A review by lukerik
The Institute by Stephen King

adventurous emotional tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This really got under my skin. Probably because it’s horrible things happening to kids. I think you could probably read the whole thing as a big metaphor for the treatment of Native American and Aboriginal children by the British Empire. There are a couple of apparently off-hand comments about England that might be there to point your brain in that direction, but there are also comments about the Holocaust so perhaps King wasn’t intending such a specific reading. 

There’s actually quite a lot going on in the novel, more than usual with King, with some interesting Biblical parallels. When they’re in the tunnel and there’re 11 of them (minus the traitor), which would make the hero Jesus Christ. And some clever techniques to make you fear for the hero’s fate. 

I also think King might be sitting there with his middle finger cocked at Stranger Things and a big shit-eating grin on his face. You’re got a bunch of kids, a worn out cop and an evil government institute in the woods. There’s even a character called Winona. There are also call-backs to eighties things but because Stephen King is a legend his call-backs are to his own books, notable Firestarter. And he’s done it in under 500 pages and without any self indulgence and padding. 
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