Title: The Stand
Author: Stephen
King
Publisher: Anchor
Publication Date: June
24, 2008
Genre: Horror
Reviewed by: Angie
Edwards
My rating: 5/5
SUMMARY
This is the way the world ends: with a
nanosecond of computer error in a Defense Department laboratory and a million
casual contacts that form the links in a chain letter of death.
And here is the bleak new world of the day after: a world stripped of its institutions and emptied of 99 percent of its people. A world in which a handful of panicky survivors choose sides or are chosen. A world in which good rides on the frail shoulders of the 108-year-old Mother Abigail and the worst nightmares of evil are embodied in a man with a lethal smile and unspeakable powers: Randall Flagg, the dark man.
And here is the bleak new world of the day after: a world stripped of its institutions and emptied of 99 percent of its people. A world in which a handful of panicky survivors choose sides or are chosen. A world in which good rides on the frail shoulders of the 108-year-old Mother Abigail and the worst nightmares of evil are embodied in a man with a lethal smile and unspeakable powers: Randall Flagg, the dark man.
REVIEW
I was
challenged by one of my friends to read The
Stand, and let me tell you, at more than a whopping 1300 pages, it took me
exactly a month to finish this incredible read! Yes, I read the EXTENDED
version. There was no mercy for me. Even though I could’ve finished five or six
more books in the time it took me to work my way through The Stand, I don’t regret tackling this mammoth novel.
I don’t
feel I can add any more praise for this magnificent book than what others have
already said about it in glowing reviews. There is a staggering amount of
characters to keep track off, and a couple of hundred pages into the story I
still didn’t know who the main characters are. It didn’t matter though, because
each one had their part to play and contributed to building a brilliantly
engaging plot.
As big a
fan as I am of Mr King, it still got me down that a lot of scenes were just too
detailed. It’s an issue I’ve had with his novels since the first book of his
I’ve read way back when I was in high school. Still, I knew what I was letting
myself in for with the extended version, and slogged my way through every
lengthy scene because I didn’t want to miss out on anything in the story.
Mostly
I enjoyed the message behind the story. It has an ending that gets you
thinking. The Stand is without a
doubt a colossal read, but one that is certainly worth the time it takes to
finish.
ABOUT the AUTHOR
Stephen King is the
author of more than fifty books, all of them worldwide bestsellers. His recent
work includes Doctor Sleep and Under the Dome, now a major TV miniseries on
CBS. His novel 11/22/63 was named a top ten book of 2011 by The New York Times
Book Review and won the Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Mystery/Thriller as
well as the Best Hardcover Book Award from the International Thriller Writers
Association. He is the recipient of the 2003 National Book Foundation Medal for
Distinguished Contribution to American Letters. He lives in Bangor, Maine, with
his wife, novelist Tabitha King.
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