Review: It | Stephen King – A Little Fool Reads

This review is spoiler free.

“We all float down here!”

Published: 2011, by Hodder & Stoughton.
Pages: 1376
Format: Paperback
Genre: Horror, Fiction, Thriller, Fantasy, Mystery, Adult, Paranormal, Suspense, Novels
Contains: Blood/Gore, Murder, Racism, Homophobia, Death, Violence, Anger, Strong Language, Abuse, Child Abuse, Domestic Abuse, Sexual Content, Bullying

‘It’ follows the children of the town of Derry, and what lurks within the sewers, taking on the shape of every nightmare its victim’s have. As time passes, the children grow up, move away and forget the horrors of their childhood. However, they all end up coming back to confront It one more time.

‘It’ has been collecting dust on my shelf for years now, and considering it was nearing Halloween I thought I’d finally take it off and give it a read, hoping for the scare of the decade. Needless to say, I was a little disappointed.

When thinking of ‘It’ by Stephen King, the first thing people think of is the infamous Pennywise the Dancing Clown and its gruesome appearance. However, in reality, Pennywise only takes form for a short amount within the novel. The majority of this book is about the Losers club and their adventures prior and after the events in the sewers at a young age. The beginning of the novel was promising with the infamous Georgie and his paper boat, yet after that it was ramble after ramble for around 1000 pages before the action finally kicked in within the depths of Derry’s sewers.

The Losers club as a whole was an entertaining read however, with loveable characters, such as; Richie and his quirky sense of humour, to Beverly and her kindhearted nature. Their interactions were some of the most enjoyable within the novel, and it was extremely easy to root for their victory against It.

However, one of the main reasons I can’t vote this novel any higher is the length. At approximately 1400 pages, around 1000 of them is unnecessary. The story itself could have been told within four-hundred making for a slow and difficult read to handle. Although, King is a legend within his genre, ‘It’ failed to grip me as much as it promised enough to give it a high rating.

Overall, I enjoyed ‘It’ for the majority. The characters embodied the gruesome tale, and as long as you keep your expectations low for the majority of the story to the end, it’s an enjoyable read.