The Talisman

By: Stephen King, Peter Straub

Narrated by: Frank Muller

Length: 28 hrs

Publisher's summary

On a brisk autumn day, a 13-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....

©2001 Simon & Schuster; 2001 Stephen King and Peter Straub

Critic reviews

Audie Award Winner, Fiction (unabridged), 2002

"A classic...rare and dazzling...a journey to rival the greatest adventure stories ever told." ( New York Daily News)

"Extraordinary...makes your hair stand on end." ( The Washington Post)

Homophobic and racist voice acting

It gets pretty cringey fast. When he isn't doing a racist or homophobic voice, he's giving every other character like a 1920s gangster long drawn out accent. No matter who it is. The mom? 1920s gangster. The child. Gangster.

growth of Jack

it was a decent book I liked it it ebbed and flowed the first audio book I started with was Fairytale one kings new books. then Duma Key looking back on them It is weird how I am perceiving them when vs when I am in the middle of the book.

I have read this book, and listened to it.

This story is my all time favorite, I have read the book a few times and could not wait to listen to some one read it to me. This was my first audiostory ever and I would recommend it to anyone.

Listen to a sample of the narration first

The narrator did a good job of dialogue, but the rest of the time, he had a habit of ending his sentences with the exact same airy inflection. The repetition was distracting.

Not what I expected from Stephen King

I strongly dislike stories about strange things that happen 'just because'. I like my storytelling to be fairly linear (stories shouldn't begin in the air and end nowhere, to quote Mark Twain) and logical (things shouldn't happen for no reason), thus, I'm not a prime candidate for a Stephen King fan. Surprisingly, I found this to be a good and gripping tale, with a magnificent reading by Frank Muller. My only complaint, and it's why I'm taking a pass on the followup book, The Black House, is that the ending is a bit of a 'things happening just because' letdown.

Classic book, even better audiobook.

I read The Talisman many years ago, and it was one of my favorites. I had always wanted to go back and read it again, and when I started listening to audiobooks, it was one of the first I downloaded. I was not disappointed as the audiobook version brought a whole new dimension to the story. I loved the book then, and love it even more now. Perfect.

Good Story

Being an Over the road truck driver, I listen to audio books all the time. Tried to Read this book 3 times and never could get into the story. But listening to the book, I was able to get so engrossed in the story, I almost missed my turns several times. couldnt wait to get back on a good long run again to start listening to where I left off in the story.

Not a hit

Despite Frank Miller’s wonderful narration (always the best), the story is predictable, drags on and on, endlessly, finally boring. I am a great fan of The Dark Tower; this felt like an amateurish prelude. The only reason I listened to the end and actually gave it 2 rather than one star is out of respect for Stephen King. I honestly do not believe he was the actual writer. Do not recommend it.

Long but intriguing

This story was super long. It was very bizarre and unlike anything I’ve ever read, quite an imagination. Is a story about a boy, his dying mom and his travels into another world; back-and-forth, in order, to try to save this world and his mom as we know it. There are some unbelievable characters and many adventures ,propelled by an ageing black carnival man and his magic potion we are taken on an epic journey that require quite a bit of imagination, but I guess that’s what storytelling is all about.

Go wolf!

This is how I felt at 13. Awesome! Wish I'd picked it up then, here and now!