The Dark Tower series

[Winterwolf]

I've always wanted to read this series of books, but a friend of mine says you should read some of King's other works first in order to get full enjoyment out of the series.

So my question to you is, Where do I start?? Stephen King has written A TON of books over the years.

Which books are must reads and which ones can be skipped or read later?

[Tik]

Hmm I posted a Dark Tower reading list before for someone who wanted his friend to not only read the series but the tie in books along the way.

It is a big undertaking. I would argue that while yes, reading these tie in books makes the experience that much more enjoyable, they are not essential and the series can be read by itself. However, if you enjoy reading and want to find out extra details/information about the quest in the series proper or past experiences of some of the characters, do it.

Here is the proposed reading order. Last time I posted it I explained my reasons but not here as the explainations were chock full of spoilers:

Eyes of the Dragon

The Talisman

The Stand (uncut)

It

The Gunslinger (revised) - Dark Tower 1

Insomnia

The Drawing of the Three - Dark Tower 2

Salems Lot

The Wastelands - Dark Tower 3

Wizard and Glass - Dark Tower 4

Everythings Eventual/Little Sisters of Eluria - these are short stories in the same collection so while reading one you may as well read the other.

Black House

Wolves of the Calla - Dark Tower 5

Hearts in Atlantis

Song of Susannah - Dark Tower 6

The Dark Tower - Dark Tower 7


If this is too daunting, a few books can be taken off the list. The ones that are removed are not as necassary to the Tower but others kept on the list could be considered sequals to the removed books so details will be lost (eg The Talisman, which has been removed, has a sequal Black House which MUST be kept on the list):

The Stand (uncut)

The Gunslinger (revised) - Dark Tower 1

Insomnia

The Drawing of the Three - Dark Tower 2

Salems' Lot - (if need be this one can be knocked off too as there is a short recap of it in DT 5)

The Wastelands - Dark Tower 3

Wizard and Glass - Dark Tower 4

Everythings Eventual/Little Sisters of Eluria - these are short stories in the same collection so while reading one you may as well read the other.

Black House

Wolves of the Calla - Dark Tower 5

Hearts in Atlantis

Song of Susannah - Dark Tower 6

The Dark Tower - Dark Tower 7


Again, like I say, if you enjoy reading you will lap this up. If this is all too daunting you can read the series by itself. And remember, even though I've given you two lists to try, technically every Stephen King novel is part of the quest, connecting/crossing over details, characters and themes.

[Chiasm]

I'd drop Insomnia down a ways on the reading list. Its absolutely vital to the series but it explains a lot about the big bad of the series and knowing about him early would ruin some of the buildup in the core books. Its been a while since I read the series so I can't remember exactly when you first start getting hints of this big bad but I don't think its until after Waste Lands at the earliest.

I'd also drop Eyes of the Dragon down a bit too. It gives some nice background on the series but unless you already know Rolands world your going to miss a lot of the little Easter Eggs in it.

[Tik]

I'd drop Insomnia down a ways on the reading list. Its absolutely vital to the series but it explains a lot about the big bad of the series and knowing about him early would ruin some of the buildup in the core books. Its been a while since I read the series so I can't remember exactly when you first start getting hints of this big bad but I don't think its until after Waste Lands at the earliest.

Hmm I'd disagree. Some pretty big hints of the big bad are present in The Gunslinger. And Insomnia doesn't really explain the big bad in much detail and as such is part of the build up. Not to mention a certain cameo places it among the events of The Gunslinger.

I'd also drop Eyes of the Dragon down a bit too. It gives some nice background on the series but unless you already know Rolands world your going to miss a lot of the little Easter Eggs in it.

Again I'd disagree. Chronologically speaking its the earliest of the books and as such dropping it lower on the list would result in reading about characters out of synch. It must come first for the list to make any sort of sense and besides, unless you read it before the series you wont know the Easter Eggs/ties that are in the series when you read them.

[Expletive Deleted]

You can read the first three books without any prerequisites. There are some glancing references you might miss, but they're fairly minor. Try them, then decide if you want to get into all the tie-ins and venture on to the rest of the series.

[Tik]

For those who've read the series, heres my list with the reasons why I've placed them in that order. As I dont know how to hide spoilers, I'm linking to another forum post I did last year (Winterwolf, do NOT read unless you want to be spoiled):

http://www.thedarktower.org/palaver/...l=1#post550346

[Winterwolf]

Thanks for the information guy. I just finished reading It (much better than the TV Movie I saw years ago), and I've read Eyes of the Dragon years ago, but might need a refreasher.

Those are the only two of King's novels I've read and enjoyed both, so I think I'll try to read the 1st list.

[Ohstanley]

I absolutely love The Gunslinger. Would actually put that at the top of the list. I really couldn't put it down. As for the other dark tower books...I had a really hard time getting into the second one.
Roland is just such a badass character and I didn't want to read from anyone else's persepctive!

[Hiromi]

Started on a King fix, so far I've read It, The Gunslinger, and am almost done with the Stand(super long version), not sure if I want to continue with the Tower series or read some of the other novels on Tik's list first.

[UltimateMarvel Dude]

Please don't mind me digging up this thread.

I've got a few questions:

I wanted to start reading Dark Tower and eventually read all the other tie ins afterwards - would this be unadvisable? Would this totally kill my enjoyment of either the DT series or King's other books?

What is the definitive version I should buy? I've read that the HC's do include some colored artwork, while the TPBs do not(?). Also which is the original publisher of the books? Is it also the "best" one?
The reason I'm asking is because the german amazon site apparently only has the "New English Library" TPB edition and thus I'm a bit worried...

Revised(, bigger longer and uncut) - is it a big improvement towards the former relase(s)? I know it mainly adds additional pages and corrects continuity flaws, but does it include everything from the original version? Does it leave out anything (worthwhile)?
Basically, is it worth it to hunt down the orignal release or am I completely fine with the revised one?

Thanks in advance and I hope that I can get some answers to these questions.

[Hiromi]

If you plan on reading Salems' Lot's(and I'd advise it because its a great vampire story) you should do so before reading wolves of the calla, as it spoils pretty much the whole thing. As for the rest in my personal opinion it doesn't really matter as the outside stories only enhance the Tower stories, though reading them before does make it easier to pick out references in the Tower books.

[UltimateMarvel Dude]

If you plan on reading Salems' Lot's(and I'd advise it because its a great vampire story) you should do so before reading wolves of the calla, as it spoils pretty much the whole thing. As for the rest in my personal opinion it doesn't really matter as the outside stories only enhance the Tower stories, though reading them before does make it easier to pick out references in the Tower books.

Thanks!
Any other books I should definately read before Dark Tower?
Also, can you say anything to my other questions?

[Chiasm]

Thanks!
Any other books I should definately read before Dark Tower?
Also, can you say anything to my other questions?

It almost sounds as if your asking about the comic versions?

[Chiasm]

Here is a site that lists the connections between various books to the DT. Its minorly spoilish with some.

[UltimateMarvel Dude]

It almost sounds as if your asking about the comic versions?

No, I'm not, hence why I'm posting this in the "Books" forums.
I'd really like to know if the "New English Library" trades feature the original artwork...

Here is a site that lists the connections between various books to the DT. Its minorly spoilish with some.

Seems like you forgot to include a link. Did you maybe meant to show this one or this one?