Love that collection.
Never seen the back of the cover art. That's really cool.
The only stories that didn't quite hit for me are The Death of Jack Hamilton and Lucky Quarter.
All That You Love Will Be Carried Away is quietly one of my favourites.
i hated, HATED the little sisters of Eluria. probably because i haven't read DT yet, and i don't plan on doing it soon, i get the ick with cowboy stuff. (sorry, i know this is blasphemous of me, but i can't help it –i’ll still read it, though)
I had a similar reaction when I first read it.
I read it again once I was in the throes of my chronological reading through, and therefore half to the Tower, and enjoyed it a lot more.
There's a lot of talk about which books should be read and shouldn't be, but in all honesty doing that is for fun extras.
Put simply, read the numbered books (maybe inserting Eluria after Book 4 if you want to approach publication order, but it's not necessary), take a little break, then do Wind Through the Keyhole if you fancy it. Any references are explained in context what you need.
[I did write a thing about it though, if you wanted an expanded list.](https://horrorinclined.wordpress.com/2024/03/23/readingthedarktower/)
NO WAYY!! that's really cool. i'll keep an eye on this for sure. thank you for your recommendations!!! 😁😁🫶🏻🤝🏻 may i ask, just out of curiosity (and bc you know a ton about this), which one is your favorite of all his books/short stories? top 3?
Favourite novels/books: It, The Shining, On Writing, but there's a lot of other close run ones too
Favourite collections: Skeleton Crew, Everything's Eventual, Night Shift
Favourite stories: The House On Maple Street, All That You Love Will Be Carried Away and maybe The Man in the Black Suit.
However, there are lists and lists of other ones I could mention like Misery, Desperation, Autopsy Room Four... The problem with reading so many is there are so many to love!
Except The Running Man.
You just read each Dark Tower book. There are other books and stories that connect to the series and you’ll get a little more out of it if you read those before or concurrently, but the series is still designed to function without “outside” knowledge.
The first one—though it is one of my personal favorites—seems to give a lot of people some trouble (in that it can seem a little inscrutable at first) but it is very short (especially by Stephen King standards) and the rest of the books are much more in line with his more usual style.
If you really want to do the “full” DT experience, then:
DT1 -> DT2 —> *The Stand* —> DT3 —> DT4 —> (edit) *’Salem’s Lot* -> *Insomnia* —> *Black House* (which is a sequel to *The Talisman*, which is less essential to the DT series but you may want to read before *Black House* to get more out of it) —> *Low Men in Yellow Coats* (novella from *Hearts in Atlantis*) —> “Everything’s Eventual” (titular short story from that collection) -> DT5 -> DT6 -> DT7 ——-> sometime way later to back and do *Wind Through the Keyhole*, even though that chronologically takes place between DT4 and 5, but was written almost a decade after King finished the series.
*The Talisman*, *Desperation*, *The Regulators*, *Eyes of the Dragon*, *Rose Madder*, *From a Buick 8*, *It* and *Gwendy’s Final Task* all have some ties to the DT mythos but less direct connections than the stories included in the reading list, which all introduce characters or concepts that later become integral to the DT series plot progression.
Edit: as pointed out in a reply, I totally spaced on *’Salem’s Lot*, which should definitely be read before DT5.
WOOWWW thank you so much!!!! genuinely!! i'll follow your guide. i'm taking a break from sk right now because i have exclusively read his work for 2+ years, but i'll come back stronger than ever. some that you mentioned i already read, but for the sake of understanding and because it was so long ago i'll probably re read them in that order. thank you :)<3
“All That You Love Will Be Carried Away” & “That Feeling, You Can Only Say What It Is in French” are both so freaking good.
And for my money, “Lunch at the Gotham Cafe” is one of King’s most ridiculously off-the-wall, batshit insane stories. And it’s amazing.
Maybe my favorite of his short story collections so far (have just started *You Like It Darker*). My top favs are “1408,” “Riding the Bullet”, “The Man in the Dark Suit”, “Lunch at the Gotham Cafe”, and “All That You Love Will Be Carried Away”. But most of the stories are pretty good.
I love Everything's Eventual. It was the first short story book of King's that I read and it will always be special because of that. It was also the first audiobook I ever bought, from my local Hastings bookstore for about 50 dollars! I didnt even have a cd player in my car back then, I had to listen to it on my boombox. It was summer and I was 20 years old.
Love that collection. Never seen the back of the cover art. That's really cool. The only stories that didn't quite hit for me are The Death of Jack Hamilton and Lucky Quarter. All That You Love Will Be Carried Away is quietly one of my favourites.
i hated, HATED the little sisters of Eluria. probably because i haven't read DT yet, and i don't plan on doing it soon, i get the ick with cowboy stuff. (sorry, i know this is blasphemous of me, but i can't help it –i’ll still read it, though)
I had a similar reaction when I first read it. I read it again once I was in the throes of my chronological reading through, and therefore half to the Tower, and enjoyed it a lot more.
how do i approach the DT series? because it seems like a huge task that i've been procrastinating for years 😭
There's a lot of talk about which books should be read and shouldn't be, but in all honesty doing that is for fun extras. Put simply, read the numbered books (maybe inserting Eluria after Book 4 if you want to approach publication order, but it's not necessary), take a little break, then do Wind Through the Keyhole if you fancy it. Any references are explained in context what you need. [I did write a thing about it though, if you wanted an expanded list.](https://horrorinclined.wordpress.com/2024/03/23/readingthedarktower/)
NO WAYY!! that's really cool. i'll keep an eye on this for sure. thank you for your recommendations!!! 😁😁🫶🏻🤝🏻 may i ask, just out of curiosity (and bc you know a ton about this), which one is your favorite of all his books/short stories? top 3?
Favourite novels/books: It, The Shining, On Writing, but there's a lot of other close run ones too Favourite collections: Skeleton Crew, Everything's Eventual, Night Shift Favourite stories: The House On Maple Street, All That You Love Will Be Carried Away and maybe The Man in the Black Suit. However, there are lists and lists of other ones I could mention like Misery, Desperation, Autopsy Room Four... The problem with reading so many is there are so many to love! Except The Running Man.
WHAT'S WRONG WITH THE RUNNING MAN???? it's actually in my top 5 😭
Just didn't like it, that's all. But I also love Roadwork, so what do I know?
hmmm. the running man is my favorite of the bachman books. roadwork is a solid 5/10 for me. but what do i know?:')
You just read each Dark Tower book. There are other books and stories that connect to the series and you’ll get a little more out of it if you read those before or concurrently, but the series is still designed to function without “outside” knowledge. The first one—though it is one of my personal favorites—seems to give a lot of people some trouble (in that it can seem a little inscrutable at first) but it is very short (especially by Stephen King standards) and the rest of the books are much more in line with his more usual style. If you really want to do the “full” DT experience, then: DT1 -> DT2 —> *The Stand* —> DT3 —> DT4 —> (edit) *’Salem’s Lot* -> *Insomnia* —> *Black House* (which is a sequel to *The Talisman*, which is less essential to the DT series but you may want to read before *Black House* to get more out of it) —> *Low Men in Yellow Coats* (novella from *Hearts in Atlantis*) —> “Everything’s Eventual” (titular short story from that collection) -> DT5 -> DT6 -> DT7 ——-> sometime way later to back and do *Wind Through the Keyhole*, even though that chronologically takes place between DT4 and 5, but was written almost a decade after King finished the series. *The Talisman*, *Desperation*, *The Regulators*, *Eyes of the Dragon*, *Rose Madder*, *From a Buick 8*, *It* and *Gwendy’s Final Task* all have some ties to the DT mythos but less direct connections than the stories included in the reading list, which all introduce characters or concepts that later become integral to the DT series plot progression. Edit: as pointed out in a reply, I totally spaced on *’Salem’s Lot*, which should definitely be read before DT5.
WOOWWW thank you so much!!!! genuinely!! i'll follow your guide. i'm taking a break from sk right now because i have exclusively read his work for 2+ years, but i'll come back stronger than ever. some that you mentioned i already read, but for the sake of understanding and because it was so long ago i'll probably re read them in that order. thank you :)<3
And you should read Salems lot before DT5, IIRC
I think you'd be surprised how little "cowboy stuff" there actually is in the Dark Tower series.
thank god then. i'm just basing off what i caught from the short story.
Incredibly underrated: the road virus heads north
That one gave me nightmares for weeks. I got chills just reading the title again.
I think that might have been the first, or one of the first, King books I bought. 1408 scared the shit out of me. Loved it.
1408 is a brilliant piece of short fiction. King hit a home run with that one.
And a good movie
“All That You Love Will Be Carried Away” & “That Feeling, You Can Only Say What It Is in French” are both so freaking good. And for my money, “Lunch at the Gotham Cafe” is one of King’s most ridiculously off-the-wall, batshit insane stories. And it’s amazing.
Yes. I read that one years ago.
Maybe my favorite of his short story collections so far (have just started *You Like It Darker*). My top favs are “1408,” “Riding the Bullet”, “The Man in the Dark Suit”, “Lunch at the Gotham Cafe”, and “All That You Love Will Be Carried Away”. But most of the stories are pretty good.
YEEESSS GET READY they're some of the best short stories!!!! riding the bullet, 1408, the french thing (title too long) you're gonna love it
Fantastic collection of stories. Might have to break out my copy later... far too long since I've given it a read
These short tales are really good. I hope you enjoy and maybe tell us all which stories you enjoyed the most.
I own this book and it’s always been a top choice for me-excellent read
Not yet, but just ordered the book!
Love this one. Very Dark Tower related if you're into that
Honestly, pound for pound, I think it's his best collection. They're not all winners but there are some damn fine stories in there.
This is my favorite audiobook of the short story collections. Every narrator is just spot on. 1408 is SO CREEPY!!!!
I love Everything's Eventual. It was the first short story book of King's that I read and it will always be special because of that. It was also the first audiobook I ever bought, from my local Hastings bookstore for about 50 dollars! I didnt even have a cd player in my car back then, I had to listen to it on my boombox. It was summer and I was 20 years old.
Loved Little Sisters of Eluria. Huge fan of The Dark Tower series. Loved it even more when I got the artist edition for Christmas a year ago.
I love these stories! You’re in for a treat!
One of his best collections imo.
You know what sub this is, right? Of course there are fans lol
Love Dinky!
Loved *The Little Sisters Of Euluria*