The Wheel Turns

The Wheel of Times turns and Ages come and go, leaving memories that become legend. Legend fades to myth, and even myth is long forgotten when the Age that gave it birth returns again. In one age, called the Third Age by some, an Age yet to come, an Age long past, a wind rose in the Mountains of Mist. The wind was not the beginning. There are neither beginnings nor endings to the turning of the Wheel of Time. But it was a beginning.

Thus begins The Eye of the World by the late Robert Jordan. It was first published in 1990 and began an epic 14-volume series (often referred to by fans as WOT) that reaches its conclusion in the recently published A Memory of Light. According to interviews with Jordan early on, he had originally intended the series as a trilogy, but it took on a life of its own. (I'm sure the publisher urged him on, relishing the prospect to sell that many more books!)

Such a long series will inevitably have ups and downs. WOT certainly does. Many parts of the books pull the reader in, and Jordan was a master of world-building, as well as creating relate-able, fully realized characters. And most of the action sequences have been exciting. However, Jordan did have a verbose streak, and there were parts of some books that just bogged down. (Not unlike the infamous Whiteness of the Whale chapter in Moby Dick.) I would say along with many readers that the first four volumes were a tremendous start, but the series got very muddled in the next several books. Common theory goes that the publisher encouraged Jordan to extrapolate sections to fill more books, particularly around books 8-10.

Ironically, after Jordan's untimely death due to cardiac amyloidosis, Brandon Sanderson filled in for the last three volumes (which Jordan had originally intended as one), and these last three books were—in my opinion—back to the thrilling and engaging writing that hooked so many in the first place. Currently, I am 15 chapters into A Memory of Light, the final book, and I often have difficulty putting it down.

It struck me that WOT represents most of my adult life! I've been with the books since the beginning, when I was about 20 or 21. It's been like a companion in my journey through my thirties and into my forties. The various books will call up for me what was going on in my life at the time. And for better or worse (mostly better, I'd say) they've informed my opinion of good writing—particularly good fantasy writing.

The old saying is that everyone has at least one book in them. And I think I might, at that. Just not 14.