Dark Tower, The |
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List Price: N/A
Our Price: $0.75
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Manufacturer: Hodder & Stoughton Ltd
Average Customer Rating:  
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PRODUCT DESCRIPTION
Binding: Paperback
EAN: 9780340696613
Format: Import
ISBN: 0340696613
Label: Hodder & Stoughton Ltd
Manufacturer: Hodder & Stoughton Ltd
Number Of Pages: 687
Publication Date: 1997
Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton Ltd
Studio: Hodder & Stoughton Ltd
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Spotlight customer reviews:
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Customer Rating: 
Summary: The cracks begin to show
Comment: I enjoyed and detested this book. I enjoyed it for the last good look we get at the Old World, where the tale of Roland's coming of age is told. I detested it for being the beginning of the series' decline, where Roland's group begins to wander aimlessly from one random contrivance to another - it's obvious that Stephen puts his imagination into neutral towards the end of Wizard and Glass and just lets it coast along without drive or direction, all the way to the end of the series.
SPOILERS BELOW
- Jonas doesn't even draw when the trap is sprung. He waits slack jawed until he gets blown away point blank? Jonas is probably the only person in that section of the world who can provide any kind of match to Roland gunplay-wise, so this should have been the epic man-to-man battle of the book and turns out to be a huge letdown. However, viewed in the context of the next three books in the series, it foreshadows the convenient ways in which all other big antagonists are eliminated. Jonas, Flagg, Mordred, the Crimson King: all removed from the story almost as afterthoughts, all in offhanded and lazy (on Stephen King's part) ways.
- Come on, ruby slippers and emerald cities? Let the plagiarism begin! Good grief, I wish I really *could* go home again. It looks like Stevie started feeling the same way, returning here to the world of The Stand, and as the series progresses he returns more frequently to characters and locations from his previous works that he is comfortable and familiar with. When he wasn't busy ripping off other authors, that is. Throughout the last 20-30 pages, Stephen beats us relentlessly over the head with a flurry of Wizard of Oz references every 2 or 3 pages. It works out to an average of roughly 1.8 Wizard of Oz references per page over the last 30 pages, it's almost embarassing to read.
- A little too long in Mejis, and not nearly enough time on the fall of Gilead! We spend too much time waiting behind the proverbial Castles hillock with Roland, Alain and Cuthbert. The tale of their first adventure as gunslingers was easily my favorite part of the book, and unfortunately the last interesting part of the series. I spent the rest of the series waiting to learn more of Farson's assault on Roland's world, and how Roland survived and came to be in the desert pursuing the man in black. The old world Stephen created in the flashbacks is far more fascinating than the mishmash of realities he tries to recycle from his previous books from this point forward.
Take the advice offered by others here - stop with Wizard and Glass. Pretend the latter three books don't exist, and be not tempted by them, for they shall utterly destroy any mystique established in the first four books. Perhaps someday Stevie will realize that he still has a chance to fix things, and return one final time to put things right.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Good not great
Comment: Book 3 of the series left off with such a cliffhanger that I couldn't wait to start this one. I have fallen in love with Roland's world and am just so intrigued with every little detail that King has imagined into this land. But with this book you spend almost all of it in Roland's past when he is a kid. I personally didn't like this very much. I don't want to say to much but there wasn't that real grand feeling I was getting when Roland, Eddie, Susannah, and Jake are traveling through the "present." I got pretty tired of the love story and corruption going on for the past portion of this book. It just seemed to drag and drag and to be honest that part of the book could of been about half as long.. It did pick up there from about page 500 and on and will say that I really enjoyed the book from then on but before that the story was really slow and definitely could of been way shorter.
I will say that this book is good but is my least favorite of the first 4. The last 1/4 of the book really kicked it back in gear and when the story of Roland's past is over you I was hooked back into the adventure to the Dark Tower.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Amazing...
Comment: The Dark Tower Series is perhaps my favorite series out there...there's nothing quite like it. I've enjoyed all the books in the series for different reasons, but Wizard & Glass has always held a special place in my heart. It's the only book I find special enough to review.
I won't go into specifics on plot ... that's been done here. What I will try to express are the overwhelming feelings that I experienced the first time I read this book. I was in my junior year of college at the time; a whirlwind of responsibility, change, fun, and heartbreak. It is this last facet that I think really drew me to the book, as Roland's story of his first love seemed to resonate with me then. I could feel the excitement of love, embraced it, and also cried with him as I could feel his deep loss of both love and, perhaps more importantly, his youth.
Fast forward 8 years, and here I am going back to listen to Frank Muller's wonderful job reading the book in audio. In doing this I discovered a wonderful thing about W&G ... it resonates as much now as it did way back in college during those frenetic, emotional years. As I sat in the parking lot for an extra 5 minutes listening to the captivating story of Roland before work, I realized it had the same hold on me as it did when I would be up to the wee hours of the morning reading W&G back in college.
It's difficult for me to put into words how amazing this book is...but I'll certainly try. The backstory of Mejis is perhaps King's best writing in any book. He created a tale of rich characters and scenery ... I could almost smell the barony of Mejis it was so familiar. I cared about the characters; felt their horror, love, and anguish. When the tale of Roland's youth was finished, I found myself wishing he would palaver again and tell us a different tale ...
Much has been said about this book and its relevance to the greater story. The argument is often that it could have been skipped and is not crucial to the story. I wholeheartedly disagree. While physically speaking the ka-tet doesn't travel far, emotionally W&G takes us on a roller coaster ride and we gain valuable insight into the central character of the series, Roland. Without this book, Roland is just another loner we meet in the desert in book 1. Instead, for me W&G helped to improve the first book because we better understand the great losses Roland suffered just to get him to that point. The insight gained paints a picture of a man with a range of emotions and a lifetime's worth of loss. This is a painting we need to see to completely understand Roland and his quest.
If you have not read this series, I highly recommend it...and if I was to give one word of advice for new readers, it would be the very advice King gives readers in the final book: Enjoy the journey to the dark tower. While I have read to the end and accepted what is there, the real joy to the series IS the journey.
Long days and pleasant nights.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Roland's Fascinating Past
Comment: Whereas the first three of Stephen King's "Dark Tower" books propel the storyline further with every word, this fourth installment takes a bit of a different tact, instead doubling back to give some much-needed backstory on the character of Roland of Gilead.
Thus, with our heroes (Roland, Eddie, Susannah, Jake, and even Oy!) holding palaver around a night campfire, Roland tells a story from his teenage years. In this tale, Roland and friends (Cuthbert and Alain) become trapped in a seemingly unwinnable struggle against shady local townfolk, while at the same time Roland falls madly in love with a local girl who is pledged to become a concubine. Typical King madness!
Many people consider this book to be a "weak link" in the Dark Tower series, as it doesn't really advance the main storyline and it is quite long. Yet, I see it as exactly the opposite. By recounting the exploits of a young Roland of Gilead, the reader is able to better understand the complex emotions that make him the stern, sullen, driven man he is. Plus, Roland's story is absolutely thrilling (I consider it to be the best single portion of the entire Dark Tower series) and will have you turning pages deep into many nights. Make sure to keep the Kleenex box handy, though, as you WILL become emotional wrapped up in Roland's youthful struggles.
Overall, I consider "Wizard and Glass" to be the pinnacle of the Dark Tower series, as it reveals Roland's fascinating childhood and the events that shaped the man he ultimately became. For all you LOST fans out there, I like this book to that show: Without the flashbacks, although they don't advance the actual storyline, the show would be severely lacking in emotional drama and cease to be as entertaining/thrilling as it is. Thus, think of this book as one big flashback...not crucial to the plot, but providing valuable information that will help you connect with Roland on an even deeper level.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Series Takes Huge Step Backwards, Literally and Figuratively.
Comment: I really enjoyed The Waste Lands (Book 3), but I found this book nearly impossible to finish. It felt like filler, not really adding anything interesting to the series. I felt like the book was going backwards when it should have been going forward.
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