The Wheel of Time Re-Read: Book 0 - New Spring
Find the full list of posts in my full re-read of the series HERE
New Spring is a slight oddity. It’s a prequel. A prequel that annoyed a lot of fans who wanted Jordan to focus on completing the main story. Because while seeing how a couple of the main characters met and began their journey at the time of publication, what we wanted was the next chapter in the main story!
I was excited about starting my Wheel of Time Re-Read. But I was struck by a question: should New Spring be read first. It's the first chronologically speaking, of course. But it also reveals things that are not otherwise revealed in the series proper until several books in.
For me, as someone who has read the series before, it makes sense to start with this one. With nothing new to reveal, I can happily start here.
Should I read New Spring before The Wheel of Time as a whole?
But what would I recommend to someone new to the series? It's not that there is anything too significant given away. No big twists or reveals would be ruined but reading it first. But it wouldn't be the original introduction to the characters and story, and a lot of mystery would be taken away from Morraine and Lan.
But if you don't read it first, when would be the best time to do so? Waiting until you finish the full series doesn't seem right, as why would you then jump all the way back to the prologue? And putting it in somewhere midway, as I kind of flashback, does feel right either.
I'll have to have a think about it. As I get through the series, I will see if I can determine the best place to put this book during a reread of the full series.
To be honest, I thought this would be a slow start to my reread of the series, being a short prologue and not part of the original books. But I found I was happily mistaken. Being back in this world, seeing these characters, dragged me back in instantly, as familiar as ever. And I can't wait to get into it all again.
Now on to The Eye of the World.