Under the Dome

Manufacturer: Hodder & Stoughton
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The achievement of Stephen King is unlike that of any writer. He has taken a genre which was somewhat moribund when he came to it -- the horror novel -- and transformed it into one of the most phenomenally successful areas for quality popular writing -- what's more, his unprecedented sales success has inspired hundreds of imitators, and while few can match his inspiration (or, for that matter, his jawdropping productivity), there is no question that he has rejuvenated the horror field. Not that King confined himself to the strict parameters one might associate with the genre; several of his books -- such as this latest one, The Dome, stray into science fiction territory). But King’s achievement doesn't end there -- such is his influence over other genres (notably the crime and thriller field) that writers in those genres have been obliged to up the ante in terms of gruesome compulsiveness (Thomas Harris’ Hannibal Lecter books, for instance, owe much to the King transformation of the popular literature field). And as for that loaded world – ‘literature’ -- isn't Stephen King reputed to be the author who has brought quality writing into a field not noted for such things? (Not, that is, since the halcyon days of Edgar Allen Poe in a previous century). Is that claim true of the new book?

So... The Dome. This massive novel, 25 years in the writing (if Stephen King is to be believed), is quite his most ambitious project, and brings to mind earlier blockbuster novels which aficionados considered to be among the writer's best work. Something like the basic premise here may be found in a classic piece of British science fiction, John Wyndham’s The Midwich Cuckoos (filmed as Village of the Damned). In that book, a village is isolated by an invisible force field -- and in the King novel, the residents can no more get out than the outside world can enter. John Wyndham's narrative involved the insemination of the women in the town by unseen alien presences, but Stephen King in The Dome has chosen to work in a different area. When the small New England town of Chester's Mill is cut off from the outside world by a mysterious force, all the laws of physics seem to be up for grabs; cars leaving town come up against invisible barriers, and there is death and mutilation for whatever was caught in the boundaries of an invisible field. Inside the dome, the inhabitants of the town deal with the catastrophe in a surprising (and often alarming) variety of ways: ex-military hero Dale Barbara has already come up against the antisocial elements of the town, and has been trying to get out. But the self-styled boss of the town, the demagogue Big Jim Rennie, soon establishes a Machiavellian control (another echo of the books of John Wyndham, in which catastrophe always throw up vicious, fascist-style leaders who capitalise on the disaster).

As ever, King develops his massive dramatis personae with great assurance, and demonstrates once again that his imagination in terms of plotting is as strong as ever. Those, however, who have made a case for King as a quality writer rather than a great popular entertainer will not find much ammunition for their arguments here, but this great sprawling canvas affords many pleasures. --Barry Forshaw

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Very enjoyable but not without its flaws

Review Date: March 15, 2010

Reviewer: R. Wells, Kent, UK

Under The Dome is not the best Stephen King novel I have read but is still a very enjoyable book, which I found difficult to put down while I was reading it. The idea of a town enclosed by a dome is not necessarily an original one - many people have pointed out the Simpsons Movie but the idea was also explored in the Luna brothers' recent comic book series `Girls', which is also rather good - but that doesn't really matter to me. With King, it's the writing that matters, not the originality of the basic idea. The main thing that I didn't like about UTD was the central villain, Jim Rennie. I know you are not supposed to like a villain, but Rennie seemed like too much of a caricature for my liking, as did his son, Junior, and most of the other bad guys, who were just plain bad, with few redeeming features. Rennie was clearly an idiot, but even an idiot would be slightly worried that his actions would get him in big trouble if the dome suddenly vanished, which he didn't seem to be. I also thought that things fell apart inside the dome too quickly, that those inside the dome were too willing to believe that our hero, Dale Barbara, was guilty of the crimes he is framed for, and I would have preferred a slightly stronger ending (then again, the ending is not much more disappointing than the endings to The Stand and It, and they are regularly cited as King's best books). On the plus side, our heroes are mostly very likable, particularly `Barbie', Julia and Rusty, which almost made up for the awfulness of Jim Rennie. My need to discover their fate and the mystery of the dome kept me gripped throughout, and like most of the dozen or so Stephen King books I have read, UTD hooked me in almost as soon as I started reading. At around 900 pages, it's a long book but it's very readable and certainly didn't seem as long as it is. In the end, it didn't quite deliver on what it seemed to promise early on - the bumf surrounding this book compared it to The Stand, but despite a large cast of characters, it bears little resemblance to that book in theme or in scope - but it's an enjoyable, entertaining read, albeit one that I doubt I'll ever reread.

More than meets the eye...

Review Date: February 24, 2010

Reviewer: Mick L, Leicester UK

I have read King since The Shining was publised in the seventies and he has been my favourite author for a long time. I had all but given up on him though as his books post Dark Tower seemed like the writing of a spent force. And I had low hopes for this book, despite claims it was a concept he had years ago it stills seems a lot like the basic plot of The Simpsons movie.

Initially I was not impressed - I read for a couple of hundred pages and thoroughly hated the book - it seemed that nasty characters juist did nasty things to service the plot. Then it dawned on me that King was writing in a new way for him - the book if viewed as a parable to the seizing of power by Bush jnr and co and their manipulation of the 9/11 events to increase their power base, is a fascinating read.

If you doubt this then I would point out that King even mentions Bush early in the text as a clue and follows up later with references to torture that was acceptable to the Bush administration in Iraq - the horrendous act of waterboarding prisonoers until they said what was wanted by the interogator.

If you missed this go back and have another read. Consider the many conspiracy theorie that have arisen since 9/11 and the events depicted in the book to burn down the newspaper to increase Rennie's power under the dome. Leave it with you to consider further.

A curious mix of good a bad..

Review Date: February 22, 2010

Reviewer: Nicky H, UK

Like most of the people who bought this book I am a massive King fan, with 'The Stand' being my all time favourite book. I read the reviews which compared Under the Dome to The Stand and I was hopeful for another masterpiece. I finished this book a couple of weeks ago, but have held off on writing my review to get a bit of perspective on the book, but I still find it very difficult to describe.

To me, Under the Dome was a book of contrasts, on one hand there was some excellent writing which drew me right into the story and had me literally unable to put the book down (particularly towards the end), but on the whole the plot was very contrived and almost could have been thought up by a child. Looking back I felt that King was taking me into a maze as there were several occasions where I felt a part of the plot was built up only to end abruptly and then the story would veer off in another direction.

The characters in this book at times felt a bit false to me, lacking the depth that would allow me to identify with them. There also seemed to be far more 'baddies' than 'goodies' which I felt made uncomfortable reading at times.

This is a very readable book and I would recommend it, but it is not King at his storytelling best.

Stephen King can still write

Review Date: February 19, 2010

Reviewer: Mr. J. Armstrong, Scotland

If you like Stephen King you will enjoy. A good long yarn that keeps the pages turning.

Never forget how good King can be

Review Date: February 15, 2010

Reviewer: Nicola Pudlich, yorkshire

I'm a big Stephen King fan but even I have to admit that his books can be hit and miss. My enjoyment from reading King's books stem from the fact that when i am actually sat reading his books I am totally submerged in the world he creates. My favorite is IT,not just because its scary as hell, but also because i loved the sense of real friendship throughout the book. This book was a surprise, I'm not into science fiction so didn't really expect to like it but, again, he drew me in with his wonderful characters and excellent storytelling. If you like King but have been put off by his last few books, go for this one. You won't be dissapointed.