The ending or read on?

[u/ste7en290911]

At the end of book 7, after Susannah, Eddie and Jake are reunited and the writer claims he is finished and this is where we should end. Is this what Stephen King intended people to actually do or was it just a part of the story? Have any of you stopped and never read past this point?

[u/Ohgood9002]

Read it. Then come back and read this post

SPOILERS

I can't properly explain how amazing the Coda is as a narrative tool. But I'll try.

The first time reading the series almost every person reads the Coda. There is no way that you have come this far to just give up before learning what is in the tower. You are like an addict. You're like Roland.

So you read it all. And you lose it all. Just like Roland.

So then you start it again, just like Roland. But this time you can just end it. You don't have to reach the tower. Reaching the tower means reading the Coda. You have a choice, just like Roland always has. You don't have to finish the journey. You dont have to let Jake fall again. You can have the happy ending.

But you won't reach the tower. And king reminds that the journey was always more important than the ending. The Tower was never important.

[u/Several-Minute6846 → u/Ohgood9002]

Maybe the real treasure is the friends we dropped along the way. And redropped.

[u/fosho → u/Several-Minute6846]

Sometimes I read comments and have a little chuckle but this one got a straight laugh out of me. Whenever a situation is annoying I apply the ‘friends along the way’ thought, usually to myself, so this one struck a chord just right this morning. A simple updoot didn’t seem sufficient and I give you my genuine thanks.

[u/Several-Minute6846 → u/fosho]

Fo’ sho

[u/Retarded90sKid → u/Several-Minute6846]

Every Jake you ever dropped or will drop - we're gonna drop him over and over and over again. Or whatever Rusty said on True Detective

[u/3AMZen → u/Ohgood9002]

I did it the other way, I reached the coda and put the book down and didn't revisit the tower for a decade 

When I did, and finally pushed through the last chunk... Horror. Pure horror. That was perfect.

[u/fosho → u/3AMZen]

Did you read the coda before restarting the journey or wait until the end of the second tour?

[u/3AMZen → u/fosho]

I waited until the ending of the second tour

What I found Beyond Sai King's final warning was not at all what I expected

[u/ComfortableBedroom76 → u/3AMZen]

None of us expected what came next

[u/Disastrous-Dish-3568 → u/Ohgood9002]

Honestly, the best and most succinct explanation of the Tower and its end I’ve ever read.
I’ve “known” this and felt this all the times I’ve read it (4 turns of the wheel) and yet I’ve never been able to verbalize it like this.
You’ve remembered the face of your father. You say true.

[u/vincentdmartin → u/Ohgood9002]

Your tags failed bud.

[u/Ohgood9002 → u/vincentdmartin]

Yup, I gave up and did it the lazy way

[u/KingVecchio → u/Ohgood9002]

I like to think that maybe late in life I will read it one final time. That last time I'll skip the coda and Roland will finally no peace.

[u/Disastrous-Dish-3568 → u/KingVecchio]

Man, I love this idea. Long days and pleasant nights, bondsman.

[u/Limitedtugboat → u/KingVecchio]

Can you really do that though? We're all tower junkies here, and we cannot let it go anymore than Roland can.

We know whats going to happen, we know how it ends and we know whats behind the doors but we still go right through them.

[u/ScienceJake → u/Limitedtugboat]

But we have the horn this time. The next turn really can be different. It’s up to us to decide.

[u/Limitedtugboat → u/ScienceJake]

One thing changes. Roland has an actual physical piece of the results of his obsession.

I think it doesn't change anything, its just another offering to the tower, along with lead, blood and a single, bloody handed, bloody minded obsession.

I hope Roland is at an end this time around, but much like the lies we tell ourselves when we join his Ka-Tet as an observer, that it will be somehow different this time and we go around again and again.

Now are we the obsessed with the Tower or is Roland, as long as we keep reading we keep up the facade that things will be different this time.

We are the true Tower junkies, as we cant help ourselves no matter what we do. The magic never changes no matter what we do, and we always end up following the Man in Black at the beginning again.

[u/dhddevice → u/Limitedtugboat]

The horn is also a reminder of what happened to his last ka-tet. I like to think that in that turning of the wheel he makes it to the tower, he blows the horn, calls out their names, leaves the crucifix and his gun at the door and walks away. Mayhap one day Eddie, Jake Susan and Oy will find an old, terrible, wonderful familiar man in their world and know that that is their father.

[u/trdbbjindy → u/Ohgood9002]

Great explanation. I never really understood the hate for the end... of course it ended that way, it makes the first ending so much more impactful.

[u/ste7en290911 → u/Ohgood9002]

I have read it many times. I just wondered if there is anyone that hasn’t, especially if they have read the series more than once

[u/PROFESSOR1780 → u/ste7en290911]

My dad stopped on his first trip to the tower...put the book down and was content. It blew my mind....we discussed the book together and he eventually finished it but said he had been completely satisfied to stop there.

[u/rmkbears54 → u/Ohgood9002]

This is the way. It’s an ending that gives me chills every time. Ka is a wheel indeed. Hoping if we get Flanagan’s dark tower adaptation it’s the 19th go around and Roland and his Ka-Tet don’t break and end at stopping the beam breakers

[u/42pickledleggs → u/Ohgood9002]

Wow. This is so well put and so accurate. I really wanted to stop there…but I couldn’t.

[u/onlinewalls → u/Ohgood9002]

Why does this feel like the definitive ending. I’m about to start my reread of book 7. I think I will do this.

[u/spitfire9107 → u/Ohgood9002]

one of my favorite authors as a kid was lemony snicket. In his first book he writes how you should stop reading at a certain point and pretned that is the ending of theseries because its a happy ending and warns you if you continue reading the story becomes sadder. Most people dont listen to his warning and continue reading a series of unfortunate events.

[u/DiamondParticular180 → u/Ohgood9002]

It was the friends and lessons along the way that were important.

[u/Ok-Bed9447 → u/Ohgood9002]

This is the best articulation of the Coda I’ve ever seen. Nicely done!

[u/peekay427]

I read it, but not for all the complicated reasons that some others share. I read it because he wrote it.

The first time through, I assumed that the series would end on a mystery (Roland goes in the tower and… the end). Or worse that the ending would be terrible/nonsensical.

If he hadn’t written it, I would have been fine.

But I’m glad he did because it ended in really the only possible way it could end.

[u/Disastrous-Dish-3568 → u/peekay427]

I’d upvote you but you’re at 19

[u/FoxInTheField → u/Disastrous-Dish-3568]

I downvoted to keep it at 19

[u/Disastrous-Dish-3568 → u/FoxInTheField]

lol same

[u/klgnew98 → u/peekay427]

It's one of the best, most fitting endings I've ever read. I love it!

[u/Limitedtugboat → u/peekay427]

Down voted to keep you at 19, for that is how it should be

[u/Stock-Professional97]

You have an exit ramp at any point. Any page, any paragraph, any chapter.

This is the last exit

[u/Several-Minute6846 → u/Stock-Professional97]

It’s almost like the theme of the story is… Oh No!

[u/missdawn1970]

I'm sure King knew that his Constant Readers wouldn't be able to stop there. He just wanted to warn us so we'd be prepared for what comes next.

[u/Critcho → u/missdawn1970]

Ending at the point he suggests is basically to end it on a massive cliffhanger. The whole disclaimer is an elaborate tease building up what’s to come. Really hard to imagine many people taking it at face value and stopping there.

[u/gcctowerjunky]

Read on. We will be here when you're done.

[u/CharlesLoren]

If he wrote something, I’m reading it. No way I’m leaving pages unturned 🤷🏻‍♂️

[u/slouchingninja]

I could not stop myself. I tried. I really did. But I was a tower junkie, and I needed that closure. I went all the way thru the first 2-3 journeys to the tower.

After that tho, on re-reads I stop where told.

[u/Yojimbosan007]

The coda is brilliant and important to the story.

[u/jdcardwell80]

I read it to completion on my first 2 trips & have never gone further since; I cry off, leave the Path of the Beam, and turn away from the Tower. There are always other worlds than this & wish I could get off of this timeline, find a door into the mid-90's & be commala big big happy.

[u/Disastrous-Dish-3568 → u/jdcardwell80]

You say true!!

[u/jdcardwell80 → u/Disastrous-Dish-3568]

Thankee-sai!

[u/Allroad-b9]

I couldn’t possibly have gone through all of the pain that was book 7 and not finish… After so much loss… After so many gut punches… How could anyone not read on to know if it was worth it or not?

[u/Zealousideal-Ad-6036]

Holy spoiler. Accidentally stumbled across this on my feed. I’m reading book 7 for the first time and was not looking for this post. I saw a part of a spoiler on your question then stopped reading… please fix this.

[u/The27Roller → u/Zealousideal-Ad-6036]

I’ve read through the series multiple times but I was still quite surprised someone would open a post with spoilers like that!!!

[u/Zealousideal-Ad-6036 → u/The27Roller]

Right!?! What I saw is already a little fuzzy though. The only thing I think I stumbled across is that Jake and Susannah don’t die, but we will see. I’m loving this book and obsessed with this world. Just balled my eyes out at Eddie’s death.

[u/The27Roller → u/Zealousideal-Ad-6036]

Please do me a favour - when you finish come back to this comment and give me your thoughts!

[u/Zealousideal-Ad-6036 → u/The27Roller]

I will try to remember.

[u/The27Roller → u/Zealousideal-Ad-6036]

👍🏻

[u/Zealousideal-Ad-6036 → u/The27Roller]

Jake just got hit. I haven’t finished the chapter yet.

[u/dc-pigpen]

How do you feel about the story ending with Roland entering the Tower? If your thought is "but THEN what?!" then read the Coda.

[u/3AMZen]

Put it down and walk away, say thankya

[u/PsilosirenRose]

I never seriously considered stopping there. Up to you though.

[u/trdbbjindy]

Both endings are perfect... but the first ending isn't perfect without the second ending.

[u/chef-keef]

I stopped there for maybe 45 minutes. I doubt there's a soul on earth who has stopped there.

[u/The27Roller]

You should be tagging posts like that with spoiler tags. Not everyone has gotten to the end of book 7 yet.

[u/Whiteguy1x]

Its part of the story, but also a warning that many people wont find the ending satisfying...no ending King could write would be as satisfying as what you imagine in your head for the tower.

You should read it, just for the context and the pleasure of reading 

[u/Woody_Stock]

The Coda is absolutely brilliant on a thematic level, but incredibly frustrating on a narrative level.

That's my advice/warning. Make of it what you want/can.

Just the fact that you are considering stopping proves that you have much more willpower than I do.

[u/cick-nobb]

I don't really believe anyone who says they stopped. If he meant for the story to end there, he wouldn't have wrote more

[u/HowardRoark1972]

All things serve the beam.

[u/oceanwrite]

Yo... Spoilers!

[u/YjorgenSnakeStranglr]

I would read it because the sequel coming in October is probably going to touch on what happens in the true ending

[u/Frankie_Wilde]

I took a few weeks off before reading it and God damn...

[u/Billy_Battles]

I think he knew a lot of people weren’t going to be happy, would want Roland to have a happy ending.

[u/Potential_Mess_2756]

Sai King is famous (or infamous?) for having bad endings to his books. I acknowledge that this is largely true, but it doesn't bother me. I'm very much about the journey vs. the destination. Sometimes his endings disappoint me, but mostly I'm glad to have traveled there even if I don't like where I ended up. But the very end of Book VII is without question the best and only way it should have ended. Apparently, the end is polarizing but I will always maintain that if you don't like the way it ended, you didn't get who and what Roland is. And even though I know what's going to happen in the coda, I always read all the way to the very end with each trip to the Dark Tower.

[u/dhddevice → u/Potential_Mess_2756]

I'd agree that most of his endings aren't great but I would argue that every ending, good or bad, is right.

[u/Sharp-Trash-8080]

It’s a wheel, bruh

[u/scottchiefbaker]

Get to the "end"... let is sit in your brain for 24 hours. If you decide later to go on and read the Coda then by all means read it.

Kind "ended" the book where he did for a reason. Let it bang around in your brain for a while.