Each month Abington Library will feature a favorite book from a faculty, staff member, or student. They will give a brief synopsis of their chosen book.
Debbie Ulsperger works in the Cashier's office and specializes in 3rd party billing and student accounts.
My favorite author is Stephen King so I have chosen King's book, The Stand to review.
It was published in 1978 and republished in 1990 in its true uncut version. It starts with people getting sick and dying from an unknown flu-like virus. It wipes out 99.9% of the population. Imagine that situation. What else is gone when 99% of the population is gone? No power, no phones, everything we expect daily is no longer there.
The book is a good versus evil story. Whom can you trust and how far can you trust them? Do the strong stay strong or do the weak step forward and become the leaders? One of the main characters is a deaf-mute, bullied his whole life because of his disability, who becomes one of the strong leaders. This situation would be a chance to reinvent yourself.
In true Stephen King fashion, there are twists and turns as the characters make their way to start a new society. This book takes a look at society and how it functions. It makes us think about what we value in life and whether that value is misplaced. Where would you start with rebuilding? What worked and what didn't work in the old society? These questions and many more, would need to be answered.
I have read both versions of this book. Be prepared to spend a good amount of time in reading this book as the uncut version is about a thousand pages. It is a book that I highly recommend to anyone that wants to immerse themselves in an "oh my, that could happen to us" book. This book is rated as his #1 best book by fans of Stephen King.
