The Stand

Stephen King. Signet Book, $8.99 (1168pp) ISBN 978-0-451-16953-2

Survivors of a chemical weapon called superflu confront pure evil in this updated and even more massive version of King's 1978 saga. ``The extra 400 or so pages . . . make King's best novel better still,'' said PW. `` A new beginning adds verisimilitude to an already frighteningly believable story, while a new ending opens up possibilities for a sequel . '' (May)

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