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'Salem's Lot
by Stephen King

Published: 2008-05-06
Kindle Edition : 470 pages
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Recommended to book clubs by 1 of 1 members
Stephen King’s second novel, the classic vampire bestseller ’SALEM’S LOT, tells the story of evil in small-town America. For the first time in a major trade edition, this terrifying novel is accompanied by previously unpublished material from King’s archive, two short stories, and ...
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Introduction

Stephen King’s second novel, the classic vampire bestseller ’SALEM’S LOT, tells the story of evil in small-town America. For the first time in a major trade edition, this terrifying novel is accompanied by previously unpublished material from King’s archive, two short stories, and eerie photographs that bring King’s fictional darkness and evil to vivid life.

When Stephen King’s classic thriller’SALEM’S LOT hit the stands in 1975, it thrilled and terrified millions of readers with tales of demonic evil in small-town America. Now, thirty years later and still scaring readers witless, ’SALEM’S LOT reemerges in a brilliant new edition, complete with photographs, fifty pages of deleted and alternate scenes, and two short stories related to the events of the novel.

While the original edition of ’SALEM’S LOT will forever be a premier horror classic, ’SALEM’S LOT: ILLUSTRATED EDITION, with the inclusion of material from King’s archive, is destined to become a classic in its own right and a must-have for all Stephen King fans. In this edition, the hair-raising story of Jerusalem’s Lot, a small town in Maine whose inhabitants succumb to the evil allure of a new resident, is told as the author envisioned it, complete with fifty pages of alternate and deleted scenes. With a new introduction by the author, two short stories related to the events and residents of Jerusalem’s Lot, the lavishly creepy photographs of Jerry Uelsmann, and a stunning new page design, this edition brings the story to life in words and pictures as never before.

No library will be complete without this ideal collector’s item for any King aficionado, the definitive illustrated edition of the great ’SALEM’S LOT.

Editorial Review

Stephen King's second book, 'Salem's Lot (1975)--about the slow takeover of an insular hamlet called Jerusalem's Lot by a vampire patterned after Bram Stoker's Dracula--has two elements that he also uses to good effect in later novels: a small American town, usually in Maine, where people are disconnected from each other, quietly nursing their potential for evil; and a mixed bag of rational, goodhearted people, including a writer, who band together to fight that evil.

Simply taken as a contemporary vampire novel, 'Salem's Lot is great fun to read, and has been very influential in the horror genre. But it's also a sly piece of social commentary. As King said in 1983, "In 'Salem's Lot, the thing that really scared me was not vampires, but the town in the daytime, the town that was empty, knowing that there were things in closets, that there were people tucked under beds, under the concrete pilings of all those trailers. And all the time I was writing that, the Watergate hearings were pouring out of the TV.... Howard Baker kept asking, 'What I want to know is, what did you know and when did you know it?' That line haunts me, it stays in my mind.... During that time I was thinking about secrets, things that have been hidden and were being dragged out into the light." Sounds quite a bit like the idea behind his 1998 novel of a Maine hamlet haunted by unsightly secrets, Bag of Bones. --Fiona Webster

Excerpt

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Discussion Questions

Suggested by Members

What did you think of the roles women played in the story? There are several tropes worth examining. Naive daughter, overbearing mother, abused women, busybody widower, and some women who were nothing but wives and set-dressings.
Did you find any inconsistencies in the plot or vampire lore? Do you think the vampires were scary?
How does this relate to other popular vampire stories, either modern (Twilight) or classic (Dracula)?
by smf15362 (see profile) 10/23/14

Notes From the Author to the Bookclub

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Book Club Recommendations

Perfect for an October meeting!
by smf15362 (see profile) 10/23/14
Not exactly for the faint of heart! This one has a bit of gore, but is definitely spooky and after you get over the initial slow-build up of the scene and characters, you\\\'re in for an exciting story! I would say it takes about 200 pages to really get going, so stick it out and you\\\'ll be rewarded.

Member Reviews

Overall rating:
 
 
by Nicole M. (see profile) 04/24/18

 
  "Slow Burn"by Shannon F. (see profile) 10/23/14

Our club had a great discussion about this book. We read it in October, in honor of Halloween, and it was many of our first experiences reading Stephen King. There was so much to talk about--the plot,... (read more)

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