The Road to the Dark Tower: Exploring Stephen King's Magnum Opus

by Bev Vincent

Other authors: See the other authors section.

Members	Reviews	Popularity	Average rating	Mentions
485	5	51,239	(3.82)	5
AN ESSENTIAL GUIDE TO THE DARK TOWER SERIES--INCLUDING BOOK-BY-BOOK ANALYSIS AND INSIGHT INTO STEPHEN KING'S CREATIVE PROCESS. In 1970, Stephen King embarked on what would become the crowning achievement in his literary career-the Dark Tower. The seven-volume series, written and published over a period of 30 years, was inspired by Robert Browning's poem "Childe Roland to the Dark Tower Came," as well as J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings, and the spaghetti Westerns of Sergio Leone. With the full cooperation of Stephen King himself, The Road to the Dark Tower examines the epic journey of the author to complete a story that threatened to overwhelm him. In this indispensable companion, Bev Vincent presents a book-by-book analysis of each volume in the series, tracing the Dark Tower's connections to King's other novels including The Stand, Insomnia, and Hearts in Atlantis, and offering insights from the author about the creative process involved in crafting his lifelong work-a work that has consumed not only Stephen King, but his legion of devoted readers. This is essential reading for any Dark Tower-or Stephen King-fan.… (more)

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The book contains some interesting information, but as a straight read it can be a bit repetitive. Simultaneously it can be hard to know what you can and cannot safely skip. (

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Frenzie | Mar 29, 2017 |

Having finished the Dark Tower books, but not willing to leave Roland and his ka-tet quite yet, I read The Road To The Dark Tower to take one more trip into Roland's world. I wasn't disappointed. The book begins with an overview of the history of the books and there is a chapter for each of the seven books, describing and analyzing the action in each one. The rest of the chapters deal with other Stephen King books that are related to the Dark Tower series; a detailed description of each major character in the books; works that influenced the series; discussion of whether the books are Stephen King's Magnum Opus; two time lines (fact and fictional); a mid-world glossary; Dark Tower on the web; and the poem the influence the dark Tower series "Childe Roland To The Dark Tower Came".

I bought this book because I recognize Bev Vincent's name from his numerous posts on various Stephen King forums and newsletters and am always impressed with his knowledge. This book is a prefect example, even though I've read all of the Dark Tower books (the early ones several times), I still learned things I hadn't known before. Although the entire book was good, I find the chapters summarizing the books the most interesting, especially where Bev pointed out things that foreshadowed the ending of the last Dark Tower book.

Dark Tower fans will love this book (

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drebbles | Jul 9, 2015 |

I discovered Bev Vincent's The Road to the Dark Tower mere weeks after finishing the final Dark Tower novel. It was catharsis for a concluded series that I was still trying to make sense of. After all, I had followed Roland's Ka-Tet along the Path of the Beam for years and the ending was both heartbreaking and bizarre. To say I had a few questions would have been an understatement. Bev Vincent retread towards the Dark Tower—along with his review of King's related works—helped me find a few answers. (

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Daniel.Estes | Apr 21, 2015 |

A wonderful Dark Tower reference book, it has absolutly everything you need to know about the series, including summaries of each book, characters, a timeline, information from King on how it all came together, connections to his other novels, and more. A must have for any Dark Tower fan! (

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Blazingice0608 | Jun 26, 2008 |

vorefamily | Feb 22, 2024 |

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Author name	Role	Type of author	Work?	Status
Vincent, Bev	Author	primary author	all editions	confirmed
Stone, Steve	Cover artist	secondary author	some editions	confirmed

▾Series and work relationships

Reference guide/companion to

The Dark Tower. I–VII by Stephen King

▾Awards and Honors

Awards

Bram Stoker Award (Nominee – Non-Fiction – 2004)

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Canonical title

The Road to the Dark Tower: Exploring Stephen King's Magnum Opus

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People/Characters

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Related movies

Epigraph

Dedication

I have not forgotten the face of my father, Donald Vincent, gone to the clearing at the end of the path July 1, 1927-January 3, 2003

First words

A gunslinger rides into town, sitting tall in his saddle.

Quotations

Last words

(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)

Disambiguation notice

Publisher's editors

Blurbers

Straub, Peter

Original language

English

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Canonical LCC

▾References

References to this work on external resources.

Wikipedia in English (2)

Bev Vincent

Glenn Chadbourne

▾Book descriptions

AN ESSENTIAL GUIDE TO THE DARK TOWER SERIES--INCLUDING BOOK-BY-BOOK ANALYSIS AND INSIGHT INTO STEPHEN KING'S CREATIVE PROCESS. In 1970, Stephen King embarked on what would become the crowning achievement in his literary career-the Dark Tower. The seven-volume series, written and published over a period of 30 years, was inspired by Robert Browning's poem "Childe Roland to the Dark Tower Came," as well as J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings, and the spaghetti Westerns of Sergio Leone. With the full cooperation of Stephen King himself, The Road to the Dark Tower examines the epic journey of the author to complete a story that threatened to overwhelm him. In this indispensable companion, Bev Vincent presents a book-by-book analysis of each volume in the series, tracing the Dark Tower's connections to King's other novels including The Stand, Insomnia, and Hearts in Atlantis, and offering insights from the author about the creative process involved in crafting his lifelong work-a work that has consumed not only Stephen King, but his legion of devoted readers. This is essential reading for any Dark Tower-or Stephen King-fan.

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Table of Contents:

Key To Referenced Works
Introduction: More Worlds Than These
Chapter 1: The Long Journey to the Tower
Chapter 2: The Gunslinger (Resumption)
Chapter 3: The Drawing of the Three (Renewal)
Chapter 4: The Waste Lands (Redemption)
Chapter 5: Wizard and Glass (Regard)
Chapter 6: Wolves of the Calla (Resistance)
Chapter 7: Song of Susannah (Reproduction)
Chapter 8: The Dark Tower (Resumption)
Chapter 9: Related Works
• The Stand
• The Eyes of the Dragon
• Insomnia
• Rose Madder
• Desperation and the Regulators
• “The Little Sisters of Eluria”
• “Low Men in Yellow Coats” (Hearts in Atlantis)
• “Everything's Eventual”
• The Talisman and Black House
Chapter 10: Dramatis Personae
• Roland Deschain of Gilead
• John “Jake” Chambers
• Eddie Dean (Edward Cantor Dean)
• Susannah Dean, Odetta Susannah Holmes, Detta Susannah Walker, Mia
• Oy
• Father Donald Frank Callahan
• Patrick Danville
• The Men in Black, Walter o'Dim, Marten Broadcloak, Randall Flagg . . .
• Mordred Deschain
• The Crimson King (Ram Abbalah)
• Stephen King
Chapter 11: Epics, Influences and Ka
Chapter 12: Art and the Act of Creation
Argument: Magnum Opus?
Appendix I: Timeline (Fact)
Appendix II: Timeline (Fiction)
• Part 1: Mid-World
• Part 2: Keystone Earth
Appendix III: Mid-World Glossary
Appendix IV: The Dark Tower on the Web
• Stephen King Fan Pages
Appendix V: Synopses and Notes from The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction
Appendix VI: “Childe Roland to the Dark Tower Came”
References and Acknowledgments

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