# The Gunslinger by Stephen King

5 Hacker News commenters recommended The Gunslinger by Stephen King and 1 criticized it, November 2025 to November 2026. It was recommended in 2 of 13 months.

**Verdict:** Readers praise King's storytelling and find it hard to put down, though critics call the writing poor and borderline.

## Why people recommend it

- Enjoyable King storytelling (1 comments): "King tells amazing stories, and The Gunslinger is near the top of my list of favorites." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49908980))
- Hard to put down (1 comments): "it has been tough to put down" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49908683))
- Ranks among favorite books (1 comments): "King tells amazing stories, and The Gunslinger is near the top of my list of favorites." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49908980))

## What people warn about

- Poorly written, made reader quit (1 comments): "it was so poorly written it made me wonder if I should continue" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48909807))
- Borderline quality, mixed opinion (1 comments): ""The Gunslinger" is really a bit borderline." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48910046))

## Alternatives hackers recommend

- [The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien](https://hackerapproved.com/p/lord-of-the-rings.md): 66 recommend
- [The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien](https://hackerapproved.com/p/hobbit.md): 49 recommend
- [Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman](https://hackerapproved.com/p/dungeon-crawler-carl.md): 48 recommend
- [Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality by Eliezer Yudkowsky](https://hackerapproved.com/p/harry-potter-and-the-methods-of-rationality.md): 19 recommend
- [Piranesi by Susanna Clarke](https://hackerapproved.com/p/piranesi.md): 12 recommend

## Where to get it

- [See price on Amazon](https://www.amazon.com/dp/1501168363?tag=hackerapprove-20) (affiliate link)
- [Bookshop.org](https://bookshop.org/a/130825/9781501168369) (affiliate link)

## Cite as

Hacker Approved, "The Gunslinger by Stephen King", https://hackerapproved.com/p/gunslinger/ (counts from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026).