Based in Boulder, Colorado, Hovig Barbarian is a logistics executive who has implemented a strict quality assurance process at Quicksilver Scientific. An avid reader, Hovig Barbarian enjoys the work of Stephen King, from Dreamcatcher to The Stand. The latter novel was more than 800 pages when published in 1978 and has since been extended to a 1,150-page version that reflects the author’s original intent.
In a plot that ties into pandemic events, the book centers on Captain Trips, a weaponized flu virus strain that is released from a testing facility and spares only a few immune people as it traverses the globe. These survivors are left with varying levels of “dark” powers and form societal groups that reflect the values within them. Most notably, Mother Abagail leads a peaceful offshoot in Boulder, while Randall Flagg, the Dark Man, creates a Las Vegas group that is dictatorial and relies on violence.
Combining elements of the supernatural with an exploration of social complexity, King deftly utilizes this post-Armageddon scenario in presenting the “good” survivors in Colorado traveling to Las Vegas to confront the “bad” survivors. The epic battle between communities that ensues is noteworthy in that it does not focus on physical confrontation, but pitches hearts, minds, and beliefs against each other, and forces people to make a choice.
Reflecting The Stand’s relevancy to the events of the pandemic, the lengthy novel has been recast as a 2020 CBS series that stars Whoopi Goldberg as Mother Abagail and Alexander Skarsgård as Randall Flagg.
In a plot that ties into pandemic events, the book centers on Captain Trips, a weaponized flu virus strain that is released from a testing facility and spares only a few immune people as it traverses the globe. These survivors are left with varying levels of “dark” powers and form societal groups that reflect the values within them. Most notably, Mother Abagail leads a peaceful offshoot in Boulder, while Randall Flagg, the Dark Man, creates a Las Vegas group that is dictatorial and relies on violence.
Combining elements of the supernatural with an exploration of social complexity, King deftly utilizes this post-Armageddon scenario in presenting the “good” survivors in Colorado traveling to Las Vegas to confront the “bad” survivors. The epic battle between communities that ensues is noteworthy in that it does not focus on physical confrontation, but pitches hearts, minds, and beliefs against each other, and forces people to make a choice.
Reflecting The Stand’s relevancy to the events of the pandemic, the lengthy novel has been recast as a 2020 CBS series that stars Whoopi Goldberg as Mother Abagail and Alexander Skarsgård as Randall Flagg.
