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Roland, Jake, Susannah, Eddie, and Oy- bound together in a quest for the Dark Tower. Their quest was considered to have been finished nine years ago with the publication of the seventh volume, titled The Dark Tower. Although only Roland made his way to the Tower, the series finale made for an exciting read, and it is a fitting capstone to a fascinating and thrilling series.

... Except it's not the final book. Last year, King wrote and published another book chronicling the quest for the Tower. Although published eight years after the The Dark Tower, it acts as a sort of bridge between the fourth book, Wizard and Glass, and the fifth book, The Wolves of the Calla.

I can't wait to read it. I absolutely love the characters, even though this time I know what their fates are. Eddie will still be shot to death, Jake will still be run over by a van, Susannah will still abandon the quest for New York, Oy will still die protecting Roland from Mordred, and Roland will still climb the Dark Tower, only to be sent back to the beginning of the series.

It will be awesome. Why not? It's a Stephen King novel... It's guaranteed to be good.

Long days and pleasant nights,
Neal

Review: The Dark Tower VII- The Dark Tower

      Alright... It's over. I hate finishing good series, if only because I love living along with the characters, and finishing means I can't be with them anymore (almost sounds insane, right?). My life, since spring break early this year, has been nearly dominated by Roland, Eddie, Jake, Susannah, and Oy. I'm honestly wondering what it'd be like not reading about their adventures- because they have been such a constant force in my life. Anyway, how do I begin reviewing this 1000+ page book?

      Let's start with the positives. I could go on and on. The character growth among these five is stunningly amazing- even Oy, despite being a dog/raccoon- type creature (called a billy-bumbler). Of course, Eddie is my favorite character by far... His jokes were timely and awesome, and brought an element of hilarity to bad situations. The fulfillment of Roland's dream, laying his eyes on the Dark Tower, was great. Roland's being thrown back to the beginning of the series is a concept I find fascinating, and has me thinking. How many times has he been through the journey? After Susannah's, Eddie's, and Jake's reunion in New York, will they appear in Roland's next journey? Is the Crimson King still trapped as a set of eyes on a balcony of the Tower, or is he back in action? Have the Beams been permanently saved, or will Roland have to stop the Breakers again? Will Roland have to face off with Mordred again? The questions go on and on.

      Here come a few things that set me off a bit. One, I feel like that with the amount of energy put into the fact that Mordred was this sort of evil guy that would help destroy the Tower (or Roland), his death seemed a bit quick and inconclusive to me. I almost felt a bit let down by the fact that he posed so much of a threat throughout this book, yet he didn't really hinder Roland and friends much at all (except for the huge sidequest he caused, in Song of Susannah, but that's another book). Two: I'm still not sure how I felt about the inclusion of lightsabers  (Although those were in Wolves of the Calla), exploding snitches, and all the pop culture references that were put in to move the plot along. (Hey Jude is popular in both worlds?) I'm left wondering whether King had lost inspiration at these parts, or was trying to tie our world and Roland's together.

      All in all, I loved the series. I have it up there with Lord of the Rings as a series (although there's no way King matched the extensive background that Tolkien put into Middle-Earth). Might I add how coincidental it is that I finished the series on the nineteenth of November? (The number nineteen is a big plot element throughout the series.)

Long days and pleasant nights,
Neal

The Status of my Reading

      Here I sit, on the floor of my bedroom again, wondering what I shall write about next. Should I outline where I am in my readings? 

1. The Dark Tower- I'm nearing the end of this crazily intense book. They're finally closing in on the epitome of their quest- The omnipresent Dark Tower, the nexus of all existence. At the point I've read to, Roland and Susannah have traveled into the White Lands of Empathica, a snowy tundra plagued by blizzards. 
2. Empire of the Sun- The war is over, yet Jim is still lost alone outside Shanghai- although aided by parachutes of food dropped by B-29's piloted by Americans. 
3. The Diary of Anne Frank- I bought this over the last week from a book fair at school. I've wanted to read this for a while, and upon seeing it I thrust it into my parent's hands and made them buy it for me, even though I have more than enough money for it. *snickers* Anyway, it's fascinating to see the perspective of someone who actually experienced the Holocaust, rather than the textbook definitions many people live by. 
4. Dune- Realizing I haven't picked this one up for more than a week or two, I don't have much to say on this one. Just goes to show what happens when I read multiple books at once. Well, Thanksgiving break is coming up soon, so I should be able to put in some reading time. Hopefully.

Eddie Dies! (Dark Tower Spoiler Alert)

      If you haven't guessed through my previous posts, I am a huge Stephen King fan, and I'm reading the final book of his Dark Tower series, titled The Dark Tower. My absolute favorite character (I mentioned this in another post) is Eddie Dean, an ex-heroin addict from Co-Op City, in New York, New York. Drawn into Roland's world from the New York of 1987 through the use of 'doors' that transcend time and space, he is initially wary of Roland, and in fact attempts to kill him for not letting him through another of these 'doors', as he is suffering from heroin withdrawal and wants a 'fix'.
      Over time, though, Eddie does accept Roland as 'Dinh', high speech for leader of their 'Ka-tet', a group brought together by 'Ka', an equivalent of destiny or fate. Through their adventures, and my reading of these, I have fallen in love with Eddie (not in a weird way). With his attitude towards life, and his often- hilarious jokes, puns, and timely references to pop culture (up to 1987, the year he's from), I've come to view him as someone not just from a book, but a friend walking with me on the path of life.
      Unfortunately for all, readers and Ka-tet members alike, during the battle of Algul Siento, Eddie took a bullet to his head. His death was not sudden, but slow and drawn out. thankfully, though he did get a final word in to Susannah, Jake, and Roland before he stepped into the void.
      I think I've said enough- I don't want to reveal too much.

Long days and pleasant nights,
Neal

Literature By Character

      In this post I'll list out some of the characters I've loved the most throughout my readings. They won't be in any particular order, just a general list of my favorites.

• Eddie Dean (Dark Tower series, Stephen King)- I really like Eddie for millions of reasons, but mainly because he has such a dark past to him, yet he's such a purely awesome and hilarious person... and I feel like if I would have acted much like he did had I been put in all the bizarre situations that Roland put him through. 
• Samwise Gamgee (The Lord of the Rings, J.R.R. Tolkien)- He's such a great, loyal friend who never leaves Frodo's side. Of all the characters in LotR, I've always identified with him the most, with all the motivations that drive him.
• Johannes Verne (The Lonesome Gods, Louis L'Amour)- He's well-read, he's sure of himself, and there's something definite about him that I identify with. I genuinely wanted to see what he would do next.

       Yeah, it's a short list... I'll make another post when I think of more.

Long days and pleasant nights,
Neal

So Far This Year....

I've read:

1. The Gunslinger, Stephen King
2. The Drawing of the Three, Stephen King
3. The Wastelands, Stephen King
4. Wizard and Glass, Stephen King
5. Full Dark, No Stars, Stephen King
6. Coming of the Third Reich, Richard Evans
7. The U.P. Trail, Zane Grey
8. Riders of the Purple Sage, Zane Grey
9. The Lonesome Gods, Louis L'Amour
10. Wolves of the Calla, Stephen King
11. Song of Susannah, Stephen King
12. Salem's Lot, Stephen King

      It seems like ages ago since I started The Gunslinger, the first installment of Stephen King's Dark Tower series. I'd gladly review all of these books, but alas, that would entail me reading them again. That would take another year, give or take a few weeks. I will post a review of The Dark Tower, the final installment of King's series, once I finish, which should take a couple weeks among school and other things.

      Coming of the Third Reich stands out as the only non-fiction work I've read this year. That admittedly took quite an amount of effort to stave through, much to my surprise. As you can see, as I've mentioned several times in other posts, I'm a big Stephen King fan. What I'm also really into (I don't think I've mentioned this yet) is the Western genre, particularly Zane Grey and Louis L'Amour. I have a couple L'Amour books in my shelf yet unread.

Long days and pleasant nights,
Neal

My Shelved, Yet Unread Books

      There are, of course, many books that I want to read. But first, as I naturally would do, I have quite a few books on the shelf yet to read. Half-Price Books will be the death of me.

      What do I have to read? The next three Dune Books, and a couple Louis L'Amour books (on the bottom of the picture). Right now, I'm reading Empire of the Sun, The Dark Tower #7, and the first Dune (top of the picture).

      Although only four of these books actually belong to me, you can see how much of a bookworm I am. Also, you can see the genres and styles of literature I'm into right now. Science-fiction, a genre I haven't explored much beyond Star Wars, is one that I'm very slowly stepping into. It's very much like walking into a cold pool- you have to take a while to get used to it. Post-apocalyptic fiction is one of my favorites- I Am Legend (the book, not the movie) is a prime example, and one I liked quite a bit. The Dark Tower series is part Western, part science-fiction, and part post-apocalyptic fiction- it's an amazing series with great characters, ideas, and a great plot. I've been living it since spring break earlier this year, and I almost can't bear the thought of being on the final book.

      Empire of the Sun, a Historical Fiction novel, revolves around the experiences of a young kid in Shanghai after the Japanese invade in the late 1930's. I find it to be a very emotional book, and it is based off the author's own experiences.

      Anyway, that's what I have on the shelf now- at least until I go to another bookstore.

Long days and pleasant nights,
Neal

My Current Reading Addiction

     Being the avid reader that I am, I have noticed a trend in the books that I read. Once I read a book, and I like it, I seem to become almost an addict to the works of that author, in a way. I have done so with J.R.R. Tolkien (author of the Lord of the Rings), and also with Michael Crichton (author of Jurassic Park). This 'addiction' of sorts lasts maybe for a year or two, as I become tired of the author.

     Right now- I'm into Stephen King novels. He's got to be one of the best authors of our time (okay, I admit, I am a bit biased). I'm wrapping up the Dark Tower series as of the moment I type this.. afterwards I'll take a short break as I take a chunk out of the backlog of books I have yet to read.

     What I love about the stories he writes isn't the horrific scenes or the extreme level of detail that he goes into, but the depth of the characters the he creates. You end up truly loving the characters, and want to  cheer them on through their hardships and congratulate them when they succeed with something. When you finish the book, you feel as if you had really known each character, and that they had been there for part of your life. It almost affects you when a character suffers a grievous loss, or they suddenly die in some way.

     There are so many possibilities when you really take some time to read. The written word can express so much more than film, I think. Novels aren't constrained by the amount of time people are willing to spend reading something, but rather how much people would rather read, and I believe that makes a big difference.

Long days and pleasant nights,
Neal

Introduction

     Hello fellow Interneters! I should think that introductions are in order, right? Well, I'll try to summarize myself to the best of my ability. My name is Neal, I am a HUGE bookworm (I am known for ALWAYS having something to read), I am currently fighting (quite successfully, so far) through the strange lands of high school. When I am not slaving away with homework, I am chipping away at the pile of books I have yet to read.

     As I sit cross-legged on the floor of my room, I am admittedly at a loss for anything to say. Is it the time? Nearly 10:30 at night. Is it the radio? The song (Turn the Page, Bob Seger) softly assaults my ears (wait, is it Metallica's cover of the song?). A slight ache emanates up and down my spine. Facebook is open, although I haven't checked it in a while. I glance towards the pile of books near my radio (now playing Heart- or Pat Benatar?). They call me, whispering sweet words of far-off worlds and experiences. The dunes of Arrakis, the infinite levels of the Dark Tower, the war-torn lands around Japanese-occupied Shanghai. I long to leave this world behind, to travel with Roland, Eddie, Jake, and Susannah throughout Mid-World and beyond, to sit down and listen to the many stories and decisions of the Council of Elrond, to wander the lonesome, beautiful western frontier. I jerk back to reality as a political ad declares something. I don't pay attention. Nearly 11:00 already. I need sleep- school tomorrow. Good night world.

Long days and pleasant nights, 

Neal