Mid-point Review: The Stand by Stephen King

Here are my thoughts on The Stand half-way through The Standalong.  For details on that click here.

Be cautious!  Spoilers are ahead because I feel it's kinda unavoidable.

• I am so not surprised that the U.S Government engineered a super flu that wiped out mankind, AND spread the infection to other countries so as not to be blamed.  Par for the course wouldn't you think?  I do believe we are one or two sneezes away from a mistake and a world catastrophe, unless it's intentionally done.
• Story moves along quickly since the point of view changes continually, for the most part.  It's not choppy, and as soon as one character may be wearing out their welcome, their story ends and another comes in.
• Stu Redman from Texas is by far my favorite.  Stand up guy, not as old as I thought he was, and a has a tough paper route through life so far.  Thinking he will be the main hero.
• Larry from New York was pretty despicable in my eyes in the beginning.  He was your typical no-responsibility, what's in in it for me, why do I have to do x, kind of guy.  Thought nothing of himself.  Takes a while, but after the death of Rita (no surprise there) and meeting up with Joe and Nadine, he is growing on me.  I think he is finally becoming a man.  
• Nadine = trouble..Enough said.
• The little boy Joe is sweet and such a sad story.  Like how he came around.
• The Dark Man is freaking scary and creepy!  He is the evilest of evil and has been around since the Garden of Eden.  If he shows up at your doorstep you are in trouble my friend.
• I could not imagine being stuck in a jail cell when everyone else dies.  Enough on that.
• The chapter on the people who didn't die from Captain Tripps but from like a bike accident or a broken leg...priceless!  Never thought about those situations happening, but yes, when you're all alone you are most vulnerable to anything!
• Trashcan Man: want to feel sorry, but I don't.  Don't care for him or his story and with his bits I tend to skim rather than read.
• Frannie and Harold....Harold is bad news and Frannie....she should know better.  I get that she is vulnerable and a bit scatter brained due tot he events, but come on, the issues with Harold are going to fester.  As much as I want to like Frannie, I can't completely.  She is a little too sweet for me.
• Mother Abigail: enjoyed her back story and she is a doll.  And a prophet apparently.  Can't remember what happened to her in the movie or anyone else for that matter so curious to see if she has any hidden powers like the Dark Man.

I am up to page 575 and the gang has just left Mother Abigail's farm.  Overall I am enjoying the story.  There are some parts that I feel are over described or explained and I tend to skim those. Like I didn't need five pages to tell me how evil the Dark Man was.  However, one thing I have noticed is that the characters don't seem that developed or something.  They are kind of flat.  Each one is described but they don't really grow.  Is that because of the short time frame that is taking place?  The one character that has grown is Larry, which means he is probably destined for something.  With respect to Stu and Harold I feel like they were holding back and their characters are coming out now.

That's about all I can think of right now.  I am just enjoying the story and letting it played out.  No real deep thinking so far.  Well Mr. King, so far you are not disappointing or pissing me off as you have done in my past experiences.  Kudos!

Be sure to stop by the The Standalong Check-In Page for other people's thoughts so far.

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