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The Stand or The Dark Tower? What to Read Next
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Megami
(last edited Oct 19, 2014 11:47AM)
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Oct 19, 2014 11:47AM
So, I haven't yet read The Stand or The Dark Tower Series and I was wondering which one I should read next? Tell me what you think and also... when I read The Dark Tower... should I read it in chronological order... or in the order the books were released? Let me know!
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The stand and then The dark tower ;)
I'm gonna have to agree and say read The Stand first.
They know what they're talking about... :-)
The Stand, and I second the motion of reading the complete and uncut if it's your first time.
Megami wrote: "So, I haven't yet read The Stand or The Dark Tower Series and I was wondering which one I should read next? Tell me what you think and also... when I read The Dark Tower... should I read it in chro..."I also vote for the stand if only because it's shorter and there are things in the series that reference occurrences in the Stand. but also I feel that when you start the dark tower series you should commit to reading the whole thing end to end. It doesn't matter that the books were written over time and that there were years between the writings and publication. It's an epoch that deserves to be taken in it's entirety.
Wow! The Stand by a long shot, eh? I'll get to it! Thank you all for your input!
Nick wrote: "Megami wrote: "So, I haven't yet read The Stand or The Dark Tower Series and I was wondering which one I should read next? Tell me what you think and also... when I read The Dark Tower... should I ..."Should I read it in chronological order, or in the order that they were published?
I didn't realize that there was a difference. Read the books as they're numbered. I guess if there's a rev of the gunslinger read the latest one. As for "the wind through the keyhole", you can save that till you're done or even some time later, since that is really an add on and doesn't have any real bearing on the main story. Don't believe those who say that Wizard and Glass has no bering. It's pivotal and also finishes the story begin in the previous book. Little Sisters of Alyria is another book (a short story) that you can skip because that too is an add on.
Nick wrote: "I didn't realize that there was a difference. Read the books as they're numbered. I guess if there's a rev of the gunslinger read the latest one. As for "the wind through the keyhole", you can sav..."Agreed Nick. Wizard and Glass is absolutely pivotal in understanding the evolution of Roland from young gunslinger with similar hopes for the future as anyone, to complex man that Ka grinds him into. I tend to think those who dismiss W&G only have the attention span for the single-narrative approach.
Anyways, reading The Stand first gives Wizard and Glass more gravitas and further insight in its introduction of Randall Flagg.
Thank you both for your answers! Can't wait to start reading the Dark Tower books... I keep hearing good things about it.
The Dark Tower is indeed very interesting but the first one wasn't that good. I got really bored, especially towards the end.
Projectbio wrote: "The Dark Tower is indeed very interesting but the first one wasn't that good. I got really bored, especially towards the end."I bought the extended edition of The Gunslinger and the new things made the book make more sense. Getting through that first book is a challenge but it is so worth the journey, in the long run.
I don't get it. I absolutely loved The Gunslinger! It put me in a place no other book ever has. When I picked it up for the first time I knew with the very first sentence that I wouldn't be putting it down any time soon. I read in a day and a half.
Nathan wrote: "I don't get it. I absolutely loved The Gunslinger! It put me in a place no other book ever has. When I picked it up for the first time I knew with the very first sentence that I wouldn't be putt..."I have a feeling King thinks that first sentence is the best one he ever wrote.
I say it's very interesting, Stephen's writing differs a lot from his other work, but doesn't seem right to me. Maybe the rest of the books are better, but as far as the first one goes, I was not amazed.
Didn't he start The Gunslinger in college? Yeah, I would say his writing style was different. I don't know.. I see the consensus here is that the first book wasn't great. I thought it was. Different strokes for different folks is all I can say.
Looks like I'm a little late, but I think you should have started with The Stand, just on pure reading hours. If you start the Towers first then it will be weeks maybe months before you can star anything else. It takes about a week or two to finish The Stand. Then you can start your way to the Tower with nothing to hold you back.
I would recommend reading The Stand first. You will have a much better appreciation for both stories if you do so.Randy Eberle
http://www.amazon.com/Gemini-Randy-Eb...
