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14 May 2014
Title
|
The Gunslinger / Dark Tower Book 1
|
Author
| Stephen King |
Publisher
| Hodder |
Publication Date
|
10 June 1982
|
Pages
| 238 |
Genre
| Fantasy, Western |
Blurb:
Beginning with a short story appearing in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction in 1978, the publication of Stephen King's epic work of fantasy -- what he considers to be a single long novel and his magnum opus -- has spanned a quarter of a century.Set in a world of extraordinary circumstances, filled with stunning visual imagery and unforgettable characters, The Dark Tower series is King's most visionary feat of storytelling, a magical mix of science fiction, fantasy, and horror that may well be his crowning achievement.
Book I
In The Gunslinger (originally published in 1982), King introduces his most enigmatic hero, Roland Deschain of Gilead, the Last Gunslinger. He is a haunting, solitary figure at first, on a mysterious quest through a desolate world that eerily mirrors our own. Pursuing the man in black, an evil being who can bring the dead back to life, Roland is a good man who seems to leave nothing but death in his wake.
In The Gunslinger (originally published in 1982), King introduces his most enigmatic hero, Roland Deschain of Gilead, the Last Gunslinger. He is a haunting, solitary figure at first, on a mysterious quest through a desolate world that eerily mirrors our own. Pursuing the man in black, an evil being who can bring the dead back to life, Roland is a good man who seems to leave nothing but death in his wake.
My review
There are two kind of Stephen King fans - the ones who love the Dark Tower Series and the ones who….just can't get on with it. I admit that I belong to the latter.
Book 1 introduces us to Roland, the Last Gunslinger (think John Wayne-type Western). He travels to the vastness of an empty world which is not unlike ours, but in an alternate / parallel universe. Roland is on a mission to find the man in black and the Dark Tower. Unfortunately, I never managed to get into the book. I didn't understand Roland's quest and even though the book is not very long, it seems to me not a lot was happening.
There are parts in the book which I loved, most notably when he meets a boy called Jake who was killed in our world whilst going to school and ends up in this alternative world with the Roland the Gunslinger. This is when I felt 'my usual SK' was coming through and I was glad I stuck with the book, but it didn't hold for me. Maybe because the Western genre is not really for me?
I read this book a while ago now, and I know that there are many King fans who are devoted to the Dark Tower series. Maybe I should give it another go.
