The Stand Complete and Uncut by Stephen King is without a doubt the longest story I have ever read. This edition of King’s iconic novel leaves out nothing in its quest to enlighten readers about Captain Trips, the superflu accidentally released by the government that wipes out 99.99% of Earth’s population, and its aftermath. Survivors are drawn by their dreams to one of two clans left on Earth- essentially representing good and evil. The presence of the supernatural arguably plays a very important role to the plot, and there’s no exception to King’s usually masterful portrayal of it.

There are several storylines in The Stand, so many that for almost any other writer readers would be confused at the seemingly overwhelming amount of information. King’s near flawless prose makes it easy to distinguish the characters from one another. Written in the third person, readers follow the supposed antagonists almost as much as the protagonists. The conflict between the two ‘clans’ is epic, and this book catalogues every instant of it.

Espionage, conflicting love interests, the supernatural, drama, war, pure hatred. There’s not much that over half a million words leaves out. If you’re someone who hates it when there are no more pages to turn, pick up The Stand Complete and Uncut by Stephen King- you certainly won’t regret it.