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A review by kareds
Wizard and Glass by Stephen King
2.0
I knew going into it that Wizard and Glass was a divisive book. Pausing an adventure story for a flashback is a bold move, especially when that flashback ends up taking the bulk of an 800 page novel, or in my case a 28 hour audiobook. The end result is a mixed bag that leans hard into some of Stephen King's strong suits while leaning far, far away from his others.
I want to start with what works in this book and also emphasize that, negative as this review might sound, I don't think this is a bad book. It wasn't the best thing I've read this year and is so far my least favorite entry in the Dark Tower series, but it really is a fine book.
Like most King books, it's an ambitious work that just goes for it. If Stephen King is going to pause his sci-fi-fantasy action adventure story to tell a love story in a sleepy Old West town, he's going to make it an 800 page long epic and also throw in a witch, some rival cowboys, and a deep rooted conspiracy. Not an inch of the world is left untouched, and even minor characters get fleshed out well enough to be lovable, hateable, and memorable. It also contains what might be King's best bit of prose.
It's in that dramatic sweeping narrative that I think Wizard and Glass gets a bit lost. One of Stephen King's best qualities as a storyteller is that he does not compromise his vision, but I'd argue that his chief strength is that that vision is wild. Drawing of the Three starts with Roland being attacked by giant lobsters but quickly shows that it's actually about magic, time traveling, inter-dimensional doors that he uses to recruit friends and rob drug stores. The Wastelands has a robotic bear the size of a house and also a house that tries to eat a kid. It ends with the characters riding a talking train who likes riddles. This is my review for that one: Stephen King is nuts and I love nuts. This series has gone off the rails (ha, ha).
Wizard and Glass isn't nuts, and not only is the story back on the rails but the train is moving s l o w l y. Its world, while broad in scope, is also mundane and familiar. Much of the book is spent following the characters as they ride horses around the town or have repetitive discussions about the town and their lives. None of these things are bad by default, but they are not what King does best. I value brevity in stories, and while I don't want to hold all authors to that rule I really think that Wizard and Glass is too long for how little actually happens, especially given that the reader already knows how the story ends.
Stephen King took a big swing with this book, and I will always applaud a big swing, even if it ends up being a miss. At the end of the day, though, the only reason I finished this book is to get to the next one.
I want to start with what works in this book and also emphasize that, negative as this review might sound, I don't think this is a bad book. It wasn't the best thing I've read this year and is so far my least favorite entry in the Dark Tower series, but it really is a fine book.
Like most King books, it's an ambitious work that just goes for it. If Stephen King is going to pause his sci-fi-fantasy action adventure story to tell a love story in a sleepy Old West town, he's going to make it an 800 page long epic and also throw in a witch, some rival cowboys, and a deep rooted conspiracy. Not an inch of the world is left untouched, and even minor characters get fleshed out well enough to be lovable, hateable, and memorable. It also contains what might be King's best bit of prose
Spoiler
when he's describing the change of the seasons at the beginning of the final act of the storyIt's in that dramatic sweeping narrative that I think Wizard and Glass gets a bit lost. One of Stephen King's best qualities as a storyteller is that he does not compromise his vision, but I'd argue that his chief strength is that that vision is wild. Drawing of the Three starts with Roland being attacked by giant lobsters but quickly shows that it's actually about magic, time traveling, inter-dimensional doors that he uses to recruit friends and rob drug stores. The Wastelands has a robotic bear the size of a house and also a house that tries to eat a kid. It ends with the characters riding a talking train who likes riddles. This is my review for that one: Stephen King is nuts and I love nuts. This series has gone off the rails (ha, ha).
Wizard and Glass isn't nuts, and not only is the story back on the rails but the train is moving s l o w l y. Its world, while broad in scope, is also mundane and familiar. Much of the book is spent following the characters as they ride horses around the town or have repetitive discussions about the town and their lives. None of these things are bad by default, but they are not what King does best. I value brevity in stories, and while I don't want to hold all authors to that rule I really think that Wizard and Glass is too long for how little actually happens, especially given that the reader already knows how the story ends.
Stephen King took a big swing with this book, and I will always applaud a big swing, even if it ends up being a miss. At the end of the day, though, the only reason I finished this book is to get to the next one.