The Stand by Stephen King

Wow! That is really all I have to say. Wow-it's a long book! Wow-it's a great book! Wow-it really makes you question everything! The Stand is one of my books on the 100 Books to Read in a Lifetime list, and after reading it, I can definitely see why. While I do not think I will read it again soon, I definitely know I will read it again.

(Source: Kelsey Darling)

Through a simple flaw in the security system of a military base, a man escapes the base and unknowingly carries a disease known as Code Blue across the United States. Rapidly, Code Blue, also known as Captain Tripps, the superflu, and more, knocks out 99% of the population. It seems that the only people who are spared are those with active dreams (although nothing is confirmed on this theory). After the initial purge of people, the survivors begin to find themselves draw to one of two destinations: to Mother Abigail in Hemingford Home and travel west (and end up in Boulder, CO); or follow Randall Flagg, the Dark Man, to Las Vegas. Everyone that is left dreams vividly of these people. Some of the survivors are Stu Redman, Fran Goldsmith, Harold Lauder, Nick Andros, Tom Collins, Larry Underwood, Glen Bateman, Trashcan Man, Judge Farris, Lucy Swan, Lloyd Henreid, Julie Lawry, Ralph Brentner, Danya Jurgens, and Kojak (one of the few dogs left). These survivors and others divide between Mother Abigail and Randall Flagg; or more simply put, the divide into good and evil. This is the final stand between good and evil, and only one can win. It will not be easy, and it will not be fair, but hopefully, in the end, it will all be worth it.

(Source: Giphy)

There are so many things to discuss about this book. I do not have one bad word about it. The first thing that gets me is the superflu. Stephen King says in the forward that he spoke with doctors to discuss virus mutations and how something like this could happen. His research on the subject makes the story seem even more plausible. It really would just take one person breaching protocol and interacting with others to pass something horrible that has no cure.

"Chain letters don't work. It's a known fact. The million dollars or so you are promised if you'll just send one single dollar to the name at the top of the list, add your to the bottom, and then send the letter on to five friends never arrives. This one, the Captain Trips chain letter, worked very well. The pyramid was indeed being built, not from the bottom up but from the tip down-said tip being a deceased army security guard named Charles Campion. All the chickens were coming home to roost. Only instead of the mailman bringing each participant bale after bale of letters, each containing a single dollar bill, Captain Trips brought bales of bedrooms with a body or two in each one, and trenches and dead-pits, and finally bodies slung into the oceans on each coast and into quarries and into the foundations of unfinished houses. And in the end, of course, the bodies would rot where they fell." (p. 73)

All it took was Campion's interaction with a few people to pass it on to the whole of the population. But what is even more disturbing that the nature of it being passed is the governments' to hide what is going on. As soon as they learned that Campion had made it all the way to Arnette, TX, they gathered up everyone who had come in contact with Campion, and quarantined the entire city. This did nothing because by this time the spread was statewide, but they did it so quickly. And even once it became more commonly known as the superflu, the government continued to assure the public that a vaccine was being created and would be available soon. Until a news station held their own station hostage and showed the cruelty the government was taking in hiding the truth, no one really knew. Even then, it was a small broadcast and was not viewed by enough people. Besides, people were dying too quickly at this point to matter. The severity and brutality of everything is so far fetched, but just close enough to be believable, which makes it scary; it is within the realm of possibility.

(Source: Giphy)

Next, the characters. One thing I love about a long book is getting to know the characters and their history and their future and everything in between. One thing I hate about long books is that I get attached to these characters and when it is done, I do not get to find out about them anymore; I have to walk away from these lives that I have invested my time in. I hate when good characters die. One of the deaths that affected me the most was the death of one of the minor characters: Jane Baker.

"Unwillingly, he went around to her and began to remove the nightgown. But when it was off and she lay naked before him, the dread departed and he felt only pity-a pity lodged so deep in him that it made him ache and he began to cry again as he washed her body and then dressed it as it had been dressed when she wore it on the way to Lake Pontchartrain. And when she was dressed as she had been on that day, he took her in his arms and carried her down to the funeral home in her lave, oh, in her lace: he carried her like a bridegroom crossing an endless threshold with his beloved in his arms." (p. 210)

(Source: Giphy)

The "he" mentioned here is Nick Andros, a deaf mute who is extremely smart and does not let his disability hold him back. As everyone makes their way to the Free Zone  in Boulder, he is one of the people in charge and well respected. He is also one of my most favorite characters in the book, probably because of how knowledgable he is. But also, he has never let being a deaf mute hold him back. He has persisted and not let people walk over him. I also attached a lot to Larry Underwood and Stu Redman. They all seemed like the people that I would want to invite over to a dinner party and sit and get to know. The fact that two of these three characters die breaks my heart. I will just have to add them, and the others, to the list of deaths I will never forgive authors for. 

But the biggest thing that makes you think in this novel is the fight between good and evil. While Mother Abigail represents pure good and Randall Flagg represents pure evil, the other characters all fall into the grey area. The ones that in up in Boulder could have easily ended up in Las Vegas and vice versa. No one is 100% one way or the other. A wake up call for me was a dream I had while I was reading the book. I do not remember all of the details, but I do know the Dark Man was there and although I was trying to do right by the other people in the dream, all of my intentions were off. All I could think when I woke up was "the path to hell is pathed with good intentions." It honestly had me second guessing my actions in life. In a situation like this, I would like to believe I would have ended up Boulder, but honestly, I would never know unless something like this actually happens. And then, I do not know if I would have the ability to survive.

(Source: Giphy)

I would recommend this book a million times over. King does a wonderful job at writing in general, and I honestly think this is his best book to date. I wanted to finish it because I wanted to know how it would end, but I did not want it to end. I could have lived in this universe for the rest of my life, reading about all of the survivors and how their lives have changed. I never wanted it to end.

Rating: 10/10

Author: Stephen King

Genres: Fantasy, Science Fiction, Horror
Dates Read: June 17-July 1, 2018