Book Review: The Stand by Stephen King

  Can I tell you a personal secret? Whenever I read the Old Testament, I've always feel God was very harsh. Ok, before anyone jumps in and starts to give me a whole theological lecture about interpreting the Bible in light of the New Testament, so on and so forth... Please, relax, I ain't saying God of the Old Testament is evil, unjust or anything. I am just saying God is harsh in the Old Testament, and some of the things he did in the Old Testament are frightening, and some of those stories are very dark. Furthermore, if you read the last book of the Bible, the book of Revelation, it paints frightening images about the end time. Now, please relax again, I ain't saying the Bible is wrong or whatever, I am just trying to say, if the Bible is a story about God and his creation, then I think the story of Christianity is as dark as it is bright. So what does this have to do with the book I will be reviewing today? Let me explain.

Stephen King wrote a lot of books. Some people regard The Stand as the best book King has ever written. This book was first released in 1978, but King released an “uncut” version of the book in 1992. The uncut version of this book (the one I am reviewing), is an epic tome at 1300 pages. The Stand is a post-apocalyptic, sci-fi/fantasy/horror novel. I think The Stand is basically the book of Job + the book of Revelation, set in a post-apocalyptic world. Stephen King himself calls this book, the dark tale of Christianity. If what I have said in this introduction has grabbed your interest, then feel free to continue reading this book review.

Synopsis:

The year was 1990. In a secret facility, the US government experimented with a killer virus. After an accident, an employee from the facility escaped into the world, a mass epidemic broke out. This virus, nicknamed Captain Trip, wiped out 99 percent of people in the world in weeks. Only 1 percent of humans were immune to this virus and survived. The survivors divided into 2 factions; some follow a 108 year old women, a Moses/Noah like figure known as Mother Abigail, who was told by God (yes, THE God, from the Bible) to gather and lead the forces of good. While some survivors followed and gathered around a menacing, powerful, and mysterious man, known as the Dark Man. He is an anti-Christ figure who represents the forces of evil. This is the ultimate showdown between good an evil, set in the post-apocalyptic world. This is the final stand...

What I think about this book:

The Stand is essentially, the book of Job + the book of Revelation wrapped up in sci-fi/horror elements. It is very well written. King's narrations are descriptive and vivid, creating a post-apocalyptic world that is haunting, empty and bleak, but not devoid of sparks of life. Stephen King is a good storyteller. In this book, he weaved the fabrics of this tale together, by structuring the book in 3 parts: The first part of the book focused on how a man-made virus wiped out most of the human race, deadening the human civilization. In the first part, readers are introduced to more than a handful of characters, most of whom died from the virus just readers began to like them. Their sudden deaths create a despondent, haunting feel which authenticates the vibe of an apocalypse in session. I deeply enjoyed the first part, because it feels like a well orchestrated, disaster movie.

The second part of the book focuses on how the survivors gradually divided into 2 factions. The forces of good led by a Moses/Noah like figure called Mother Abigail. And the forces of evil led by a mysterious, anti-Christ like figure called The Dark Man. In this part, we follow a handful of characters and their journeys to their respective factions. The characters are depicted richly and dynamically. Stephen King brought his readers on a journey to explore the thoughts and feelings of his characters. Seeing their struggles, understanding their motivations, and exploring how a global catastrophe and its aftermath deeply affects them.

The third part of the book tells the story of the final confrontation between good and evil. This is where the heroes finally made their stand before the villain, The Dark Man. I think this part is mostly well written, but I also find the ending to be deeply problematic. Without spoiling anything, let me just say the story has a deus ex machina ending, and I found it unsatisfying. It felt rushed and unexplored, a let down after I spent 2 weeks reading the first 1100 pages of this book. Having said this, I still think The Stand is an excellent, and powerful book. I have read a few books written by Stephen King, my personal favorite is 11/22/63, but The Stand comes very close to 11/22/63.

One cannot read The Stand and miss out the interesting, theological premise behind this story. Stephen King calls this book, “the dark tale of Christianity”. To be honest, I have mixed feelings towards this dark tale of Christianity. First of all, I like how Stephen King used story exposition, to explore the aspects of God and the Bible, and King is offering an interesting perspective in this book. I won't tell you what it is, I think it is for the would-be readers of this book, to read it for themselves and come to their own conclusions. But my opinion is that I like what Stephen King is trying to say in this book. Some will disagree with my opinion if they have read this book, and that is fine.

However, what I did not like about this story, is that it used stereotypical portrayals that people who are inclined towards science/technology, logic, and reasoning are more likely to be deceived by the devil, and turn against God. In The Stand, the anti-Christ figure, The Dark Man, was described as “the last magician of rational thought”. In this story, the people who followed and gathered around The Dark Man, were described as the science/technology oriented people. Where God's appointed leader of good, Mother Abigail, was described as a music/art loving person. This is an unfair, gross stereotype! This kind of stereotype is one of the reasons why I despise C.S Lewis' The Chronicles of Narnia.

Despite these stereotypes, what makes The Stand bearable (and likable) is that at the end of the day, King appears to be saying: While we may find God of the Old Testament and the end time to be a harsh character, but He is still better than the gods we invented for ourselves. For example, in this book, the god of technology.

I think Stephen King made a valid point there, and I can nod in agreement.

Thank you for taking the time to read my book review. Until next time. Happy reading!

P.S. The Stand contains numerous amounts of gore, swearing words, and some sex scenes. It may upset sensitive readers.