The Stand

By: Stephen King

Narrated by: Grover Gardner

Length: 47 hrs and 47 mins

Publisher's summary

This is the way the world ends: with a nanosecond of computer error in a Defense Department laboratory and a million casual contacts that form the links in a chain letter of death.

And here is the bleak new world of the day after: a world stripped of its institutions and emptied of 99 percent of its people. A world in which a handful of panicky survivors choose sides - or are chosen. A world in which good rides on the frail shoulders of the 108-year-old Mother Abagail - and the worst nightmares of evil are embodied in a man with a lethal smile and unspeakable powers: Randall Flagg, the dark man.

In 1978, Stephen King published The Stand, the novel that is now considered to be one of his finest works. But as it was first published, The Stand was incomplete, since more than 150,000 words had been cut from the original manuscript.

Now Stephen King's apocalyptic vision of a world blasted by plague and embroiled in an elemental struggle between good and evil has been restored to its entirety. The Stand: The Complete and Uncut Edition includes material previously deleted, along with new material that King added as he reworked the manuscript for a new generation. It gives us new characters and endows familiar ones with new depths. It has a new beginning and a new ending. What emerges is a gripping work with the scope and moral complexity of a true epic.

For hundreds of thousands of fans who heard The Stand in its original version and wanted more, this new edition is Stephen King's gift. And those who are listening to The Stand for the first time will discover a triumphant and eerily plausible work of the imagination that takes on the issues that will determine our survival.

Cover artwork ©2020 CBS Interactive Inc.

©1978 Stephen King (P)2012 Random House

Critic reviews

"A master storyteller." (Los Angeles Times)

"[The Stand] has everything. Adventure. Romance. Prophecy. Allegory. Satire. Fantasy. Realism. Apocalypse. Great!" (The New York Times Book Review)

"As brilliant a dark dream as has ever been dreamed in this century." (Palm Beach Post)

Buckle Up

Took me almost 40 years on this planet to finally read this book and I feel inadequate to describe the ride. I’ve read plenty of King but was always intimidated by the length of this one. I’m not sure why I ever doubted how fantastic it is. I really appreciate how King takes this from an apocalyptic novel into a supernatural one, as if to imply that when humans are finally leveled by a crisis of this magnitude external forces may feel comfortable sliding on in to cause havoc. Humans always fill in the gaps with God or something else but we never really know. It’s a haul but it is worth it!

M-O-O-N, that spells Awesome.

I haven't read many books by Stephen King; I'm not a fan of horror or science fiction. Still -- this book is superbly written. The characters are unique, intriguing, imperfect and likable. The locations are described with such detail that the pictures in my brain are detailed and colorful. Mr King builds tension beautifully and makes me like the story enough and have enough curiosity that I stuck with it despite the large chunk of religious dogma which would normally inspire me to quit a book. I do not generally like fiction which moralizes through Christianity -- and this book did a lot of that. Still, it was a fascinating view of life during and after an epidemic.

I have one minor complaint. I loved Tom Cullen most of all (as might be guessed by the title to my review). And his relationship with Stuart during their journey east was touching. When Stuart gave Tom Christmas gifts including the infinity symbol, I expected them to be connected from that point forward. And, yet, once they arrived home Tom simply disappeared from the story. And when Stuart agrees to move away with Frances there isn't even a goodbye scene with Tom! I wanted to throttle Stuart! And I still want to throttle Mr. King.

Grover Gardner was wonderful. And his loving and sweet treatment of Tom was perfectly done. He allowed Tom's innocence to shine. Each time Tom spoke, Grover's voice rose higher and I could almost hear him smiling. I loved it and I know it made me love that character even more than I would have.

One of Stephen King's best

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

I would recommend this book to certain friends of mine. The plot might seem a little too dark and ominous for some casual readers, but for anyone who doesn't mind a long well written story, this may be just right for you.

What did you like best about this story?

Compared to some of his other books this novel's plot and content wasn't nearly as dark and sinister (which made me like it more). I have listened to many Stephen King novels and the post apocalyptic story he writes is a definite winner in my book. The only complaint I have regarding the story is that there are so many characters in the novel that I found myself wondering what five other characters were doing while reading about another character. I would like a little more focus on less main characters, but that's just me being picky.

What about Grover Gardner’s performance did you like?

I really liked the narrator for this novel. I'm fairly certain Grover has narrated other Stephen King novels in the past and its easy to hear why. His voice is clear, strong, and deep when it needs to be. Never once did I get tired of listening to his voice. His rendition of all the characters' voices was supremely done. He is still not as good as Frank Muller (RIP) or George Guidall but he is right there with them.

Who was the most memorable character of The Stand and why?

The most memorable character in the novel for me was Tom. M-o-o-n that spells Tom. This partially retarded but loveable character makes this novel one of my favorites. You will know what I mean if you listen to the novel.

Any additional comments?

Overall I would say that this a novel that would appeal to just about any audience. Like I mentioned earlier, this novel isn't as dark as some of his other pieces of literature which puts the focus more on the story developement. Yes there are scenes that are bloody or violent, but not to the degree of grotesqueness that permeates his other works. This novel is one of those social experiment novels that asks the reader (and the author) what would happen is the world went to hell? How would people react? Who would survive? What would motivate them? The answers to these questions and more are in this novel. Give it a listen, you won't be disappointed.

Fantastic Listening!

This book was fantastic! M-O-O-N and that spells fantastic! I really enjoyed the characters and storyline!

Half great, half meh

Great story and the pacing the story kept you wanting more, but half way through the story started to go downhill. The supernatural stuff got in t.f he way of what could have been deeper survival story.

Simply Amazing!

It’s hard to admit that although I’m an avid reader and listener to books on Audible, this is actually the first King book I’ve listened to or read. The length of the book may seem daunting but it is well worth it! As long as you can keep the multiple story lines and characters straight throughout the book, you’re in for a fantastic treat! The narrator was great and honestly a less gifted narrator could have ruined this great piece of literature! Read or listen to this amazing story: ironically my only wish is that the complete version here was actually longer, it’s that good!

The Walkin Dude comes to Town...

Despite being a fun fan of Steven King, I had always avoided starting this novel due to it's length. However,I'm glad I finally took the plunge.

The Stand is certainly a time commitment, but the reward is well worth the effort. I won't delve into spoilers, but this is unlike any other post-apocalyptic horror story I've ever known. Also, Grover Gardner is one of the best narrators in the business. Very highly recommended!

Never a Stephen King fan, until now

This book is still so very relevant, especially in 2020, the year of Covid-19 around the world. I loved the performance as this book took me on emotional highs and lows. I actually whooped out loud in one memorable scene. This story is such a great tale of good vs. evil that will stand the test of time. Never a fan of Stephen King, due to lukewarm endings (sorry SK), this book ended with finesse and a kind of soul searing agony. You won't be disappointed.

Grover Gardner, My New Hero

SOME SPOILERS AHEAD

I just finished this story and I have SO many thoughts.

Overall, it's a wonderful epic story with some superb characters.

But right now, just having finished the uncut version, it still feels overall incomplete, despite a fair amount of downright disgusting, extraneous material. This is only my second King novel but others have noted that his endings oftentimes don't deliver. I certainly felt that way with no closure on any living characters other than Stu, Fran & company.

I kept waiting for a chapter or at least a scene, of Mother Abagail's time in the wilderness. I'd love to have those conversations to read.

Closure: We get lengthy details of multiple people being raped and sodomized but no wrap-up for some of the best characters? Tom and Stu get back and then the end is just about Stu & Fran with no more mention of Tom or Kojak? The heroes, for goodness' sake!

Jess: One other detail that has nagged me this entire book is the lack of assurance that Jess was dead from the plague. Did I just miss this? I'm pretty sure Fran didn't go to his motel to check. After burying her dad she just struck out with Harold and- I waited for it- throughout the book, when she thought of her baby, she didn't think of Jess a single time. There is one last mention of him when Peter is finally born and looks like Jess. But what the heck? Even if she had broken up with the guy, she would have tried to see if he was alive. He was still her friend, and her baby daddy too... Pretty sure Jess was in a motel in the city hoping she would call. I'm surprised this wasn't rectified in the expanded version.

Military: I'm also very aware of Stephen King's portrayal of the military and to some extent, law enforcement. The military personnel are not just universally cowardly, bumbling idiots; they're the cause of the disease, the cause of the outbreak, they're unable to help the situation, and after the plague, every pilot left alive (3) is on the side of evil. They will enable Flagg to firebomb the good guys and maybe even nuke them. Uh... Does King have something seriously against the military? The one notable exception is that there are a few mentions of Ralph having done time in the Army. He's alone among the good.

Women: Another reviewer mentioned King's classification of women in this work. To my count, they are either raped, murdered, pregnant, obsessed with a man and containing no mind of their own, constantly crying, or a delightful combination of those things... Okay, or 108 years old. I would have loved for a character like Dayna or Sue to be more prominent. Nah, murdered. The one female lead (who lives) is the foil to her strong male counterparts: the motherly moral compass of the Free Zone committee, "in a family way" and weak and in need of help, wailing in every other scene she's in, in possession of critically important bits of intuition she doesn't trust, keeping suspicions to herself, causing the deaths of several people... and she's boring. No wonder Stu likes her, she's like a little rabbit.

Okay, those are my major grievances, which I have aired because plenty of other reviews sing praises to the better aspects of this story. Honestly, I went through it quickly because of how engaging most of it is.

The one compliment I have that is just too big not to share is for Grover Gardner. He read the audiobook and he has one of the most beautiful voices I've ever heard. His tone and inflections, pronunciation and characters' voices... Absolutely superb. I'm looking up other books he's narrated so I can listen again to that perfect justice being done to an audiobook.

Even better than the original edit

I am not usually a King fan, but I loved the original version. It was my constant companion while deployed to Haiti, many moons ago. Even though the original was a long novel, I didn't find the new material in this release at all excessive. Grover Gardner's performance was one of the best, if not the best, listen in my experience with audio books - 100+ titles.