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The Talisman by Stephen King
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The Talisman (original 1970; edition 1988)

by Stephen King

MembersReviewsPopularityAverage ratingConversations / Mentions
9,862118754 (4.01)1 / 234
Fantasy. Fiction. Horror. HTML:On a brisk autumn day, a thirteen-year-old boy stands on the shores of the gray Atlantic, near a silent amusement park and a fading ocean resort called the Alhambra. The past has driven Jack Sawyer here: his father is gone, his mother is dying, and the world no longer makes sense. But for Jack everything is about to change. For he has been chosen to make a journey back across America--and into another realm.

One of the most influential and heralded works of fantasy ever written, The Talisman is an extraordinary novel of loyalty, awakening, terror, and mystery. Jack Sawyer, on a desperate quest to save his mother's life, must search for a prize across an epic landscape of innocents and monsters, of incredible dangers and even more incredible truths. The prize is essential, but the journey means even more. Let the quest begin. . . .

Features a preview of Stephen King and Peter Straub's new book Black House.
… (more)
Member:rondajewel
Title:The Talisman
Authors:Stephen King
Info:Penguin Books (1988), Paperback
Collections:Your library
Rating:
Tags:None

Work Information

The Talisman by Stephen King (1970)

  1. 30
    Black House by Stephen King (Booksloth)
  2. 20
    The Gunslinger by Stephen King (deandroid)
  3. 10
    The Drawing of the Three by Stephen King (Valjeanne)
    Valjeanne: A real page-turner collaboration between Peter Straub and Stephen King! More "flipping" between alternate dimensions, shape-shifting good guys and bad guys, and a hero you'll love. :-)
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» See also 234 mentions

English (110)  French (2)  Spanish (1)  Portuguese (Portugal) (1)  Norwegian (1)  Italian (1)  All languages (116)
Showing 1-5 of 110 (next | show all)
This should be in every classic horror collection. ( )
  jazzbird61 | Feb 29, 2024 |
It's been many years since my last Stephen King read, but it was like riding a bike: a hero, a journey with scary thrills, and a happy ending. I hear they're making a series out of this—produced by the Duffer Brothers (that's right, Stranger Things)—and cannot wait to see it. ( )
  kristilabrie | Oct 16, 2023 |
Prior to picking this book up recently I'd swear up and down that I'd read it, not once but twice. However, I am beginning to doubt that as I remembered nothing of the novel after about 50 pages in.

For some reason I had a really hard time making my way through this book. Not because it is bad but more due to pacing issues. Also, going into this knowing it was written by King and Straub kept me distracted at times since I spent a bit of bandwidth trying to guess which portions were written by each. Most of the book seemed to bog down at times but the last 100 pages or so really made up for it and tied up the story nicely. Overall, a good book but not as great as I (falsely?) remember. ( )
  mindrot | Aug 22, 2023 |
I had a real problem with this book. The lead character's dialog wasn't working for me. I couldn't "hear" it. The part just before the end was pretty good. I suspect Stephen King wrote that part. I am going to state Peter Straub wrote the parts I did not enjoy. The last few pages I only read the first sentence every every paragraph. I wanted to know how it ended, but it wasn't worth it. Oh well, hope my next book is better.
9,326 members; 4,01 average rating; 3/20/2023 ( )
  mainrun | Mar 20, 2023 |
Another re-read of a favorite from Uncle Stevie - lots of reviews here, so suffice to say this is a questing narrative, featuring a boy who has the ability to shift into other worlds - "there are other worlds than these." Obviously, a connection to the Uber-narrative from [The Dark Tower] series, as the Territories where young Jack travels bare resemblances to some of those lands where Roland and company travel. Not surprisingly, since [The Gunslinger] was first published in 1982, there are developing seeds here for that larger story, language and descriptions that will echo throughout Roland's tale. Like many of the King's earlier works, there is an aching goodness to so much of the work. Many see little in his work beyond the horrors, but those horrors exist to highlight the white in the stories. This one remains one of my favorite books in the King cannon.

Highly recommended, especially for those who are looking for a good starting place for King.
5 bones!!!!! ( )
  blackdogbooks | Mar 2, 2023 |
Showing 1-5 of 110 (next | show all)
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» Add other authors (21 possible)

Author nameRoleType of authorWork?Status
King, Stephenprimary authorall editionsconfirmed
Straub, Petermain authorall editionsconfirmed
Benini, MilenaTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Canty, ThomasCover artistsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Wiemken, ChristelTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
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Epigraph
Well, when Tom and me got to the edge of the hilltop, we looked away down into the village and could see three or four lights twinkling, where there was sick folks, may be; and stars over us was sparkling ever so fine; and down by the village was the river, a whole mile broad, and awful still and grand. -Mark Twain, Huckleberry Finn
My new clothes was all greased up and clayey, and I was dog-tired. -Mark Twain, Huckleberry Finn
Dedication
The book is for Ruth King, Elvena Straub
First words
On September 15th, 1981, a boy named Jack Sawyer stood where the water and land come together, hands in the pockets of his jeans, looking out at the steady Atlantic.
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(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)
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Information from the German Common Knowledge. Edit to localize it to your language.
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Wikipedia in English (2)

Fantasy. Fiction. Horror. HTML:On a brisk autumn day, a thirteen-year-old boy stands on the shores of the gray Atlantic, near a silent amusement park and a fading ocean resort called the Alhambra. The past has driven Jack Sawyer here: his father is gone, his mother is dying, and the world no longer makes sense. But for Jack everything is about to change. For he has been chosen to make a journey back across America--and into another realm.

One of the most influential and heralded works of fantasy ever written, The Talisman is an extraordinary novel of loyalty, awakening, terror, and mystery. Jack Sawyer, on a desperate quest to save his mother's life, must search for a prize across an epic landscape of innocents and monsters, of incredible dangers and even more incredible truths. The prize is essential, but the journey means even more. Let the quest begin. . . .

Features a preview of Stephen King and Peter Straub's new book Black House.

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AR Level 6.2, 42 pts
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