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Thread: Why do people have a problem with The Gunslinger?

  1. #51
    Gojo fernandito seldom gets put on hold fernandito seldom gets put on hold fernandito seldom gets put on hold fernandito seldom gets put on hold fernandito seldom gets put on hold fernandito seldom gets put on hold fernandito seldom gets put on hold fernandito seldom gets put on hold fernandito seldom gets put on hold fernandito seldom gets put on hold fernandito seldom gets put on hold fernandito's Avatar

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    How dare you have a different opinion than mine.

  2. #52
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    it may be considered the same, with opposite sign

    Ask not what bears can do for you, but what you can do for bears. (razz)
    When one is in agreement with bears one is always correct. (mae)

    bears are back!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  3. #53
    Gojo fernandito seldom gets put on hold fernandito seldom gets put on hold fernandito seldom gets put on hold fernandito seldom gets put on hold fernandito seldom gets put on hold fernandito seldom gets put on hold fernandito seldom gets put on hold fernandito seldom gets put on hold fernandito seldom gets put on hold fernandito seldom gets put on hold fernandito seldom gets put on hold fernandito's Avatar

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  4. #54
    Gunslinger Apprentice jonahwriter is on a distinguished road jonahwriter's Avatar

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    Interesting topic. For me, I avoided Dark Tower books for most of my King reading and collecting years - read everything else but never the DT books until a few years ago. I don't particularly like fantasy or western genres (though over the years I gained an appreciation for some western movies when I did a seminar on them in university and watching them with my Dad). I just could never get into The Gunslinger for years and years - I'd try and by chapter 2 or 3, it just made me bored really, I just couldn't get the "feel" of it. It was only a couple of hundred pages but I struggled with them when I finally read it more than I did with reading all 1,000 pages of IT - I'd fly through IT over and over, but struggle with The Gunslinger. As someone else mentioned, I felt the pacing of it was off. I did re-read it recently and I've gained an appreciation for it slowly, but DT books 2 to 5 are still my favourite - the 1st and last 2 are the ones I have issues with. I found DT 7 almost impossible to finish weirdly...

  5. #55
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    Quote Originally Posted by jonahwriter View Post
    I don't particularly like fantasy or western genres<...>I just could never get into The Gunslinger for years and years - I'd try and by chapter 2 or 3, it just made me bored really, I just couldn't get the "feel" of it. It was only a couple of hundred pages but I struggled with them when I finally read it more than I did with reading all 1,000 pages of IT - I'd fly through IT over and over, but struggle with The Gunslinger. As someone else mentioned, I felt the pacing of it was off. I did re-read it recently and I've gained an appreciation for it slowly<...>
    bears can repeat every word above, except the "years and years" part: luckily, a friend brought to me The Gunslinger when I was in hospital and there was no way around finishing it before he brought The Drawing.

    Ask not what bears can do for you, but what you can do for bears. (razz)
    When one is in agreement with bears one is always correct. (mae)

    bears are back!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  6. #56
    Along the Path of the Beam Roden will become famous soon enough

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    I don't mind western/fantasy/sci-fi/post apocalyptic genres, so I was expecting something a little more... less dull, at least.. from the first DT book. I remember endless streams of dialogue between characters I knew nothing about at that time, I skipped maybe 20 pages or so completely. I'm glad I did that because it got me onto book 2 which was much better. Would I enjoy the first one going back to it? Yep, probably..

    The only other time I skipped some dialogue was in the last DT book at the
    spoiler
    , in fact I thought the first 300 pages of that were very poor compared to the rest of the novel/series..

  7. #57
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    Dialog is the only thing bears never skip. I agree, however, that the whole thing you put inside that spoiler was boring; can't remember any boring dialog in DT1, though (even though I dislike that book)

    Ask not what bears can do for you, but what you can do for bears. (razz)
    When one is in agreement with bears one is always correct. (mae)

    bears are back!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  8. #58
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    I didn't have any problem with it but I know people who have. My co-worker who's an avid reader (fantasy, horror, S.F.) gave up on it. I kept begging him to try a chapter a day. He's bummed out about it not being able to read it. Another co-worker and I keep praising the books but he says he just can't get through it.

  9. #59
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    I've also had friends that have trouble starting with The Gunslinger. I recommend that they start with book two--The Drawing of the Three--and then go back to The Gunslinger. This always works.

    John

  10. #60
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    Or you can tell them to do as bears did - leaf through The Gunslinger, yawning, but never forgetting that there's light at the end of that tunnel, and the light is TDotT! Their perseverance will be rewarded.

    Ask not what bears can do for you, but what you can do for bears. (razz)
    When one is in agreement with bears one is always correct. (mae)

    bears are back!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  11. #61
    Traveler Derg Corra will become famous soon enough Derg Corra's Avatar

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    I never had any trouble reading The Gunslinger. I was hooked from the opening sentence. It also helped that I like the fantasy and Western genres.

  12. #62
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    I've always loved this book and have never found it boring at all. The world created and time spent with Roland has always been interesting to me on every re-read. I get slowed down with a few of the other books but not this one.

    Quote Originally Posted by Derg Corra View Post
    I never had any trouble reading The Gunslinger. I was hooked from the opening sentence. It also helped that I like the fantasy and Western genres.

  13. #63
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    I loved the gunslinger and it's honestly what brought me to read the whole series. It will always be my favorite because If I hadn't picked up that book I would never have fallen in love

  14. #64
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    The gun abortion is definitely off-putting to some.

  15. #65
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    yes, but one there are tons of similar things to be encountered in books of this genre. Like, if one chooses a horror book, one should expect something horrible to be described. Also, unpleasant and, probably, no less off-putting things happen in all King books (at least all of his good books)

    Ask not what bears can do for you, but what you can do for bears. (razz)
    When one is in agreement with bears one is always correct. (mae)

    bears are back!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  16. #66
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    Still my favorite of the series.

  17. #67
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    Quote Originally Posted by jhanic View Post
    I've also had friends that have trouble starting with The Gunslinger. I recommend that they start with book two--The Drawing of the Three--and then go back to The Gunslinger. This always works.

    John
    When I was younger, I did not know much about the GS saga. I was a King fan for many years before I discovered it. And by mistake, I actually tried what you suggested. I did not know I was part of a larger story. I saw Drawing of the three and started to read it. But t made no sense because I felt like I was in the middle of a story that already started so I put it down. I never read "the original" GS book. I started with the LSOE GS book. And I really liked it. The I moved onto Drawing of the three and it made a lot more sense. Even King admits that the original GS book was hard to get through. That's why he did LSOE. He felt it made it an easier read for people who were just starting out. For me, so far Wizard and Glass was the hardest with the flashbacks. I am really liking Wolves though. I think this will be a much easier read.

  18. #68
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    Wolves is one of my favorite King novels ever. The best of the series to me
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  19. #69
    Gunslinger Apprentice ratchet41 has a spectacular aura about ratchet41 has a spectacular aura about ratchet41 has a spectacular aura about

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    the 1st one i read was the old print of the gunslinger and i don't remember it being slow cause i enjoyed the hell out of it. than a few years ago i read the extended version and that one was slow as hell in some spots. i dunno if my opinion changed cause i hadn't read the book in years. or if the extended version or both of them were just slow books that i don't remember it. but the one that made me fall in love with the series was the drawing of the three which is my favorite one.

    that one well that one was one of the 1st ones i've ever read and when i was a kid my brother who is older than me it was always up to him on what books of his i read cause of my age, even though he started reading him far far younger than i did.
    which now that i think about it really makes no sense on how young he was compared to me who had to wait until i was older. i mean i read IT when i was 13 for the 1st time he read it when he was 12. but was reading him quite young

    but the one that stuck out the most back than before IT was The drawing of the three and it's such for me a perfect book that i read the waste lands in i think it was (1994) for the 1st time before that i had started it a dozen or so times and just never finished it. than with that cliff-hanger ending that pissed me off and prolly everyone else here who read it back when it 1st came out too. well than when wizard & Glass came out that one i had trouble getting through i didn't think it was an awful book at all it was just a long ass book and it took me years upon years to get around to actually finish the damn thing. and it was a few years back i wanna say (2010) when i finally gotta around to reading it again and this time i actually finished it. i could be wrong on the year though i think it was more like a couple years later.

    well again i still haven't finished the wolves of Calla. and though i do know how the story actually does end i remember for years when i would read the first 2 books like everyone else here who was reading it back than anyways i would wonder how King would actually finish it. and i dunno if i love the ending or not as some love it and some hate it. when i do get around to reading it i dunno how i'm gonna feel but my brother loves the way it ended. with the film The Dark tower, while i don't hate it that film didn't quite anger me as it did a lot of people. for me the idea of the film as it was announced said it was going to be a sequel to the series and that idea really isn't a bad one.

    they could have done so much with that idea instead of what they did end up doing. actually my brother refuses to see it and i can see why he'd hate it if he saw it. in fact i told him so as well, anyways they totally ignored the 1st book and made up their own shit instead of following the book and if they had been smart would have made it closer to the book but tweaked it a bit with changing it a bit since it would have been a sequel and if you know how the series ends i'm not gonna say it here but you get what i'm saying on what they could have done. but they didn't, IT angers me the remake on how much was changed and i hate that ending to the remake with a passion and i don't love it like many seem too, i don't think the film is awful at all i just wish they had followed the book more instead of making up their own shit. and putting the film in (1989) i really hated too

    i guess you could say i'm picky cause on how much i love the book i didn't expect it to follow it word for word but they changed just too much of it and i am curious to see the sequel but i'm worried about that too. i'm sorry for going off topic a bit.
    i just love these books just so much that's all

  20. #70
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    Quote Originally Posted by ratchet41 View Post
    the 1st one i read was the old print of the gunslinger



    I just realized that I'm not so sure I have read the "new" Gunslinger.
    All that's left of what we were is what we have become.

  21. #71
    Traveler jebeare has a spectacular aura about jebeare has a spectacular aura about

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    I remember reading the original Gunslinger the first couple of times through the series, then at some point picked up the revised, illustrated hardback. The first time I read the revised version (which I'm re-reading right now for my 5th trip through Mid-World), I felt like the revisions were awkward and unnecessary. Shoe-horning mentions of Susan, Sheemie, and the rest of the Mejis crew feel artificial, even in my current reading. I liked the more organic reveal of Roland's past in Wizard and Glass during my first read through, although there's a very real possibility that I'm just remembering my first foray into those flashbacks fondly.

    I think there's still an old copy of the original Gunslinger boxed up at my mom's house...might have to go back and read it before I move on to The Drawing of the Three...

  22. #72
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    Quote Originally Posted by jebeare View Post
    I remember reading the original Gunslinger the first couple of times through the series, then at some point picked up the revised, illustrated hardback. The first time I read the revised version (which I'm re-reading right now for my 5th trip through Mid-World), I felt like the revisions were awkward and unnecessary. Shoe-horning mentions of Susan, Sheemie, and the rest of the Mejis crew feel artificial, even in my current reading. I liked the more organic reveal of Roland's past in Wizard and Glass during my first read through, although there's a very real possibility that I'm just remembering my first foray into those flashbacks fondly.

    I think there's still an old copy of the original Gunslinger boxed up at my mom's house...might have to go back and read it before I move on to The Drawing of the Three...
    I didn't like the revised version when I finally read it years after finishing the series. The foreshadowing felt over-the-top for me.

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