Rating: 
Summary: Unforgettable.
Review: I read a lot of books from many different genres. OK, OK- that may be stretching it. I am a bit of a snob and probably do spend too much time in the literary fiction section of the bookstore and no, I haven't read many of Stephen King's other works. And "a lot" for me means 2-4 books a month, mostly recomended by the NYT Book Review. BUT of all the books I have read this is the one I never forget. This is the private, deep down favorite that is like the beloved bedtime story you never tired of hearing as a child. This one is really special.
Rating:
Summary: worth every moment spent reading it!
Review: I first started by watching the movie a couple years back. Since then my artistic skills have turned litterary. I write poetry mainly, but I am in the process of typing a very lengthy noevel about a battle between good and evil in the future. Anyway, hungering for inspiration I remembered "The Stand", and decided to read the book. The sheer size of this novel is enough to kill you're motivation; but if you love Steven King as much as me it won't be a problem. Watching the movie doesn't compare because you can peer into the minds of the characters, you can feel their motivation. You can leave were ever you are and live inside of the book. I missed many hours of sleep while stuck inside of this book in the middle of the night (that's how you rate a book!). I stronly suggest you read this Five star novel, and find out for yourself why it's a best seller. I truly hope I can compare to Steven King someday.
Rating: 
Summary: Uh-oh....King has become infected
Review: It wasn't even that King isn't a great author-I love most of his other works, but this one was more of a confused jumble, mixing too many characters with too many differences for you to care about what happened to any of them. The heros whine and whine until you just want them to die. The villains were more interesting. Flagg was, as the other reviews said, pathetic, but villains such as the Kid and Llyod kept the story interesting. Best of all were the parts with the most interesting character, the 'Trash Can' man. Least interesting were the meaningless parts with Frannie and Stu. Many parts of this book are extremely overbloated, the characters are introduced and killed too quickly, and the good characters don't appear much. On the other hand, the villains will keep you rooting for the evil one. How truly sad. If you've read King before, don't read this one, but if you haven't, go ahead and read.
Rating:
Summary: Among my all time favorites
Review: I don't know what it is that I love about this book, but if you put a gun to my head, I'd have to say:1. The story itself is an original and striking situation. Maybe there have been similar books written before, but I haven't read them. 2. I don't believe characters can be overdeveloped if it serves the plot in even the most minor way. I want to hear about Frannie's troubles with her parents and Trash's trip west with The Kid. 3. The sheer magnitude of the canvas King takes on is astounding. 4. While some complain about the length of the novel, I thought it was appropriate. I wasn't disappointed by the ending at all, either. So, it's all just a matter of taste. I can't give you scholarly reasons why The Stand is an outstanding piece of literature. I can only say that I personally think this book rocks the Casbah.
Rating:
Summary: A great novel for our time...King's masterpiece
Review: This is not just my favorite King book, but one of my all-time favorite books, period. I've read this book probably at least a dozen times since its publication, and I never get tired of the story. I love the characters, and find the plot fascinating and scary, because a scenario like this is completely plausible (does anyone really doubt that our government is more than capable of something like this and then doing everything they can to cover it up?) One of the most interesting aspects of the story is how radically society changes in the wake of the apocalypse and the breakdown of established order, particularly the fact that money is now obsolete - you can just take what you want or need. I found the sociological discourses by Glen Bateman very entertaining and interesting, and I loved King's development of all of the characters. I'm a little puzzled about everyone's complaining about Randall Flagg. So he wasn't a scary villain, so what??? He was a demon in human form, after all, but with weaknesses and foibles just like all creatures. He was Satan's representative and minion on Earth, just as Mother Abagail was God's. The final battle between Good and Evil, that's the crux of the story. LOVED THIS BOOK. When people who have never read Stephen King's work ask, I always recommend they read THE STAND first. It is by far his best in a long and brilliant career.
Rating:
Summary: best book he's written
Review: this is one story that king takes what the bible says and puts it into a story common people can relate to. kept me cativate for hours. have read it several times, and never tire of it. would reccommend it to anyone.
Rating:
Summary: King's compassion for his characters abounds!
Review: Never before do I remember a King novel in which the author showed as much compassion for his characters as in The Stand. The character development was clever and sensitive, with Larry Underwood coming out on top as the most redeemed individual, meeting his potential, a potential that was slowly and carefully revealed. I must say, I was grateful that Randall Flagg was such a disappointment in the scare category, but I feel that this was not an oversight on King's part. While evil has the potential to stop us in our tracks with fear, it's whole sum and substance can be brought down to size in the face of dogged determination in the cause of good. Our heros in The Stand cracked the veneer of his evil front and exposed him for what he was, a fraud with nothing to offer but empty promises.
Rating:
Summary: GREAT EPIC!!!
Review: This book is on my top three list. It had everything, emotion, action, mystique, apocalypse scneario, gothic, romance, and a sense of adventure. I really like Glen Bateman, the sociologist, and you really get to feel for Nick and Tom. You get to know the characters through the book. This isn't a novel, but more of an epic. It is the length of three novels alone. The only thing it lacked was Randall Flagg. Trashcan Man was a better bad guy than Flagg, but oh well. The book was awesome, don't get intimidated by the size!!!
Rating: 
Summary: Mixed feelings
Review: As with any other novel, "The Stand" has its ups and downs. The ups centered on the characters (Glen, Frannie, Stu, Harold, Larry, Tom, Nick). I was very drawn to these characters' growth, endurance, and development in the novel. Mr. King deserves a thumbs up for orchestrating and balancing these characters so as to make their interaction engaging for the reader. Much of my enjoyment of the novel comes from the energy that these characters create with their speech, actions, and personality. At times, they seem as real as people I know in my life. The downs rest mainly on the development of the villain, R.F. Quite frankly, he is not sufficiently sinister. I was not frightened by Randall as I was of the evil forces, say in The Green Mile or Desperation. The anticipation of meeting face to face with Randall was great, but after that, the excitement for the evil and carnage that I was hoping for did not materialize.
Rating: 
Summary: 3.5 Stars, actually
Review: This book came close to, but didn't reach, the heights of greatness I expected after seeing all these reviews. King does a great job of weaving a complicated story and bringing all the people together in a coherent plot. But there are still some glaring problems... like the villain, as one other person pointed out. Flagg is the least scary bad guy of any King book I've read. I was surprised that the embodiment of a supernaturally evil force is so stupid and incompetent. I was also greatly disappointed with the ending. Not that there aren't some good points. The characterizations are wonderful: I liked the tensions within the groups and the downfall of some of the 'good' folks. Larry's character changes were good too. But the ending still disappoints.
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