I quit smoking 8 weeks ago for the second (and hopefully last) time in my life. I started reading again like a insatiable glutton in order to take my mind off of the smoking. Since then I have read some of the best books I have read in my life.
In 8 weeks I have read:
The Last Chronicle of Thomas Covenant:
Runes of the Earth - Stephen R. Donaldson
Fatal Revanent - Stephen R. Donaldson
The Dark Tower series:
The Gunslinger - Stephen King
The Drawing of the Three - Stephen King
The Waste Lands - Stephen King
Wizard and Glass - Stephen King
Wolves of the Calla - Stephen King
Song of Susannah - Stephen King
And I started today the final Dark Tower novel:
The Dark Tower - Stephen King
Prior to the Dark Tower series, the only Stephen King I had ever read was Different Seasons, a collection of four novellas that included Shawshank Redemption, Apt Pupil, and Stand By Me. All of which were turned into fine films (with the exception of the ending of the filmed version of Apt Pupil.) I read those probably 12 years ago, and they didn't hook me.
Recently I joined that good old Science Fiction Book Club again. (Great starting deal, crappy terms afterwards.) I bought the first three books of the Dark Tower series, and by the end of the third one, I was absolutely hooked. I ordered the remaining 4 from amazon.com right away and haven't missed a beat.
What I have learned in the last two months:
Stephen King is a master story teller. The words and ideas travel through to my mind so easily that I can scarcely believe that the story isn't real. It is so organic and natural that it seems more to be a narrative of a real story than for it to be fiction created by one man. I have immersed myself so completely in the world of the Dark Tower that I can barely separate it from reality.
Don't misunderstand; I am perfectly capable of knowing the difference between fiction and reality, but while I am reading the Dark Tower, I am there. I am following Roland and his ka-tet through their world(s). For that few hours a day I am devoting to reading, I don't exist in the real world. This is why books are written and most of all, read. This isn't a commentary on my life as I spiral out of control and lose my mind. This is a glowing recommendation for the ability of Stephen King to capture my imagination if only for a little while each day
I will be finished with the Dark Tower series by the time I return to college for the first time 13 years. I am probably going to suffer some withdrawals from this experience, but I feel that is was worth it.
Da-da-chum, da-da-ching,
Shouldn't you be reading?
Da-da-chum, da-da-chook,
Don't be afraid, pick up a book.
(Apologies to Mr. King)
-A.W.C.
