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Rating: 
Summary: At Times, Brilliant ¿ At Times, Juvenile
Review: At Times, Brilliant - At Times, Juvenile A friend of mine - or maybe I should call him an acquaintance - who seemed to never have enough money to purchase my first novel (if your reading this Mr. King, check it out when you have time), offered to me an even trade, one day. And this how I happened upon my first Stephen King novel. I must note here that if I have read a Stephen King novel before 2004, it has escaped memory, either due to aging or the late 70's - early 80's; bus number 20 had its own pharmacy. I have of course seen most of the movies. After Cujo, I refused to own a big dog. Now, I think I need to get on with my review. The Gunslinger (The Dark Tower - book one) is a mixed bag, indeed. The novel did keep me interested as I turned the pages, but there were occasional lulls that left me searching for action; I guess that's one way to keep the pages flipping. Walking through the desert or riding a handcar mile after mile can leave even the greatest fiction fan begging for a Slow Mutant attack. But I understand, the gunslinger needs some Roland-time. I just found myself wishing Roland could find a Budget Rent-a-car place to speed up the pace. The Gunslinger story line reminded me of Frank Peretti's The Visitation, in that I was constantly wondering if the gunslinger had it all wrong. Is Roland possibly the "bad guy" searching for the good guy? I enjoyed this "not knowing" who Roland really was - it made the story have an addictive appeal. In other words, there was no way I was going to stop reading until I knew for sure. I think Stephen King managed to pull off a great deal with this tale; as Booklist writes: "It mixes the Western, Arthurian, Romance, Science Fiction, and Occultism..." King evenly distributes the mix and somehow makes it all fit together. Bravo to that part of the work - BRILLIANT On to the juvenile: I have yet to understand why great writers (yes Mr. King, I just called you a great writer - at least better than me, for now) must resort to gutterbabble (gutterbabble = the kinds of words, or series of words, that cause an eight-grader to nudge his neighbor in study hall and display his findings). Let's look at a few examples, shall we: [He suspected his father want to XXXX] , [ The gunslinger's genitals felt drawn and hard] , [the warm spray in his crotch as his bladder let go], and [ Beans, beans, the musical fruit...] I think you get the point. Why, oh why, mix this stuff up with some of the extraordinary writing in the story? I know, I know, I've only sold a couple hundred novels and Stephen King is "da' master" at this stuff. But don't I have the right to wonder? Just say yes. There were a few parts in this novel that I felt like King decided to toss in some shooting for the stars stanzas, like: [...hollow grandeur in the place of mean and sweeping passions which once might have erased souls] or [The lines and nets of mesh which held the last jewel at the breast of the world were unraveling] For a second, I thought someone had swapped my book with a Dicken's novel. Special note here: If you are ever suffering from insomnia, any Charles Dicken's novel can help - better than any sleeping pill, it is. More Brilliant stuff: When the "man in black" starts explaining the mystery behind the universe, I literally got goose-bumps. Reminded me of C.S. Lewis and Randy Alcorn and the great writing they have distributed. Man does King shine on those few pages. I was going to write a short story about fish not realizing there is another world above the plane of the pond, but now I would be guilty of plagiarizing if I did. Other great parts of the book: "Only enemies speak the truth. Friends and lovers lie endlessly, caught in the web of duty." BRILLIANT AWARD #1 "They flew like rotten bananas struck from the stem." BRILLIANT AWARD #2 (reminds me of my last bar fight) "The gunslinger felt an urge to find a rock and brain the boy." BRILLIANT AWARD #3 (and I have a new saying)
"But in the end, someone always has to have his or her necked popped, as you so quaintly put it. The people demand it. Sooner or later, if there isn't a turncoat, the people make one." BRILLIANT AWARD #4 (so very true) Well, that's my review of The Gunslinger (The Dark Tower - book 1). I hope this helps. I'm sure I will enjoy the second book. See ya next review! www.therunninggirl.com
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