The Stand
Genre: Horror, Apocalyptical
Original publication date: October 1978
Book description: A patient escapes from a biological testing facility, unknowingly carrying a deadly weapon: a mutated strain of super-flu that will wipe out 99 percent of the world's population within a few weeks. Those who remain are scared, bewildered, and in need of a leader. Two emerge--Mother Abagail, the benevolent 108-year-old woman who urges them to build a peaceful community in Boulder, Colorado; and Randall Flagg, the nefarious "Dark Man," who delights in chaos and violence. As the dark man and the peaceful woman gather power, the survivors will have to choose between them--and ultimately decide the fate of all humanity.
Thoughts:
We have a very slow-moving story in my point of view, the overall plot is not the main focus but the characters.
Mother Abigail and Randall Flagg were a bit of a disappointment and at the same time surprising.
First, we have the story following several people in little snips of their lives right before the plague hits. The initial government response angers me, they try to cover everything up and deny there is a real issue even going as far as to announce lies nationwide in the news.
People want to believe it and pretend things will not be too bad, even as they continue to see the proof against it. People continue to get sick, their demise almost a sure thing after a few days of being infected. The people we follow are immune to it and yet after surviving, many fell to accidents, to unrelated infections, to the action of other people. It feels very realistic, especially because without the normal technological advantages, electricity, running water, the ability to buy food in convenience stores, etc we are not equipped to make a decent living.
Stu, Andros, Tom, Franie, Harold, oh we follow so many people they feel very realistic. Franie is a bit annoying to me, first because even after the end of the world and their new issues they have to overcome she still has time to focus 80% of the time in stereotypes and condemning people based on her own stupidity. She is annoying, she is selfish and fickle used to getting her way, and to the very end she does not seem to change much.
The story changes and it weaves a supernatural aspect. People start dreaming things, a scary big someone chasing them. It is a very similar feeling but still hard to believe, I mean it is perfectly understandable. You suddenly have dreams that scare you, its best to deny the possibility, I mean you barely survived the plague and then you worry about a boogeyman.
It is a very readable story, we have a few cringe scenes, there are several issues. It is intimidating as it is a chunky one, it took me a few hundred pages to get into it, we have a lot of time invested to get to know the different groups of people.
My main issue is the resolution of the Dark Man issue. It felt off, almost too convenient, and yet it kind of makes sense. Abigail and Flagg start to have their abilities drop, both around the same time. The ending was not my favorite part, in a way it makes sense and yet feels too convenient.
This book was used for the O.W.L.s and mainly for the post-Apocallyptic stories, this is the first book on that list. It is a good option, very recommendable, even if its a bit big book.
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