Get immersed

Probably the best compliment I can give to Stephen King's huge, sprawling novel, Under the Dome, is that it could have been longer. In fact, I wouldn't have minded if Mr. King's lavish tale of a mysterious, impenetrable dome suddenly appearing over a sleepy Maine town had been presented to us as a trilogy. No, really. The first book could have been 500 or 600 pages long and covered the appearance of the dome and its initial effects on the residents of Chester's Mill; the second book could have been about the same size and titled Life Under The Dome, depicting exactly that as the trapped townspeople adjust to their predicament, and many begin to scheme; and the third book could have been called Endgame or some such similar title, showing over the course of another 500 or 600 pages everything coming to a head. There was certainly enough potential story in Mr. King's compelling, imaginative scenario to fuel all that, to produce a story spanning weeks or even months.

Instead we have this one detailed yet fast-moving book that does all those things over the course of about 1000 pages that cover just under a week in the lives of the characters (things go bad really quickly in the story). And, who knows, maybe it's better that way. Because, even though I wanted to see more of the dozen or so active characters and their various situations, that doesn't mean that a wish like that should be granted. After all, isn't it a sign that something's working if it leaves you wanting more?

In Under the Dome, Mr. King does what good authors should always do: He gives us a good bit of what we expect from a favorite author, but then throws in some surprises, too. Here we get the former in the way of that old King stand-by: a huge disaster coming out of nowhere that, as well as scaring us (and doing that quite well), is really there to reveal the true natures of the various characters in play. On the latter front, I was pleasantly surprised at the skillful, artful way that poetic description, especially of various characters' dark memories and the feelings going along with them, is weaved into the more immediate, concrete story of the dome and the deadly situation it presents.

More specifically, the increasing frustration of the dome, soon seen by many of the town's residents as a cruel cosmic joke inflicted by an uncaring, anonymous outside force (God? Aliens? Government scientists?), eventually dredges up several characters' own memories of cruelty, either cruelty they experienced at the hands of others, or, more sadly, cruelty they themselves inflicted. In fact, these dark memories, often presented in a dreamlike and nightmarish manner, might be the key to the characters' very undreamlike, increasingly dangerous current situation.

I really shouldn't say too much more, as it's best to just jump into the book, immerse yourself, and discover the story's surprises for yourself. But it's safe to tell you this: the big set pieces work great; the more intimate set pieces are just as good; and the characters, both the nicer ones and those of the more villainous variety, are all interesting and complex. My favorite characters were the ones who started out one way but found hidden strengths, depths, and skills as a result of the dome. This happens with a handful of both "good" and "bad" characters, though I liked it best when it happened to the good characters.

My final thought is an echo of my opening one: If Under the Dome seems potentially interesting to you, don't let the size of the book scare you off. Really, like me, you'll probably end up wishing it didn't end so soon.

Under the Dome is available on Kindle for $9.99.