The Gunslinger - The Dark Tower Series: Book One

Ah yes, Stephen King. An author I gave up on when I realized he didn’t give a shit if I found his stories scary, well-thought out with plots and characters well developed or forced out with the grace of an explosive fart. There is not much out there he’s written that I’ve read, and even less that I’ve enjoyed, but I’ve never met someone who read the Dark Tower series and had anything bad to say about it. In fact, the closest thing to a negative review I’ve ever heard from any of my friends about the books is that some in the series are “very Stephen King-y.”

This had me worried at first, but after finishing the Gunslinger (and now finished with The Drawing of the Three) I think I can say this is that bit of Stephen King I enjoy. Besides, I don’t dislike all of his work, I just find him a bit too bizarre and gory for me sometimes; really drawing out the scenes that are intended to make one uncomfortable but don’t add much, if anything at all, to the story.

But this book was a mix between a slow, painful trek through the desert (don’t I know a thing or two about those having lived here all my life) and some mind blowing revelations. There is also a little bit of action, which helps define what the Gunslinger is, rather than whom.

We don’t know much about whom he is, really, there are some brief flashbacks, but for the most part he is a man of mystery. It’s a while until we even hear his name. We know he is skilled, but we don’t know where he comes from. For that matter, we don’t know where he is. Is this place in our world or not? It seems like it, as he recognizes the lyrics to ‘Hey Jude’ by the Beatles, but does not refer to it as a Beatles song.

There are also hints of some terrible apocalypse, as this world has “moved on” and left behind some technologies like pianos and revolvers, but not all that we have. For a better speculation by a very thorough book reviewer, I recommend you see what the good people at Tor.com have to say about this book, which includes more speculation and more guessing than I did as I followed the story:

Constant Reader analysis from Tor.com
http://www.tor.com/features/series/a-read-of-the-dark-tower
Very inquisitive review, for sure, by Tor.com

The last bit of description about the Gunslinger’s world is when the boy, Jake, says “there are other worlds than this one.” And this comes after he describes to him how he died and the Man in Black brought him back to this world. So it is like a freaky, Stephen King-y purgatory, I gather.

The book ends with his conversations with The Man in Black. This involves some pretty weak tarot card readings (didn’t like that addition) but ultimately sets up the next book.

I felt it was so short and brief that it really did nothing other than set up the rest of the series, but it did a good enough job of that. The scene in which he gets the Pentecostal preacher woman off with his pistol, then blasts the rest of the town one at a time with a gun in each hand really made everything worth it. Plus, getting to know a bit more about the Dark Tower at the end made me feel better about being dragged through the desert not knowing what the hell for.

Really looking to vent about The Drawing of the Three soon. Stay tuned.