The Gunslinger: I The Dark Tower by Stephen King
1982 / 300 pgs Dark Fantasy-Western

The Dark Tower is Stephen King’s seven-volume epic. In Volume One, we follow the Gunslinger (Roland Deschain) as he follows the Man in Black (Walter). Roland will do anything to catch up with the Man in Black as he has the answers to the question that Roland is seeking, what is the path to the Dark Tower. 

Through a collection of five stories, we learn that Walter manipulates the environment around Roland; why this is, is truly never revealed. In the first story, Roland narrates to Brown about the town of Tull, which Roland walked into following the Man in Black. Walter brought back from death an addict and put a spell on him that when the number 19 is said, he will attack and kill who said it. Walter gives Allie a note stating the secret is 19, which she knows eventually, she will want to speak like a child wants to when you say they can’t have anything. Walter also impregnates the local priestess with a demon. All this, eventually, encapsulates into the town attacking Roland, causing him to gun down everyone.

The Gunslinger befriends a lost boy, Jake. The boy doesn’t know how he got into the middle of the desert. Through hypnosis, it’s revealed Jake was killed in Manhatten by being pushed in front of a car. The Man In Black allowed Roland to find Jake in the desert, although it’s not mentioned how Jake arrived in the desert. Jake is the death needed for Roland and Walter to start their palaver, a symbol that Roland will do anything to finish his oath. During their palaver, Walter revealed was also a wizard/consort to Steven, Roland’s father. Also, he was the lover of Roland’s mother.

King is starting to build a world and uses narration, like Tolkein, to show much of this different world. There is a mention of Mid-World and another language, High Speech. Another thought is things mentioned during Jake’s narration that we would understand. However, Roland states he doesn’t know them, like subways. Is this a different earth? Maybe future earth? Or another plane of the earth as Jake has already died in the story when Roland meets him. Nothing is spelled out; however, there are six more novels…oh, the suspense!

In the end, the reader still doesn’t know why Roland is trying to get to the Dark Tower or what it is; only the Crimson King rules it. This I remember as the Beast; however, it was changed to the Crimson King in 2003 revisited edition of the Gunslinger for later continuity with the series.     

The Gunslinger is a great appetizer that leads the narration into the Drawing of the Three, Part II of the series.    

Enjoy a good cup of coffee and a good book! 

Lopaka

The Dark Tower Series Volume I-VII

I – The Gunslinger
II – The Drawing of the Three
III – The Waste Lands
IV- Wizard and Glass
V – Wolves of the Calla
VI – Song of Susannah
VII- The Dark Tower

Other stories from the Dark Tower
The Little Sisters of Eluria (Short in Everything’s Eventual)
The Wind Through the Keyhole (Between Vol IV-V)