The gunslinger stops at the home of a farmer named Brown, who has a talking crow named Zoltan who either squawks something dire like, “Lead us not into temptation,” or jokey, “The more you eat, the more you toot.” He stays the night at Brown’s invitation and feels the urge to unburden himself of his recent horrific visit to Tull.Ī fool's chorus of half-stoned voices was rising in the final protracted lyric of “Hey Jude”-“Naa-naa-naa naa-na-na-na … hey, Jude …”-as he entered the town proper. Almost every creature has the thousand-yard stare. Hamburgers are being consumed with a wary eye because it’s doubtful the meat is from pure stock, and what little rainfall occurs is quickly lapped up by the dying earth. The music he hears is familiar-tunes like The Beatles “Hey Jude”-and common nursery rhymes are still sung. He encounters a species called the Taheen, humanoid bodies with the heads of animals, and they are fully within this world's realm of normalcy. But where? What desert? What world?Īpparently, “the world had moved on” and the gunslinger’s hunt is in an alternative version of the American Old West but set in the future. The Gunslinger features one of the most famous openings in all of literature-like a bullet from a Peacemaker, we are in the middle of a cat and mouse game. “The man in black fled across the desert, and the gunslinger followed.” Make sure to bookmark the HQ page for the schedule and links to all of the chapter discussions as they go live! Let's get into the Book 1- The Gunslinger (1982): The plan is to read a chapter a week, and each Tuesday we will meet to discuss major themes, motifs, and reactions. Nevertheless, I only remember bits and pieces of the debut entry so this will be quite a refresher. I would say college, girls, and looking for employment interfered with my search, whereas Roland would say I was weak and undisciplined. I first enjoyed The Gunslinger (1982) and The Drawing of the Three (1987) in the late 1980s, but admittedly didn’t have the stamina then needed to finish the Dark Tower journey. Either devoted enthusiasts were on the path or knew someone so engaged. Long before avid readers were signing up with Hogwarts or wandering about the countryside walking off cliffs for Pokémon Go, there was an obsession to reach the Dark Tower. *Remember: While this is a reread, please avoid spoilers in the comments. Let’s see if this equal parts Western, mystery, horror, science fiction, and fantasy epic still packs a punch.
It’s been 38 years since Roland’s quest began in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction and four years since the last Dark Tower: The Wind Through the Keyhole (2012). Thank you for joining me on a reread of what Stephen King has called his magnum opus, The Dark Tower series featuring Roland of Gilead, the gunslinger.
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