The Gunslinger Born, by Robin Furth

I sobbed my way through the final book of the Dark Tower series, not only because Stephen King kept killing off characters but because I knew there was nothing more to look forward to. I shall wax eloquent about the series, some other day, but for now I’ll tell you about the graphic adaptation of the fourth book, Wizard and Glass.

If you haven’t read the Dark Tower books, you’re missing out on an utterly compelling mix of the fantasy, horror, science fiction, and Western genres. But you don’t need to have read the series to appreciate The Gunslinger Born, which functions as something of a prequel, despite taking place in the exact middle of the series.

Here we meet a teenaged Roland Deschain, who has just become the youngest person ever to best his combat tutor. Ushered at such a tender age into the violent world of his elders, Roland goes on a dangerous political mission, incognito; surely no one will suspect that this kid is a full-fledged gunslinger. He is tasked with investigating a distant enemy faction that poses a threat to the peace of his own home. It’s not long before he discovers the enemy’s plans to amass heavy artillery. Nor is it long before Roland discovers a pretty young woman named Susan. In no time flat, our sullen, brooding lone-wolf hero is head over heels.

I’m not going to give away the story, but this doesn’t end well. At all. I mean not even remotely. But that’s par for the course for us Stephen King fans–and while King did not write the graphic novel, he did work closely with its author, Robin Furth. This is a faithful adaptation of the print version, interpreted with lovely, bold illustrations.

Check the WRL catalog for The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger Born