Death in the Family
6. Kirsten Bakis, Lives of the Monster Dogs
7. Pat Barker, Regeneration
8. Pat Barker, The Eye in the Door
9. Pat Barker, The Ghost Road
10. Richard Bausch, In the Night Season
11. Peter Blauner, The Intruder
12. Paul Bowles, The Sheltering Sky
13. T. Coraghessan Boyle, The Tortilla Curtain
14. Bill Bryson, A Walk in the Woods
15. Christopher Buckley, Thank You for Smoking
16. Raymond Carver, Where I’m Calling From
17. Michael Chabon, Werewolves in Their Youth
18. Windsor Chorlton, Latitude Zero
19. Michael Connelly, The Poet
20. Joseph Conrad, Heart of Darkness (Project Gutenberg)
21. K.C. Constantine, Family Values
22. Don DeLillo, Underworld
23. Nelson DeMille, Cathedral
24. Nelson DeMille, The Gold Coast
25. Charles Dickens, Oliver Twist (Project Gutenberg)
26. Stephen Dobyns, Common Carnage
27. Stephen Dobyns, The Church of Dead Girls
28. Roddy Doyle, The Woman Who Walked into Doors
29. Stanely Elkin, The Dick Gibson Show
30. William Faulkner, As I Lay Dying
31. Alex Garland, The Beach
32. Elizabeth George, Deception on His Mind
33. Tess Gerritsen, Gravity
34. William Golding, Lord of the Flies
35. Muriel Gray, Furnace
36. Graham Greene, A Gun for Sale (aka This Gun for Hire)
37. Graham Greene, Our Man in Havana
38. David Halberstam, The Fifties
39. Pete Hamill, Why Sinatra Matters
40. Thomas Harris, Hannibal
41. Kent Haruf, Plainsong
42. Peter Hoeg, Smilla’s Sense of Snow
43. Stephen Hunter, Dirty White Boys
44. David Ignatius, A Firing Offense
45. John Irving, A Widow for One Year
46. Graham Joyce, The Tooth Fairy
47. Alan Judd, The Devil’s Own Work
48. Roger Kahn, Good Enough to Dream
49. Mary Karr,  The Liars’ Club
50. Jack Ketchum, Right to Life
51. Tabitha King, Survivor
52. Tabitha King, The Sky in the Water
53. Barbara Kingsolver, The Poisonwood Bible
54. Jon Krakauer, Into Thin Air
55. Harper Lee, To Kill a Mockingbird
56. Bernard Lefkowitz, Our Guys
57. Bentley Little,  The Ignored
58. Maclean, Norman: A River Runs Through It and Other Stories
59. Maugham, W. Somerset: The Moon and Sixpence (Project Gutenberg)
60. Cormac McCarthy, Cities of the Plain
61. Cormac McCarthy, The Crossing
62. Frank McCourt, Angela’s Ashes
63. Alice McDermott, Charming Billy
64. Jack McDevitt, Ancient Shores
65. Ian McEwan, Enduring Love
66. Ian McEwan, The Cement Garden
67. Larry McMurtry, Dead Man’s Walk
68. Larry McMurtry and Diana Ossana, Zeke and Ned
69. Walter M. Miller, A Canticle for Leibowitz
70. Joyce Carol Oates, Zombie
71. Tim O’Brien, In the Lake of the Woods
72. Stewart O’Nan, The Speed Queen
73. Michael Ondaatje, The English Patient
74. Richard North Patterson, No Safe Place
75. Richard Price, Freedomland
76. Annie Proulx, Close Range: Wyoming Stories
77. Annie Proulx, The Shipping News
78. Anna Quindlen, One True Thing
79. Ruth Rendell, A Sight for Sore Eyes
80. Frank M. Robinson, Waiting
81. J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
82. J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azakaban
83. J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone
84. Richard Russo, Mohawk
85. John Burnham Schwartz, Reservation Road
86. Vikram Seth, A Suitable Boy
87. Irwin Shaw, The Young Lions
88. Richard Slotkin, The Crater
89. Dinitia Smith, The Illusionist
90. Scott Spencer, Men in Black
91. Wallace Stegner, Joe Hill
92. Donna Tartt, The Secret History
93. Anne Tyler, A Patchwork Planet
94. Kurt Vonnegut, Hocus Pocus
95. Evelyn Waugh, Brideshead Revisited
96. Donald Westlake, The Ax