I first read Firestarter several years ago, in a collection with Eyes of the Dragon. I'm not totally sure why they were lumped together especially considering that Firestarter came out in 1980 and Eyes of the Dragon came out in 1987. They're not similar in theme, either.
Firestarter is about a man who took part in an experiment while in university, along with his future wife. The drugs they were given gave them psychokinetic powers. They have a daughter who has stronger powers, specifically, the ability to create fire. The entire book is basically them running from the US government. More specifically, they're running from The Shop, which is also the agency who tried to contain Captain Tripps in The Stand.
It isn't one of my favourite King novels. This time, I listened to it as an audiobook, and it took me more than two months. I just couldn't get into it. I love the ending, but the book just doesn't interest me as much as some of his others. James Smythe explains it all rather better.
At the end of the book, King mentions that both the USA and Russia have spent money in investigating paranormal and psychokinetic abilities, which he seems to find both terrifying and fascinating.
I quite want to read another collection of King's short stories, but it'll be 1985 before I get to one. Here's the updated list with the dates I finished them this time round. The ones in red I have read previously, while the ones in blue were new to me.
Carrie - 1974 - June 15th 2013
'Salem's Lot - 1975 - June 30th 2013
The Shining - 1977 - July 28th 2013
Rage - 1977 - July 31st 2013
Night Shift - 1978 - August 28th 2013
The Stand - 1978 - March 20th 2014
The Long Walk - 1979 - March 23rd 2014
The Dead Zone - 1979 - June 2014
Firestarter - 1980 - August 16th 2014
- Checkpoint -
Roadwork - 1981
Danse Macabre - 1981
Cujo - 1981
The Running Man - 1982
The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger - 1982
Creepshow - 1982
Different Seasons - 1982
Christine - 1983
Pet Sematary - 1983
Cycle of the Werewolf - 1983
The Talisman - 1984
Thinner - 1984
Skeleton Crew - 1985
It - 1986
The Eyes of the Dragon - 1987
The Dark Tower II: The Drawing of the Three - 1987
Misery - 1987
The Tommyknockers - 1987
Nightmares in the Sky - 1988
The Dark Half - 1989
Four Past Midnight - 1990
The Dark Tower III: The Waste Lands - 1991
Needful Things - 1991
Gerald's Game - 1992
Dolores Claiborne - 1992
Nightmares & Dreamscapes - 1993
Insomnia - 1994
Rose Madder - 1995
The Green Mile - 1996
Desperation - 1996
The Regulators - 1996
Six Stories - 1997
The Dark Tower IV: Wizard and Glass - 1997
Bag of Bones - 1998
Storm of the Century - 1999
The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon - 1999
The New Lieutenant's Rap - 1999
Hearts in Atlantis - 1999
Blood and Smoke - 1999
"Riding the Bullet" - 2000
On Writing - 2000
Secret Windows - 2000
The Plant - 2000
Dreamcatcher - 2001
Black House (with Peter Straub) -2001
Everything's Eventual - 2002
From a Buick 8 - 2002
The Dark Tower V: Wolves of the Calla - 2003
The Dark Tower VI: Song of Susannah - 2004
The Dark Tower VII: The Dark Tower - 2004
Faithful - 2004
The Colorado Kid - 2005
Cell - 2006
Lisey's Story - 2006
Blaze - 2007
Duma Key - 2008
Just After Sunset - 2008
Stephen King Goes to the Movies - 2009
Ur - 2009
Under the Dome - 2009
Blockade Billy - 2010
Full Dark, No Stars - 2010
Mile 81 - 2011
11/22/63 - 2011
American Vampire (with Scott Snyder) - 2011
"Throttle" (with Joe Hill) - 2012
The Dark Tower: The Wind Through the Keyhole - 2012
A Face in the Crowd (with Stewart O'Nan) - 2012
"In the Tall Grass" (with Joe Hill) - 2012
"GUNS" - 2013
Ghost Brothers of Darkland County - 2013
Joyland - 2013
The Dark Man: An Illustrated Poem - 2013
Doctor Sleep - 2013
Mr. Mercedes - 2014
Revival - November 2014
Finders Keepers - 2015
...that's nine out of eighty-six (!) which puts me 10.47% of the way through. I divided them into groups of five to make for easier counting.
Putting the dates on makes me wonder what on earth I was doing for the second half of 2013. I'm going to make an effort to read some of my current King novel every day, just to speed this up a bit. It's taken me over a year to get 10% of the way through - this needs to go a bit quicker.
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