Stephen King's IT Book Review

 IT

By Stephen King 

Named one of the best Horror books of all time. Perhaps, ranking first among all.

Published Year : 1986

Page Count, : 1375 pages

Medium Used: Paperback 

Genre : Horror, Science Fiction, Aliens, Thriller, Friendships, Young Adult, 2025-read. 

Rating : 4.55/5 🥳

I took more than 20 days to wrap up this book. I sailed through and finished the last 300 pages in two days time. They were gripping as hell. The author, Mr.King, could stick to the course and content of the story when he is really in the groove. He has immortalized Derry,Maine in my head. I will come to associate the town with IT and horror everytime I hear of it. The story..especially the last 300 pages of it.. is relentless dose of unimaginable horror and madness. Dead bodies walking, alien creatures gestating, vengeful homicidal inmates of asylums escaping, whole towns being under hypnotic seize, hurricanes that blow over towns and destroy them fully, magical and psychic powers in play .. the list goes on. There are intricate and universal forces (which are not in the hands of mortals) are in action in Derry, Maine and though the friends were the actors, they are mere pawns. Loved, loved and admired the overall history behind the origin of this horror IT that would perhaps have taken over the planet if these friends - Bill, Ben, Beverly, Eddie, Mike, Richie and Stan didn't stop it. They make two attempts.. the first when they were around 11 years old(in 1958) - it goes into hibernation then and comes out again in 1985. They are all called back to finally give it a resounding ending. 

IT is a creature that is alien to this planet and it assumes itself to be eternal, never dying. It can read minds through telepathy and assume whatever form it can that is most scary to its prey. It appears as a leper to Eddie, as a big eagle like bird to Mike, kills Bill's brother George as a clown which Kickstarts their involvement in the game of good vs evil. The whole of Derry is under the hypnotic effect of the creature and there are many things which only these children can notice and actually, see. The creature is in the process of multiplying itself when the youngsters sing an end to its shenanigans. 

I think Stephen King has outdone himself with this book .. it definitely is the most engrossing and horrid piece of work I have read in a long time. He did a thorough work and left no loose ends. :) The Character development is sensational. Especially, Henry Bowers is one of the best villains I have ever read. And Richie is super funny but also vulnerable. And Eddie is brave despite being slightly cowardly. Bill is a natural leader and so so thoughtful. Beverly is not just a pretty face .. but a beauty with brains and guts. I have come to love all the characters in the story. King has made them all like my best, well known friends or family in just 1400 pages long novel. I also liked how he was flipping back and forth between their experiences with the creature from 1958 and 1985. He was halting a sentence from 1985 and continuing with 1958 (or vice versa) which I felt is no normal feat of mental agility and word play. 

 I felt there was a bit of rambling he was doing in the first parts of the book. While it definitely filled pages and added to the story on the whole, I felt, the plot would have been just as good without those details. A lot of the stuff about how Derry, Maine was built and constructed really went over the top of my head. He also has a propensity to create images that are quite embarrassing. They make me feel so unclean reading. I mean, his proclivities are spread across all his books and maybe it is quite funny and natural to read stuff about going to the loo or flatulence in public.. but for me, I turn green as a frog,red as a tomato/beet root reading such stuff! Anyways, its only a little adjustment to read the other interesting thoughts and content from his super duper, masterful mind, I guess!