The Dark Tower

Yo Mamma · 19-12-2007 4:11pm #1

W O W ! ! !

These books are now the pride and joy of my collection so I feel an urge to share my ramblings with you. So, Stephen King eh. "I won't read anything by him because he only writes dodgy horror novels." A common misconception is that King is a horror writer. However, those who know anything about him know the man is capable of writing in a variety of fields. Although, predominantly known for books such as "The Shining" and "Carrie" due to the hugely successful films, an increasing number have been following his Dark Tower series myself included. The Dark Tower series consists of seven books all of varying lengths and scope.

All I can say is that I Started these back in January and finished them earlier this month, having not been able to put them down !! I was actually sad reading the last book and took my sweet time too because I knew that once this one was finished there were no more to read ! Thats the first time I have ever felt like that after a series of books and is a testament to the genious of King !!!

So, why should you read the books. The Dark Tower series read like a modern fairytale. It is the closest you will ever get to a present day Lord of The Rings and in many ways surpasses it. King effortlessly blends the old world into a shattered new one and his storytelling is constantly engaging

The genius with this series is that you can enjoy any one of these books individually or all together. King has also written these books with his other books in mind. There are several references to characters from other books including Randall Flagg and Jack Mortimer as well as the welcome inclusion of Pere Callahan from Salem's Lot. It is not essential you have read his previous works but it certainly adds to the experience. The man must have an amazingly logical mind as well as a wild imagination as he managed to include references to Star Wars and even Harry Potter!

The post apocolyptic vision King gives truly makes you think and the story is a compelling one. It is the presence of friendship, trust and loyalty which is evident in all King's books which make my favourite set of books with the right amount of humour and emotion throughout. It is one of few books were you care what happens to the characters. If you don't like King you should still read this. I promise you will not be disappointed.

Anybody else read this masterpiece ???

(dont know if there is a previous thread - soz if there is

)

John · 19-12-2007 8:46pm

There have been a few threads I think but what the hell, a new DT thread is always welcome! I love these books, I got into them around the time Wizard and Glass came out and I'm still upset that it's finished (but delighted that King didn't go and die before he finished!).

CraggyIslander · 19-12-2007 10:55pm

Did love the initial 4 books, the wizard and glass one was the weakest one of those. Was looking forward to the new ones, but wish I hadn't bothered.

Wolves of the callas was pretty decent, but the last two were tripe (why oh why did he have to write himself into it?) and have put me off his writings completely.

Prefer his older horror material really, the one or two of his newer stuff that I did bothered picking up were very 'meh'

Ho-Hum · 19-12-2007 11:03pm

A friend of mine turned me on to these books a few years ago and I absolutely fell in love with it from the first page of The Gunslinger. It has one of my favourite opening lines ever - "The man in black fled across the desert, and the gunslinger followed"

The first four books are pure brilliance and while I personally think the other three are a bit weaker they are still undeniably great. Something I loved about this series was the way it tied in with other King novels and brought together alot of stories from them that seemed unconnected.

Wizard and Glass would probably be my pick of the lot, some great characters in it and it was very interesting to read about Roland as a younger man.

I must dig these out and get stuck into them again.

ixoy · 19-12-2007 11:10pm

Just recently finished "The Wolves of the Callas" and, whilst it was pretty good, it was by no means earth-shattering, particularly when put up against the many others in the fantasy genre. It was a bit drawn out and I'm not that fond of King using "19" everywhere - sure, it's reasoning may become more apparent but it often seems like a sloppy way to get away with using coincidence to drive plots. Just call it "ka". Having the characters question it doesn't make it that much easier to swallow either.

Still his style is pretty likeable and I enjoy the characters. There's a good rhythm to the world and he's managed to create a good flavour for it, even if half of it is made up from bits that he's stolen from other works (yes I appreciate there's a reason that will be made clear, but it still removes work on King's part to fully build his own world).

Nonetheless, it's still sticking in my head and I'm enjoying it - it's just not a classic. Say thank-ya all the same!

Tar.Aldarion · 19-12-2007 11:24pm

Fantastic series, the only gripe I agree with from above is they said 19 a little too much.
I don't really think using bits from other works takes away from anything, I quite liked it.

nyarlothothep · 20-12-2007 12:10am

Apparently they're making films of DT to be released in 2009, its in Empire.

*Plot spoilers*

hmmm, I finished reading these books in December of 2005. At the time I thought that the series went wayward after the Wizard and the Glass, that the series was a flawed masterpiece. Now with the benefit of hindsight I can qualify this by saying that its a really really amazing flawed masterpiece.

I've read other epics, the NightsDawn trilogy, LOTR, the Gap series but none, imo, come close to the melancholy and vivid nature of DT. It possess characters that are incredibly well crafted. I find that with other books the characters, while different tend to speak with the authors voice, I found this anyway with the NightsDawn trilogy. And with the Gap series for example the characters were almost laid out like blueprints in terms of their personality attributes. But with DT this is not the case. The characters evolve and you find out more about them and things about them that are surprising.

DT also has an emotional weight behind it which makes a lasting impression. While it may not be as intellectual nor have as many cool scientific concepts as Nightsdawn its the poignancy of the quest and the atmosphere thats generated throughout which for me makes it a more memorable read.

Now Wolves of Calla is imo, the worst in the series bar none and strikes me as an attempt to draw out the series to make it more epic. All the books up to that were brilliant.

Song of Sussanah was also quite dodgy, Stephen King putting himself in the novel and likening himself to Roland of Gilead was very self indulgent. I guess he was establishing the meta fiction aspect for the last book, as they are in part about the process of writing for King, about Kings imagination and the different aspects to it.

The last book was where King pulled out all the stops to finish the series on a bang but I think it has a certain exhausted air to it which may have something to do with the fact that he announced sometime around then that he was retiring from writing. Its good, but its a bit laboured.

The ending many people seem to have a problem with. Imo I think that a better ending may exist out there but ultimately its the best ending for the series and perfectly illustrates the themes of the book. Its also quite profound and left me thinking about it for a quite a while which imo is the sign of a great ending.

Anyway, simply put, DT for me is way better than any other epic series Ive read, and put together is equal to, if not better, in many cases than any novels Ive read.

tHE vAGGABOND · 20-12-2007 1:43pm

Did love the initial 4 books.........Was looking forward to the new ones, but wish I hadn't bothered

Agree 100%

Otis Driftwood · 20-12-2007 4:17pm

Agree with most of the above.
The first 4 are top notch but the last 3 were a bit weak in parts.
Have to say though,all in all these are my fave King books of all time and Ive read em all.

BTW there is currently a graphic novel of the DT available.I believe its going to be in 3 parts and the first is available now.
They focus on Roland as a younger man.
A must have for true fans of the series.

Yo Mamma · 20-12-2007 5:22pm

And also confirmed this month.....

http://www.slashfilm.com/2007/02/26/stephen-king-confirms-the-dark-tower-movie/

This could be Amazing !!

If they can produce TV series like 'Lost' or 'The Soprans' just imaging what they could do with The Dark Tower !!

I heard that Stephen King was actually writing a Novel based on the Graphic Novel ? Its like all the Graphic series roled up into one....

mcgovern · 21-12-2007 1:50pm

Only read the first one and wasn't overly impressed, I do intend trying the 2nd though at some stage.

kmick · 21-12-2007 2:04pm

I have only read the wolves of calla on holiday sand while it was entertaining enough (the battle at the end was good) it was hardly top drawer stuff. I do intend to read the rest though it was interesting enough concept.

Cilmeron · 29-12-2007 12:23am

By far the best work of King.. it includes several of his older books and most of his new books are based upon the general idea of the series.. the more books of this compendium you know the more understanding of the greatness you get.. kudos for that

alan767 · 31-12-2007 10:31am

I one novel from the trilogy and having read this post and seeing the reverance this seems to be getting I've just set a new years resolution to buy and read them all now....
When I read books like Salems Lot, It and The Stand uncut for the first time I literally didn't want to put them down so I'm hoping the DT series will be the same...

paulusdu · 31-12-2007 10:45am

I've always thought of Stephen King as complete hit and miss when it comes to my own personal taste in books, i've read 6 or 7 of his older books, and found a few to be very 'bland'.
But i have been on the lookout for a new series of books to read, and now that David Gemmell is no more (favorites are the Jon Shannow books), Robert Jordan has also passed away and i've read The Lord of the rings for the xxth time, i was at a bit of a loss.
I have tried Tad Williams, but im just not warming to Otherland, I have Steven Erikcson lined up for the new year, and i think i shall be putting The Dark tower on my list to read too.
Cheers for the heads up on it.

Fly High · 26-06-2008 3:18am

Okay I'm zombifying this thread and trying to ressurect it from the dead... Can't believe how little discussion there is about these epic books and I love how differently everyone views them, I love to hear people's reaction to the end too

These are without doubt my favourite books ever. Period. Just for extra imphasis...

What I loved the most I think was how well developed the characters were... Any fans out there, did you check out the grafic novel which while it is visually stunning is a double edged sword because it's not your own vision any more... I do reccomend them, definately worth a look if you liked the books...

Anyways I've said my piece now, it may fade into obscurity.. or it may not.. it's ka :P

oxygen_old · 27-06-2008 5:40pm

these books are really divisive. More so than this thread indicates, as I think its only ppl who liked the books posting on this thread.

I read the first 3 books and just gave up. Didnt like them. When I heard he wrote himself into the new books, it made me want to read them less.

I think the Roland is basically Clint Eastwood in the Sergio Leone. SK has said as much himself. And its a mash up or ok writing, a western, and LOtR.

Just my opinion above

Ardent · 27-06-2008 5:54pm

I was something of a Stephen King fan when I was younger. Late last year, I read the first two DT books but gave up mid-way through the second.

Just couldn't get it into it for some reason - not sure if it was the storyline or if I'm just getting tired of King's padded out style of writing.

ixoy · 28-06-2008 11:20pm

I feel too much of the plot is built on set pieces borrowed from other books - Wizard of Oz for example. Now I'm up to Book 6 and I know that's part of the point but it just seems a rather convenient way for King not to have to think up too much original material of his own and instead crib other's work.
There's also a massive a massive amount of self indulgence in:

making yourself a pivotal character!

It seems in danger of self imploding and I hope to proved otherwise when I get to reading the final book.

One thing I will say though - he's written the characters very well. Roland of Gilead, Jake, Susannah (and her many variations), and Eddie are some of the best realised characters in recent fantasy and they've a real air of reality that can help ground the book's more insane moments.

Tar.Aldarion · 29-06-2008 12:27pm

I love the characters, think they make the book by themselves. Very well written. I don't mind what he does with other peoples material, I thought it was something different and good. I don't think he would had much trouble making stuff up like any other author or another book of his, don't believe he is going for the easy way out..

ixoy · 30-06-2008 1:29pm

Tara Le d'Arion wrote: »

I love the characters, think they make the book by themselves.

Probably true - as much as lots of the plot points irk me, the characters are well enough done that I can get over it and continue to enjoy the series.

I also liked the culture of Midworld/Endworld - the language in particular: "Say thank ya!" etc. It's quite unique and sets the books apart from the more portentious overblown dialogue found in other fantasy works.

John · 05-07-2008 2:33am

I think the literary "sampling" he does fits with the idea that The Dark Tower universe encapsulates everything, even the fiction in our world. I can see why it would irk you but without it there would be a huge hole in the story.

ixoy · 12-07-2008 4:33pm

John wrote: »

I think the literary "sampling" he does fits with the idea that The Dark Tower universe encapsulates everything, even the fiction in our world. I can see why it would irk you but without it there would be a huge hole in the story.

Oh I understand that, and that the concepts of fiction and creation and the multi-verse of the imagination is a central theme to the story... but it still does end up being a bit of a handy reason to nab bits from other stories

gogo · 13-07-2008 12:29am

Think this is the second time ive wrote this on a thread this week, but I absolutly love the dt series, it was definatly Kings grandest opus. I waited until they were all out together, even though I had the Gunslinger for years, before starting them. Roland is one of my all time favourite literary characters.

13-07-2008 7:28pm

I've come to love these books. I had read most of Kings other books previously and saw all the references to Roland etc but I didn't actually get around to reading the series until the year before last! There are a few weak bit's throughout but overall they are pretty damn good.:D

ixoy · 14-07-2008 5:47pm

Deleted User wrote: »

I've come to love these books. I had read most of Kings other books previously and saw all the references to Roland etc but I didn't actually get around to reading the series until the year before last!

I always enjoyed how King inter-linked many of his books with 'The Dark Tower' series standing in the middle, joining them all (and our own world). So for example in 'Insomnia' I believe one of the characters has a vision of Roland. The Stand links in (via Randall Flagg). It even goes to smaller extent - I think that one of the punks in 'The Body' (aka 'Stand By Me') turns up (or his brother does) as one of the bullies chasing the kids in 'IT'.

Tar.Aldarion · 14-07-2008 5:50pm

I love that stuff, good to see him connecting them like that.

tHE vAGGABOND · 14-07-2008 5:59pm

I was going to post, but then saw I did in December 2007! But feckit, the point still stands. The first 4 books are amazing, it really tails off after that IMHO. A huge let down.

ixoy · 15-07-2008 5:54pm

Just had a look at the opening shot of 'The Mist' (movie based on a King short story) and the main character is painting a picture of Roland of Gilead in it

Tar.Aldarion · 15-07-2008 6:06pm

Hah, cool.

ixoy · 30-08-2008 7:14pm

*Little bump - say thank ya! * Spoilers for the entire series beneath the spoiler space...

Finished the series and gotta say I liked the final ending, do it please ya:

Roland on a cycle in the Dark Tower fits in quite well with how the ideas of fate and time rolling around work. The fact that at each revolution he comes closer to correcting his mistakes and realising his destiny is good, even if it isn't this time.

Other things not so fond of:

Killing off Walter aka Randall Flagg basically off screen. No final confrontation, no final battle? This was the man who was on the very first line of the novel, who has appeared as a villain in a ton of King's works (most noticably in 'The Stand' and 'Talisman'). Did King not know how to finish his story? Definitely felt he dropped the ball here.

Susannah's story seemed to have a huge chunk cut out from when they freed the Beamers to when Roland re-appears. During this she's buried Eddie, had Sheemie die, and journeyed onwards. Thought there's the meat of a good section here that we never saw and it didn't quite sit right.

Patrick Danville's appearance at the end seemed a bit too handy. I figured he was from another of King's works, but he still seemed a deus ex-machina to take out the Crimson King. Again Roland didn't get to really confront the Crimson King. Danville was also brought in very late in the story furthering my deus-ex machina suspicions.

I actually liked the fate of most of the characters and I'm still ambivalent at one aspect:

namely Stephen King being in his own novel.
As the story creator it does make sense in a meta way, despite what he tries to claim in the afterword. It's a little reminiscent of "Stranger Than Fiction" but it might go too far when he basically becomes the most important person in the multi-verse whom they have to save. It's a tough call because the concept that King has to finish the Dark Tower as it ties in his whole multiverse of fiction is fitting but it's dangerously close to self indulgence of the highest order. It just about works!

All-in-all I like the series and it is very memorable and not just because I've been reading it for nigh-on 20 years, do it please ya. Despite the borrowings from other works, it has a very original feel and some great characters and imagery. It has a very unique flavour and use of language that I've not found in any other work. It could have been more tightly written in the last 3 books and there's a sense that King never really knew where he was going with it and used various deus-ex machinas along the way (almost admitting as much). Rewarding ultimately though, especially if you're familiar with how it ties in with all his other works - just expect to be frustrated and exulted in equal measures.

The Dark Tower

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