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A review by subparcupcake
The Dark Tower by Stephen King
5.0
I finished this last week, but needed time to sort out my feelings. Truth be told, after reading the ending my mind was reeling. It was hard to start another book, because I was so hung up on this one. I know a lot of people took issue with the way it ended... But for me, personally? I loved it.
BIG ENDING SPOILERS! DO NOT READ UNLESS FINISHED!
For the record, I'll post here my take on the ending... Keep in mind, I'm a King noobie. So many of his novels are connected to the Dark Tower somehow, and I've read virtually none of them, so this view is strictly from a noobie perspective. I'm sure as I read more connecting novels my interpretation will change, and I will welcome that! But for now I'm happy basing it only on what I know, and letting it grow and change from there. So here goes, please bear with me...
It seems like a lot of people think that Roland is doomed to repeat the loop, over and over, until he gets everything right. Like he made mistakes he has to rectify, one by one. That's not the impression I got... It's hard to articulate my thoughts on it, but I'm going to do my best. This is purely my speculation and interpretations, but I'm going to state it as fact to make it easier to follow.
Roland's problem is the tower. His obsession is the tower. His willingness to sacrifice anything and everything to get to the tower is the problem. He could have turned back any time after stopping the breakers, certainly after erasing the Crimson King. At that point I feel like his job was done, there was nothing more Roland himself could do for the tower. But he didn't turn back.. He had to see what was at the top of the tower. He was obsessed, couldn't turn away. He chose the tower over everything else, and climbed the steps. As he climbed, he tried to block out the rooms that painted a picture of his life up to that point - he didn't care about anything, didn't want to pause to appreciate those he loved and his life, he just needed to see the top. It's always the tower for him, above anything and everything else.
And it will always be the tower for him, unless something changes. Unless, through the progression of his loops, he realizes that nothing that matters is in there, and puts his companions first. Puts those he loves before the tower, rather than the tower before his loved ones. Taking time to pick up the horn is a sign that he's getting closer... Maybe even almost there. The horn is a purely sentimental object, and he picked it up only because of his love for Cuthburt. He had never bothered before, even though it would only take a moment to do so. Picking up the horn shows he's getting closer to who he needs to be to turn away once his task is complete, and not climb those steps.
Who knows what Roland was like on previous loops. Maybe he never loved Eddie and Susannah and Jake and Oy, maybe he heartlessly sacrificed them, maybe he selfishly made Patrick grab the rose for him. And this time around, this time that we saw him, he loved. He cried. He was one step closer..
Maybe this next time around he'll save the universe and say that's enough, it's time to rest, I don't need to see what's at the top of the tower, I have everything I need right here around me. People I love, who love me.. What else is there?
Maybe... One can hope.
So that's my take on the ending, and for now I'm happy with it. It feels right for me, and that's what I love about this conclusion to a truly epic series - we can all find what feels right for us, and build from that should we continue to explore the SK universe.
I'll end this review now, as it's already just about the longest one I've ever written. Before I do, a quick shout out to Chris and Becky; they held me down and tickled me until I agreed to start reading some King, and in particular to start the journey to the Dark Tower, and I couldn't be more grateful! Ok, maybe they didn't really tickle me... But they're plenty scary when they want something bad enough, you're better off just obeying ;)
BIG ENDING SPOILERS! DO NOT READ UNLESS FINISHED!
Spoiler
What I loved most about it is how it was sort of left open for interpretation. I can see why many people would be pissed.. He gets to the top of the tower and it loops him back to the beginning of the story? WTF! But for me it fit, it worked perfectly. I've discussed the ending with several people, and it seems we all have different theories on why he loops back to the beginning, and we are all equally convinced that ours is the most fitting reason. I love that! It leaves so much room for friendly debate!For the record, I'll post here my take on the ending... Keep in mind, I'm a King noobie. So many of his novels are connected to the Dark Tower somehow, and I've read virtually none of them, so this view is strictly from a noobie perspective. I'm sure as I read more connecting novels my interpretation will change, and I will welcome that! But for now I'm happy basing it only on what I know, and letting it grow and change from there. So here goes, please bear with me...
It seems like a lot of people think that Roland is doomed to repeat the loop, over and over, until he gets everything right. Like he made mistakes he has to rectify, one by one. That's not the impression I got... It's hard to articulate my thoughts on it, but I'm going to do my best. This is purely my speculation and interpretations, but I'm going to state it as fact to make it easier to follow.
Roland's problem is the tower. His obsession is the tower. His willingness to sacrifice anything and everything to get to the tower is the problem. He could have turned back any time after stopping the breakers, certainly after erasing the Crimson King. At that point I feel like his job was done, there was nothing more Roland himself could do for the tower. But he didn't turn back.. He had to see what was at the top of the tower. He was obsessed, couldn't turn away. He chose the tower over everything else, and climbed the steps. As he climbed, he tried to block out the rooms that painted a picture of his life up to that point - he didn't care about anything, didn't want to pause to appreciate those he loved and his life, he just needed to see the top. It's always the tower for him, above anything and everything else.
And it will always be the tower for him, unless something changes. Unless, through the progression of his loops, he realizes that nothing that matters is in there, and puts his companions first. Puts those he loves before the tower, rather than the tower before his loved ones. Taking time to pick up the horn is a sign that he's getting closer... Maybe even almost there. The horn is a purely sentimental object, and he picked it up only because of his love for Cuthburt. He had never bothered before, even though it would only take a moment to do so. Picking up the horn shows he's getting closer to who he needs to be to turn away once his task is complete, and not climb those steps.
Who knows what Roland was like on previous loops. Maybe he never loved Eddie and Susannah and Jake and Oy, maybe he heartlessly sacrificed them, maybe he selfishly made Patrick grab the rose for him. And this time around, this time that we saw him, he loved. He cried. He was one step closer..
Maybe this next time around he'll save the universe and say that's enough, it's time to rest, I don't need to see what's at the top of the tower, I have everything I need right here around me. People I love, who love me.. What else is there?
Maybe... One can hope.
So that's my take on the ending, and for now I'm happy with it. It feels right for me, and that's what I love about this conclusion to a truly epic series - we can all find what feels right for us, and build from that should we continue to explore the SK universe.
I'll end this review now, as it's already just about the longest one I've ever written. Before I do, a quick shout out to Chris and Becky; they held me down and tickled me until I agreed to start reading some King, and in particular to start the journey to the Dark Tower, and I couldn't be more grateful! Ok, maybe they didn't really tickle me... But they're plenty scary when they want something bad enough, you're better off just obeying ;)