Rating: 
Summary: The Stand
Review: Imagine three fouths of the worlds population being wiped out by the flu. All of your friends and family are gone. Where would you go? Who could you trust? In The Stand , Stephen King imagines just that.
When a glass jar containing a deadly virus is dropped at a government biological warfare clinic, people flee in terror. The super-flu, also known as Captain Trips, moves so fast that people in the clinic where it was dropped cannot even escape the building before it kills them. Within weeks, most of the population is wiped out.
The book then follows many people as they make their way across the US, in hopes of finding more people and forming a new civilization. One by one, the survivors come together, and start a trek to the west coast, where good and evil are being separated by super-natural powers. The good people are being drawn towards Boulder, Colorado where Mother Abigail awaits them. While the evil people are being drawn towards Denver, Colorado, by Randall Flagg.
You are then taken on a journey through the battle of good and evil. You witness first hand peoples natural instinct to form a government, and maintain order in a time of anarchy.
Stephen King has taken his best selling book and added extra commentary, character development, and side stories. Almost doubling in length, it adds an interesting twist to the book, as you become more and more attached to the characters.
I enjoyed the book, for the most part. Stephen King does a wonderful job of fully developing the characters lives, personalities, and relationships. The reader cannot help but become strongly attached to at least one of the characters. I thought the book had an interesting concept, and it made me think about what I would do if I was put in these peoples situations. The only criticism I have on the book is its tendency to ramble on. Since it was the uncut version, it was about twice as long as the regular version. I felt I would have enjoyed it much more if I were to have read the abridged version. Even with the rambling, I would still recommend this to any Stephen King Fans.
Rating: 
Summary: his best book
Review: This is by far Stephen King's best book, though The Running Man under the non de plume Richard Bachman comes a close second. what excels in this story are the characters. he does a truly wonderful job paintbrushing a large canvas of very believable and well rounded characters. he also does a wonderful job going in detail about what could happen were such a virus present. this was also turned into a very well made TV mini-series--the only mini-series i actually enjoyed watching.
Rating:
Summary: Amazing!!
Review: This book is the absolute best book i have ever read, I will remember it forever.
Rating:
Summary: Still the best
Review: It's been close to ten years since I've read this book, but I still consider it to be the best book that I've ever had the pleasure of reading.
Rating:
Summary: Best of the Books
Review: This is the best book I've ever read. Awesome details and great character devopment. It's about a disease that wipes out %90 of the U.S. population. And then the remaining survivors join together in seperate colonies, (good and evil), and duke it out with mostly mind games. The only flaw I see is that Steven King didn't describe the other countries and how they managed. That would have made the book even longer, but it would have a bigger effect. All in all, a very good book, closest to perfect that it can get.
Rating:
Summary: A Must-Read
Review: This book is simply a classic. I'd recommend it to anyone. Don't be put off by the size of the book, you'll wish it was longer! I am an avid reader of many genres, but I still re-read this book about once a year (I've read it about 15 times so far). The "what if " factor is still relevant after all these years. It is a fine story.
Rating:
Summary: A Fine Novel, But a Bit Uneven
Review: The Stand is the story of the world after it has been decimated by a plague that wipped out over 99% of the worlds population. The subsequent survivors are drawn towards either Boulder(for the good hearted), or Las Vegas(for everyone else) by dreams of either a dark man called Randall Flagg or Mother Abbigal, a kindly old woman. When they two groups get together an epic battle of good versus evil takes place, on one side is Randall Flagg's and the other is the the people in Boulder.
Overall I feel that The Stand is a generally good novel, but it does have its share of problems. I'll start with the good. Character development in the novel is spectacular. King's vision of individual lives and nuances can only be described with one term, "wide screen." King successfully make a myraid of diffrent characters come to life. Second King's story is ultimatley intriguing in a Lord of the Flies sense. King kills off everyone in the world, and it's interesting to watch the survivors calmour to make a new civilization. Last, but certainly not least is Kings use of suspense and horror. As always King shows he's a master of suspense, the Alfred Hitchcock of literature. I feel the scene with Lloyd in prison is one of the most disheartening and suspenseful things I have ever read.
Now onto the negatives. The first thing you recognize even before you buy is the massivness of this novel. It is extremly long, over 1100 pages. This is a consequence of some well drawn character development but it is still difficult to plow through the text. Next is the uneveness of the novel. The first part of the story is great. I would not change a word in the first part of the book, the part chronicling the immigrations to the two towns. But in the second part it seems a bit to preoccupied with day to day life. While i'm reading about law enforcement committees and town meetings I keep telling myself I want more crucifyings and Randall Flagg in Vegas. I was also sad to find out that one of my favorite characters Nick seems to be totally out of the focus of the novel during the second part. Instead we get an overdose of the Franny and Stu lovefest. Finally I felt the resolution to the stuff with Flagg at the end of the novel was extremely corny. I won't spoil the ending but I think it would have been better served with something more grounded in reality, instead of some faux biblical phenomenon.
But overall I would say I greatly enjoyed the novel, if it entertains me I feel the novel is good, and this entertained me and then some. If your a King fan you'll love this. If your not, and have an attention span capable of spending a lot of time on a lengthy novel then you'll probably like it also.
Rating:
Summary: A Bit Long
Review: This book probably could have done with some of the uncut pages left out, it does go on and drags a few places. Overall this is a great job of taking the world we know it and making a fiction story that you think a few times - this could happen. Ok some of the story is a bit out here, but there is some much of the human condition as we know it that would come to the surface that you can see yourself in the book. He did a great job and this book is well worth the time it takes to get through. Much better then the TV movie.
Rating:
Summary: It's Worth Every Page
Review: True, this is Stephen King you're talking about, not, say Dickens, or one of the Brontes. But, still, this is one of the best reading experiences I've ever had. Say what you will about Stephen King or the whole horror genre. Most writers worldwide cannot hold a candle to this man's skill at story-telling. I have read both the the original version of this book, and the UNCUT version, and I truly believe that every page is worth it in the "new" version. King does a masterful job at weaving a world being undone by a strange virus which is sweeping across the landscape. The story is a compelling one, and horrifying at times, yet the thing that will keep you turning the pages is the characters. You will truly care about these people as if they were real, and many of them will live long in your memory. If you've never read a King novel, and want to know just one to read, make it this one. You'll love it.
Rating:
Summary: Stephen King's Masterpiece
Review: Stephen King is the undisputed master of horror. There is no question about that. But is he one of the greatest writers of our time? I would have to say YES. Why you ask? Simply put it's because of a little novel called the Stand. Never before have I read a novel where the story captivates you on every turn, the characters are all believable and likeable and clocking in at over 1000 pages, you definetly get your moneys worth. The Stand has an amazing stroyline that will keep you reading nonstop. Sure the premise isn't extremely orginal: killer viruses have been done before. But I don't think any other writer has approached the story with such grace and made it so convincing. Not at any point during the novel will you feel its unbelievable or silly. Nope, not The Stand. The story also isn't all horror. Mr. King throws in a little bit of everything: I laughed, I cried, and I screamed (Hey, a Stephen King novel isn't a Stephen King novel unless it scares you). The characters are also great. Each and every one has there place and seperate (and entertaining) personality. Another beautiful thing about the characters in The Stand (and in every Stephen king novel for that matter) is that even the bad guys are likeable. I mean, your not cheering for them, but they have their own certain charm. A lot of people have "dissed" this book because of its length. I for one loved the fact that the Stand was so long: its so good you never want to stop reading. Although the book is long, it is not difficult to read at all and I'm only 15. The writing isn't extremely complicated, but it is still exquisite. All in all, this has to be Stephen King's masterpiece, and should be considered a classic. If you are interested in a novel that entertains from beginning to end, The Stand is the novel for you.
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