The Stand

Rating:
Summary: Should be a modern classic; King's best book
Review: I'm actually surprised that it made it so far up on my list, but this book ranks #3 on my list of favorite books, and it's well deserved. This is one of the greatest novels ever written and I think that were it not written by Stephen King, more people would think so. It's a battle between good and evil, heaven and hell (literally.) The devil, in the form of Randall Flagg is trying to destroy what remains of humanity after a superflu took care of 99.9% of them. There is so much humanity in this book and such a riveting story.

Rating:
Summary: The best book in the whole wide world!
Review: This book is amazing! It's like a very long adventure you can't bear to put down. There were a few paragraphs here and there that I had to skim out of boredom, I will admit, but it was only so I could get on to the rest of it. The characters are so alive and so easy to identify with, you can almost see your neighbors in their places. It's such an intricate book, it draws you in to its world. The ending deflates the rest of the book, and in this case, the means justifies the end but it sure is worth it. The movie wasn't too bad, but the book is much better!

Rating:
Summary: Even if you read the original, read this
Review: The Stand was always my favorite Stephen King book. There is so much more in the unabridged version, so I certainly don't regret buying another copy. If you didn't read the original, this is one of those complex stories in which the lives of many people come together and you just can't wait to see what happens on the next page! You can't guess what is going to happen next, but it all fits in so very well.

Don't watch the mini-series! Read the book.

Rating:
Summary: Very Good
Review: I liked this book I lot, although I was skeptical at first. It seemed a little too long to hold my attention, but I ended up loving it. Also, I just wanted to comment that the person claiming to be Stephen King didn't even spell the name right, he wrote Steven. And it was right on the page too.

Rating:
Summary: The Stand - Stephens best work EVER - Read on:
Review: As a philosopher, theologan and lifetime student, I read Mr. King to escape reality. This book I did not read - I LIVED it. I have read everything Stephen King has ever written. The Stand is his masterpiece, combining the natural world and the spiritual world in twists and knots that make the biblical book of Revelation come alive! This is the most chilling of all his books due to it's firm ground in reality and the exposure of every human weakness and character flaw in his memorable character development. Hidden strengths are exposed as well - and the characters COME TO LIFE as you LIVE this brilliantly written story.

Rating:
Summary: This is the book that made me a Stephen King fan
Review: I read this book a long time ago and I remember loving it. After reading it I couldn't get enough Stephen King books. For years I read everything he wrote that I could get my hands on. Since I was from Maine too he was a bit of local celebrity where I lived as well which didn't hurt. This is a great book, Stephen King can write an entertaining tale and this is one of his best. I saw the movie a few years ago, didn't think it was bad, but didn't think it was good either. Some of his stories haven't been transferred to movies well. I think I will have to pick up a copy of this again and see if it is as good as I remember.

Rating:
Summary: Thriller Masterpiece
Review: Even though this book is reaaaaaaaaally long, I'm glad it was. It built up incredible drama and conflict that made me cheer for the good guy and hope for the worst for the bad guy. It's nothing less than a triumph...it's like I knew all of the characters as I know my friends. It's an epic saga that spans every human emotion, which made it interesting.

Rating:
Summary: Spider Robinson vs Stephen King ... Hmmm, This Is Tough...
Review: I have been an avid fan of Stephen King's for some time now andI have only one regret: that I hadn't read this book until justrecently. It has been lying in my bookcase for three years now in the Stephen King "section", doing nothing more than gathering dust. Little did I know that this tome of a novel would turn out to be one of the best books I have ever read, both of Stephen King's and of any other author.

King's tale of a government-produced superflu gradually "cleansing" the world of 99.4% of it's population and then leaving the few survivors to combat an even greater evil and take a last stand in their lives was both chilling and fantastic at the same time.

His truest talent is his command of his characters. I raced my way through this 1141 page story in less than two weeks, (something that should be considered nothing short of a miracle for me,) and it got to the point that I was so into the story where I would actually root for some characters and cry when others perished. King's knack for giving heavy background behind his characters and making them so as the reader can identify with them and truly believe they are, in fact, not characters at all but real people, is great and never better in any of his other stories, (with the exception of "It", still my personal favorite.)

The story and the way it is told is superb, (even at page 1141 I didn't want the story to end.) The characters are ones you'll remember long after you finish the story, and the case King is trying to make about humanity, and it's savage tendency to separate into good and evil, is thought-provoking. Yes, the world still goes on and changes, but do human beings ever learn anything from these changes? I don't know...and I don't think I want to know.

Stephen King is a treasure of the literary world and, in my opinion, often overlooked and scoffed at because of the nature of his writing at times and the genre of which he writes...

Rating:
Summary: This is a " Must Read "
Review: This book is the top of its class.Stephen King's book on good agianst evil is the best.As the Story begins we are told of a virus called Captian Trips.We see about 90% of the United States population die.Then the characters are put into catagories of good and evil.There is a leader of each group Mother Abigel ( good ) The Dark Man ( evil ).This is where it gets good.When the people are seperating the adventure really begins.But I don't want to tell you all about the plot.I want you to read it.So take my advice even if you don't like Stephen King I am sure you will love this book.

Rating:
Summary: Possibly a sequel?
Review: If you already own this paperback uncut version of the stand, go to page 1110. In it, Stu asks Tom if the dark man is dead. Tom tells Stu he never dies. Then Stu asks "WIll he be back?" Tom falls asleep. I think Stephen King was trying very well to point out here that this isn't the end of Stu, Frannie, Lucy, and everyone else from this book. The story has just begun. And I have no idea what the last pages of this book means (1137-1141)? R.F. still alive? The cycle repeats? And what does "February 1975 December 1988" mean. Email me if you know. [e-mail]