5 Reasons to Read THE DARK TOWER (and 3 Not To)
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- čas přidán 21. 07. 2024
- In this video I share why you might enjoy The Dark Tower books by Stephen King as well as why they might not be for you.
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00:00 - Introduction
00:17 - 1. You Find Character Writing Important
02:36 - 2. You Enjoy Hybrid Genres
03:56 - 3. You Enjoy Creative Language
05:48 - 4. You Want to Go on an Epic Journey
06:46 - 5. You Like a Series That Subverts Tropes
07:49 - 1. You Prefer Fast Plot Development
10:16 - 2. You Don't Like Graphic Content
11:55 - 3. You Don't Want Other King Books Spoiled
14:50 - Conclusion
#Fantasy #ScienceFiction #Books
Stephen King's chunky collaboration with Peter Straub, called "The Talisman", also has a lot of direct references to King's Dark Tower universe - so much so, that readers who have The Talisman on their TBR list, may want to begin with it - before reading the Dark Tower.
Also, The Talisman moves quicker than Dark Tower series, so the reader may be able to treat The Talisman as a sort of prequel to it.......
Thanks for the info!
Nice! I'll be taking the scenic route, checking out other books as recommended. This got more excited about that stalled project
Awesome, I’m glad it was helpful. Hope you enjoy!
As a person who had to wait for books 5-8 to come out you hit the nail on the head, it's just cool to see him grow as a writer over 30 years on the same story, good job my dood
@@philipcroxell1848 Thanks Philip, that’s quite the journey you went on as a constant reader!
I literally just started the dark tower today! This video could not have come out at a better time.
Haha this is ka! I hope you enjoy!
A pretty balanced assessment! I can't disagree with any of it and definitely look forward to your ranking.. I'm looking forward to our chat!
@@RedFuryBooks Haha thanks! And yes, I’m excited for it!
Great video, as always.
Thanks Hakim!
Awesome video! I can't wait to read Darktower!
Thanks! I hope you enjoy it!
Excellent video! I’m currently reading Hyperion, and while I feel like Simmons and King have distinct styles, they do both love literary allusions and write convincing characters. (I’m loving Hyperion so far!)
Thanks Johanna! Yes, they have different styles but perhaps have similar things that interest or inspire them. I’m glad you’re enjoying Hyperion!
Couldn't agree more about the Dark Tower / Hyperion - Endymion comparison! I've thought similar things but think you put it perfectly. Keats/Browning... Amazing! They also happen to be two of my very top series. Love the video.
Awesome! I’m glad you enjoyed both and also saw a connection!
Great series wrap up Jonathan! I’ll be reading book 5 sometime next month and I’m glad to hear you enjoyed the ending of the series.
I wonder if you’d like 11/22/63; it’s one of my favorites and it is a time travel story - so technically SF.
Oh, and I can’t wait for the DT ranking video! 👍
Thanks Bart! 11/22/63 and The Stand are two of the King books in most interested in. I hope you enjoy the end of The Dark Tower!
@@WordsinTime I also loved The Stand, but it’s been a long time since I read it.
I read the first five and remember loving them. I think I stopped because people said the ending sucked, that said I should re read the five and read the last two since I have them.
I should note it was the first fantasy series I read and I suspected that is the reason I just can't get to many of other fantasy books. It has this wonderful mix of horror, western, fantasy with just right dap of science fiction. It jumps back and forth over worlds and the characters both good and bad are amazing.
The last two are divisive but I didn’t mind book 6 and really enjoyed book 7. Hope you enjoy if you re-read the series!
I'm on book three now. Didn't really care for the first book. I really liked the second. And I'm enjoying the third so far. Excited for Wizard and Glass.
The first book was my least favourite so if you’ve enjoyed it since then there’s a good chance you’ll enjoy the series overall.
While it is basically the same story, and still does not fit as well with the rest of the series, the original version of The Gunslinger was so much better as a stand-alone book than the later rewrite. The rewrite smoothed over the grittiness of the original which gave that book its character.
Not a massive King fan but after finishing The Stand recently I'm interested in getting into The Dark Tower and its connections to his other works. It just feels so daunting.
Try the first two books and see if you like them!
Read the 1st volume of the series (The Gunslinger) several years back, but it gave me little inclination to read the next volume.
Nothing wrong with it though - it's just that it isn't what I'm looking for in a series.
I prefer other Stephen King books by a big margin - such as Salem's Lot, The Stand, The Shining, Carrie, Under the Dome, Dreamcatcher, The Talisman, & the unforgettable novellas : The Mist, & Apt Pupil.
The SF fans on this channel would probably enjoy The Mist, The Talisman, Under the Dome, The Stand, Salem's Lot, & maybe Carrie, which features a telekinetic girl...
The Gunslinger was my least favourite in the series so it might be worth at least trying book 2, The Drawing of the Three. I plant to try more King including 11/22/63 and The Stand.
I strongly encourage you (and anyone else) not to let the first book put you off from the rest of the series. It was by far my least favorite, and for too long it discouraged me from reading further, but I'm glad I did.
The first one feels more like a collection of stories put together to make a novel which is a bit of problem. It isn't helped that you realize as the book goes on that Roland the protagonist is not a great human being.
I once wrote up an outline for compressing the last three books into one without losing anything good.
King had always tended to ramble, but apparently that car crash destroyed his ability to edit himself AT ALL. You'd swear book 1 and book 7 had been written by different men.
It would be interesting to re-read book 1 after finishing book 7.
I’d like to recommend to you the 17 book (currently anyway lol) Dresden Files. Not as thick per book but a longer Series overall which I enjoy more so than Dark Tower…
Haha thanks for the recommendation! I’m focusing on sci-fi at the moment (I knowThe Dark Tower is only partially sci-fi) but I might read more fantasy in the future.
Really great video Jonathan! I loved the Dark Tower series.
Awesome! I’m glad you enjoyed it too!
Thanks Jonathan! I started the books back in the late 80s (my mom had Drawing of the Three on her bookshelf) so I got into the series very young and have been hooked on King ever since. Excited for your ranking. Take care!
That’s awesome Paul!
I’d like to suggest a collaboration with the Dave Reads King channel, I think that would be a blast!
I’ll check out their channel!
Agree on reading "'Salem's Lot" first. 'Insomnia' and 'Talisman'/'Bleak House' are ... side stories? Other perspectives? 'The Stand' and 'It', like most of King's work, are shorter (not short) versions of the Dark Tower - not that there's anything wrong with that.
Thanks for the info!
Im up to book four right now. Wizards and Glass. One of the reading orders says after book five. Insomnia and Hearts of Atlantis should be read before book six.
Hope you enjoy!
@10:19 - "So these are the only King books that I've read...."
May I recommend 'The Mist'? And 'The Colorado Kid.' And 'The Long Walk'. All of those are fairly short. Or there's 'From a Buick 8' which is longer. I will grant that, at heart, they are all the same story as the Dark Tower although the Crimson King is more concrete in 'The Long Walk'.
Thanks for the recommendations!
Thanks, really helpful. The other King books I'd ideally have to read in order to make the most out of the Dark Tower is what keeps me off getting into it just yet. I do have book 1 and 2 already as I found them cheap in the wild but I think I'll read the other King books you mentioned while keeping an eye out for the rest of the series. Hopefully by the time I've read all those I'll have the full series ready to go 😆
I’m glad it was helpful! I hope you enjoy the series and those other King books!
I loved every goddamn minute of this series. I had a Shrike sized hole in my heart after finishing the Cantos and the Tower definitely took its place.
And I wanted all the connections. Even the ones that weren’t really connections. After checking out a bunch of suggestions I eventually made my own strangely off-kilter path to book 7.
I’d move some around things now, remove some things entirely, but here’s the order I read over the course of last year:
The Gunslinger
Drawing of the Three
The Talisman (w/Peter Straub)
The Stand
The Waste Lands
‘Salem’s Lot
The Eyes of the Dragon
Wizard and Glass
The Green Mile
Wolves of the Calla
Insomnia
The Mist
The Tommyknockers
Rose Madder
Black House (w/Peter Straub)
Song of Susannah
The Regulators (Bachman)
Desperation
Everything’s Eventual
Hearts in Atlantis
The Dark Tower
That’s awesome! Thanks for sharing!
It would have made a great Duology but I think Steve stretched it a bit too far.
Enjoyed it though - but I doubt he'll ever beat 'The Stand' (He came close with 'It' though.)
The Stand and 11/22/63 are on my list!
@@WordsinTime The Kennedy book is fine. The Stand is so good that they released it in an uncut version with 400 more pages than the original.
IMO the longer version is the one to read.
Awesome series. I rated the books like that:
The Gunslinger 3/5
The Drawing of the Three 4/5
The Wastelands 5/5
Wizard and Glass 3/5
Wolves of the Calla 5/5
Song of Susannah 5/5
The Dark Tower 5/5
Nice! I’m glad you liked the ending!
@@WordsinTime Yes, the ending was 👌 and made me want to read everything again from the beginning
Thank you for mentioning reading Salem's Lot before book 5. Of all the connections to The Dark Tower, that is the biggest spoiler in my opinion.
You’re welcome!
To be honest, while I am a constant reader and loved reading the Dark Tower series as a whole, and do recommend them, as I read book seven it was like almost none of it stuck within my mind. It didn't seem to engage my mind at all. My eyes just ran across the words almost without taking them in. A very strange experience, especially with King.
Interesting. I was engaged, but can see why it might not work for everyone.
Earlier this year I read "On Writing" and I found it very good. I'd like to read some of his fiction, but the problem is I get scared with stuff that 8 year-olds can probably handle no problem. Darn it, brain, cooperate.
Also, sad to hear Bananas 🍌 withdrew their sponsorship.
Hahaha. If Big Bananas see this, feel free to email me 🍌 💰
7 books, long? Try the wheel of time, super epic!
Haha epic indeed!
I agree with your assessment of this series. I grew up reading Stephen King, so I grew tired of the pacing of some of these books - however, it was a satisfying accomplishment when I finished it. Still - I have never, ever recommended it to any other reader, because it really lacks the punch of tighter jabs, as thrown by, say, Dan Simmons in the Hyperion Cantos. Really, this series is part fan service, part fluffy money grab, and really should have been left on the stove to boil off at least three of these books. Big investment, small pay out. Just my opinion.
I think it might have been more frustrating waiting for each book. I was lucky to be able to read them all together.
@@WordsinTime You are so right, I never knew where it was going to end - frustrating is no way to leave a fan... just ask GRRM and Patrick Rothfuss readers. 🙂
How dare you suggest The Dark Tower isn't perfect? Blasphemy!
This series definitely has some flaws though; I'm really glad you overall enjoyed the journey! =D
P.S. The books even I recommend people read before The Dark Tower are 'Salem's Lot (at least before the back half of the series) as the only "required" one, as you point out. Book 7 spoils the ending of Cujo (both the movie and book) - as you always point out. The Stand seems more of an Easter Egg setting type of thing; Insomnia has character and concept stuff apparently, but for me that made me more excited to read Insomnia based on how that went in DT7. But yeah, you basically covered that part well.
P.P.S. I'M NOT ONE OF THE GUEST BOOKTUBERS FOR THE RANKING????
P.P.P.S. Just Kidding! Thankee Sai; long days and pleasant nights.
May you have twice the number!
@@WordsinTime The correct response 🙌🏻
Long days and pleasant nights
May you have twice the number!
Detta could've been written a lot better. Came off as a caricature of what Stephen was aiming for. Highly recommend the podcast Just King Things
Yeah, that’s a tough kind of thing to write. I’ll look up the podcast!
A lot of "bad" language and a fair amount of violence, I'm in.
Haha it checks the boxes
There's more n words then a kkk meeting
You've had an upper body workout?
Those books are heavy lol
there definitely is a crossover of fans between King and Simmons. Simmons’ Summer of Night is very reminiscent of King’s signature echoes of childhood trauma seeping into adulthood theme in his classic horror stories.
Awesome! I’m glad you enjoy those two authors and also saw a connection.
You keep saying it was 7 books, when it was actually 8 (plus a pre-novella). It sounds like you missed “The Wind Through the Keyhole”, which is classified as book 4.5. I thought book 6 was out of place and did not like book 7. Inserting himself, as a character, and having an ending that was NOT an ending , made the series VERY unsatisfactory. I always wished he would go back and rewrite book 7 or write a book 8, that picked up where 7 left off and give Roland a better ending to his journey.
I am aware of The Wind Through the Keyhole, and while it is a Dark Tower book I wouldn’t consider it a part of the main series. I liked the ending in book 7 but I can see why others might not.
King inserting himself as a character really worked for me, but I understand that not everyone agrees.
"The Wind Through the Keyhole" waqs published last and can be certainly be read after the rest of the series (or not at all, although I quite enjoyed it and think it's well worth reading).
The Wind Through The Keyhole or something
I’ve heard it’s good but not essential.
I think you list several reasons why this series would work for me. Characters > Fast Plot Development for me, for example. So the first red point does not apply to me! But I am not really a King reader. I’ve tried a few but not in decades now I suspect 🤔
I’m unfussed by naughty words, or a bit of mess, though I’m not keen on horror, it’s actually the s3xy times that I just cannot be bothered with. FTB, move along, do not care, not interested. Entertainingly, my current book opens chapter 1 with a bit of rumpy-pumpy. But rather than being able to skip the scene entirely, the author has cunningly woven in political scene-setting dialogue in amongst them ‘getting busy’, so if you want to know if war looms, you kinda gotta ‘ride along’ IYKWIM. I was both 🫣 and 🙄 for that chapter 😆
The King boy must be worth a few bob nowadays, with that incredible breadth of work. I wonder how he keeps motivated.
Haha I feel like I would have had a similar reaction to you
There are zero reasons not to
Haha love it
The end of Dark Tower was cartoonish and unbelievably bad.
I liked it but I can see why others might not.