The Wind Through the Keyhole

The Dark Tower

By: Stephen King

Narrated by: Stephen King

Length: 10 hrs and 26 mins

Publisher's summary

For those discovering the epic best-selling Dark Tower series for the first time—and for its legions of dedicated fans—here is an immensely satisfying stand-alone novel and perfect introduction to the series.

Beginning in 1974, gaining momentum in the 1980s and coming to a thrilling conclusion when the last three novels were published in 2003 and 2004, the Dark Tower epic fantasy saga stands as Stephen King’s most beguiling achievement. It has been the basis for a long-running Marvel comic series.

Now, with The Wind Through the Keyhole, King has returned to the rich landscape of Mid-World. This story within a story within a story finds Roland Deschain, Mid-World’s last gunslinger, in his early days during the guilt-ridden year following his mother’s death. Sent by his father to investigate evidence of a murderous shape-shifter, a "skin-man", Roland takes charge of Bill Streeter, a brave but terrified boy who is the sole surviving witness to the beast's most recent slaughter. Roland, himself only a teenager, calms the boy by reciting a story from the Book of Eld that his mother used to read to him at bedtime. "A person's never too old for stories," he says to Bill. "Man and boy, girl and woman, we live for them."

Sure to captivate the avid fans of the Dark Tower epic, this is an enchanting introduction to Roland’s world and the power of Stephen King’s storytelling magic.

Please Note: This audio edition of The Wind Through the Keyhole ends with a short preview of Stephen King's The Dark Tower VII, read by George Guidall, followed by a brief introduction and the first chapter of King's Doctor Sleep, both read by the author.

©2012 Stephen King (P)2012 Simon & Schuster

Enjoyable return to magical world

What did you like best about this story?

Master story telling that builds layers and layers of suspense, never losing the reader in the journey.

What does Stephen King bring to the story that you wouldn???t experience if you just read the book?

After listening to the rest of the series read by two incredible performers, I was surprised that I still liked hearing the author's interpretation of his own work. He caught the rhythm of his prose nicely and had a great voice for his "tax collector."

Amazing

More, more, more! Mr. King, you sir are amazing! More Dark Tower please. Anything Mid-world

Enjoyable and well written

At first I was shocked to hear Steven King's voice narrating the book. Although he isn't as talented as the narrator of the first four books, I grew to enjoy his style and phrasing. I'm glad I gave this one a chance.

a nice addition to the series

This is a nice add on to the dark tower series. I read it in order - not after the others. At first, I missed the usual readers, but SK came into his own as he progressed.

A nice story

It is a nice bedtime story. While I love Mr. King's writing his reading aloud is not my favorite!

King's no narrator

Glad I got to experience this story/stories but King shouldn't quit his day job ;)

Great story

Where does The Wind Through the Keyhole rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Pretty much at the top of all audio books

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Wind Through the Keyhole?

the comraderie of the group making their way to the tower.

Which scene was your favorite?

When the boy lets the tiger out of the cage

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

mysteriuos journey through many ages

Any additional comments?

Great addition to the origianl series

A Blast from the Past

Would you listen to The Wind Through the Keyhole again? Why?

Absolutely. The story within a story style was great, and I can imagine listening to the story of Tim Stoutheart over and over.

What other book might you compare The Wind Through the Keyhole to and why?

The other 7 books of the Dark Tower (Obviously), but mostly The Eyes of the Dragon. It has a similar feel and construction, and would even work as a stand-alone 'fairy' tale if you take the time to explain some of the specifics to a younger reader.

Which scene was your favorite?

The big reveal at the climax of Tim's story. Won't say more, don't want to spoil it.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes. I listened to this on a drive for work and found myself having several 'Driveway' moments where I sat in the car and listened long after I arrived at my destination for the day.

Any additional comments?

I can understand the dislike of Stephen King's narration, but for me it was wonderful. I had the original 3 Dark Tower books on cassette tape back in the early 90's, and I wore out a set listening to them over and over. King always prefaced the tapes by reminding the listener that he wasn't 'a trained narrator', but that he felt one could gain a perspective on the story by having it read by its author. I agree completely. This book, On Writing, Bag of Bones, Blood & Smoke, even the bits of Hearts in Atlantis and Rose Madder that he reads have been among my favorites for years. Nothing against Guidell and Muller; they are fine narrators in their own right. But King is a personal favorite, and I for one wish that he would take me through the rest of Mid-World with his own take on the text :)

I wish it would've had more of the main characters

The narrator "King" was awesome. much better than the narrator from the other dark tower books

Entertaining, not enthralling

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

If you like King you'll enjoy this, especially if you are a Dark Tower fan.

If you???ve listened to books by Stephen King before, how does this one compare?

Middle of the path of the beam ("road").

Did the narration match the pace of the story?

I'm with the rest of the reviews, although not as bad. I thought King did an average job of narration. I don't know why "a professional" did not do it, bit I was a little disappointed.

Any additional comments?

The book takes place in Mid-world, but it's hardly a deep story travelling with the Ka-tet we are all friends with. The book truly does stand on it's own, which is good, but I didn't lose myself in the story as I did with the other books in the series. I think because it's an introduction to all these new characters that I don't have a history with.

There's about 40 minutes of "advertisements" (previews of other books) at the end of the book. I hate that. It wouldn't have changed my buying of the book, but that's not mentioned anywhere in the description. If they are going to do it, make it another file I can chose not to download,