Throughout the many stories he has written, one of the most common elements inStephen King’s works are characters who have mind powers. This element has been present inKing’s writing since his first published novel,Carrie, was first released in 1974, with the eponymous character discovering that she has telekinetic powers. Carrie is only the first of many characters King created whose minds possess extraordinary and supernatural abilities.
While Carrie’s mind powers lead to a great deal of suffering and destruction,some of King’s other characters strive to use their unique abilities to help others and in service of the greater good. The concept of mind powers was greatly expanded upon inThe Shining, which was published in 1977, as the titular power not only applied to this book, but to itssequel,Doctor Sleep, and characters in other King stories also possessed “the shining.” Out of King’s numerous stories, there are several that particularly stand out for their fascinating exploration of mind powers.
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10The Institute
Published In 2019
The Institute, one of King’s more recent novels, features mind powers at the center of its story. The novel follows a boy named Luke Ellis who is kidnapped and taken to a facility where he and other children with telepathic and telekinetic powers are imprisoned.Luke and the other captive children are tortured and experimented on due to their abilitiesand the nefarious intentions of the sinister organization that runs the facility known as the Institute.
The 2019 novelhas been praised as one of King’s best stories featuring a cast of young characters resisting against evil forces sinceIt, which is widely considered to be one ofKing’s best books.The Institutedemonstrates how King can still tell new and thrilling stories about mind powersthat do not feel like a retread of his previous works. While it is an entertaining and compelling book, it does not quite live up to the heights of some of his other stories that involve mind powers.
9Firestarter
Published In 1980
Instead of telepathy or telekinesis,Firestartertakes mind powers in a more fiery direction with Charlie McGee, a girl who has pyrokinetic abilities. Charlie having the ability to create fire with her mind is already an intriguing concept, but King takes the premise further as Charlie and her father, Andy, are hunted by a secret government agency called the Shop, who want to weaponize Charlie’s powers. Andy’s telepathic power, known as the Push, is also an important part of the story.
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Firestarterwastes little time in moving its narrative forward, making it a book that grabs the reader’s attention from the beginning. It has had two film adaptations, the first in 1984 starring Drew Barrymore as Charlie, and the second in 2022 with Zac Efron in the role of Andy. Neither adaptation is as thrilling as the original novel, which remains a suspenseful and entertaining story, despite not being as nuanced as some of King’s later works.
8Doctor Sleep
Published In 2013
Sequels that are released decades after the original story often do not live up to their predecessor.WhileDoctor Sleepis not as strong asThe Shining,it is still an excellent sequelthat expands upon the first book’s characters and ideas in a rewarding fashion. Danny Torrance, who famously had the Shining in the original book, is seen struggling as a child and as an adult in the aftermath of what he endured during his youth atthe Overlook Hotel.
Doctor Sleepexplores the Shining in new and fascinating ways, not only through Danny, but through a girl with the Shining named Abra Stone. On the villainous side, these abilities are expanded on by a group known as the True Knot, who feed on children that possess the Shining.Doctor Sleepmostly works well because it is not only about Danny, with Abra and the True Knot also being integral to the story and navigating a world where the Shining exists.
7Hearts in Atlantis
Published In 1999
Hearts in Atlantisis a collection of several stories, withLow Men in Yellow Coatsbeing the one that involves mind powers. This story revolves around a boy named Bobby Garfield and a man named Ted Brautigan, the latter of whom has telepathic abilities. Ted is hunted by individuals he refers to as “low men” who wear yellow coats, who seek him because of his telepathic abilities, a storyline that is not fully explored until Ted reappears inThe Dark Towerseries.
Hearts in Atlantishas the added bonus of also featuring other engaging stories that do not deal with mind powers and largely focus on life in the 1960s and the effects of the Vietnam War.
The true highlight ofLow Men in Yellow Coatsis not Ted’s powers or those hunting him because of these powers.The best element of the story is the touching relationship that forms between Ted and Bobby, which leads to a particularly heartbreaking moment.Hearts in Atlantishas the added bonus of also featuring other engaging stories that do not deal with mind powers and largely focus on life in the 1960s and the effects of the Vietnam War.
Published In 1979
The Dead Zonetells the story of Johnny Smith, whose psychic abilities begin to develop after an ice-skating accident he experienced as a child, an ability that develops much further after surviving a brutal accident as an adult that sends him into a five-year coma.Johnny is able to see visions of the past and futurewhen he comes into physical contact with people and objects. He uses this ability in an attempt to help others, including efforts to stop a serial killer and a ruthless politician named Greg Stillson.
The story that unfolds inThe Dead Zoneis more character-driven than plot-driven. Johnny does not have aspirations to be a hero and is a down-to-earth, mild-mannered individual, who grapples with the psychic abilities he possesses, while also struggling to move forward after unexpectedly losing the five years of his life that he spent in a coma. In many ways, his powers are more of a curse than a blessing, although they prove useful in unmasking evil individuals, with Stillson being a particularly memorable and eerily realistic villain.
5The Dark Tower
Published In 2004
The Dark Toweris its own series, with mind powers being particularly prominent in the final installment, which is fittingly titledThe Dark Tower. This is partly due to Roland Deschain and his ka-tet encountering a group of telepaths known as the Breakers. They are forced by agents of the Crimson King to use their powers to weaken the Beams that support the Dark Tower.The Breakers consist of some familiar characters, includingHearts in Atlantis' Ted Brautigan and Sheemie Ruiz, who first appeared earlier in the series duringWizard and Glass.
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In addition to the Breakers, the lastDark Towerbook features Jake Chambers, who has a psychic power known as the Touch, along with the connivingRandall Flagg and the monstrous Mordred Deschain, who each have their own telepathic abilities.The Dark Towerand its ending are not about these powers, but they do play a role in the shocking, emotional, and rewarding way that the series concludes. It is a bold ending that recontextualizes the entire series.
4Carrie
Published In 1974
Despite the death and destruction Carrie White unleashes, King’s first published novel also paints a distressing picture of a young woman who has been horribly mistreated by her family and her peers. Between her religiously fanatical mother who locks her in the closet, to the peers who pour pig’s blood on her at the prom,it is not difficult to see why Carrie ultimately snaps and retaliates against her community. As brutal as her retaliation is, there is a sense of justice in it too.
Carrie is written not only from the eponymous character’s perspective, but also features news reports, journals, and letters. This provides a wider scope to fully understand what Carrie’s telekinetic powers are like for her, how it feels to unleash them against others, and the perspective of those who experience or hear about these powers firsthand. In many ways,Carriesets the standard for the evolution of mind powers in King’s future stories.
3It
Published In 1986
Itis one ofKing’s scariest stories, with few characters being as terrifying as the demonic entity that often appears in the form of Pennywise the Dancing Clown. The shapeshifting Pennywise has many powers, including the ability to read the minds of his victims, and to use their deepest fears against them. The novel moves back and forth between two time periods, first whenPennywise preys on the main characters when they are children, and resurfaces again 27 years later.
AnItprequel series,Welcome to Derry, will debut on Max in 2025.
At over 1,000 pages,Itprovides ample opportunity to allow the reader to get to know the various members of the Losers Club as children and as adults.Itis a haunting exploration of fear itself, which is made more palpable by the varying ways Pennywise feeds on the fears of his victims. The primary setting, Derry, Maine, is also thoroughly explored, with its dark history and ability to bury traumatic events being a vital element of the story and its overarching themes.
2The Stand
Published In 1978
The Standfeatures an extensive cast of characters in its story that sees its post-apocalyptic survivors splitting into two camps, one led by good, and the other by evil. The leaders of these camps,Mother Abagail Freemantle and Randall Flagg, both possess unique mind powers. Mother Abagail has telepathic abilities that help her reach out to the survivors seeking to rebuild a proper civilization, with her telepathic message drawing them to Boulder, Colorado, where they establish a democratic society known as the Boulder Free Zone.
While mind powers are not the focus ofThe Stand, they are an important feature in King’s epic tale of good versus evil.
Randall Flagg, a villain who appears under various guises in many of King’s stories, is telepathic and can use his mind to negatively influence other characters. Just as Mother Abagail uses her powers to draw well-intentioned people toward her,Flagg uses his powers to draw more immoral and corruptible individuals toward himand the more sinister society he builds in Las Vegas. While mind powers are not the focus ofThe Stand, they are an important feature in King’s epic tale of good versus evil.
1The Shining
Published In 1977
When it comes to mind powers, none of King’s novels do it better thanThe Shining. This is partly due to a matter of precedent, as even though it was not the first story to feature such powers, it may be the most influential, as many of King’s later characters either have the Shining or an ability with a different name that is essentially the same thing. As forThe Shiningnovel itself,it is one of King’s most chilling stories while delving into the depths of Jack Torrance’s mind.
From Danny and Dick Halloran having the Shining to the ghosts of the Overlook Hotel, the story is filled with supernatural elements. At the same time,The Shiningis grounded through its exploration of addiction, alcoholism, and the impact that they have on the families of those consumed by these struggles. Even when compared to the classicThe Shiningfilm directed by Stanley Kubrick, the book is still superior, and proves itself to beStephen King’s best story featuring mind powers.
