The Stand by Stephen King

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In Stephen King's 1,100-plus page thriller, a plague that kills 99.4 percent of the human race is only the beginning of a multi-perspective story about what happens when the survivors try to get back to living their lives. 


After detailing the plague from when it first breaks contact with the first humans, the Stand follows the ones who are left as they make their way across the continent, sometimes seemingly guided by visions in their dreams. Most of the characters begin to have dreams about an old woman and travel toward it. But there is someone else, a dark figure, also present in their dreams.


While adjusting to the new rules set in motion by the lack of authority and free supplies abundantly available in any abandoned store, some of the survivors even begin to cultivate new societies. 


Some band together under the unity of the good, but some follow the dark figure in their dreams. Because along with the musicians, teachers, stay-at-home moms and veterinarian survivors, there are also robbers, murderers and pyromaniacs, and people with different intentions than those of the emerging free society.


The stand between good and evil is the final episode of the book. 

The novel is long, but think of it as a long distance drive. If you decide to read the Stand, the King's storytelling sings throughout the book, like driving past very interesting scenery, so at least the reading will be time well spent. And money well spent, because the Stand is available at Amazon.com for a couple dollars. It is also available on the Kindle, as an audio book and in a variety of other formats.


The frightening and fascinating story has been made into a movie and a comic book series. 

If you are reading the book and need a refresher in the characters, visit Wikipedia for a complete list of everything in the book. (aka spoiler alert).


"The End of the World is Only the Beginning."




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Kindle 2

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I have been using the Kindle 2 since December. This is my first experience with an e-reader and while I was apprehensive at first about reading books off a "computer" screen, the Kindle 2 has exceeded my expectations and does a great job of getting out of the way and allowing the reader to focus on the words on the page and transport them to the places described by the authors of the stories.

In fact, though it has a few drawbacks, I actually like reading books better on the Kindle than in paper form. I know some people will think that it a ridiculous statement to make, but I challenge those people to at least try the Kindle 2 and see what i'm talking about. Also, the device may not be for everyone, but I think Amazon has done a great job and I am anxious for future versions of the Kindle and other devices as the e-reader industry continues to evolve.

One thing that blew me away when I first picked up the Kindle 2 was its looks. The outside casing is simple and white, but it's the reading surface that impressed me the most. It looks just like looking at the page of a book, more or less. The Kindle uses E-ink, which is similar to the ink used in traditional books, but it is contained behind the screen. It is super easy to read and yo can adjust the text size to fit your preferences. I find having less text on the screen allows me to read without losing my spot as easy and lets the reader quickly pick up where he left off.

The battery life is great. It's not like a cell phone that has to be charged every couple of days with normal use. I could take the Kindle on a week-long trip and read it every day. With the wireless function turned off, the Kindle just seems to stay on forever. The charging cable is also sleek and portable for when your Kindle needs a boost. It even doubles as a USB charger/connector.

Speaking of wireless, the Kindle 2 uses an always on 3G connection that allows users to access the Internet (in a slightly dumbed-down version because of browser limitations). The 3G can be turned off by the user. You can check e-mail and get information off of Websites, but the Kindle 2 isn't meant to be a high speed surfing machine. Click here to learn how to use Google Reader to read blogs and other content for free on Kindle.

The 3G connection allows users to order books from Amazon, either with one click from a computer or via the Kindle itself. Books, magazines and blogs can be delivered to the Kindle's "desktop" automatically, for a fee of $1 to $15 per month, depending on the content. Some blogs are a steal for $1 per month, and some newspapers are even worth the $15 price tag.

I subscribed to The Wall Street Journal for a while, and the daily news it provided was of national interest, professional and abundant. Several large city papers including the Detroit Free Press and Denver Post offer Kindle versions. The Kindle editions include most of the daily news content and even some pictures. Another nice feature is that Amazon allows readers to subscribe for free for two weeks to try out any newspaper, magazine or blog subscription on the Kindle. Click here for tips on managing Kindle subscriptions.

Another advantage of the Kindle that may not be apparent at first is that it can be used for hands-free reading. I hate to say i'm now too spoiled to be bothered by turning pages, but it is nice to be able to set the Kindle on a surface and read without having to hold the pages open. Using the buttons to "turn the pages" feels very natural.

There are several digital features that make note-taking and looking up words on the page a breeze. The on-board keyboard works well; just type in any word and Kindle will search the book you are reading for it.

I could go on and on about how much I like the Kindle. Maybe it's because I like gadgets and I also like reading, but I have been reading long novels non-stop since I got it and it has replaced my laptop for a lot of online reading.

So, with the many choices of E-readers out there, I would definitely recommend the Kindle. That doesn't mean i'm not saving my pennies for an iPAD, but I will still use the Kindle a lot if I do get Apple's tablet, which does not use E-Ink and I suspect would be hard on the eyes after hours of reading. The devices are designed for different things, but the Kindle does what it is designed to do very well.


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