So, this is a long book. I like long books. I’m a fast reader so I feel like the longer the book the more worth my while it is. When I read the 1000+ page extended version of the Stand, I couldn’t have been more wrong. Man, I thought that book was horrible. I was worried the same thing was going to happen with Under the Dome.
Turns out, I was pleasantly surprised. The plot of this book, as you can gather from the title, is that a small town called Chester Mill all of a sudden mysteriously surrounded by a dome cutting off their society from the rest of the world. When the dome comes down, a lot of gruesome things happen around the town. A plane flies into it; A car smashes into it; People get cut in half. The usual. It’s what comes after this that makes the book interesting.
It’s hard at first to remember the large ensemble cast. They introduce you to the villain Rennie the framed good guy Barbie and a whole host of other townspeople. At first, it is hard to remember who is who, but you do have 1000 pages to figure it out. Things start getting real tense though. People are freaking out. The villain abuses his power. The police force turns bad. And there is the constant mystery of what is the dome?
The whole book they build up the final few chapters. I had heard from Sweeney that the ending was a bit of a let down, but I was happy with it. In my mind, the story was resolved and I learned everything I wanted to. So, Stephen King, after the disaster called The Stand, I liked Under the Dome.
Glad you liked Under the Dome. I wouldn't even consider the ending a let down, just incredibly sudden. Like, you'd think with 10 pages left in a 1000+ page book things would feel like they were coming to a conclusion, but to me the book was about a situation getting worse and worse and worse more and then even more worse for hundreds of pages and then a resolution of about 2 paragraphs. Either way it was cool to basically get to know the population of an entire town and see so much awful shit go down. I'm still looking forward to The Stand despite your disappointment in it- it seems to be one of King's most beloved books. Maybe I made a mistake in buying the extended version. We'll find out... within a few months.
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