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Attention: Contains major spoilers if you haven't read
The Gunslinger,
The Drawing of the Three,
The Waste Lands,
Wizard and Glass and
Wolves of the Calla.
Commala-come-come
The new Dark Tower book is here!
Brief summary of Wolves of the Calla: Wolves of the Calla had introduced us with the sympathetic
country
people of Calla-Bryn-Sturgis, who, every generation, used to fear the
coming of the wolves, that is, of something; men, beasts or
something else, wearing wolves masks. These wolves had the habit of
stealing one child out of each pair of twins (and twins are numerous
in the Calla), to bring them to Thunderclap, do something to their
brains and then send them back to the Calla where they grow up as both
giants and idiots, and die prematurely in terrible pain. After
much palaver and thinking, the ka-tet agrees to help the people
of the Calla, and prepare for a merciless battle. Also, they learn
about a new way to travel between worlds: todash, which
occurs during sleep but includes the danger of getting lost into
the infinite darkness. In the Calla, the ka-tet meets Pere
Callahan, who tells the story of his life, and explains how from a Maine town called
Jerusalem's Lot, he ended up in the Calla. Callahan is now part of the
ka-tet, and he reveals his possession of Black Thirteen; the most
dangerous of the wizard's rainbow. Roland and Eddie
have to secure the rose located in the vacant lot in
Manhattan, therefore they convince Calvin Tower (whom they save from
Jack Andolini, who was trying to make him sell the lot to the Sombra
Corporation) to agree to sell them the lot and in the meanwhile, to
hide in Maine with his friend Aaron Deepneau. As for Pere Callahan,
he has the surprise of his life : he stumbles on one of the books
left by Calvin Tower for safekeeping: it is Salem's Lot, by Stephen King, and guess what!: he is the main character...
Pregnant Susannah doesn't know that she shares her body with Mia, someone who
views herself as a Mother, and who would do anything to protect her
"chap", including send Susannah on disgusting
eating sprees at night. After the battle
which drives the wolves away, Mia takes control over Susannah, and
escapes to another world, thanks to Black Thirteen and a door in a
cave near the Calla...
Song of Susannah takes up where Wolves of the Calla left off. With
the help of the Manni and their magic, Roland and Eddie plan to go
behind Susannah and catch her before she gives birth to whatever
monster she carries, and Pere Callahan and Jake are supposed to
find Calvin Tower and Aaron Deepneau and get the
later to draw a legal document to make official the transfer of the
vacant lot and the rose. But once again, ka decides otherwise. It
turns out that Roland and Eddie get sent to Maine, in 1972, after
Calvin Tower, and Jake and Callahan are the ones who will go after
Mia, New York of 1999. Most of the story is focused on Susannah/Mia,
the struggle of the two women for the control of one body, and the
coming of a child. Of course we learn more about the child, its
origin and its purpose, as well as about Mia herself. Part of the
story however (the most interesting part I must say, deals with
Eddie and Roland in Maine). After a very bumpy arrival (seems there
is a welcome committee...), an irritating encounter with Calvin Tower,
they get to meet, yes!, Stephen King himself... The scenes
with King are actually the best of the book, and I think that every
King's fan will agree...
[Some spoilers ahead...] Of course I have read
some negative reviews, many people
didn't like to see King as a character, it kind of demystifies the
whole thing for them. Of course every fiction asks for a suspension
of disbelief which is rendered difficult, quite impossible, if the
author reminds the reader that he is after all the creator of the
characters and the story we read. But here things are not quite as
simple, it seems that the character Stephen King is not as in
charge of his creation as he should be... People didn't like the
fact that King is compared (compares himself) to a God, but the idea
of the writer acting as the God of his literary creation is not a
new one, born from King's huge ego. Not at all: in the 19th century,
naturalist author Emile Zola wrote The Experimental Novel, in which
he compared the author to a hidden god in charge of his creation,
who manipulates and experiments on his characters. Some authors
have felt that on the opposite, what they wrote escaped them, the
novel once written had a life of its own, like Mary Shelley's
Frankenstein, which, she was reproached, was too awful a thing for a
young woman to have written. She subsequently referred the book as "my
hideous progeny" and she wished it to "grow forth and prosper",
because a writer is no more in total control of his creation than a
parent of his child. This is only this debate that King reopens, and
very cleverly, by showing the writer not being in
charge. And the final twist of course raises even more questions and
gives us the urge to run buy the following and last installment (but
wait, it won't be out until September 21...). Not
quite what I expected, things become more and more
puzzling and interesting and I can't wait for the final book and
have to say... thank ya Sai King, and let's hope we'll be well-met in the
Dark Tower!
Rating:
© Discussing Books, 07/13/2004 |
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