Customer Reviews

Stephen King's The Dark Tower: A Concordance, Vol. 1

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

Welcome to the world of Roland and the Dark Tower.

This concordance was actually put together as a reference for Stephen King himself, as he explains in the beginning of this very excellent and detailed document.

Here within lies the Dark Tower and all its mysteries, names, characters, locations, mythology, etc.

This is an ideal book for the Dark Tower fan, or fanatic. The details refer back to actual page numbers of the original novels, and the format is easy to use. Ideally, finding answers to your questions is the key to a well put together reference book - and this book has been researched and put together expertly.

I would strongly suggest this book for an accompanyment to the Dark Tower Series.

Like many Dark Tower fans, I was excited to see this book published. The stories are so rich with characters and exotic locales that it's easy to lose track of every little nuance found in the series. With that being said, the author does an excellent (and thorough) job of compiling the information.
Everything is up to date, including entries regarding the recently revised novel THE GUNSLINGER and the short story LITTLE SISTERS OF ELURIA. There are even hints as to what to expect in the next 3 books yet to be published. The maps located in the back are extremely helpful, as there's been some contention over the years as to where things were located in Mid-World. This finally solves the arguments (at least in my opinion).
My only gripe is that the book doesn't really delve into the other related novels such as THE STAND, INSOMNIA, or especially THE TALISMAN and BLACK HOUSE. Of course, if it did, it would make for a much larger volume.
If you haven't read any of the Dark Tower books, then this concordance will make no sense to you. If you're a hard core fan, like me, get it!

My girlfriend and I are reading and loving the Dark Tower series (I am new to it, she is reading for the second time). We were in a bookstore recently, and she saw me looking at this Dark Tower Concordance and shot me a look that said "Jesus, don't be a geek. What's next? Repeating dialogue from star trek episodes?"....

Anyway, this is actually a very useful reference tool, well organized and well written, and it has enhanced my already sizable pleasure of reading The Dark Tower books. Every time I have wanted to know a character's background, or the details of a particular place mentioned in the books, this book has given me a very nice and concise explanation.

I'm not sure if you do this, but when I am reading a book and suddenly a character or place pops up that I only half-remember, I have to go all back through the book until I find the first, explanatory reference to the character/place. This concordance lets me look up a character or place very quickly without breaking the flow of the novels.

Hey, it even has maps!

Whether you have already read the first four books in The Dark Tower series or are reading them now, this book should be on your shelf. It is a great reference tool. I found it very useful when I was recently reading book number five Wolves Of The Calla. I had read the first four books years earlier and The Concordance allowed me to refresh my memory on names and faces that I might have had only vague recollections. Highly recommended. I will also be buying Volume 2 when it comes out after The Dark Tower series wraps up late next year.

The Dark Tower: A Concordance is an excellent reference manual cataloging the first four volumes of Stephen King's magnificent Dark Tower series. After a thorough introduction to main character Roland and his quest, author Robin Furth organizies each section of the book alphabetically for easy reference. Topics covered include characters, places, speech, and more, and actual pages from each book are cited. I found it fascinating to read about so many details from the series, many of which I had either forgotten or missed entirely. However, as Stephen King mentions in his introduction, this book was never meant to be published; rather, Ms. Furth was commissioned to create a guide which King himself could use as he finished the series. Given this, the book reads more like an encyclopedia than a literary analysis, and the many cross-references can be cumbersome at times. Still, it is obvious that Ms. Furth put an enormous amount of time and effort into this volume, and it is definitely worthwhile reading for the die-hard Dark Tower fan.

If you are at all interested in the Dark Tower Series, this book is a must-have. As I began reading the series over a decade ago, it was so helpful to have a guide to flip back to when I came across something I did not remember or understand. My only recommendation is that you not read this until you have read the first 4 books - there is too much info and it will ruin the surprises.

That being said, it is definitely worth re-reading the books, if only to recapture the magic that is The Dark Tower, and this book becomes indispensable when doing that. I am waiting anxiously for Vol. 2 of this concordance to be released!

Let me first just say WOW!!! Always have I wanted to find some kind of book which solely covers all the various material in the Dark Tower series, and Robin Furth has done just that. This book covers ever little possible detail and nuance of the epic series that you could think of. Not only does the author, Robin Furth, contain the infamous initials R.F., which appear in many of King's novels as the initials of an extremely "bad-dude" she, I would venture knows more about the Dark Tower Series than the man himself! The amount of work put into this concordance is scary beyond belief, from the streets of the New York, to the path of the beams, and the interstate highway in Topeka, nothing is left out. For anyone who is obsessed with the Dark Tower series like I am you will find this reference book an excellent source of information.

Furth carefully defines and describes all the major and minor characters and places, and then references them within the series. For example, when describing the Tick-Tock man, the leader of the Grays, she references him within the series like so; III:298 meaning volume 3 page 298. This is nothing short of amazing! I have already read through the book a couple of times and now feel I am well prepared to receive "Wolves of the Calla." I highly recommend this book to all avid Dark Tower fans.

Apparently being a personal assistant to Stephen King has certain perks, especially when you're writing a concordance to his bestselling Dark Tower series. Robin Furth doesn't give us any new material, but fans and newcomers alike will probably want to check this out.

Furth includes plenty of data on the first four novels of the series, starting with an essay that refreshes the reader's memory. Furth starts the actual content with a list of characters with biographical info, from "Abigail" to "Zoltan." Then it's the areas of Mid-World, from the lair of the vampire nuns to Roland's long-lost homeland; the areas of our own world, and portals between the worlds.

The appendices are also quite solid. The first explains in detail the various terms and phrases used in the High Speech, Mid-World language ("graf" is apple beer) and sayings ("If it's ka, it will come like the wind") and a bit of the Sisters of Eluria's language. The second appendix explains different drugs, languages, dances, holidays, instruments, and so on. The third explains various cultural figures and items from our own world, ranging from Humphrey Bogart to the Hobbit. The fourth and final appendix is a series of maps -- not too complex, but detailed enough.

The Dark Tower series -- currently at six volume and a short story -- is enticingly complex and mysterious. It's also interlinked with other novels of King's, like "Insomnia" and "Eyes of the Dragon." And so it's inevitable that even the die-hard fans will forget this character or that fair-day; with Furth's book, they can refresh their memories and maybe have a few points clarified.

Furth does an excellent job organizing and annotating the book, including the books in which the items appear, and which pages are significant. She also maintains a calmly distant attitude in the book, without getting too gushy about King's work. But she does slip up occasionally; it's jarring to hear about "screwing" someone with a gun in a scholarly work.

Robin Furth's "Dark Tower Concordance Volume 1" is a good accompaniment to the Dark Tower series, and even those who have read the series many times will want to keep it at hand. Very useful.

In the forewords of the latest editions of the Dark Tower Series, King states that he was influenced heavily by the likes of Tolkein and Leone. As with Tolkein's Ring series, there is a tremendous amount of story and huge number of characters and locations involved in these books. With huge gaps of time between the publishing of several volumes one of two things is required in order to keep everything straight. A fan must either start reading the series from the first volume all over again AND keep a notebook handy for jotting down anything you might have questions about later, or you can buy this book and refer to it when needed.

Laid out in an easy to digest format the reader can either use it like a dictionary and look up specific terms, people and places or (like me) flip through it to get reaquainted before jumping into the final three books due out this year.

People who have been reading my reviews know that I love books and film, but due to the arrival of twin boys have almost no time to enjoy either. This volume literally saved me weeks of reading and/or my hairline from being pulled out in frustration while I read Wolves of the Calla over the last couple of weeks. When Song of Susanah and The Dark Tower arrive over the next couple of months it will stay on my night stand keeping me company and sane.

A lot of the negative reviews here don't know what the book is supposed to be. Its not going to give you any new information, nor is it something you read from start to finish. As one disappointed person stated, its a glossary. Its supposed to be one. If you'r expecting anything else, then of course you aren't going to like it.

If you're trying to find a certain page or scene, or you missed something and you are confused, then this book will help you out. Its helped me out a lot. It also has references to the Revised Gunslinger and how the two books differ.

I'm looking forward to the next volume.