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4.06 AVERAGE
4.06 AVERAGE
I have never read a horror book before, and with my only knowledge of "IT" being based on the first part of the film remake, I dove in with nothing more than the expectations that Stephen King's reputation foster. The unique storytelling style, shifting between various time periods that this story covers, not linearly, but back and forth where it seems fit, keeps you on edge. The answers that can be answered for one set of protagonists are awaiting you in a completely different story, in a completely different time period.
It truly is a testament that during the two weeks of listening to the audiobook, I was terrified of clowns, a fear that I never had before. To be able to build suspense, stress, a terror so effectively that the reader manifest new fears, well into their adulthood, is nothing short of a compliment to the quality of this book. I truly enjoyed this experience and the depth to which King goes in creating these horrifying scenarios and scares!
I do have a concern with the author's fluid and ease of usage of racist phrases and the "rich" descriptions when describing female protagonist [both young and old, kinda creepy]...
It truly is a testament that during the two weeks of listening to the audiobook, I was terrified of clowns, a fear that I never had before. To be able to build suspense, stress, a terror so effectively that the reader manifest new fears, well into their adulthood, is nothing short of a compliment to the quality of this book. I truly enjoyed this experience and the depth to which King goes in creating these horrifying scenarios and scares!
I do have a concern with the author's fluid and ease of usage of racist phrases and the "rich" descriptions when describing female protagonist [both young and old, kinda creepy]...
[audiobook] obviously this is a cult classic and i saw the movie years ago and have wanted to read it since - it is good, dark, scary, twisted, etc. but having read more of king’s more recent work, i feel like this doesn’t hold up as well. under the dome & 11/22/63 are both so much better. listening to it could have something to do with it though.
This would have been a solid 4 star rating, or even a 4.5 star rating if not for the infamous child orgy scene.
It was such a great book. The storytelling was amazing, the tension was chilling, and I adored the format of jumping back and forth in time.
By all means, this should have been a masterpiece, but it was soured by what is essentially child porn, for how graphically it's written.
It was such a great book. The storytelling was amazing, the tension was chilling, and I adored the format of jumping back and forth in time.
By all means, this should have been a masterpiece, but it was soured by what is essentially child porn, for how graphically it's written.
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Mass/school shootings, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail
the movies are fun but don’t waste your time reading this lengthy pile of racist misogynistic dog shit. why is a child gang bang necessary??? I was warned but my curiosity got the better of me on this one.
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Great read! I truly felt connected to this story and these characters. I definitely thought it was super wordy (in true Stephen King fashion) but overall amazing! I also felt that the main problem with this read was that I constantly waited for something to happen and felt completely underwhelmed until the last 100 pages. Also, the amount of slurs/belittling remarks to anyone that isn’t a straight white man got really old really fast.
i've given this review a lot of thought so give me a minute to get it out
this is a book of 3 stories: the losers club as kids, the losers club as adults and the town of derry's dark history. this is also the order in which i most enjoyed the storylines.
in true stephen king fashion, half the book is setting up the characters and the town of derry. most of the losers gang don't actually meet until about 40% of the way in. you would think "oof that's so boring", but this was my favourite part of the book. ben, bill , beverly, eddie and richie are all such real people to me. (mike and stan less so). the way we are introduced to them is so formulaic that the chapters have a nice rhythm to them. up until about when they started to go down into the sewers (80 % ish?) i was really thinking wow this might be my second favourite King (nothing will top misery for me, sorry)
now lets get to my dislikes. stephen the n words and slurs and jewish jokes were a lil too far for me. i get that its set in the 50's and this book was also written a long time ago, but COME ON. unnecessary if you ask me.
the climax of both young and adult plotlines lost me. the past and present battle with IT was just far too metaphysical for me. like what do you mean it all happened in their heads? they just stood there? no wonder the cut the ritual of chud and the turtle out of the movie. and if you've seen the movie and are reading this, yes there is a cosmic turtle.
and this wouldn't be a complete review of IT without talking about that one scene... yes you know it... the orgy scene. stephen what the fuck. people who try to say "okay yeah its a little weird but necessary for the storyline are WRONG. i also tried to keep an open mind. BUT i can confidently say its weird and gratuitous. stephen gives some explanation of "oh after they thought they defeated IT and were lost in the sewers they were starting to get scared and lose hope" SO THEY HAD SEX? huh??? makes no fucking sense. they're 11!! again, not shocked that they cut this from the movie.
anyways, 4 stars.
this is a book of 3 stories: the losers club as kids, the losers club as adults and the town of derry's dark history. this is also the order in which i most enjoyed the storylines.
in true stephen king fashion, half the book is setting up the characters and the town of derry. most of the losers gang don't actually meet until about 40% of the way in. you would think "oof that's so boring", but this was my favourite part of the book. ben, bill , beverly, eddie and richie are all such real people to me. (mike and stan less so). the way we are introduced to them is so formulaic that the chapters have a nice rhythm to them. up until about when they started to go down into the sewers (80 % ish?) i was really thinking wow this might be my second favourite King (nothing will top misery for me, sorry)
now lets get to my dislikes. stephen the n words and slurs and jewish jokes were a lil too far for me. i get that its set in the 50's and this book was also written a long time ago, but COME ON. unnecessary if you ask me.
the climax of both young and adult plotlines lost me. the past and present battle with IT was just far too metaphysical for me. like what do you mean it all happened in their heads? they just stood there? no wonder the cut the ritual of chud and the turtle out of the movie. and if you've seen the movie and are reading this, yes there is a cosmic turtle.
and this wouldn't be a complete review of IT without talking about that one scene... yes you know it... the orgy scene. stephen what the fuck. people who try to say "okay yeah its a little weird but necessary for the storyline are WRONG. i also tried to keep an open mind. BUT i can confidently say its weird and gratuitous. stephen gives some explanation of "oh after they thought they defeated IT and were lost in the sewers they were starting to get scared and lose hope" SO THEY HAD SEX? huh??? makes no fucking sense. they're 11!! again, not shocked that they cut this from the movie.
anyways, 4 stars.