Best Stephen King Books – recommended by entrepreneurs and professionals

When you think of Stephen King you don’t think of entrepreneurship and career. At least I don’t. Still, lots of my friends read and recommend Stephen Kings books. Especially his On Writing, but you can read about it below.

This is an admittedly short list of the best Stephen Kings books, since we mostly focus on non-fiction and business books here, at The CEO Library, but they’re a good starting point. Of course, King wrote so many good books, you can read all of them. He wrote 58 books, so you can always read our article on how to read 50+ books a year and you’d be right on the spot.

We also have a list of books that Stephen King himself recommended. You might see something you want to read there as well. Until then, though, let’s go through the books the man wrote:

On Writing: On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft – Stephen King

This is probably the most recommended book on how to write well. Of course, it refers to how to write a novel, but it is really good for writing in general. And, as people as Jeff Bezos say, being able to clearly express your ideas in writing is one of the most important skill a business person, a professional, can have.

Of course, if you ever want to write a book, this is one of the best books to read on the subject. I’d also suggest Harumi Murakami’s What I Think about When I Think about Running. Mark Manson had this to say about King’s book: “I read a bunch of books on writing before I wrote my first book and one that stuck with me was Stephen King’s book.”

It was published in 2000 and updated in 2010 with a newer and improved reading list by Stephen King, so this is the version you should read if you want to read it.

Salems Lot – Stephen King

Dedicated to his daughter, this book is the second one Stephen King ever wrote. He actually said, in several interviews in the ’80s, that Salem’s Lot is one of his favourite books that he wrote. Not necessarily about the subject (vampires and stuff), but about the things it says about small, dying cities.

You wouldn’t think it, but the entrepreneur that recommended this book read it for the first time when she was 10. I read it when I was around 16-17 and it still scared the hell out of me. Here’s what Bethanye McKiney Blount has to say: “I read this for the first time when I was 10 — great parenting at work — but it was almost scarier to reread as an adult.”

The Gunslinger (The Dark Tower I) – Stephen King

One interesting thing I’ve noticed while being an entrepreneur for the last 20 years is that a lot of my fellow entrepreneurs read science fiction and fantasy. I’m not a psychologist to reach any type of conclusions on this, so let’s take it for what it is.

The Gunslinger is a combination of science-fiction, fantasy and, of course, King’s favourite style, horror. It is the first book in the Dark Tower saga and a book you can start reading when you get bored or sick with the non-fiction and business books.

This book was recommended by Andrew Eliott: “I am currently reading The Gunslinger by Stephen King. I try to intersperse recreational, fun reading into my book queue and this is one of those books! I have only just started it, but it is a good read so far!”