Reviews with content warning for Mental illness - It

This was my first Stephen King and it was so much easier to read and so much more enjoyable than I ever expected. King managed to capture the joys of childhood and friendship in youth in a way that whether you had many friends or none, you felt nostalgic for that time in your life. The alternating timelines were very well done and there way the beats of each timeline were matched and eventually flowed into each other helped the story roll along. And it also gave some weight to the overarching idea of recovering the magic of adolescence and the power of belief. There were about seven pages towards the end I’m pretending don’t exist and your man Mike felt a little forgotten at the end but all in all, a really great read. Perhaps not suitable for those who dislike gore but didn’t turn the stomach too much for fans of the genre.

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wickedbastard's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense slow-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

4.75

Damn near perfect.

This is my second time reading IT and I think I enjoyed it much more this time through, now that I know the main beats of the story. I'm very tempted to give it the full 5 stars outright but can't quite make myself do it. It is an AMAZING book -- but not perfect, and it's good to remember that, especially a book as enshrined as this one.

This time 'round I found myself picking up more on Stan as a character, and really enjoying him as a character. He's the doubter, the skeptic, the one who clings to brickwall reality even when the impossible is threatening to destroy him. It might seem like he lacks the capacity for faith but the reality is far too simple: Stan has little except his faith -- faith in the REAL, the tangible, the logical, the proven. And during his confrontations with IT, he is able to weaponize his faith in the real against IT and prevail.

Two scenes stand out (arguably the main two Stan is in at all).

One: Stan's account of the drowned boys in the standpipe. Even re-reading that, it gave me such chills and gooseflesh. The detail and pacing is absolutely flawless in that scene. It is a pure legend and captures the soul of the child from whose perspective it is told. The second: When Stan uses the names of birds to repel the attacks of IT. There is something powerful about that.

I believe in scarlet tanagers even though I never saw one. Same with vultures, and the New Guinea mudlark and the flamingos of Brazil. I believe in the golden bald eagle! And I think there really might be a phoenix somewhere! But I don't believe in you, so get the fuck out of here! Get out! Hit the road, Jack!
-- Stan, altered for continuity.

Last thought for this time:

During the final Ritual of Chüd, I think it should have been Beverly who finished the ritual against IT. As it actually happened, Bill attempted and lost his grip; Richie went in and saved bill, but couldn't hold on long enough; and then Eddie, outside of it all, dealt a mortal wound to IT and paid with his life.

Those first two points are all good with me, but I don't think Eddie's part should have happened. I think it would have been much better if, when Richie was starting to lose his grip, Bev entered the fray and kicked its ass, out there in the cosmic drift. Woman-to-woman, nobody fucks with my friends but me kinda thing. Woulda been cool.

Okay, last last thought: The audiobook was truly a stellar experience. Mine was narrated by Steven Weber and he worked his absolute ass off. He did all of Richie's voices, and Bill's stutter, plus the voices of IT, plus many voices/inflections for certain characters. He also has a really good sense of how to read a book and make the cadence sound natural, off-the-cuff, casual. Listening to his style is pure delight. I will happily listen to any audiobook narrated by Steven Weber.

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adiajamille's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny sad tense

4.25

I read it because the movie from the 90s scared me terribly as a kid. So bad I couldn’t watch it until adulthood. Then with the new ones I started getting curious about the book. Of course there’s some stuff I could’ve done without (THAT section), but I was surprised by the fact that despite the length there wasn’t that much I would’ve cut. And it was interesting how faithful the newer movies were.

*As for the racism and use of racial slurs. This story takes place (mostly) in the 50s and 80s in a small town that has its own special branch of the KKK. The racism was authentic and realistic. And I’m glad he didn’t try to pretend that those things wouldn’t exist in reality, but ESPECIALLY in Derry. Derry, being a place being manipulated by an alien that feeds on fear and other negative emotions. Please be fr if you don’t understand the use of language etc.

*As for Beverly. She was a young girl being abused who grew into a woman being abused. Her story was authentic to girls/ women who experience that, before they find liberation. She did what she could based on how she had been conditioned her entire life.

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