Quick Facts
Biography
Tabitha Jane King (née Spruce, born March 24, 1949) is an American author, and the wife of Stephen King.
Personal life
King is the eldest daughter of Sarah Jane Spruce (née White; December 7, 1923 – April 14, 2007)and Raymond George Spruce (December 29, 1923 – May 29, 2014). King attended college at the University of Maine, where she met her husband Stephen King through her work-study job in the Raymond H. Fogler Library. The two married on January 7, 1971. King had her first child, Naomi Rachel King, in 1970. She gave birth to Joseph Hillstrom King in 1972 and Owen Phillip King in 1977.
As of 2006, King had published eight novels and two works of non-fiction. She published her first novel, Small World, through Signet Books in 1981, and in 2006, Candles Burning was published through Berkley Books.Candles Burning was written predominantly by Michael McDowell, who died in 1999, and the McDowell family requested that King finish the work.
Social activism
King has served on several boards and committees in the state of Maine, such as the Bangor Public Library board. She also served on the board of the Maine Public Broadcasting System until 1994. She received a Constance Carlson award for her work with literacy for the state of Maine.
She currently serves as vice president of WZON/WZLO/WKIT radio stations as well as in the administration of two family philanthropic foundations.
Reception
Reception to King's work has been mixed to positive. Pearl received positive mentions from the Los Angeles Times and the Bangor Daily News, while the Chicago Tribune panned Survivor. The Arizona Daily Star criticized One on One, calling King "a hack", whereas Entertainment Weekly, Time, and the Rocky Mountain News gave the novel positive reviews. Caretakers received positive praise by The New York Times, while Bookreporter.com wrote that some readers might be disappointed by the changes made to McDowell's Candles Burning.
Awards and recognition
- Honorary Doctorates of Humane Letters, University of Maine in Orono (May 1987)
- Dowd Achievement Award (1992)
- Constance H. Carlson Public Humanities Prize (1998)