The End of the World As We Know It: New Tales of Stephen King's The Stand

I hadn't realized that I was a part of an unstructured (and possibly loony) club that loves to read the epic The Stand every year. I started as a young teen when it was published in 1978 with a 1st edition. As soon as I finished it - I read it again. I read it damn near every year since. I have literally read several copies to pieces, and had a few loaners not returned. Too bad about that 1st edition though... I was thrilled to see this anthology of talented writers had put together a compilation of The Stand additions. It is difficult to say exactly what this is, expansions, shadows... however it is WORTHY! I read one short story per night (except for when traveling, oof!) There is an art to the short story that I have discovered many don't have experience with. They are different, approximately 20 pages long, and have more creative license because they must pack a lot into a smaller space. Their endings are often nebulous, leaving it up to the reader to figure out or decide for themselves. To read, bit by bit, other happenings at the beginnings of the pandemic, the middle ground, and the "off into the wild blue yonder" (yes, Nat Cassidy, that was brilliant!) was a treat. Knowing The Stand like I do, I found the different tales like bits and bobs previously overlooked, a shadow here, an echo, a glimpse in a mirror you hadn't seen, or worse, the person sneaking up behind your back in the reflection. This book had many doors. I loved the different countries, the different races, cultures, types. The survivors were fascinating. Stu and Frannie may have wandered off to live their lives, but who did they meet along the way? What about the rest of the world? What happened to the dreamers of both Mother Abigail and Randall Flagg who were still en route to their chosen destinations? Here are some of those stories, and although some were better than others, I really loved reading them all. That is very rare for an anthology and I hope that there will be more volumes after this one. I'm inspired to write my own short stories now that so many have been revealed. Who knows? Do people actually expect a happy ending after all?

Stephen King’s THE STAND is one of my all time favorite books. I was lucky enough to have read it only a few months ago and it opened the door for me to what a book could do. It was EPIC so I was super excited to dive back into the world again. It did not disappoint. The list of contributors of the thirty four stories (by thirty six authors; the book is 600+ pages, so strap in) is phenomenal, and is not limited to horror novelists (although many current greats appear here). There are also selections by writers like Michael Koryta, S.A. Cosby and Meg Gardiner. I don’t think I’ve ever seen an anthology with so many heavy hitters, which speaks to writers’ admiration of THE STAND and, likely, their regard for King. I loved this. I know that each time I review an anthology I likely use the term “mixed bag,” but I am awed at how many of these stories were great, in my opinion…people brought their A game with this one. My favorite stories (and there are a number) were “The Tripps” by Wrath James White, “Lockdown” by Bev Vincent, “Wrong Place, Wrong Time” by C. Robert Cargill, Tim Lebbon’s “Grace,” “Moving Day” by Richard Chizmar, “The Africa Painted Dog” by Catriona Ward (how Captains Tripps affected a particular couple of animals - so inventive!), “Make Your Own Way” by Alma Katsu, Cosby’s “The Legion of Swine,” “The Mosque at the End of the World” by Usman T. Malik (this and several other stories take place outside the U.S., a fact I so enjoyed), and “Awaiting Orders in Flaggston” by Somer Cannon. If you are reading, or thinking of reading, the book you should know at least the basics about THE STAND (or you’ll be lost, or miss too much). Let’s just say you’ll be humming along to your own version of “Baby, Can You Dig Your Man” a lot while reading this (and I love how we may all have an entirely different version of how this song goes). And if you’ve read THE STAND you’ll know it’s not a light, cheery book, and the stories here mirror that; so prepare for some rough stuff. But, oh! If you love THE STAND I would be surprised if you don’t find a lot to love here. These are just great stories. King seems to be pleased with the book which really says it all.

Usually, anthologies don't do it for me. I'll buy if a few of my favorite authors are included, but I usually don't read the whole thing. This hits WAY different. Every author understood the assignment. I count 34 stories here (my math might be off). 3 of them didn't quite work for me. 31/34? For me, that's 'best anthology" in history type of success rate. So right off the bat, you have a LOT of quality writing. Next up, the way it reads. It's absolutely seamless. There is a well-developed sense of continuity here that I thought would be impossible to achieve. This even though stories are set in multiple timelines and settings so diverse there's even a low earth orbit tale. Finally, the references. Multiple references to "The Stand" from the dreams, to the Bateman writings, to a witness to Rita Blakemore's suicide. Nearly 100% of the authors bring something a little different to King's masterpiece while staying on message to some degree. At 800 pages in length, it is a worthy companion piece to the original novel. My Favorites? Of course I gotta shill for my favorite authors!! Lenora by Janz, Every Dog Has His Day by Smith, and "He's a Righteous Man" by Malfi really hit for me but I really loved the stream of consciousness style of "Walk on Gilded Splinters" by David Schow. Just a monolithic work of quality.

Love, love, LOVE this book. An essential read for anybody who adored The Stand.

As described . Thank you

Das Buch ist top und wird gut in die Sammlung passen. Vorbestellung mal wieder etwas problematisch. Vorbestellt im Februar mit Versand durch Amazon.de; tja und dann kam und verstrich der Release-Tag und beim Versand hat sich nix getan. Musste stornieren und diesmal von Amazon US bestellen, und dann war es 5 Tage später auch schon zugestellt. Aber da kann das Buch und die Autoren ja nichts für, daher 5 Sterne.

Was ok, the writing was not as captivating as hoped.

Just finished reading this book and loved it!