• The Wind Through the Keyhole

  • The Dark Tower
  • By: Stephen King
  • Narrated by: Stephen King
  • Length: 10 hrs and 26 mins
  • 4.4 out of 5 stars (8,663 ratings)

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The Wind Through the Keyhole  By  cover art

The Wind Through the Keyhole

By: Stephen King
Narrated by: Stephen King
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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

Featured Article: The definitive guide to the very best Stephen King adaptations


If you’re a Stephen King fanatic, or are interested in learning about the movies and shows made from his books, this round-up will provide you with a comprehensive list of the very best Stephen King screen adaptations. Watch the adaptation and then listen to the audiobook, or vice versa—this choice is yours. Either way, you can see how the adaptation stacks up against the source material and experience these legendary frights over and over again.

What listeners say about The Wind Through the Keyhole

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
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    5,280
  • 4 Stars
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  • 3 Stars
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  • 2 Stars
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Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
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  • 4 Stars
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  • 3 Stars
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  • 2 Stars
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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

An exceptional story, but I miss George Guidall.

Another excellent Steven King story. It doesn't have the same feel as the rest of the Dark Tower series. It's much more stand-alone beginning-middle-end, because we aren't following most of the characters in this book through 7 novels.

I'd recommend reading this one on paper unless you're accustomed to Stephen King's narration. We were really pampered by George Guidall's vocal range. Stephen King comes across much flatter, and in the beginning his version of Roland's ka-tet can be disconcerting.

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169 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Please, Please - do this again with George Guidall

Stephen King, you are a "WordSlinger" you are NOT a narrator. Please do another recording but this time use George Guidall.

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138 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

King of Writing not Reading

The "Dark Tower" series in audio has been one of my favorite all time listens; so why Stephen? You are a fantastic story teller; on paper. Let the professionals, like George Guidall, do their job.

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127 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Great to go Back to Midworld but...

If you could sum up The Wind Through the Keyhole in three words, what would they be?

Great journey home

What did you like best about this story?

The creativity of it and just the whole new adventure with a great Ka-tet

How could the performance have been better?

Hiring a professional voice over actor. This was a major disappointment not to have the usual narrator do the story. Stephen King has shown many times he is NOT an actor. All voices are read the same tone and with no emotion at all. I am very upset by this point. I was so looking forward to this book and this part ruined it. I hope it wasn't just plain cheapness that didn't allow for a professional voice over actor or perhaps Stephen Kings ego. Very unhappy about this point.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

I enjoyed the whole story from begining to end. Aside from the voice work it was great and really hope there are more adventures to come with these characters.

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118 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Great to go Back to Midworld but...

If you could sum up The Wind Through the Keyhole in three words, what would they be?

Great journey home

What did you like best about this story?

The creativity of it and just the whole new adventure with a great Ka-tet

How could the performance have been better?

Hiring a professional voice over actor. This was a major disappointment not to have the usual narrator do the story. Stephen King has shown many times he is NOT an actor. All voices are read the same tone and with no emotion at all. I am very upset by this point. I was so looking forward to this book and this part ruined it. I hope it wasn't just plain cheapness that didn't allow for a professional voice over actor or perhaps Stephen Kings ego. Very unhappy about this point.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

I enjoyed the whole story from begining to end. Aside from the voice work it was great and really hope there are more adventures to come with these characters.

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113 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Crippling narration

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

Should have used George Guidall for narration like the previous Dark Tower books. They were fantastic.

Would you recommend The Wind Through the Keyhole to your friends? Why or why not?

No, not in audiobook format.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

I'm legally blind and can no longer read traditionally, I rely solely on audiobooks for all my reading. King's narration was so monotone, robotic, and lifeless, my imagination had trouble engaging and mind would drift. Also, I could never really tell who was talking at a given moment and had to constantly rewind to remember who was talking at a given moment. If you are reading on paper, it is very easy to skim back up the page a bit to revisit who is talking, if you happen to miss it or drift off. With a professional narrator, like George Guidall, it's easier to tell who is talking by the voice/mannerisms given to the characters by the narrator.

You didn’t love this book... but did it have any redeeming qualities?

I really don't know if the story was good or bad due to the crippling narration. Very frustrating.

Any additional comments?

This book was was extremely difficult, almost painful, to get through due to King's bad narration, which is a shame as I consider the original Dark Tower audiobook series as the greatest audiobook story of all time, by any author... ever. Disappointing to say the least.

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59 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

I "lemmed" this!

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

Maybe in paper.

Would you be willing to try another book from Stephen King? Why or why not?

Already have.

How could the performance have been better?

Professional reader.

Any additional comments?

I love Stephen King's writing. Not so much his reading. He's OK for short stories but not anything long. I will buy this again if they use a professional reader.

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58 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars
  • BA
  • 04-25-12

Great story, but narration was awful.

What didn’t you like about Stephen King’s performance?

Very monotone voice. Previous narrators were great, shouldn't have switched. There is no difference in any of the voices. I have re-listened to all of the series, I won't be on this one.

Any additional comments?

Great story for fans, afraid the narration will scare new listeners from the series.

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56 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Blah

Oh well, our worst fears have come to fruition. Getting back to mid-world wasn't the best idea after all.

The story is average, and truly feels as if it has nothing to do with the 7 books we have loved for years. In hindsight, that was the intent all along, but man did I miss Eddie, Jake, Susannah, Oye, and Roland, and I still miss them.

One point I should make however - this in fact may have been a good read, but listening to King's voice (which I didn't mind in Bag of Bones, Hearts in Atlantis, and others) really detracted from this story. All I could think about was how Frank Muller and George Guidall would have made this better

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47 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Stephen King's narration leaves much to be desired

Perhaps I should give the print version a chance to see if the story seems better to me, but I didn't find the story anywhere near the quality of ANY of the previous Dark Tower books. I wonder if this was written due to popular demand rather than some inspiration from Stephen King. While the idea of the author narrating his own book is nice [i.e. The Kite Runner!], in this case, the narration is sort of jagged and mostly quite monotone; I had a difficult time following who was "speaking" at any point in time.

Sorry...I was not able to finish the book after about 1/2 way through.

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38 people found this helpful