An epic ostensibly set in the Old West however it doesn't take long for the reader to soon discover otherwise, about a Gunslinger ( a word invented in the 1920s), roaming the eternal, unearthly deserts, his never ending search for the Man in Black the reason will be revealed but not too early. Poor Roland, in the war's aftermath the unknown planet was pulverized, the so -called civilization lost, no roads, train tracks, nothing, all dilapidated, homes disintegrating before your eyes, the sad lands a testament to human's abysmal conduct or their equivalent here, maybe Stephen King's characters some say have no depth but still waters run very deep. The main interest in these genre novels is the morbid atmosphere, the struggles in many dangerous situations by individuals trying to escape total destruction. The ugly views strangely becomes beautiful , the territories, so bleak, the sparse vegetation lacking much in substance, no water a vast sandy, rocky, empty terrain of little value slowly dying without notice if anyone cared, the creepy sights will give all nightmares, can this be our future ? Roland the mysterious unfeeling gunfighter is relentless , Revenge with a capital R constantly on his mind, nothing else matters, the brief encounters will be short and deadly the reason the book is so popular like a Clint Eastwood film an unstoppable man more robot than human, unafraid he knowns no limits. A small town the inhabitants seem quite friendly even meeting a girl in a saloon , the gunfighter isn't picky. A boy Jake arranged by the Man in Black apparently to stifle the hot pursuer, nevertheless the fierce Gunslinger unexpectedly grows to love the kid, the killer has a good heart ? The best part indeed the relationship of seemingly odd couple becoming friends. Other major highlights of many in the somber tale,
this narrative , are the long walks seeing the cloudless skies , the tall treacherous, ghostly mountains always close by yet never reached, bones scattered everywhere, animals they think and hope. Flashbacks are written to fill in the sketchy background stories years old not pleasant, yet facts, however undoubtedly necessary. Onwards the peculiar couple travel west as the sun brings the sizzle down, the tongues dry , the mouth feels the pain, the throat thickens the intense sun rays dry the skin until the face cracks. The climb above the freaky mountains not memorable still an important phase in the ultimate surprise denouncement of the tale. The first of the famous Dark Tower series that have acquired a rather high reputation and deservedly so.

This is my 2nd journey to the tower and I must say Thw Gunslinger is far better than I initially gave it credit for.
Of course hindsight is a funny thing and this was no exception. While initially seeming boring, this first stop is crucial and it all makes so much more sense the 2nd time around.

Se nota que este es el primer libro, los elementos que distinguen al autor apenas comenzaban a tomar forma, el modo de escribir es perceptible, aunque todavía muy al aire.
La trama es algo inconexa y los elementos un tanto desdibujados, aunque tiene algo que te hace seguir leyendo, porque la falta de respuestas puede ser el motor que nos haga avanzar para ir recavando más información.
Me gustaron mucho los personajes principales, Roland y el hombre de negro, su dualidad y el recorrido por una tierra seca y que parece exprimida para seguir viviendo es algo que nunca había leído antes.
Lo western no es mi estilo, pero aquí no fue desagradable, además con semejante frase de inició quien no cae rendido a ella.

Bueno, ya era hora… Comenzamos la aventura, casi sin querer una noche sin sueño y sin querer pensar mucho en que libro comenzar.
El comienzo como no podía ser de otra manera ha sido fantástico. En esta obra del gran King nos encontramos con Roland (el pistolero) que se encuentra persiguiendo al hombre de negro. Básicamente este primer libro consiste en la persecución de nuestro protagonista tras el misterioso hombre de negro. Por el camino vamos conociendo un poco sobre toda la ambientación general que nos va a ir presentando el autor. Me ha parecido un buen comienzo me ha dejado con muchas ganas de seguir la saga. La llegada de los tres está al caer.

Continuing my journey of reading/re-reading all of Stephen Kings books in publication order. My second journey to The Dark Tower and I enjoyed this a lot more the second time around. The first time I read this I was so confused and nothing made sense, but after reading The Dark Tower series you really get a completely new experience.

The build up in this book is really nice and it just as nicely written as the rest of the series. knowing the ending of this series really enhancing everything that happens. The descriptions are vivid and you can imagine everything going on with such clarity.

Roland and Jake's relationship is just starting but you can already feel how sacred it is. I can't wait to go back through this series a read everything all over again this is one of those series where no matter how many times you read it there will always be something new to discover.

I’ve always heard great things about this series, so when my bestie and her brother invited me to do a buddie read I jumped on i! So glad I did.

I had to remind myself to keep plugging along “I’m sure this will become clearer as I go.” And it did. Not that there aren’t questions about the bigger picture, but for this particular book I’m satisfied. But that’s why it’s a SERIES right?

“The man in black fled across the desert, and the gunslinger followed.”

So begins what Stephen King considers his magnum opus, The Dark Tower. The line above is among the most well known opening lines in modern literature, and it perfectly sets the tone for the rest of the short novel. This first installment, The Gunslinger, is the only book in the series I’ve read before, and I knew I needed a refresher before I dove any deeper into The Dark Tower. While The Gunslinger isn’t perfect by any stretch of the imagination, with areas that drag and a last quarter that goes too hazily ephemeral to maintain an emotional connection, it’s a fun and very original introduction into what I’ve heard is an incredibly powerful and unique series.

“I do not aim with my hand; he who aims with his hand has forgotten the face of his father.
I aim with my eye.

I do not shoot with my hand; he who shoots with his hand has forgotten the face of his father.
I shoot with my mind.

I do not kill with my gun; he who kills with his gun has forgotten the face of his father.
I kill with my heart.”

I don’t know about the rest of the series, but this book is an odd mix of high fantasy, Western, and contemporary fiction. King was first inspired by a Robert Browning poem, “Childe Roland to the Dark Tower Came”. He wanted to somehow marry this concept to The Lord of the Rings and Spaghetti Westerns, and I definitely think he accomplished that objective. I love the fact that there are multiple worlds, but that they’re hidden, mysterious, little known and borderline inaccessible. What I love even more is the knowledge that so many of King’s other books will be referenced in some way throughout the series, and that The Dark Tower and its characters either make appearances or are somehow loosely connected to each and every story King pens. In the Afterword to Wizard and Glass, the author himself says:

“I have written enough novels and short stories to fill a solar system of the imagination, but Roland's story is my Jupiter--a planet that dwarfs all the others . . . a place of strange atmosphere, crazy landscape, and savage gravitational pull. Dwarfs the others, did I say? I think there's more to it than that, actually. I am coming to understand that Roland's world (or worlds) actually contains all the others of my making…”

Wild, right? I think any dedicated follower of an author or television series or movie franchise or band or any other form of entertainment love to look for Easter eggs, hidden references in a book or movie or song to other of their favorites from the same artist or creators. Whether it’s Marvel movies or Brandon Sanderson’s Cosmere, this search for hidden connections is one of my very favorite things. And I think that, in some small way, King helped launch this trend.

“Go then, there are other worlds than these.”

Ted Dekker had to have been inspired in large part by this book when writing Showdown, which was one of my very favorite novels as a teen. Showdown is a Christian speculative novel, thrilling and suspenseful and dipping in and out of the horror genre. Marsuvees Black had to have been created in the Man in Black’s image as rendered in The Gunslinger. From the Western feel to the town that goes down in flames, from whacked theology to the innocent sacrifice to the knowledge that other worlds are waiting just beyond the veil, the two books have an incredible amount in common. Showdown almost seems to both ask and answer the question “What if The Gunslinger had less weird sex and more Jesus?” The Gunslinger came on the scene 24 years before Showdown was published, and I don’t see how on Dekker could have written his book without first being inspired by King’s work. Not that I think Dekker in any way ripped off The Gunslinger; on the contrary, I think he paid homage to it very well. I also think that his decision to link all of his books in someway to his central series, The Circle, was in part inspired by King. All of that to say, I love that King inspired another of my favorites whose works have touched me deeply over the course of my life.

“Yet suppose further. Suppose that all worlds, all universes, met at a single nexus, a single pylon, a Tower. And within it, a stairway, perhaps rising to the Godhead itself. Would you dare climb to the top, gunslinger? Could it be that somewhere above all of endless reality, there exists a room?…’

To say a little about the book itself, I really liked The Gunslinger. It lost me a bit at the end, as many of King’s books tend to do, but the journey was enough to make up for the lackluster conclusion. I think that King tends to try to shoot for something too expansive and cosmic in his endings, but he doesn’t always manage to pull it off. Regardless, I love the feel of this book. The vastly different settings, the fantasy realm of Roland’s past, the arid Western-inspired desert of his present, and the contemporary real-world setting described by another character came together to make up a truly unique story. I also love how the worlds cross over in places, namely through song. The idea that a song like “Hey Jude” can bridge worlds is lovely and thoughtful. The last leg of the Gunslinger’s journey might leave me cold, but Roland himself is a wonderfully compelling enigma who I came to care for very much. I’m eager to see where his journey takes him next.

“They were close to the end of the beginning . . .”

I know that The Gunslinger is the tip of the iceberg that is King’s Dark Tower. As I plan to take the long road by reading the suggested novels from the rest of his catalogue so as to get the most out of the experience, I know that I’ll be on this journey for a long while before I finally reach the Tower itself. But oh, how I’m looking forward to the climb.

Long days and pleasant nights, my friends.

You can find  this review and more at Novel Notions.

This book marks the start of my Dark Tower re-read. With that classic opening line, I am wisked away to a magical world that many of us have fallen in love with. I honestly forgot how beautifully written book 1 was. While there's plenty of action to be had, the main focus is to intrigue the reader enough to want to read on. Stephen King does this masterfully with all the colorful new language he has created. These new terms and way of speaking seem so natural after a while you forget that it's not the norm in our world.

The gunslinger is such a enjoyable character that I'm actually a bit sad the rest of the series shys away from him to focus on others. I get that Roland shines through his interactions with others, so it's crucial, but he seriously is the ultimate lone warrior. Maybe he secretly needs love from others to be his best self.

The book leaves a lot of unanswered questions, so as a standalone novel it is a bit weak in that regard. Still it has kicked off the awe so many have felt for Roland, his world and the journey he under goes that it's almost impossible not to give it a 5 star rating.

Opening this book and returning to this world was like slipping on my oldest, comfiest and most loved sweater. It felt like coming back home after being away for entirely too long. And this time around was just as magical, if not more so. There's so much to take in and absorb from this story on your first read through that you miss certain small things without even realizing it and I really loved all the extra little bits that popped out at me this time around. I know a lot of people enjoy this book a lot less than the rest of the series but it will always hold a special place in my heart. It really is what started it all and introduced us to this magnificent world that King created! Sure the writing is a little less polished than later books in the series but that doesn't diminish the fact that it is a fantastic beginning to a truly epic story.

Okay, this is going to be hard. Several people recommended this series to me over the years, several more told me how much they love it. So far, I’m not one of those.

The introduction sounds great.

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Set in the world that has moved on the gunslinger Roland pursues the man in black through tired and desolated landscapes in a struggle to uncover the secret of the Dark Tower. Upon his quest Roland will face a choice that will haunt him for a long time.

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The opening line is quite nice too.

n  

The man in black fled across the desert, and the gunslinger followed.

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From there on? Ehh.
I actually had to read the first third of the book twice, because I checked out mentally after some time. With some effort I managed to get through that part on my second try, without my thoughts floating off to some distant place. There’s a flashback within a flashback at some point. That was nice. But apart from that, I hadn’t really missed much on my first try. I had to face the facts. I just don’t find this story very interesting.

For the rest of the book it didn’t go much better. I had to backtrack several times, because I was losing interest time and again. So what’s the problem? Several, I think.

There’s not a good flow to the whole tale. Probably not surprising, considering that King released this as five separate novellas initially. Still, I’ve read books with a similar publishing history that were more coherent than this.
Then there was quite some metaphorical stuff. Not a problem in and of itself. I enjoyed such writing before. But when I’m not really invested in the tale it makes it all the harder to read and enjoy.
The five stories taken for themselves respectively didn’t really grab me either. I somewhat liked two of them, found two pretty boring and one mainly abstruse.

What I did like is the scale of the world(s). Often times only hinted at, but towards the end getting much clearer. It’s the main reason I will continue with the series. That, and that several people told me already that it is getting better after the first novel. Also, considering how much time has passed between the first and the last book in the series, this is a nice opportunity to see how King’s writing has changed over time. Frankly, I didn’t much like it here. It was often kinda cheesy.

Okay, more things I liked. Well, that would be kind of spoilerish. So let’s just say I like the sci-fi elements and the remnants of our own world that are to be found. Don’t forget, the world has moved on.

I also liked the raven at the beginning. Beans, Beans, the Musical Fruit. The more you eat, the more you toot. Bwahahaha! Okay, I’m getting silly now.

Bottom line: More buildup and backstory than anything with proper forward movement. Nice world. Possibly very huge. Not a fan yet. Will keep on trying.


Recommended by Mouthful Of Books

“The man in black fled across the desert, and the gunslinger followed.”

So, I finally dived into Gunslinger and consumed it in audiobook format. I have read two Stephen King novels, as well as some of his short stories, and loved them all. Sadly this is the first work of his that I cannot say that about.

I enjoyed the character of Roland, and the epic nature of the world we get a preview of. The enigmatic characters were also enjoyable, and the breadcrumbs left in this first instalment have left me interested in the rest of the series, and I am fairly certain that I will be giving the second book of the series a go.

“Time's the thief of memory”

Whilst it was an enjoyable read, I had quite a few issues with it. Whilst there was action and progression of plot, I was not hooked and did not feel engaged or feel the stakes, and because of that it felt quite slow until about the halfway mark. Whilst I can see Roland becoming a great character, for me it felt that there just was not enough in this for me to be rooting for him. It was almost too vague for me.

Stephen King again shows his grasp on language with with his natural, accessible prose rearing its head once again. There were some fantastic passages that completely immersed me and showed his class as a writer once again. So, even though I felt it was a bit slow, it was not a chore because of Stephen King’s prose still adds flair.

“They had discovered one could grow as hungry for light as for food.”

I predicted that I would love this, so part of my disappointment is due to going in with high hopes, but there were still many aspects that I enjoyed. Whilst I have shared the issues I had, there was enough to be hooked on for me to give the second instalment a go, but I will not be rushing to it.

3/5 STARS

3/20/21: 5-stars yet again!!! Who's surprised?



Now the question is, do I continue to read the entire series and actually read the final book this time?



If ka says it is so, it will be.

3/15/21: It's been almost a year. I guess I should pick up The Gunslinger again. Why not!?

I only have 1,100 other books I want to read.



Picking up for the 4th time!